Primarily Petroliana Shop Talk Forums Shop Talk Petroliana Forums General Petroliana Discussion Columbus

One other point is that I see vendors pricing stuff at "mint" pricing on very "not mint" items. Some vendors get scared when they here something they have sold for 5000 bucks and they have one. All of a sudden, theirs is worth that much even though the one sold was near mint and theirs is beat up a little. I saw a "not mint" Chevrolet super service neon sign at the show for 14,000. Had this sign been priced according to condition, it would have been about 7000-8000. Probably would have sold also. Just my take, but the way prices on the high-end stuff is going and the middle-of-the-road stuff is stagnit or declining a little, people are not figuring out pricing just yet. No-get upset, just a take on what I see.

Having just returned from the Columbus show I have to put in my 2 cents worth. I think all the previous posts have made excellant points. I too noticed a decline in the vendor count. One reason I think is because it's is harder to find stuff to sell. The days of cracking open a bulk house and bring the find to a show is all but gone. You can't sell bread from an empty shelf so why set up to sell if you don't have it to sell. Next is the point of the same stuff show after show. This is why too many gas shows is not a good thing. Same dealer show after show, same stuff show after show. I have to admit I fall into this category sometimes. When I do score a big find it's usually gone in one show maybe two.
I enjoy meeting all the people at the shows and you cannot say enough about the fellowship with the great bunch of people you meet. Thats how contacts and buys are made.
One point I fell very strongly about is how the shows start in the middle of the week. This is NOT good for the hobby. I felt that Columbus was only a meeting of those most closely connected with the hobby. Alot of my sales went to other dealers, no problem here, I made really good money. But I stuck it out till Saturday at Columbus and had really good sales. I had several people (the kind of people we need to get more involved in the hobby) comment that they could not get off work and could only come on Saurday only to find that hardly anybody was there. It's these situations that will cause them not to waste their time next year if they know they are going to drive several hours to only a few vendors. I felt that foot traffic at Columbus was poor. I know this subject has been debated time and time again but the fact remains the shows are declining.
I will sign off with this final thought. The shows that have a controlled setup and teardown time are the best shows for the general public and I think the attendance reflects that.
Again just my opinion for whats its worth.
Tom Buckles.

Excellent points Tom. I'd never been to Columbus before this year because in the past I couldn't justify taking several days off of work, knowing that people start showing up on Wednesday. I'd venture to guess many if not most of the collectors out there fall into the same bucket as me. I think a lot of casual to mid-sized collectors are scared off figuring all the good stuff/deals are gone by Thursday and there's no use showing up Friday, let alone Saturday. A one day show starting on a Saturday morning (maybe with some early bird Friday night) I would think would bring the largest foot traffic. It may not allow for as much selling to other dealers, but it all depends on what you're looking for I guess.

Tom,

Great point on the vacation time. I have to take 4 days off to do Iowa, same for Columbus (more b/c it's 2 days there and back from Tulsa) but I can go to Columbia MO, just taking 1.5 days off also I can hit a Matthews auction in S. Ill w/ only taking a day or two.

I think that getting these shows and their auctions down to a two day format (Friday/Saturday) would greatly enhance attendance/success.

There's been a lot of good commentary about the shows and the state of the hobby. If you condense the various observations, it all boils down to the fact that the shows have evolved into primarily a convention for dealers rather than a platform for the retail trade. In my opinion, most of the suggestions for improving the shows won't really help. As Tom noted, the "good stuff" is just hard to find these days. This in turn drives up prices on the better pieces in existing collections. Today, most of the items at auctions and shows are recycled collections rather than new finds. Like it or not, that's the current state of the hobby. I don't see it changing anytime soon.

Well...I wasn't at Columbus, but I'd like to throw something out and see what you guys think. I think a show should be a show and an auction should be an auction and not both at one time. I realize it seems like a natural fit to have an auction before or after a show, because it seems like you would get the most bang for your buck as it pertains to bodies, but sometimes it seems like to me anyway, that there are just a select few buyers that will be BIG players at both the show & the auction. For example, I went to Peotone this year with a budget (so legislated by my business partner/bookkeeper/wife) of about $8000-$10,000. During the auction, I spent roughly $7000 leaving me at the most $3000 to spend at the show. Turns out, there were great pumps at the show for decent prices that I would've saved back money for had I known they were coming. Instead, I bought some quasi-restored stuff for strong prices at the auction and had to leave some really clean unrestored clockfaces that I would've much rather had. There are other various reasons that I think that the combo hurts both, but I'll keep them to myself for fear of starting WWIII.

