I haven't disappeared. I'm still doing shows every weekend. I'm just not blogging... too much to do. Between work, family, prepping for shows and doing eBay, I don't have much time to blog. Numerous folks have made me aware of my blogging absence. It's really nice to know that so many people enjoy my blog. Unfortunately, I just can't get it done regularly.
Anyway, let me get you up to speed. It was a very difficult winter for attending shows because the weather here, smack dab in the middle between Milwaukee and Chicago, was horrible. It seemed like one snow storm after another hit all winter long. While I didn't miss any shows due to the weather (I did miss some when I had the flu), the drive to and from the shows this winter was harrowing. I can't say how thankful I am that spring is here.
Even with the lousy weather, all my regular shows have been well-attended and sales have been good. Generally shows are strong from January through May. June, however, is traditionally slow. Hence, I'm only setting up at two shows this coming June. I'll be at the Best Western Plus, in Schaumburg, IL, on June 1, then I'll be at Gonzaga Hall in Milwaukee on June 8. I'll be back to the normal schedule in July and plan on being at both Orland Park shows, along with Gonzaga and the Schaumburg show. July and August are always good months for shows then the fall is el stinko. Folks stay home to watch college and pro football. I may skip some Orland shows this fall because attendance is always so poor during football season.
I also will no longer set up at the Serb Hall show in Milwaukee. I have never liked that venue and things came to a head this past Sunday. My main issue is that the folks that run that place seem to think it is okay to interrupt the card show and start taking down tables and setting up for evening banquets while the show is still in progress. I always try to get out of there early before the employees start moving my stuff around. There is nothing worse than having someone come behind your table and handle your merchandise. Especially when this happens to someone like me who has been victimized by theft in the past. I don't like anyone I don't know waltzing behind my table and moving my property around.
I've noticed that the Serb staff usually start taking down tables around 1 p.m. This past Sunday, I had four or five Serb Hall employees come and sit behind my table at noon. Needless to say, this made me very uncomfortable. At 12:30 p.m., they started taking down empty tables and setting up banquet tables. They were tossing the tables around, dropping them, making so much noise that I could not think, let alone attend to my customers... who were complaining about the noise.
I can't conduct business in this kind of atmosphere, so I'm no longer going to set up at that show. This is not a reflection on the promoter PJ, who I think does an excellent job promoting this show. This is an issue with the venue. For whatever reason, they feel like they can just come in an interrupt the card show while it is in progress. I've seen this sort of thing at Orland from time to time. Though, never in the 30-years that I've been setting up at shows, have I dealt with a venue staff as disruptive as the staff at Serb Hall. I wonder if they do the same thing to the record show, the doll show or the breweriana show? I find it strange and aggravating that they would interrupt and disturb our event.
I appreciate all my regular customers who make an effort to come out and see me at Serb Hall. It was great to see Andy from Orlando making a rare Milwaukee visit on Sunday. I'm looking forward to seeing Andy again in August. Thanks for the purchases Andy!
To catch guys like Andy when they are in town and others that want to see me outside of Gonzaga, I'm considering promoting my own Milwaukee show. I'm thinking of having a show on a Saturday so it does not interfere with the Serb Hall or Gonzaga shows. I'm also considering venues near the airport, which would be an easier drive for me. I would probably schedule the shows in the fall. Is there some interest in a Fat Daddy Milwaukee show? I'd appreciate it if everyone that reads this blog would let me know if they would be interested in attending some Saturday Milwaukee shows this fall. If there is enough interest, I'll go ahead and set it up. If not, I'll just stick with Gonzaga for my lone Milwaukee appearance.
In the meantime, I'm feverishly getting ready for Orland Park this coming Saturday, May 10, 2014. I'm finishing up reloading some 1966 Topps football, then I plan on working on 1956 Topps baseball. I also hope to have some new star cards priced and ready for my display cases. I have been purchasing a tremendous amount of cards lately. I have some really good stuff and hope to get it out as quick as possible. I definitely will have lots of new inventory out each and every show this summer. I'm looking forward to another great Orland show on Saturday. See you then!
