Saturday, April 1, 2023, Salvation Army Community Center, Oak Creek, WI
I was hoping to get to Oak Creek by Friday afternoon but my stupid printer at my office caused a delay. I was trying to print out a newsletter I give to all the dealers prior to each show but the printer would not cooperate. I was able to print out about half the ones I needed then gave up and left for Oak Creek around 5 p.m.
Once in Oak Creek, I was greeted by Ken, the amazing chef who cooks up our Sloppy Joe for our concession stand at the show. On Friday, Ken was cooking up some fish for a fish fry. He kindly gave Lisa and I some and, oh, man, was that good! Some of the best fish fry I ever had.
Mark told me later that Ken does a fish fry at the Sal every March for Lent. I am marking my calendar for next year!
While I enjoyed stuffing my face with fish, my main purpose for being at the Sal on Friday night was to set up the show. It is a lot of work. I started moving tables around while Lisa placed dealer name plates on all the tables. The Sal has 80 tables when I need 180. So I have to lay out 100 chairs throughout the building and dealers place their own tables in front of the chairs. Lisa placed name tags on all the chairs.
It took us about four hours, which is a new record. Last month, it took us over five hours. The previous month we were at six hours. So we are getting better and more efficient. We left for our hotel around 10 p.m. We stayed at a Wyndham in Oak Creek this month. Not quite as nice as our usual spot but much more affordable. The room was okay.
We had a tough night because there was a huge rain and wind storm which rattled the windows in our room all night long. We were also closer to the airport and the sound of jet engines rattled the room as well.
Bleary-eyed, we made it to the Sal at 7 a.m. I am always amazed at how many dealers are already there waiting for us. I tell them not to arrive until 8 a.m. Though, this month I told some of the new dealers to be there at 7:30 a.m. I am going to try to open the doors for dealers at 7:30 a.m. for now on. With 130 different dealers, it has been difficult for everyone to arrive at 8 a.m. and load in at once.
I gave the building a once over, to make sure everything was still in place. I also took some time to place some signs around the building. I opened the doors for the dealers around 7:30 a.m.
I forgot to load in my stuff on Friday night and had to load in like everybody else. I brought tables, like most dealers but did not need them as I took Steve Zinn's spot because he cancelled Friday afternoon. To avoid having open tables or spots, I don't give myself a location until the morning of the show.
I had four or five dealers cancel within three days of the show which is always difficult because, even though I have a large waiting list, those dealer like more time to prepare for the show, few are ready to go with just a day or two notice prior to the show. So it is a bunch of work on my side contacting dealers right before the show. I was able to fill all the spots.
However, on the morning of the show, I had five dealers that did not show up. No calls, texts, Facebook messages... nada. Goodbye to those dealers, they are not welcome back. One dealer who cancelled Thursday around 6 p.m. is pissed off at me because I placed him back on the waiting list for May.
I have said this many times and I will say it again. Once a dealer reserves a spot, they are responsible for that spot whether they show up or not. Cancelling Thursday night does not leave me enough time to fill the space. Another dealer who cancelled on Friday, totally understands and paid me for his space. He will be welcomed back. The other guy has to go to the end of the wait list.
Speaking of the wait list, it continues to grow. I can't seem to get it down, even though, I was able to add ten or so guys from the wait list for this show.
Anyway, set up was relatively easy. No issues to report. Sales were brisk at my tables. Robert purchased a pile of publications. Thanks Robert! One of my long-time regulars purchased some 1961 Post baseball.
I brought out all of the baseball and basketball binders. I really wanted to get that 1970-71 Topps basketball binder out. One of my good customers pulled a nice pile of both the 1969-70 and 1970-71 basketball books. I hope to have 1971-72 Topps basketball reloaded in the next month or so.
I wish I could sit at my table, sell cards and chat but I have to spend a large portion of the show collecting table fee. Many dealers are kind and understanding and make an effort to pre-pay or come to my tables to pay me. I am tossing around the idea of bumping up table fee for dealers who fail to pre-pay.
