Copag cards interest thread (1 Viewer)

[dennis63]

In the past week, I've been reaching out to the major playing card companies to inquire about becoming a retailer for them -- KEM, Copag, Modiano and Gemaco.

I love Gemaco's, but prefer their traditional "gem back," which I believe may be "casino only." I haven't found it for sale elsewhere.

Copag has responded.

Is there any interest here on PCF in purchasing Copag cards? Their two-deck setups usually retail at $16.95 for poker, $15.95 for bridge. I would be offering them for something less than that here if there is any interest in any of their lines.

 

[Psypher1000]

Copags are already a very reasonable option for the pricepoint; cheaper would be even better.

While I'm not in the market for cards and won't be for the forseeable future, I would absolutely support Key West offering Copags & wouldn't hesitate to refer folks to your site for them.

 

[dennis63]

I have a setup of Copag poker "peek" jumbo index cards. They have a nice feel and a traditional back. I also like that the small corner "peek" pips show up in a dealer peek mirror on the blackjack table.

Responses from several other card makers are pending.

 

[detroitdad]

I buy a few ser ups of copags a year off of Amazon. Love the cards

 

[Fleming]

I'd certainly buy Copags from you.

 

[ohikthxbye]

I love Copags. It doesn't stop me from buying them, but I don't like the fading/deterioration of the color on the cards with substantial use. It's just annoying haha

 

[manamongkids]

I buy mine from amazon, they usually offer free shipping with a 12-15 price range, if you can beat that, then yes

 

[BGinGA]

If you could get Fournier's at a decent price, you'd probably have trouble keeping them in stock. Just sayin'....

 

[dennis63]

If you could get Fournier's at a decent price, you'd probably have trouble keeping them in stock. Just sayin'....

I'll be talking to USPC this week.

 

[beaver]

If you could get Fournier's at a decent price, you'd probably have trouble keeping them in stock. Just sayin'....

Or Gemaco Superflex. Super hard to find anywhere else, and my favorite card by a long shot (though I haven't tried Fournier yet)

 

[beaver]

Before I opened this thread, I thought you were going to do a run of custom Copag cards. That would have been epic.

 

[mike32]

If you try hard you can usually find copags for about12 bucks delivered via eBay or Amazon. Tough to beat. Also is Gemaco even in business, they were acquired by Paulson I think.

 

[links_slayer]

Copags are near the bottom of the list in my book when it comes to plastic cards. I've never been a fan but that's just personal preference.

 

[Psypher1000]

Also is Gemaco even in business

The Gemaco brand is owned by GPI. Gemaco-branded products are still available, and if you hit up GPI for consumer product they will sometimes direct you to the Gemaco website.

 

[CdnBeerLover]

Before I opened this thread, I thought you were going to do a run of custom Copag cards. That would have been epic.

That was my initial thought as well, and I'd have to get a setup in that case. Probably cost-prohibitive, though.

 

[Thomacetti]

I would try (like Dave and others also suggested) to limit your offers to the more 'special' brands like Fournier, Piatnik, Angel, Gemaco, ...
It's hard to beat to lowest prices on copags unless you do huge volumes...for the other brands people are willing to pay if on stock.

With special brands I also mean hard to find (in the US)...and they are worth it

 

[dennis63]

Before I opened this thread, I thought you were going to do a run of custom Copag cards. That would have been epic.

Custom Copag cards? We'd probably need about $80,000 to $100,000 to do that. (That's not a joke. It would likely cost that to meet their MOQs.)

One of the issues with getting quality custom decks from big companies is the price and the minimum order quantity. If you are selective about what you want, you tell them the particular features you want. You'll find that with each feature, the MOQ increases. "In order to get that, you need to go up to 25,000. In order to get that, you'll need to go up to 30,000. Two colors? No, that's each color."

The other is price per deck. They'll be more than happy to make your custom decks during their downtime. They will price those decks at a premium above what their commercially available decks cost. That way, you are not using their equipment to make cards to compete against them in their market. In the end, you'll have cards every bit as nice as their retail decks, but they'll cost a lot more, and few people will be willing to pay the price for them.

