Seeing the Hobby from the Other Side of the Table

This past weekend was Chicago Shenanigans, one of those gatherings I always look forward to. Normally the fun starts on Friday, but this year I missed it. We were flying back from Colorado, where we’d been house hunting for what we hope will be our forever home.

By the time I got back late Friday night, there was still work to do. I loaded the car with the models I was planning to sell from the Tom Nathan collection and pointed it northwest.

I’m sure John Kuvakas will have something to say about the Friday adventures — the Studebaker Museum and the Oliver Mansion. From what I’ve heard, they were spectacular. Missing that part was a bit of a disappointment, but the weekend still had plenty in store.

Saturday morning arrived with a bit more anxiety than I expected. For the first time, I wasn’t attending as a collector browsing the tables. I was on the other side of the table.

Selling.

That’s new territory for me.

I’ve always been a collector, and if I’m honest, talking about money is the least enjoyable part of the hobby. Putting prices on models feels strange. Value and worth are such arbitrary things in collecting. What really mattered to me was simply finding good homes for the 60-plus models I brought to Jeff’s 1/43 show on Saturday and the Countryside show on Sunday.

Right before things got started, I leaned over to JK and admitted I was having second thoughts.

Would people like my models?
Would they think my prices were fair?
Would they be overly critical?

He told me to relax, enjoy myself, and that everything would feel easier once I sold the first model.

He was right.

Once the first sale happened, things started to flow. I stayed busy most of both Saturday and Sunday. Sometimes it was just great conversations about particular models or racing history. Other times it was negotiating prices where both sides walked away feeling good about the deal.

One thing I didn’t expect was how little time I had to step away and shop myself. In hindsight, that was probably a good thing. It was dawning on me that anything I bought would have to make the trip to Colorado eventually anyway.

(Mikhail Bashmashnikov always has some amazingly detailed pieces for the very serious collector.) 

(I was able to briefly walk around the very busy room on Saturday. Kudos to Jeff Lane who really hustled in bring in the dealers and the crowds.)

(In what is becoming a tradition, we had a great dinner and conversation at Aurelio's Pizza.)

Another interesting insight: a large portion of my sales came from other dealers and the early entrants. They knew exactly what they were looking at and understood the value of what was on my little table.

I did have to gently caution a few younger shoppers who picked up a $100 model like it was a Hot Wheels. Unfortunately, that’s how I lost a hood ornament and a set of photo-etched wipers on one car.

Lesson learned.

I also have to give a big thank you to John Kuliak. If you ask me, his nickname should be “The Connector.” He made the rounds among the other dealers and encouraged them to come check out some of the handbuilt racing models I had brought along. At one point, an eager dealer offered a price for an entire box.

I happily accepted.

He was happy. I was happy. And a good number of models found a new home all at once.

(Sunday at Countryside with many familiar faces.)

(Saturday's show organizer Jeff Lane was also set up on Sunday with two spectacular show models.)

By the end of the weekend, it felt like a success on several levels. My load was considerably lighter, the models found new collectors, and I got to experience these shows from a completely different perspective.

Still, after seeing both sides of the table, I’ve come to one clear conclusion.

All things considered…

I much prefer being the buyer than the seller.