On the buying front, not much found its way to me. I was a little disappointed because I have had some really great buys at recent shows.
On the attendance front, we topped out at 910. I was hoping to break that 1,000 barrier but to no avail. Though, I am really proud that we have topped over 900 people at the last three shows.
The show was abuzz. I observed lots of purchases, trading, negotiating and the like. It seemed like everyone was having a good time. About half of the dealers reported excellent sales while the others reported sluggish sales. My sales were much better than the March show.
I think some of the dealers' prices are just too high. I also think those with sluggish sales could increase sales by simply placing a price tag on their top loaders. Most customers don't want to have to ask for a price, they want to see one on the card.
On the food front, Lisa and I dined on Sloppy Joe as soon as the concession stand opened. Later, we both had some brats. Good stuff!
Not much else to report. It was a nice smooth show. I thought it was cool that many show promoters were set up including Tim and Lorena from Lake Country Cards and the Oconomowoc show, along with John and Mike who operate shows in Rockford, Loves Park and Janesville. Nick, who operates the show in Bridgeview, Illinois, had a table. Bob, who operates a show in Lake Station, Indiana, had a table and PJ, who operates the South Milwaukee show had a table. I also saw Eddie from the Darien, Illinois, show walking around. Lastly, I ran into Tyler who runs a quarterly bobble head show in Milwaukee. Thanks guys for setting up and attending the show!
I think a lot of folks have been complaining to Mark about the parking situation. There is not much parking at the Salvation Army but there is a huge lot across the street at Target where folks are welcome to park.
Mark is brainstorming and trying to come up with additional parking. I will keep you posted.
It was another great show in Oak Creek. I really appreciate the support!! Next show is May 6, 2023. A lot of dealers who were absent at the April show will return for May. Also, I should be able to insert five or six new dealers from the wait list.
Next up for me is the Rockford show on Saturday, April 8. I plan on bringing out all of the baseball and football binders. Quite a few folks in Oak Creek were disappointed I did not bring out the football. Well, come see me in Rockford where I will have all of the football binders.
Thank you everybody. It was a fun day in Oak Creek!
I was hoping to get to Oak Creek by Friday afternoon but my stupid printer at my office caused a delay. I was trying to print out a newsletter I give to all the dealers prior to each show but the printer would not cooperate. I was able to print out about half the ones I needed then gave up and left for Oak Creek around 5 p.m.
Once in Oak Creek, I was greeted by Ken, the amazing chef who cooks up our Sloppy Joe for our concession stand at the show. On Friday, Ken was cooking up some fish for a fish fry. He kindly gave Lisa and I some and, oh, man, was that good! Some of the best fish fry I ever had.
Mark told me later that Ken does a fish fry at the Sal every March for Lent. I am marking my calendar for next year!
While I enjoyed stuffing my face with fish, my main purpose for being at the Sal on Friday night was to set up the show. It is a lot of work. I started moving tables around while Lisa placed dealer name plates on all the tables. The Sal has 80 tables when I need 180. So I have to lay out 100 chairs throughout the building and dealers place their own tables in front of the chairs. Lisa placed name tags on all the chairs.
It took us about four hours, which is a new record. Last month, it took us over five hours. The previous month we were at six hours. So we are getting better and more efficient. We left for our hotel around 10 p.m. We stayed at a Wyndham in Oak Creek this month. Not quite as nice as our usual spot but much more affordable. The room was okay.
We had a tough night because there was a huge rain and wind storm which rattled the windows in our room all night long. We were also closer to the airport and the sound of jet engines rattled the room as well.
Bleary-eyed, we made it to the Sal at 7 a.m. I am always amazed at how many dealers are already there waiting for us. I tell them not to arrive until 8 a.m. Though, this month I told some of the new dealers to be there at 7:30 a.m. I am going to try to open the doors for dealers at 7:30 a.m. for now on. With 130 different dealers, it has been difficult for everyone to arrive at 8 a.m. and load in at once.
I gave the building a once over, to make sure everything was still in place. I also took some time to place some signs around the building. I opened the doors for the dealers around 7:30 a.m.
