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Hassle-Free Show

5/30/2011

Well, I was prepared for this to be my last Orland show but John Leary made it right by giving me a partial table refund. The big ugly bald guy that works at the Civic Center was nowhere to be found. I hope he didn't get fired. He was an ass at the end of last show, but he doesn't need to be fired. Apparently, prior to the show, John called another dealer Mark to apologize for last show. I did not receive a similar phone call. Though I did get the refund and neither John nor a Civic Center worker hassled me when I left the show. Hopefully we're done with this nonsense. There is no need to hassle dealers at the end of a show for not leaving right when the show ends.

I had a really good show in both sales and purchases. Gil picked up quite a few 55 Bowmans, Rick picked up a nice '53 Topps Pee Wee Reese while Dave grabbed a PSA 6 1953 Topps Bob Feller. A semi-regular dealer picked up my '54 Topps Ernie Banks rookie. Another regular customer picked up a PSA 6 1957 Duke Snider. I bunch of guys went through my books and purchased quite a few cards.

On the buying side, Jim had his usual pile of '50s commons for me and some 1939/40 Play Balls. I bought some '49 Bowmans from the semi-regular dealer. I picked up a box of mixed vintage baseball and football highlighted by a 1960 Topps Bart Starr. I bought a few cards from Junior including a '66 Topps Jim Palmer rookie and a 1958 Topps Duke Snider. Another regular customer brought me a bag filled with 1950 and 1951 Bowman football highlighted by a 1951 Bowman Otto Graham. I picked up some '76-77 Topps basketball from Chuck. Another dealer gave me a nice group of 1960 Fleer football.

The best part of the show, though, was just hanging out with some really good guys. I love listening to the stories from Dave about his days in the minor leagues. He'll go through my 1950s and 1960s books and show me the guys he played with and he has a story about each guy. My friends Will and Joe were there and they got a kick out my story about last show when I went off on the big ugly bald guy.

Next week is Fred Copp's Schaumburg show. I'm looking forward to seeing my crew of autograph hounds. I'm going to have to put together some groups of 1950s/60s cards for these guys. Jim sent me a list that I need to get to before the show. I just finished pricing some '72 baseball high numbers. I have a pile of '78 Topps baseball that I'd like to get together for the show. It's a lot of work selling cards but it's also great fun. Next show is at the Radisson Hotel on Algonqu

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Autograph hounds make the show

5/24/2011

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I had a terrific show in Schaumburg on Sunday. I've been doing this show regularly for about 10 years. The other dealers are always solid. I always enjoy seeing Fred, Willie, Dan, Don, Ted, Corky and Tom -- all really good guys. Don had a nice grouping of vintage that I was unable to pull the trigger on because I spent all my money on three shoe boxes filled with vintage from Fred. I've bought vintage from all these guys in the past and I appreciate the nice deals.

The show was sparsely attended which makes no sense to me because there was an excellent selection of vintage and modern cards in the room. I may start setting up here more than once a month because I'm about done with the Orland show, hopefully I can bring in some more customers. Like I've said before, Fred is one of the best show promoters you will ever meet as a dealer. He is extremely reasonable on his table fee and does not care when you decide to pack up and leave.

I knew I was going to have a good day when I made some money before the show even began. A card shop owner contacted Fred to pick up a 1967 Topps Brooks Robinson from me. That was a nice chunk of change to begin the show. Though what made the show for me were the autograph hounds -- the guys that go through my stuff and buy cards to send out to players for their autograph. Between Willie, Tom, Bob and a few other guys, I had a terrific show. My sales were nearly the same as my last Orland show and my table fee was a third of the cost!! I also sold some cards to a few other guys. I made a nice deal with long-time customer Larry where we traded some nice cards and I took in some cash for some others. The highlight of this deal for me were 1934-35 Diamond Stars Charley Gehringer and Paul Waner. I love Diamond Stars, the artwork on these cards is tremendous. No other card from the pre-war era puts so much detail into the background of the card. There is so much going on in these cards, they're a real pleasure to view. Diamond Stars are also very affordable, especially compared to the more popular Goudey cards from this era.

Another key to the Schaumburg show is the hotel breakfast buffet. For 12 bucks you can get all the scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, hashbrowns, fruit and doughnuts that you can eat.  After 11 a.m., the restaurant sells Chinese food. The Chinese food is just okay and a little over-priced. They used to sell burgers and pasta but turned into a Chinese restaurant sometime last year. I miss the burgers, they were actually one of the best burgers around.  Every time I go to this show, I ask the guy in the restaurant if he'll make me a burger. He just laughs at me and hands me the menu for Chinese food.

