Marvellous collection: Chua showing some of his prized comic books during the Hobi Kita 2024 event held at Sultan Ismail library in Johor Baru.
JOHOR BARU: Seeing his primary classmate draw a superhero character pulled Vincent Chua into the world of comics and today, the 66-year-old Singaporean has amassed about 15,000 books in his collection.
“During my primary years, I once saw a classmate drawing a man who can shoot laser beams from his eyes and that intrigued me as a child.
“At that time, I knew nothing about comics, but I was captivated by my classmate’s drawing. Some seven years later, in the 1970s, a friend invited me to his house and showed me the boxes of comic books he wanted to sell.
“After going through some of the books, I used my Chinese New Year ang pow money to buy a few. That was the start of my collection,” he said when met at a collectors’ event at Sultan Ismail Library here on Saturday.
Chua said his collection once took up lots of space at his home, forcing him to sell some of the comics.
He opened an online shop on Facebook in 2010, which also gave him the opportunity to make friends with many other collectors worldwide.
“There is a huge demand for comic books not only in Singapore, but also growing right here in Malaysia.
“Since selling my books online, I have met a lot of comic book collectors in Malaysia and our relationship developed into a strong bond,” he said, adding most of the people he met were from Johor, Kuala Lumpur and Kedah.
Chua said the price of an old comic book differs depending on the number of copies published, the condition of the book, the writer and creator.
He said most of his books were published by DC and Marvel, but those published by independent parties were also in demand.
“One book can cost from as low as RM50 to hundreds and even higher if it is a limited copy. If the book is in good condition, or if it is a signed copy by the creator or even if the creator died, the price would surely go up.
“If there is a movie made based on certain comic book characters, the demand for related books will also go up,” he added.
Chua said as the value of old comic books rises, the industry – particularly for collectors – has become a very serious business.
“Certain collectors only want popular comic books due to the resale value, but I do not see my books as profitable items. I just want to sell them to people who I know will take good care of them,” he said.
He also allows Malaysian buyers to pay in instalments due to the high exchange rate between the ringgit and Singapore dollar.
“What’s more important is to make friends and maintain a good relationship with like-minded people,” he added.
Chua, who has two sons, said he hopes his children would carry on his hobby one day, and start collecting and selling comic books.