I forgot to load in my stuff on Friday night and had to load in like everybody else. I brought tables, like most dealers but did not need them as I took Steve Zinn's spot because he cancelled Friday afternoon. To avoid having open tables or spots, I don't give myself a location until the morning of the show.
I had four or five dealers cancel within three days of the show which is always difficult because, even though I have a large waiting list, those dealer like more time to prepare for the show, few are ready to go with just a day or two notice prior to the show. So it is a bunch of work on my side contacting dealers right before the show. I was able to fill all the spots.
However, on the morning of the show, I had five dealers that did not show up. No calls, texts, Facebook messages... nada. Goodbye to those dealers, they are not welcome back. One dealer who cancelled Thursday around 6 p.m. is pissed off at me because I placed him back on the waiting list for May.
I have said this many times and I will say it again. Once a dealer reserves a spot, they are responsible for that spot whether they show up or not. Cancelling Thursday night does not leave me enough time to fill the space. Another dealer who cancelled on Friday, totally understands and paid me for his space. He will be welcomed back. The other guy has to go to the end of the wait list.
Speaking of the wait list, it continues to grow. I can't seem to get it down, even though, I was able to add ten or so guys from the wait list for this show.
Anyway, set up was relatively easy. No issues to report. Sales were brisk at my tables. Robert purchased a pile of publications. Thanks Robert! One of my long-time regulars purchased some 1961 Post baseball.
I brought out all of the baseball and basketball binders. I really wanted to get that 1970-71 Topps basketball binder out. One of my good customers pulled a nice pile of both the 1969-70 and 1970-71 basketball books. I hope to have 1971-72 Topps basketball reloaded in the next month or so.
I wish I could sit at my table, sell cards and chat but I have to spend a large portion of the show collecting table fee. Many dealers are kind and understanding and make an effort to pre-pay or come to my tables to pay me. I am tossing around the idea of bumping up table fee for dealers who fail to pre-pay.
On the buying front, not much found its way to me. I was a little disappointed because I have had some really great buys at recent shows.
On the attendance front, we topped out at 910. I was hoping to break that 1,000 barrier but to no avail. Though, I am really proud that we have topped over 900 people at the last three shows.
The show was abuzz. I observed lots of purchases, trading, negotiating and the like. It seemed like everyone was having a good time. About half of the dealers reported excellent sales while the others reported sluggish sales. My sales were much better than the March show.
I think some of the dealers' prices are just too high. I also think those with sluggish sales could increase sales by simply placing a price tag on their top loaders. Most customers don't want to have to ask for a price, they want to see one on the card.
On the food front, Lisa and I dined on Sloppy Joe as soon as the concession stand opened. Later, we both had some brats. Good stuff!
Not much else to report. It was a nice smooth show. I thought it was cool that many show promoters were set up including Tim and Lorena from Lake Country Cards and the Oconomowoc show, along with John and Mike who operate shows in Rockford, Loves Park and Janesville. Nick, who operates the show in Bridgeview, Illinois, had a table. Bob, who operates a show in Lake Station, Indiana, had a table and PJ, who operates the South Milwaukee show had a table. I also saw Eddie from the Darien, Illinois, show walking around. Lastly, I ran into Tyler who runs a quarterly bobble head show in Milwaukee. Thanks guys for setting up and attending the show!
I think a lot of folks have been complaining to Mark about the parking situation. There is not much parking at the Salvation Army but there is a huge lot across the street at Target where folks are welcome to park.
Mark is brainstorming and trying to come up with additional parking. I will keep you posted.
It was another great show in Oak Creek. I really appreciate the support!! Next show is May 6, 2023. A lot of dealers who were absent at the April show will return for May. Also, I should be able to insert five or six new dealers from the wait list.
Next up for me is the Rockford show on Saturday, April 8. I plan on bringing out all of the baseball and football binders. Quite a few folks in Oak Creek were disappointed I did not bring out the football. Well, come see me in Rockford where I will have all of the football binders.
Thank you everybody. It was a fun day in Oak Creek!
RSS Feed