Out of the two shows we've run so far in SoCal I'd say we had an attendee mix that was about 75% white, with the balance African-American, Hispanic and Asian. We also had far more women attendees than is the norm at many shows, which I ascribe to our free admission policy that allowed moms, significant others, and other people who weren't interested in collecting to tag along for free [I should probably ask whether charging a lot for women to be admitted is something the collectors favor
]. If you want to talk non-diversity, though, let's talk gender, as Bill Simmons wrote in 2011 on Grantland:
Q: Enjoyed your sports memorabilia piece. A question though: Were there ANY women there at all? I mean, if there is 'press box hot' what constitutes as 'sports memorabilia convention' hot?
— Torey, Pittsburgh
SG: I tackled this subject in 2009's photo essay, writing things like "There are sausage fests, there are mega-sausage fests and then there's the National Sports Collectors Convention. You have a better chance of meeting your future wife in an all-male penitentiary during a Gay Pride parade." Press Box Hot is a much higher caliber than NSCC Hot; I'd put NSCC Hot just below Female Prison Guard Hot. It's so bad that you're startled every time you see a woman under 40. Even pregnant moms pushing baby strollers get checked out. One collector had the bright idea of having a pretty women in her early 20s sit in his station with him; she was clearly hired for the event (like a convention escort), but the ploy worked. Guys in Hawaiian shirts were awkwardly wobbling by like they'd just seen a lunar eclipse. That's my suggestion to any major dealer out there: Hire a local Hooters girl or model to hang out in your booth for five afternoons and just flirt with customers. Pay her $200 a day. You'll make the money back.
01-03-2014, 09:26 AM
, except for myself, of course 
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