Thoughts, observations and opinions on the National

[Hankphenom]

Although I'm a memorabilia dealer, not a card guy, I'm so anxious to bestow praises on this show that I'm going to weigh in here anyway. It was just an outstanding show for me in so many ways I almost don't know where to start. Because it's why we're there, I'll begin with the fact that both I and my boothmate, Kevin Keating of Quality Autographs of Virginia, had the best national in terms of sales of the six nationals we've done so far since 2005. Then there's the fact that we both live about 45 minutes away, could sleep in our own beds every night, and didn't have the usual $1,000 or so in hotel, meals, travel, and other expenses. We found the facility to be topnotch except for the rather paltry concessions available. (I brought my own food after the first day.) Loading in and out was amazingly easy, especially for a center city facility we thought would be a nightmare. And on top of that, as we were leaving, EVERY ONE of the workers guiding our vehicles out of the building THANKED us for coming and said they hoped to see us again soon. That's a first! Believe me, I thanked every one of them. The crowds were terrific, and if what I saw and heard about from other dealers is any indication, I'm expecting to see big economic numbers coming out this fall for the 3rd quarter. There were also great east coast vintage dealers set up here who won't travel to the farther-away nationals. I've been saying for 20 years that if they ever put a national in one of the big east coast cities (no, Atlantic City doesn't count), they would be amazed at the turnout of collectors and the amount of money spent. The national honchos are going to vote soon between Atlantic City (!) and Baltimore for three years from now, and if they don't pick Baltimore I will protest by boycotting the show. If you liked this show, I would urge you to contact the national board and tell them so.
Hank Thomas