Thursday’s blog will be delayed until Friday because I will be writing from the floor of the Miami National Antique Show. Monday’s blog will be postponed until Tuesday so I can include the results of the show, which ends on Monday.

My goal is to publish new posts twice a week — Mondays and Thursdays. However, if you don’t see a new post on Thursday, it’s because I was too busy, so please look for a new one the following Monday.

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I missed the last couple of Thursday posts because I was really busy getting ready for Florida. There’s a lot of work involved in cleaning, rewiring, inventorying, pricing and packing a large inventory for shipment by truck. We’re going to be doing five shows in a row, so we had to think of everything. In the meantime, business has been good, so we also had to spend a fair amount of time packing items for shipment. I assure you I am not complaining, only explaining the time pressure.

So the Florida shows are finally upon us. As I write this blog in cold New York, it seems surreal to me that we’ll be in sunny, warm Miami this Wednesday, and open to the public for business this Saturday at the Miami National Antique Show (The Airport show). The dates are all screwed up this year, with the show opening on Saturday. Of course, that angered observant Jewish dealers who won’t do business on Saturday and confused just about everybody else. I think the boat show at the Miami Beach Convention Center was the culprit. Its dates were considered more important by the city of Miami Beach, so it took precedence over the antique show, which was bumped to start on Friday, January 30, 2015, instead of the usual Thursday start. That in turn caused the Airport show to start a day later. Got it?

The Airport show will be a little smaller this year, but still full of very high-end dealers, most of whom will be exhibiting at the Original Miami Beach Antique Show the following week. If you take the time to come to Miami a few days early, you can get first crack at all of this merchandise. Seems like a no-brainer to me, yet many people haven’t taken advantage of the opportunity. You could visit the Airport show first and then have a few days to soak up the sun and enjoy the great restaurants. Seems like a “win-win” situation to me. So what are you waiting for? Make your arrangements now, if you haven’t done so already.

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The following week the eagerly anticipated Original Miami Beach Antique Show will open to the public. After all these years, it’s still a big deal. Dealers and attendees from all over the world flock there to do business. I imagine the total value of the merchandise on display is at least $1 billion. At a 10% sell-through rate, that’s $100 million in sales — not a bad piece of change.

Click here to check my website for the latest items and to look around. I always strive to offer the finest objects for sale on my website and at every show. There are many items for sale, sold items with prices and free lessons about glass and lamps. And remember to keep reading my blog.