I'll be back at the Schaumburg show soon on Sunday, June 5, 2011. The first show of the month here usually attracts more customers because there is a second show operating down the street at a Holiday Inn in Rolling Meadows and many customers like to attend both shows. I've never set up at the Rolling Meadows show. If there are two shows next to each other and one of the promoters is Fred Copp, I'll set up at Fred's show every time. I have nothing against the Rolling Meadows promoter but Fred is the best!!

This Sunday is probably my last John Leary Orland show. It's a shame, I used to look forward to that show, now I dread it and wonder in what way I will be hassled this time. If enough of my Orland customers are interested, I may put on my own show in the area. I'm going to start checking into rental rates.

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A Tale of Two Cities

5/17/2011

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Man, I just absolutely love the Gonzaga show. The show is run by the non-profit Wisconsin Sports Collectors Association and these guys get it!! On Sunday, they gave free gifts to all the ladies and the leftovers were handed out to dealers to give to their wives. I gave the pretty bag of handmade soap and lotions to my wife and told her I was thinking about her all day at the card show and had to stop on the way home and pick her up a gift. She slugged me in the stomach. No, actually she was happy with the gift.

The Gonzaga show was excellent, just as pleasant as a show can and should be. I few of my regulars couldn't make it but I picked up some new customers and made a lot of sales. I bought a few cards and a cool 8X10 photo of the 1957 Milwaukee Braves signed by Del Crandall.

Some customers stayed at my table past the show closing time of 2 p.m. and no one harrassed them to leave like they do at Orland Park. Then a dealer came over and made a significant purchase. By the time I left at 3 p.m., several dealers were still set up and making sales. Mike, the VP of the WSCA, just sat back and chatted with another dealer while the other guys finished up looking at cards. No hassle. Why can't the Orland Park show be this way? I'm going back and forth on whether I want to continue setting up at the Orland Park Show. I know if I continue to set up there I will continue to be hassled after 2 p.m. So I'm leaning toward leaving the show. However, I've made a great many friends there who I enjoy seeing regularly and would hate to lose that. It's a really tough call.

This Sunday May 22, 2011, I am setting up at Fred Copp's Schaumburg, Illinois, show. While I don't make the same sales as I do at the other shows, I still really enjoy this show because Fred is absolutely terrific. I try and set up at one of Fred's shows at least once a month because Fred takes care of his dealers. A decade ago, when I was in law school and did not have much of an income, Fred would cut me some slack on the table fee if I had a bad show. Four years ago when I severely broke my ankle and was out of commission for months, Fred volunteered to unload my car and help me set up my table. So for several shows, my wife loaded up my car and Fred unloaded at the show. I can't say how much I appreciate the effort. I was stuck at home and in a lot of pain after getting a metal plate and 12 screws surgically inserted into my ankle. Getting out of the house helped me recover and I'll forever be in Fred's debt. Also, Fred doesn't care when you leave the room. He will never hassle you to get out, like John Leary at Orland Park. Fred will also make sure that you are not in the room alone or the parking lot alone. He is aware that his show is located in a major metropolitan area and there is a criminal element out there. Bottom line is that Fred takes care of his dealers. The folks at the WSCA take care of their dealers. PJ at Serb Hall takes care of his dealers. John Leary doesn't give a crap about his dealers. I don't know how much longer I can put up with the hassle at Orland Park. In the meantime, I can't wait for Schaumburg this Sunday. I know I'll have a great, hassle-free time!

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The Customer is Always Right!

5/14/2011

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Half a century ago, a couple of Chicago brothers made a fortune with a simple philosophy: "The customer is always right." The brothers Polk made sure all their employees at their department stores treated customers with care and respect. In turn, customers flocked to Polk Brothers Department Stores. When the Polk brothers died, their heirs were unable to maintain the business. Though, long after the Polk Brothers Department stores shuttered, the brothers' Polk Brothers Foundation charitable organization has continued to help needy families nationwide.

I have personally adhered to the Polk Brothers' philosophy in my professional careers in media and law in addition to my hobby as a baseball card dealer. This simple philosophy of treating customers with respect and caring has worked well for me. I am always amazed when others fail to recognize this essential tenant of simple transactions. I have come across many baseball card dealers who treat customers poorly. Show promoters, on the other hand, usually treat customers and dealers with care and respect. I currently deal with four different show promoters and it is become evident to me that the promoter of the Orland Park show is not interested in treating customers and dealers with care and respect, as the others do. Today, I experienced my second bad incident in as many months and am strongly debating on whether to return to the Orland Park show.

