This week I'm focusing on trying to find new homes for the rare books and manuscripts I have in stock. Let's see how I get on. To register for my 'Secret Histories' catalogue, click here: www.tomwayling...
I know this is a books channel, but I really enjoy the videos where you also talk about the business side of things. It's such an interesting business that you run.
I have a first American of Samarillion, not worth a great deal as it was published after Tolkien's death, but still was happy to find it in a used bookstore. Thank you,very enjoyable, good voice.
So Tom, you've now got me looking through some of the books I've purchased, received, or collected over the years, and one that is relevant to today's video is my copy of The Silmarillion. I bought this copy during my senior year in high school, 1977, and it's a First Printing of the First American Edition from Houghton Mifflin Company. JRR had died 3 years earlier, this was Christopher's first publication as editor, and since I was already a big Tolkien fan, I grabbed the hard-copy version for $10.95. The dust jacket is well worn, and there are some spots where the corners of the binding have worn, but it is a well-loved book. I took it from Vermont to South Dakota for grad school, to France for more grad school, and back home to Vermont. I've read it many times, and now my daughter is reading it.
Thank you so much for sharing the business side of bookselling. Some of us are figuring it out as we go and don't have a savvy dad to talk it over with. 🙂
Everything is so interesting, matching the book with its new owner. The two prayer books are exquisite. I hope they will have a new home soon. Thank you for sharing all this process with us!
Thank you for this insight. Something that strikes me; you in the UK and also our friends in the US have such a long and rich pool of books from which to draw your stock from. The challenge I have observed here in Australia is that relating to new books, we forever have imported nothing but garbage. Very few first editions, very few limited or special editions etc etc... When you go book hunting there simply isn't anything of value. Having said that, there are book collectors like myself who do purchase a lot from the UK and US. These people do have amazing collections, however when you understand the enormous cost of shipping these books to Australia, the dilemma then becomes when trying to buy the books, they want their $150 -$200+ back to cover the shipping. It makes for a difficult dynamic which I am trying to wrap my head around how a rare book dealer would work here. Don't misunderstand, there are book dealers here, but when you examine the pricing, the sellers must have been absolutely roasted on price. It is my opinion, if sellers are being so burned, it can in no way be positive overall for the hobby of book collecting in Australia.!?
You could do similar to what book collectors in earlier days used to do: go traveling abroad with an extra suitcase to fill with your purchases. But yeah, even being in the US & buying books from Europe, the cost of shipping can be steep. Discouragingly steep.
I feel your pain! I admire several authors who were published in Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. Back in the day, the problem was finding what I wanted in paper catalogs but I could buy nearly anything I could find. Now, I can find wonderful things online but I can no longer buy whatever I want because the cost of shipping can be as much as10 times the price of the book. ☹
I love this so much! I could watch you talk about your work forever. I work in a used bookstore, but we don't deal with many antiquarian books, so this is fascinating. I'm going to check out your website and possibly treat myself to an early birthday present.😊
Well well well. Saw your video on the history of western philosophy. Got a 1st edition with war office map for a good price. Thought id sell it on.....but it smelt like a book should so im keeping it! You, sir, are my guru
It breaks my heart that you have to sell your books but This channel has become my new addiction! What an amazing escape during the middle of a day - much love from New Orleans.
I know you're still young in terms of a business, but have you noticed any fluctuations in buying or selling yet? At our large used bookstore here in the States, we know that December is a big sales month, and now April will see an annual Book Crawl - visits by potential buyers to about fifteen or so independent bookstores (new and used) in the Houston area. Weekends are always better for sales than Monday/Tuesday. And further on the business side of things, are you required for tax purposes to do an annual inventory? That's a requirement over here. I'll be in Oxford hitting the shops in about two weeks, but I focus on US authors - so no stepping on your toes. ;-)
A great video; thanks, Tom. You work so very hard to build your business, and I'm rooting for your success. Thanks for putting out all this content, very interesting.
Love this kind of video Tom! I'd also really love to get an idea of the net profit you make selling books - maybe you wouldn't want to share that on individual books but perhaps you could do a weekly or monthly net total sometime to give us an idea?
I've not sold any books, but I have used them for trade at used and rare bookstores,especially when traveling to an area where the old book woud have more interest.
This is a great channel, thank you for sharing your experiences with us. Could you do a bookshelf tour, also would like to see more of the Arabic books you get, even if they sell quickly.
I was actually very curious before you posted this video, but it seems apropos now. You being a collector of rare books and owning a business selling the same items you collect, how do you keep from selling your more prized possessions when you need to refill the coffers? This is one thing I’ve always struggled with! I always have items I could easily sell, but those are typically the same items I cherish the most.
Did I listen to this whole video in the background while on a mental health walk? Yes, yes I did. Question if I may: Would you be willing to say how much the cost of the books were to get the 4135? Not individually but your total cost. I know there’s many more expenses related to time and processing and shipping and everything else, but just a rough idea of what your initial outlay was. Thank you so much. 🙏🏻
Here in north Dallas texas there just aren’t many decent book stores. Theirs Barnes and noble, half price books(which are still expensive), and some goodwill stores(charity stores) but their book selection is tiny. I miss living in Utah where books were easy to come by now I’m struggling
Thank you for sharing this side of the business! Really neat to watch! I collect, buy, and sell vintage girls’ toys and while they aren’t worth nearly as much as your books (for the most part, anyway), it’s pretty cool to see the similarities. I thrift all the time for toys but I’ll definitely be checking the book section when I’m out now!
Very enjoyable video. Reminds me of my days working in the bookselling business. That took a big hit with the end of the Net Book Agreement and a lot of independents went under. £4,000+ - I wonder what the profit margin is on this.
Do you happen to know anypone who has a original david day tolkein besitary for sale. Remebr a old friend has his dads old copy and the art in it was just beautiful. Espcially the full 2 page map of Arda, but all the modern ones dont seem to have alot of what i remember from the book.
Yes, I do! I've just added a first edition of it to my website so you can buy it if you like. Use the code ARDA for a little discount. Tom. - www.tomwayling.co.uk/product-page/a-tolkien-bestiary
I use an app on my phone called CLZ Books which is brilliant. You have to pay an annual subscription of I think it's about £13 but it's easy to use, brilliant search for adding books to your collection, and it backs up to the cloud for you as part of your subscription. Can't recommend it enough.
I use a British programme called Bookseller, but as the name suggests its geared more towards dealers than private collectors. A spreadsheet can do a lot of what one needs to record though!
Loving this beneath the covers of a rare books bookseller series!! Did your final total £4135 include the cost of the books you purchased during the week ?
Pardon my ignorance, but do you have a physical store or are all your transactions online? I'm so glad I stumbled across this channel. It's really interesting.
Now reduce that income with your buying price for the books, rent and some sort of salary... I envy you for working with what you love, so I really hope that it pays the bills. 😊
Hey Tom, could you tell me why some red dustwrappers on books fade? In my collection I have some that have faded over time and some that the colour has remained perfect. Some of the ones that have faded are newer than the ones that haven't.
Hey I’ve been trying to reach you. I have the George Elliot works collection but it’s an older edition. If you’d like to take a look at them let me know. Cheers
