I’ll write Thursday’s post during the preview party on Thursday night, so you can read it on Friday.
My goal is to publish new posts twice a week — Mondays and Thursdays. The weather is getting colder and my show schedule is picking up, so I have gone back to publishing twice weekly.
Friday, 3:15 PM. It’s not a good sign when I have the time to start writing my blog at a show. The show has been open for over an hour with a couple of serious inquiries, but no sales yet.
Friday, 6:00 PM. The day was dreadfully slow, with a couple of seemingly serious inquiries, but no sales. I’m not optimistic the show will go well, but hopefully business will improve over the weekend.
Looking down the aisle from my booth at 2 PM on Saturday
Saturday, 2:00 PM. The show has been open for four hours. Attendance has been very light and there have been no serious inquiries. I hope this doesn’t turn out to be our first show ever with no sales, but that remains a distinct possibility.
Saturday, 6:00 PM. The show is closed today and so far it’s been a bust. There have been very few people in attendance and very little interest from those that were here. One lady is interested in a couple of paintings and promised to return tomorrow with her husband, so we’ll see if anything materializes.
Sunday, 2:00 PM. We actually made one sale for $225, so this will not be our first show with no sales.
We’ll have this incredible Gallé Seagull vase at the Winnetka show
Sunday, 4:00 PM. The show is over and the news is in. We will not be returning to Southfield, Michigan. That makes two shows in a row that we’re dropping. We have very few shows left.
We made a decent sale in the afternoon, so now we’re losing less money, but the show was still a loss. Attendance at the show was poor, as were interest and sales. I wish the show promoter, Bob Bockius, the best, but I just don’t see how the show has much of a future. With such low attendance, there isn’t much chance for the dealers to do well, forcing them to drop out. Without enough dealers, there can’t be a show. I hope I’m wrong.
Friday – 10:00am – 6:00pm, Saturday – 10:00am – 5:00pm, Sunday – 11:00am – 4:00pm
Now we’re off to Winnetka, Illinois for the Antiques + Modernism Winnetka show this week. We have great friends and clients in the greater Chicago area, so we’re happy to be returning.
I hope to be able to add a number of wonderful examples of recent purchases to my website, but I’ve been busy, so it’s been hard to find the time. If you’re looking for something, send me an email. I’ll make the time to respond to your request.
I will update my site as often as time permits. We’re still very much in business between shows, so please don’t hesitate to email or call. 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.
I’m really looking forward to our next show, the revived Chicago Antiques + Art + Design Show at the Chicago Merchandise Mart. I was quite sad when it folded a few years ago as it was always one of my favorite shows. The new edition will have a new promoter, Dolphin Promotions, headed by Rosemary Krieger. There hasn’t been an antique show in downtown Chicago for several years, so I’m hoping this one will be met with a lot of enthusiasm. The show runs from May 18-21, 2017.
Yesterday we spent the entire day setting up at the 2017 Michigan Modernism Art & Antiques Show in Southfield. It went very well for a variety of reasons including 1. We unloaded and set up the showcases on Wednesday. 2. We had an additional person helping, so there were four of us. 3. We had a huge booth, so we weren’t stepping all over each other. We finished in one day, which was quite an accomplishment. We’ll have the day off today, Friday, but we have to come back for the preview party this evening, 6:00 – 9:30 PM. I really hate preview parties, but I have a funny feeling that we might do some business at this party. I’ve got my fingers crossed.
