The Case for Foreign Comic Book Collecting (Part 3)

Establishing foreign contacts may seem daunting at first, but is actually easy if you put in the work.  Let it be known on Foreign Comics Forum that you are interested in a particular title, character, publisher, or country.  Contribute to the discussions and pursue leads if they are offered by fellow foreign comic collectors.  Look on eBay and the web for those comics you are interested in and contact foreign sellers to see if they have the comics you are looking for.  Build your reputation as a reliable buyer so other collectors will be willing to help you in your pursuits.  Be willing to share your foreign contacts with these other collectors and help them in their endeavors.

Fostering the relationships you build while pursuing foreign comic books is extremely important.  Whether the contact came through a purchase on eBay, through a referral from another foreign comic book collector, or through a purchase from a foreign comic book store, eventually you will want to purchase more comics from the country or region.  After a successful purchase, I make it known to the seller that I am interested in Star Wars comics so if they find more comics, they can contact me.  This fostering of the relationship has paid off for me several times.  I purchase a couple of Greek Kabanas Hellas Star Wars comics from a seller on eBay.  Now whenever this seller find new Star Wars comics, he has contacted me first before listing those comics on eBay.  I have been able to complete my Greek Kabanas Star Wars collection (twice!) because of this.  The seller from Peru that I have purchased most of the Columbian Star Wars comics from also offered me the two Chilean Star Wars comics that I now have in my collection.

As I said, foreign comic book collection is both a challenging and rewarding pursuit.  It is challenging because the availability and knowledge about what is available can be scarce and you will need to invest time in researching your interests.  It is rewarding when you do purchase a foreign comic, especially if it is a comic that was not known about before or is hard to obtain.  I feel the entire process of acquiring a foreign comic book, from the research needed through establishing the contacts and finally deciding on a price and purchasing the comic is what makes foreign comic collecting compelling.  It is not just a matter of opening up your wallet and handing over your cash.  Happy hunting!