People tell me all the time that they think I should do a swap in tandem with my February auction OR that I should do one sale in FEB and one in SEPT but again, I just think sometimes you can dilute things way too much. I've considered doing a swap by itself but NEVER in combination with my auction. Anyway, just my penny & a half.

I believe the pros and cons of Columbus have been well documented in previous posts to this thread. The positive ones were related mostly to the social aspect and the rest are attempts to correct what most believe are broken or at least bent a little. Don't get me wrong, I believe this is great communication and something that can help all of us enjoy the hobby, more.

From the promoter to the vendor to the collector, everyone and everything needs to be more customer friendly. Those that do a good job of that will reap the rewards.

Another thing we have to consider are the newer members to the site. We recently had the guess for the 6000 member. Well, since that time we have added 765 new members. I wonder what they are thinking, reading this?

My concern is that we won't take advantage of the opportunity to collectively work together to make the swap meets become better for all of us. I hope you guys prove me wrong.

It's a huge stretch to infer that the poor turnout at Columbus had anything to do with what's posted on this or any other website. Future growth or decline of gas shows will not be decided by what's posted on an internet message board. It's about economics pure and simple.

I agree with Tom.

Seth,
If there hadn't been an auction in Peotone would you have gone for just the swap? I tend to doubt it. Thats a long haul for you. You knew what was going to be in the auction and that enticed you to attend. You don't know whats going to turn up at the show.

I can tell you that attendance at the Peotone shows is better since they've been having auctions in conjunction with them.

Re: "It's a huge stretch to infer that the poor turnout at Columbus had anything to do with what's posted on this or any other website. Future growth or decline of gas shows will not be decided by what's posted on an internet message board."

I don't think anyone believes that this chatter has any direct influence on the success or failure of current or future shows. The commentary is simply addressing the reasons WHY the shows have been in decline.

Nancy and I attended the Columbus show for the 13th year. We went to both auctions and managed to buy a few items. Attendance was down, but sales were good. The people that came, brought lots of money. Enjoyed visiting with everyone. We drove 2400 miles...... Gas,food, and motel prices are hard on all of us. You just have to love the hobby! Look forward to seeing everybody at Des Moines.

Butch

If it was like Des Moines, I wouldn't go, I went there one time and basically felt I would need to be a millionaire to buy a few good signs, everything was overpriced except a few scarcer but well worn cans. One good thing was that
I told a vendor about my Conoco Motor Oil round sign and he ended paying me $6100, good price for something I bought 14years or more ago for only $170. Kills me when I remember the guy had 3 others for less money but they were a little rougher, If I only knew then how much these would jump up. Seems like most quality grade signs at Des Moines were $5000-8000

Bob...I go to Peotone not for the auction, nor the show. I go to make deliveries of items sold in my auction. Obviously, the only reason I'm able to make those deliveries is because guys are coming there for the show, so for that I'm grateful. And yes, it's nice to be able to buy some stuff while I'm there. I go to Chicago Coin-op twice a year most times without buying or selling a thing, except for making pick-ups and deliveries simply to beat the freight. I've been to Des Moines and Columbus probably 5 times each and have never attended the auction in conjunction with either. I've also been to Columbia 8 times and never went to their auctions back when they still did one. I've just never been a big fan of the auction/show combo. I actually think that Columbia has improved since they stopped trying to do an auction. If you make an offer on a sign, the guy can't come back with "well, if I don't get my price, I'll just throw it in the auction". Conversely, if you are selling, you don't have buyers walking around wondering if they should spend their money now or wait see if they can get something better or cheaper in the auction. Like I said earlier, this is simply my perception of the situation, but I do feel like I've got some practical experience in that, this feb's auction will be my 11th. Each year, we've brought in more $ with fewer pieces than the year before, even though some guys swear that I would do much better if I had a swap in conjunction with it.

I have to come back in on this and just agree totally with Seth. I hate to see someone so much YOUNGER than me make such a good point. I have read every post on this thread and his makes great sense as do others. I hope for the sake of the hobby that some of the show promoters read this stuff. Speaking as a working stiff with two kids in private schools--- champane tast and a beer wallet--- a weakness for the good stuff---- it pains me to have to go to a show with only enough money to get one good piece or not even that.

Seth, I can see where you're coming from but the auctions at Peotone,and Columbus were cataloged. Not like Iowa Gas where stuff floods in after the swap.

I understand why some dealers might not want an auction as part of a show. I can tell you as a buyer that I like the auction/show combination. I doubt seriously that any buyers stayed away from Columbus because there was an opportunity to buy so much stuff.



[This message has been edited by Lastgas15 (edited 06-20-2007).]