The Gemaco brand is owned by GPI. Gemaco-branded products are still available, and if you hit up GPI for consumer product they will sometimes direct you to the Gemaco website.

I was surprised to read this, given GPI's attitude toward the home market.

Back when I searched for a producer for Key West cards, the guy from Gemaco USA was really very nice, and very open to making custom cards that would be top-notch. They quoted a price for the decks with casino tuck boxes, cellophane wrapped like cigarette packs with the pull tab, and even offered to package them with retail hanger tabs to sell in stores. I did not think their per-deck price was bad, considering their amazing quality. The issue for me was the MOQ, which would have made the order around $40,000.

That's a huge risk, considering everyone likes their particular brand and model of playing card. Without a big national retailer to distribute and sell those decks, I would never do it.

 

[Jambine]

I would try (like Dave and others also suggested) to limit your offers to the more 'special' brands like Fournier, Piatnik, Angel, Gemaco, ...
It's hard to beat to lowest prices on copags unless you do huge volumes...for the other brands people are willing to pay if on stock.

With special brands I also mean hard to find (in the US)...and they are worth it

Too true. Copag is a great value and the price is already hard to beat. I use them a lot (1546 red-blue). Usually buy through Cara Gails or Trident Cards. If you can beat their prices then I would be interested.

 

[Psypher1000]

I was surprised to read this, given GPI's attitude toward the home market.

That's a 100% understandable reaction, and I was a bit surprised when I read that, too. I believe it was @MD Mike that emailed GPI about a large order of chips and received a polite response that boiled down to, "Take off, hoser. Go check out Gemaco's stuff."

The website they led him to was basically http://www.gemacocards.com/promotional/ or an extension thereof. The chips wouldn't be something that our crowd is likely interested in. I don't know about their cards or other merch/offerings, though.

 

[MD Mike]

That's a 100% understandable reaction, and I was a bit surprised when I read that, too. I believe it was @MD Mike that emailed GPI about a large order of chips and received a polite response that boiled down to, "Take off, hoser. Go check out Gemaco's stuff."

The website they led him to was basically http://www.gemacocards.com/promotional/ or an extension thereof. The chips wouldn't be something that our crowd is likely interested in. I don't know about their cards or other merch/offerings, though.

That is correct. I even mentioned Paulson specifically when I proposed a large order. They never mentioned Paulson once in their reply. It was a blanket statement saying they don't entertain sales to private parties.

 

[dennis63]

That's a 100% understandable reaction, and I was a bit surprised when I read that, too. I believe it was @MD Mike that emailed GPI about a large order of chips and received a polite response that boiled down to, "Take off, hoser. Go check out Gemaco's stuff."

The website they led him to was basically http://www.gemacocards.com/promotional/ or an extension thereof. The chips wouldn't be something that our crowd is likely interested in. I don't know about their cards or other merch/offerings, though.

The truth is that we are a small and unusual group. My nephew plays in two poker leagues and is a better player than I will ever be. He plays poker in casinos and routinely walks away with the casino's money. And while he could buy all the custom clays he would ever want from his winnings alone, he once told me that he thought 7 cents per chip was "high-end" and "expensive."

(Even here, most of the new members enter saying they want 500 high end chips and want to spend $150.)

I once contacted GPI to ask how many chips the Bud Jones Co. made for the Playboy Casino in Atlantic City. (GPI bought out Bud Jones.) I did not expect a response. To my amazement, they actually searched their old records. While they could not find the first order before the casino opened, they did provide the details of a re-order placed a year later, including the quantities ordered for the various denominations. (It was something like 35,000 chips.) They noted that "everyone who was employed by the company at that time is now gone, and no one remembers the approximately total the casino started out with." They made an educated guess, based on the size of the casino, that it was likely about half a million chips.

 

[Psypher1000]

The truth is that we are a small and unusual group.