The show ends at 2 p.m. Today's incident occurred at 2:03 p.m. while a customer was in the process of writing me a check for cards. Out of nowhere, an employee at the hall approaches my customer and barks in his ear: "The show is over, wrap it up!" My customer was hot. He held up his pen and said: "I'm writing a check. what does this look like? I'm wrapping it up!" I tried to calm the customer down and advised him to ignore the hall worker. At 2:06 p.m., the same worker stands by the front entrance and shouts, "The show is over, time to leave!" About two minutes later, he does the same thing.

I was just as upset as my customer but tried to hide it. I gave the customer his cards and thanked him for his purchase. I was steaming inside, thinking "What if this customer does not return because of the hair-brained hall worker? I'm going to lose money. What if all the customers in the room, at least 20, decide they no longer want to attend the show? I'm going to lose money. Earlier, at about 1:50 p.m., I stopped another dealer from going through my stuff because I knew the show promoter goes nuts if dealers are not out of the room by 2 p.m. I lost money there.

The facts are, I pay the promoter $100 to set up at the show so I can sell some cards. Some of my biggest sales come at the end of the show. I need to be able to continue to work with customers at my table in a professional environment until the customers decide to leave, not when a hall worker decides they should leave -- because the customer is always right! You need to let the customer decide when he is done shopping!! There is obviously a fundamental problem here. I have now learned that if my customers stay after 2 p.m. both the customers and myself will be hassled by either the promoter or a hall worker. My options appear to be: (1) pack up and leave the show at 1 p.m. and lose many sales, (2) continue to stay until customers leave the table and continue to have problems with the promoter and hall worker, or (3) avoid the situation entirely and set up at another show or just sell cards online.

Option 1 is out of the question. I've been trained by a Maxwell Street master -- you don't leave money on the table or in the room. Option 2, seems like a start. I will continue to stay in the room until there are no customers at my table. If I continue to be hassled, Option 3 will come in to play and I will cease patronizing the Orland Park show and sell cards in a more pleasant and professional environment where dealers and customers alike are treated with care and respect.

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Sir Paul

5/1/2011

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I made it to Milwaukee this morning without a problem from the Illinois and Wisconsin police, thankfully. Show promoter PJ called me as I was approaching Serb Hall. PJ is the only show promoter that checks in to make sure I'm on my way. I appreciate the effort. I was running late as usual. One of the problems to showing up late is that other dealers always start to throw stuff on my table. At least the guy next to me today removed is stuff from my table before I was ready to set up.

Not a whole lot of people attended the show today, though the ones that were there, were serious vintage set builders and I had an excellent show. I started off the day selling my entire 25-cent book. I'm glad I made the sale but it is going to be time consuming to put together another book. I have some terrific regular customers in Milwaukee. Mark purchased quite a few '62s, '63 Topps and Fleer, and some '66 Topps and Philadelphia football. Jim picked up some '55 Topps baseball. Jason bought a T206 and some '52 Bowman baseball. Another regular purchased a large pile of '62s. I sold a '65 Maris to another customer. I sold some 1970s hockey, and some '77 and '78 football. Mike bought a large pile of '69 Topps baseball. I had spent all week pricing '69s and placing cards in numerical order. Mike hit the book pretty good. A new customer picked up quite a few '71 Topps baseball.

As for buying, not much doing today. Nobody brought me anything at all. My only purchase was a battered '55 Topps Ernie Banks from another dealer.

I took some photos at the show today and posted them on my Facebook page. My wife left a funny comment that she didn't realize the venue was called "Serb Hall," she had thought I was saying "Sir Paul" all this time. I really like the Serb Hall show. Unfortunately, PJ is taking the summer off and there is no show at Serb Hall until the end of August. So I started thinking that maybe I should promote a show in Milwaukee. The Gonzaga monthly show is the dominant show in Milwaukee but that city can certainly support a second show. I'm thinking I may put a show together for July 2012. I need time to find a venue, secure dealers and promote the show. In the meantime, I'm down one show over the next two months and I need to find a replacement. My initial thought is maybe a flea market in the Milwaukee area. I've done the flea market at the Allstate arena in Rosemont and haven't done very well there, maybe I'd do better in Milwaukee. I also don't have a show next weekend because of Mother's Day. I've found a few shows located several hours away for the Saturday before Mother's Day but my kids have softball and T-Ball and I can't do it... unless it rains. I also can't understand why my wife doesn't want to join me at a show on Mother's Day? In two weeks is Orland on Saturday and Gonzaga on Sunday. As much as I like card shows, I really don't like doing more than one in a weekend. So maybe it is a good thing I don't have a show next weekend, it will give me some time to rest and prepare for the following weekend. I'm also going to put some more cards on this website and on eBay.

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Hassle-Free Show

Autograph hounds make the show

A Tale of Two Cities

The Customer is Always Right!

Sir Paul

Tony Gordon

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