AAA you will get better deals at their shop than you will at the show. We go when we can, the last couple of years had too many things going on.
Len and I disagree totally on the Big E show and marlboro. Marlboro there are not any more tables than the Big E show. Marlboro you're just crammed into a smaller space, with the same amount of tables.
I love you Sue, but yes this is one area that we disagree on and probably always will.
"Perception is Reality" was a favorite phrase of some folks at DEC back in the day.
Putting 300 or even 500 tables in a hall that comfortably holds 900-1000 tables makes the place look "empty" to many/most people and exudes a vision of "failure" (especially when Carole's initial advertising is for a 900 table show). That is why the professional trade shows at places like the World Trade Center in Boston put up poles with full-length curtains to "make a small area" when they have small shows there. For those not familiar with the actual hall lay-out it gives a nice cozy, "occupied" perception of the show. [I used to work a lot of professional computer trade shows there.]
A number of vendors that I'm friendly with told me of seeing the Big E Staff handing Carole free parking passes for the vendors . . . which they allege she turns around and sells to the vendors for $5.00 each . . . this has pissed off a number of them. A vendor with let's say 8 tables and a staff of 4-5 people must then pay parking for each of them (if they don't car-pool) x 3 days (setup Friday night isn't free parking I've been told).
The Big E restrictions on having any ammo or powder for sale at the show (excluding the tent) limits revenue for the dealers who work that show. At other venues they can sell ammo along with the guns/accessories/primers/powder all at the same table.
The net result is that a number of good vendors no longer will work that show.
I KNOW that the last Big E show I attended looked sparse so I did a real count of tables/row x rows and came up with between 300 and 325 tables. No denying that.
When they held shows at Foxboro the hall could only hold 325 tables and every one was filled. It gave a perception of "success". The Concord NH (different promoter) shows are the same way, there is a "waiting list" for tables as the place only holds ~300 tables and is always full (with narrow aisles).
I used to work computer flea market shows at Marlboro so I suggested it to Carole as a replacement venue (for Foxboro after anti-gun folks bought that location). The hall only holds 500 tables and the first few shows were totally full. It's now running ~400-450 full tables, but oftentimes it's the same weekend as one of the huge shows in PA so some vendors are heading there (700-1200 table show w/no restrictions on what can be sold vs. 500 table show with MA restrictions). It's still on average the largest (by number of occupied tables) show in New England.
Like some others here, I used to attend Big E gun shows back 25-30 years ago, and they were HUGE, needed a full 8 hours to hope to cover the place. So I look back vs. what I see these days and am hugely disappointed at what's happened to that show. MA anti-gun laws certainly don't help, but greed ($25 for two people to attend/park) and the dwindling table count just don't make it as attractive to the dealers or attendees.
Sue, I didn't plant anything in people's minds that reported no lines, etc. in this thread prior to my remarks. We are both entitled to our opinions . . . but opinions aside, numbers of tables and lines to get in/crowds on the floor (or any lack thereof) speak for themselves. Personally I wish their were successful, large shows in all four corners and center of the state, but it just isn't going to happen in MA!
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