Anyway, let me get you up to speed. It was a very difficult winter for attending shows because the weather here, smack dab in the middle between Milwaukee and Chicago, was horrible. It seemed like one snow storm after another hit all winter long. While I didn't miss any shows due to the weather (I did miss some when I had the flu), the drive to and from the shows this winter was harrowing. I can't say how thankful I am that spring is here.
Even with the lousy weather, all my regular shows have been well-attended and sales have been good. Generally shows are strong from January through May. June, however, is traditionally slow. Hence, I'm only setting up at two shows this coming June. I'll be at the Best Western Plus, in Schaumburg, IL, on June 1, then I'll be at Gonzaga Hall in Milwaukee on June 8. I'll be back to the normal schedule in July and plan on being at both Orland Park shows, along with Gonzaga and the Schaumburg show. July and August are always good months for shows then the fall is el stinko. Folks stay home to watch college and pro football. I may skip some Orland shows this fall because attendance is always so poor during football season.
I also will no longer set up at the Serb Hall show in Milwaukee. I have never liked that venue and things came to a head this past Sunday. My main issue is that the folks that run that place seem to think it is okay to interrupt the card show and start taking down tables and setting up for evening banquets while the show is still in progress. I always try to get out of there early before the employees start moving my stuff around. There is nothing worse than having someone come behind your table and handle your merchandise. Especially when this happens to someone like me who has been victimized by theft in the past. I don't like anyone I don't know waltzing behind my table and moving my property around.
I've noticed that the Serb staff usually start taking down tables around 1 p.m. This past Sunday, I had four or five Serb Hall employees come and sit behind my table at noon. Needless to say, this made me very uncomfortable. At 12:30 p.m., they started taking down empty tables and setting up banquet tables. They were tossing the tables around, dropping them, making so much noise that I could not think, let alone attend to my customers... who were complaining about the noise.
I can't conduct business in this kind of atmosphere, so I'm no longer going to set up at that show. This is not a reflection on the promoter PJ, who I think does an excellent job promoting this show. This is an issue with the venue. For whatever reason, they feel like they can just come in an interrupt the card show while it is in progress. I've seen this sort of thing at Orland from time to time. Though, never in the 30-years that I've been setting up at shows, have I dealt with a venue staff as disruptive as the staff at Serb Hall. I wonder if they do the same thing to the record show, the doll show or the breweriana show? I find it strange and aggravating that they would interrupt and disturb our event.
I appreciate all my regular customers who make an effort to come out and see me at Serb Hall. It was great to see Andy from Orlando making a rare Milwaukee visit on Sunday. I'm looking forward to seeing Andy again in August. Thanks for the purchases Andy!
To catch guys like Andy when they are in town and others that want to see me outside of Gonzaga, I'm considering promoting my own Milwaukee show. I'm thinking of having a show on a Saturday so it does not interfere with the Serb Hall or Gonzaga shows. I'm also considering venues near the airport, which would be an easier drive for me. I would probably schedule the shows in the fall. Is there some interest in a Fat Daddy Milwaukee show? I'd appreciate it if everyone that reads this blog would let me know if they would be interested in attending some Saturday Milwaukee shows this fall. If there is enough interest, I'll go ahead and set it up. If not, I'll just stick with Gonzaga for my lone Milwaukee appearance.
In the meantime, I'm feverishly getting ready for Orland Park this coming Saturday, May 10, 2014. I'm finishing up reloading some 1966 Topps football, then I plan on working on 1956 Topps baseball. I also hope to have some new star cards priced and ready for my display cases. I have been purchasing a tremendous amount of cards lately. I have some really good stuff and hope to get it out as quick as possible. I definitely will have lots of new inventory out each and every show this summer. I'm looking forward to another great Orland show on Saturday. See you then!
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