Philadelphia Card Show - March 2023

[Eric72]

At the last Philly Show, Net54 members were able to get in free on Sunday. It was greatly appreciated; is there anything like that going on for the show tomorrow?

[x2drich2000]

Show was jam packed today. Parking in particular was really bad as their was a pet show and dance competition in the othe halls. As I was leaving, it sounded like folks were required to have exact change for admission. From the dealers I talked with sounded like sales of cheaper (sub $500) were doing well, but higher priced items weren't really moving. As usual, the best part of the show for me was talking to Dave and his wife (Baggers), Tom Botticelii, and Scott (Aquarian Sports Cards - who by the way has a great looking SGC 7 WWG Ruth coming up for auction!).

My WTF moment of the show was when I asked the price of a PC796 Cobb, I got a response of "its not for sale." If its not for sale, why bother having it in your showcase? I could understand if this was an auction preview, or even a significant "WOW look at that" type card like a T206 Wagner, high grade 52 Nantle, etc to grab peoples attention, but this doesn't seem like that type of card. Ironically, this is the 3rd time this particular dealer has had items on their table that I've asked about and either the items were not for sale or were not priced yet. If anyone can give a good reason why a dealer would do this, I would love to hear it.

[JollyElm]

Originally Posted by x2drich2000

My WTF moment of the show was when I asked the price of a PC796 Cobb, I got a response of "its not for sale." If its not for sale, why bother having it in your showcase? I could understand if this was an auction preview, or even a significant "WOW look at that" type card like a T206 Wagner, high grade 52 Nantle, etc to grab peoples attention, but this doesn't seem like that type of card. Ironically, this is the 3rd time this particular dealer has had items on their table that I've asked about and either the items were not for sale or were not priced yet. If anyone can give a good reason why a dealer would do this, I would love to hear it.

For the stuff that's not priced yet, he's probably not yet sure if he should take the past sales data and double that average price, triple the price or quadruple the price in order to arrive at the 'correct' number to write on his price sticker.

I find the not-for-sale stuff is usually just additional eye candy to enhance his set-up and add a little flavor to his booth.

[rugbymarine]

I knew parking would be a bigger problem than usual when I got there on Friday night. I went after work and usually I can park within a few rows of the entrance, but I had to park about 1/4 mile away. Saturday morning was even worse. Even the lots next door (for an Arnold's fun zone, where Expo Center patrons are not allowed to park) were full.

I heard from several dealers that traveled far for the show that their sales on Friday (by 7:00pm) made the trip worth it for them.

Tons of vintage, even more modern. Baseball, football, hockey, futbol, pokemon, memoribilia...there's a little bit for everyone. SGC was even there! Overall a great experience, as always.

Here's my haul from the show:

[Bobsbats]

I was at the show today and will probably go back tomorrow, with a bunch of pre-war cards throughout the show. Place was very crowded and in many spots, shoulder to shoulder.

It's always my favorite show, so i'm glad to see it thriving.