profile 7
eMoviePoster.com
Every one of Bruce Hershenson’s jobs has been a gamble—either literally or figuratively.
From 1974 to 1984, Hershenson played poker professionally in Las Vegas. He abandoned that lifestyle for another high-stakes career as an options trader on the Philadelphia Stock Exchange. In 1989, ready to make his next gamble, Hershenson left his career in the financial industry with hopes of turning a hobby into a business.
When Hershenson departed the stock exchange, he was a big-time collector of vintage movie posters, having accumulated some $50,000 worth of cinematic history. Hershenson’s plan was to become a part-time poster dealer while searching for his next full-time career.
But the poster business itself turned out to be his calling. Over the next several years, he devoted more time to the venture and gained a reputation as a top-level seller of movie memorabilia.
In 1990, Hershenson approached Sotheby’s auction house with an offer to conduct a major auction of movie posters. Sotheby’s passed, but its competitor Christie’s agreed to sell off some of the posters that Hershenson had assembled. The auction that December was a raging success, garnering bids worth $940,000 on 271 lots. (Christie’s had estimated the auction would bring in between $500,000 and $700,000.)
That success kick-started Hershenson’s career. For the next eight years, he conducted an annual major movie poster auction at Christie’s. Hershenson supplemented his auction revenues by selling ...
Get The eBay Millionaire: Titanium PowerSeller Secrets for Building a Big Online Business now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.
