I will do my best to publish a new post every Monday.
I assume you would like an explanation. Fair enough. I sold a phenomenal number of items and did very well. So the show was fantastic. But I didn’t sell these items to the public. I sold them to my own clients via email, texts, photos and phone calls. I only made two sales to the public. If those were the only sales I had made, the show would have been a disaster. So the show was terrible.
I really had no idea how Covid would affect the show. The answer is that many clients did not come. The best clients are the ones who fly or drive in from wherever. They’re serious clients who make the effort to travel long distances, in some cases. Local people who stroll in from a leisurely drive have very little invested. Many of them are not serious. As a result, attendance was lighter than usual and interest was way down.
We gave out lots of business cards — a very bad sign. People take business cards in a disingenuous attempt to leave gracefully. It’s just a ruse, as most of the time they’re not really interested. If that’s the case, they should say so and not ask for a card. One old-timer many years ago told us he doesn’t give out cards for this exact reason. He seemed like a curmudgeon at the time, but insightful in retrospect.
Both of my sales to the public were Daum Nancy. One was a gorgeous Birch Tree scenic vase and the other was a fantastic box with padded and wheel-carved poppies.
Of course I’ll do the show again next year, but my expectations will be different. If Covid is still important in a year, it will continue to have negative consequences. If it fades in importance, I suspect many more people will be willing to make the long distance trip. Got my fingers crossed, not just for me, but for humanity.
Let me know what interests you, even if you don’t see it on my website. I’ve got lots of items that I haven’t listed yet and I know how to locate what you desire.
I listed some of the new items on my website and will list more every week. Click Philip Chasen Antiques to take a look. I will make every effort to actively list new items as often as time permits. 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.