Date: Fri 17-Apr-1998

Publication: Ant

Author: LAURAB

Quick Words:

AtlanticCity

Full Text:

Bigger And Bigger Is Better And Better/Atlantique City Megafair

(with cuts)

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- Brace yourself, New York. Atlantique City may be

surpassing the Big Apple reputation's as the place to buy anything, at any

time, for any price.

Atlantique City's sheer variety is reflected in the tantalizing names of some

of its vendors: Single Girls Sin Antiques or Dicker & Dicker, for instance.

Show business is a numbers game, according to Atlantique City's visionary

founder, Norm Schaut. The head of Brimfield Promotions is convinced that

bigger and bigger is better and better. The numbers may indicate he's right.

"The place was so crowded you couldn't fall over," Schaut said of Atlantique

City's 10 am opening on Saturday morning, March 28.

About 14,000 people were packed into the lobby and atrium of the massive new

convention center, where Atlantique City was held for the second time. "It was

shoulder to shoulder," Schaut said of the opening. "The Atlantic City Police

Department told me that the line went all the way around the new 500-room

Sheraton Hotel and snaked nearly to Atlantic Avenue, about six blocks away."

On a weekend crowded with other fairs, including Stella Management's own

megashow, the Triple Pier Expo in New York, Brimfield Associate's success was

indeed phenomenal.

"Advertising pays," explained Schaut, who said attendance exploded at the

recent fair after steadily gaining for the past 14 years. The promoter doesn't

release gate figures. "It gets too close to the financial heart of our

business," he said.

"Advanced ticket sales went through the roof," he continued. "Two-day ticket

sales showed the largest increase. We fill about 14,000-room nights, which

makes the two Atlantique Cities the largest conventions in the state."

At the latest Atlantique City, 1,627 exhibitors from 43 states and 17

countries offered merchandise in the 1,100 categories listed in Brimfield

Associates' compugraphic locator.

Toys, games, ephemera, memorabilia, poster art, photography, ceramics, and

country store material predominate. Schaut said he "owns" these areas, but is

working to build other specialties, such as Americana.

Americana dealers on the floor said they came to buy, but generally sold well,

too. "I've done this show since the beginning," noted Loy Harrell of Hawks

Nest Antiques, Hinesburg, Vt. "I had one of my best shows ever in October. My

customers know I'm here, and I don't have a lot of competition in my

specialty."

Harrell, who also exhibits at decoy events, offered a Wally Algard duck from

the Upper Susquehana River, circa 1935, for $475. Another Americana dealer,

David Thompson of East Middlebury, Vt., featured Nineteenth Century

photography. Enclosed in velvet and leather cases, charming, small-scale

ambrotype portraits, landscapes, and architectural views were attractively

priced at several hundred dollars.

Two leading toy auctioneers, Bill Bertoia of Vineland, N.J., and Noel Barrett

of Carversville, Penn., took stands. "We were there mainly to promote our May

2 sale of the Stanley Sax bank collection and our upcoming June auction,"

Jeanne Bertoia said. "Thanks to the record crowds, we sold more catalogues

than ever before."

Bertoia and Barrett were joined by dozens of leading toy dealers from around

the world. "It was a good show, and just mobbed," Penny Van Wart of Penny

Toys, Leola, Penn., confirmed. A scheduling conflict at New York piers caused

Atlantique City and Triple Pier Expo to coincide, a problem for buyers and

sellers. "It was not a happy thing for anybody," said Van Wart, whose partner

set up in New York while she handled New Jersey. "But the Stella people were

extraordinarily accommodating."

Judging by the number of websites we saw advertised, places with addresses

like "http://www.cuteoldstuff.com," the Internet is on the verge of becoming a

major force in the collectibles business. But although they are developing

websites, many Atlantique City exhibitors told us they'd still rather make

money the old fashion way, by setting up at shows.

"I'm thinking of developing a page on the web, but I can't imagine the

Internet will ever be a substitute for this. I need to see and touch things,"

said Joan Majeune. The Leonia, N.J., dealer specializes in dolls houses.

Highlights of her display were two German turn-of-the-century examples by

Gottschalk.

Brimfield Associates demonstrated its promotional skill by working out the few

glitches that plagued the fall fair, the first one ever in the ultra high-tech

convention center. "There was more and better food, and plenty of seating,"

one exhibitor said happily.

"Every single problem that we knew of was addressed, right down to the big

rolls of paper in the johns," said Schaut. In recognition of Atlantique City's

swelling importance, the railroad added two cars. The Atlantique City

Unlimited hauled 1,400 showgoers on Saturday and 1,100 on Sunday. At night,

the Grand Boulevard Walk was lit up like a Christmas tree to help shoppers

find their way back to the 13,000 parking places within a ten-minute walk of

the show.