Winter Expo?

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penfield

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In my opinion, 2 isn't enough...there is WAY too much time between the fall and spring expos. November is nice because Series 1 is out, and people are full steam into the season. Spring in May is essentially the tail end of the card season with the playoffs starting to wind down.

Wouldn't it be perfect to have one in February for a Winter expo?
 
It might be tough to get all of the dealers to agree to 3 weekends a year for the expo but I'm all in favour of more big shows
 
I think that would be difficult for many dealer. Given travel costs, booth costs, food, hotel and everything else, it is a significant outlay to attend Expo for anybody travelling from outside of Ontario. You have to remember for dealers it's not simply having enough sales to cover those costs but having enough profit. You will also reduce the sales amount at each show by adding a third show in. The Expo has been getting smaller each year with fewer dealers and attendees and a third show would make things even worse IMO.
 
I don't see a 3rd Expo happening, especially in mid winter when travel can be "unfavourable", to say the least.

Instead, I would encourage people to day trip to some of the smaller shows in your area, or plan a day to visit the different shops. The OP is in London, with easy access to the 401. You can go to the Monthly shows in Toronto, and Cambridge. And I think there is a new show in Windsor? Also take part in some of the Trade Nights. CnC has a big one in Kitchener (easily 15-20 people) every month. Some of the regulars make the trek from London already. Sure, they're not as big as Expo, but these monthly shows are a great way to see smaller assortment of cards available. Often times the smaller dealers don't set up at the Expo, so the monthly show is the only opportunity to see their inventory.
 
The London and Woodstock shows are laughably bad - same as the one that is a small hallway in the arena in Kitchener.

Been to a handful of Toronto shows too, and it is the same old same old being peddled. I have been to a CNC trade night a few times...one was a decent turnout, but the others i could count on on hand how many attended.

Not worth the 1-2 hour drive for poopy shows and poor turnouts. I agree, weather would be a challenge but an expo in the middle of hockey season would be awesome!

webottew said:
I don't see a 3rd Expo happening, especially in mid winter when travel can be "unfavourable", to say the least.

Instead, I would encourage people to day trip to some of the smaller shows in your area, or plan a day to visit the different shops. The OP is in London, with easy access to the 401. You can go to the Monthly shows in Toronto, and Cambridge. And I think there is a new show in Windsor? Also take part in some of the Trade Nights. CnC has a big one in Kitchener (easily 15-20 people) every month. Some of the regulars make the trek from London already. Sure, they're not as big as Expo, but these monthly shows are a great way to see smaller assortment of cards available. Often times the smaller dealers don't set up at the Expo, so the monthly show is the only opportunity to see their inventory.
Click to expand...
 
penfield said:
The London and Woodstock shows are laughably bad - same as the one that is a small hallway in the arena in Kitchener.

Been to a handful of Toronto shows too, and it is the same old same old being peddled. I have been to a CNC trade night a few times...one was a decent turnout, but the others i could count on on hand how many attended.

Not worth the 1-2 hour drive for poopy shows and poor turnouts. I agree, weather would be a challenge but an expo in the middle of hockey season would be awesome!
Click to expand...

All I am suggesting is that we are very fortunate to have so many hobby "diversions" along the 401 corridor. A collector in another part of the province/country/world may be jealous of our opportunities. We should support the smaller venues too throughout the year. I'm sure the Expo didn't start off as big as it is now. Let's not take the smaller shows for granted.
 
I wouldn't want to drive 5 hours in the snow and I doubt we'd see many hobbyists from out of town in the middle of winter. I think 2 Expos are more than enough!
 
I think 2 Expos and the National are enough for the hockey market. Let's be honest, not many products released between S1 and S2 gather attention. Having SPA out before Spring Expo is a key for me though.
 
In Ottawa every month there is one at the walkley arena, granted it mostly caters to modern collectors I can definitely appreciate it. I'll drop by when I can, just for kicks. With regards to an additional expo I don't think it's needed. The regional shows are there for the in-betweens.
 
If OP is concerned about the time gap, it might be better to move the Spring Expo to the beginning of April instead of added a 3rd in the dead of winter. I would hate to organize a major show in February and take a risk that a snow storm could just kill your attendance.
 
g-force said:
I think that would be difficult for many dealer. Given travel costs, booth costs, food, hotel and everything else, it is a significant outlay to attend Expo for anybody travelling from outside of Ontario. You have to remember for dealers it's not simply having enough sales to cover those costs but having enough profit. You will also reduce the sales amount at each show by adding a third show in. The Expo has been getting smaller each year with fewer dealers and attendees and a third show would make things even worse IMO.
Click to expand...

^^^^^ This.
 
uvic99 said:
If OP is concerned about the time gap, it might be better to move the Spring Expo to the beginning of April instead of added a 3rd in the dead of winter. I would hate to organize a major show in February and take a risk that a snow storm could just kill your attendance.
Click to expand...

THIS!!! yeah the weather is a risk for a winter expo - but the current expo timing usually doesn't seem to be as populated...less interest...the season is winding down...i'd just rather have one when there is still ample hockey buzz
 

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