#truth

 

[dennis63]

I've placed ad links to Amazon for some high-end cards -- Copags (poker- and bridge-size decks), Fournier (poker and bridge size) and (Modiano) same, on the Key West's home page.

Anyone have suggestions for specific deck models they like from those companies? If Amazon has them, I'll put them on.

My company might get about 30 cents per order if you buy through the link, as opposed to a couple of bucks a setup if we wholesale, but it solves the issue of having to buy dozens of each deck when people all want different decks. And you might get free shipping, depending on the order and your Amazon account.

 

[MD Mike]

#truth

In all my life I don't think I have ever met a group of people like us.

I am just glad that I was able to find it. I never knew I was a closet chipper my whole life. Great to finally come out of the closet... The chip closet.

#LoudAndProudChipper

 

[CdnBeerLover]

I've placed ad links to Amazon for some high-end cards -- Copags (poker- and bridge-size decks), Fournier (poker and bridge size) and (Modiano) same, on the Key West's home page.

Anyone have suggestions for specific deck models they like from those companies? If Amazon has them, I'll put them on.

My company might get about 30 cents per order if you buy through the link, as opposed to a couple of bucks a setup if we wholesale, but it solves the issue of having to buy dozens of each deck when people all want different decks. And you might get free shipping, depending on the order and your Amazon account.

Do you get anything based on individual links, or is it just on the order. For example, you currently have only the blue version of the Fournier 2800. if you had both the blue and red decks, would clicking on both of them from your website increase what you receive?

(I've been looking for an excuse to order some Fournier 2800's...this seems as good a reason as any.)

 

[BGinGA]

I would try (like Dave and others also suggested) to limit your offers to the more 'special' brands like Fournier, Piatnik, Angel, Gemaco, ...
It's hard to beat to lowest prices on copags unless you do huge volumes...for the other brands people are willing to pay if on stock.

With special brands I also mean hard to find (in the US)...and they are worth it

Agreed. I'd add Zero cards to that list, too. I'd definitely pick up some (if not all) of those five brands. As already noted, Gemaco SuperFlex ftw (if they are still making them post-GPI takeover).

 

[dennis63]

Do you get anything based on individual links, or is it just on the order. For example, you currently have only the blue version of the Fournier 2800. if you had both the blue and red decks, would clicking on both of them from your website increase what you receive?

(I've been looking for an excuse to order some Fournier 2800's...this seems as good a reason as any.)

Red and blue Fournier 2800s are now on there for $12.95 each.

Amazon's program is not "pay per click," I'd get some small percentage on an order placed, not on clicks of any kind. (Right now, I think Amazon's "bounty" is 3 percent of the total. If you sell lots of things every day, it can go up to as high as 6 percent.)

My goal is to get the best possible deal for my customers, even if that means not making $2 or $3 per setup as a re-seller. Even if I got $3 on each sale, that's not enough to offer free shipping, like Amazon can.

 

[BGinGA]

www.keywestresortcasino.com now bookmarked under "plastic cards" in addition to under "custom chips". (y) :thumbsup:

 

[Andrew Marks]

You can actually get Copags for as low as $9.50/setup + shipping if you buy a dozen setups from Copagdirect.com and apply a couple of discount codes. Modianos (other than Platinum acetate) can be had for as little as $7.70/setup +shipping through Brybelly with a purchase of a dozen or more. And even PAs can be had for somewhere in the neighborhood of $16/setup +shippin through Brybelly or Modianocards.com with the purchase of a dozen or more.

Given those prices, I'm not sure how you guys could really compete and make money, but maybe you know better than me.

 

[Numerobis]

I have tried most brands, and for me the best cards are NTP Black Jack. And this is coming from someone who plays on average 3 times per week for the last 10 years. Italian made, poker size with jumbo index, easy to read, with a nice touch.

Fournier and Zero are really good too, Copags are average, Modianos are at the bottom (they are also the cheapest) and their colors fades quickly. But all my players prefer the NTP