Pen Shows: Glorified Fp Supermarket Or Educational?

[luigilevin]

I have never attended a pen show as most of them are in the US, so what really goes on there?? Does Europe also have these shows ?? thx L

[Federalist Pens]

Well, I would not say "Glorified", but it is an educational supermarket!!

 

[migo984]

I've been quite a few Shows. It always makes me smile that they are called "Pen Shows" as every single dealer or table holder is there to sell. Sellers wouldn't travel 000s of miles to get to them if they didn't expect to make profits. So yes, in essence they are Pen Supermarkets.

 

However, they can be educational too, and I've learnt from going to them, but you need to know enough already to suss out the bull$@*€ & avoid some of the not-so-good "bargains". You need to be very selective and careful.

 

Yes, they do have Pen Shows all over Europe.

http://www.freewebs.com/euroshows/

[inkstainedruth]

There are also often classes at shows (at least at the ones I've been to, DCSS and Ohio Pen Show). I took Richard Binder's nib smoothing class the first time I went to the DC show, and this year went to the class on Cursive Logic (which IIRC was a Kickstarter for a system of teaching penmanship to schoolchildren). I have seen advertised (but not taken) classes on basic pen repairs and calligraphy as well.

I think of pen shows as a cross between an antiques fair (albeit a very specialized, narrow focus one) and a trade show. Especially for shows such as DCSS where a lot of the vendors are selling modern pens, and showing off their latest LE pens and new ink colors. But some shows, like Ohio, tend to be geared more towards the tables of vintage pens.

Ruth Morrisson aka inkstainedruth

[Dave Johannsen]

I think that it can be either. The people who are there selling vintage are collectors themselves (generally(?)/exclusively(?)), so are passionate about the hobby. If you talk with them about what they are selling, most (within limits of how many other people are at their table, etc) are very happy to talk about a pen. I doubt that many sellers will have the time to start at square one, but will be happy to talk about when a particular pen was made and by whom and where it fit in the makers line, etc. So, "flea market" or "education" is to a large degree within the hands of the person attending.

 

Dave

[VinnyCordeiro]

I have never attended a pen show as most of them are in the US, so what really goes on there?? Does Europe also have these shows ?? thx L

 

I read somewhere that there are shows in Barcelona and at the Netherlands (couldn't remember the city, though).

[rwilsonedn]

I usually learn a huge amount at a pen show: how particular pens look in person, how they feel, how to do some things, and a host more just talking with knowledgeable dealers--like discovering pens that I didn't know existed. I don't tend to shop that much. But then I'm probably close to a dealer's worst nightmare, as attendees go.

ron

[stevesurf]

I always learn at trade shows and the one pen show I attended was no different; well worth the time if you're an enthusiast.

 

As for EU shows, here's a great link:

 

http://www.freewebs.com/euroshows/

 

This might be the largest:

London/April 2016

http://exhibitors.stationeryshow.co.uk/exhibitors/grid

[Wahl]

I am a pen collector, and have always had a table at the Madrid Pen Show, where I will sell, buy and trade. And yes, I´m happy to talk FP´s with those who attend.

 

There are 23 Penshows scheduled for 2015 across Europe.

[ENewton]

I recently attended the San Francisco Pen Show. It was my first time at a pen show, and although there was a great deal of commercial activity, there was also the chance to try literally 500 inks! In addition, there were classes ranging from Fountain Pens 101 to handwriting to journaling, and at one end of the large hall, one could watch a nib specialist working on pens that people had brought to him for adjustment.

 

Has anyone attended a pen show during which there were seminars focused on vintage pens of a specific manufacturer or type? It seems to me that a seminar dedicated to a particular type of pen would be educational for pen show participants (who could then look from table to table for examples of the pen that had been discussed), as well as beneficial for sellers (because a seminar on a brand, model, or style would tend to cultivate interest in those pens).

[PS104]

Sounds like a tinge of "been there - done that" attitude setting in albeit along with some enthusiasm

The most enthusiastic person to go to a pen show is Ana as she recounts her experiences, including driving for several hours, staying at the show for just as long and then driving back.

I wish I could recapture her enthusiasm. The following link is worth reading. I found it captivating

 

https://www.fountainpennetwork.com/forum/topic/296240-my-1st-pen-show-ever/

[JonSzanto]

If you like pens,

there is nothing in the world better than a pen show.

 

 

QED.

[AltecGreen]

These things are also part of a pen show.

 

 

 

 

Chatting with Susan after the ballroom is closed. (SF Pen Show 2015)

 

 

Learning from the master (SF Pen Show 2015)

 

 

Dancing to the band at the show concert (SF Pen Show 2015) [The two girls were not even part of the pen show. They were with the other event at the hotel]

 

 

 

Having one too many Fiji's (the Fiji is now the official drink of the SF Pen Show) BTW-the show bought all of the drinks. (SF Pen Show 2015)

 

 

 

Susan Wirth Dancing with Greg (SF Pen Show 2015)

 

We remember those that came before (SF Pen Show 2015)

 

 

Hanging after the show. (LA Pen Show 2015)

 

 

 

Cutting the Birthday Cake (LA Pen Show 2015)

 

 

Chillin (LA Pen Show 2014). (This is open to anyone who shows up. I went down there and hung out in 2010 at my first show when I was new to the hobby)

 

 

 

Drinking vodka with Maxim (LA Pen Show 2014) This is an annual tradition for the LA Show.

[kernando]

L, is that your African grey? Do you give him or her a metal pen?

 

Does anybody have an everyday pen supermarket? That would be cool too. Pen shows are educational if one looks at things and talks to people.

 

Let it be remembered that they were dancing to the Wisconsin Boogie.

[Cepasaccus]

It seems US pen shows are quite different from what I am used to here in Nuremberg. It is sales from around 10am to 3 or 4pm and that's it.

[JonSzanto]

It seems US pen shows are quite different from what I am used to here in Nuremberg. It is sales from around 10am to 3 or 4pm and that's it.

 

Boo, no fun! Pen shows should be a party with social electricity, and then some pens and inks, too.

[Cepasaccus]

So the local pen show is exactly what I need. I was never a party guy.

[benbot517]

The Portland Pen Show had some vendors, and checking out what they have is always fun. For me though, the most fun part is hanging out with people from the Network and getting to chat and visit in person. It's always a blast.

[Parker51]

Pen shows vary from location to location. In the U.S. they are part of a hobby of collectors, and users of a unique item, something which while not a unique idea to the U.S. is embraced as an idea by a limited number of cultures around the world, the culture of the hobbyists. While it is true, that there are some differences between hobbyists of different subject areas, there are often significant similarites. So if you want to guess what a pen show is like in a specific culture, look at what other hobby shows are like. Around here, they are simialer to art shows, steam & tractor shows and pottery shows, with the big differences being that some of these shows focus more on the buying and selling of items, and some more on the sharing of information and dare I say, fellowship of fellow collectors.

[Russ]

The show is what one makes of it. Supermarket? Yes -- a delightful smorgasboard of pens! Educational? Yes -- remembering that people on both sides of the table vary in their comfort with social interaction. Some are ready and easy to talk with while others are considerably introverted, so it may require having topics, questions, or points for conversation ready to use if you need to elicit conversation. And sometimes buyers are simply overwhelmed with a veritable sea of pens, and sellers are exhausted but trying to appear fresh. I usually have 3-5 pens I want to consider for purchase at a show, and perhaps a few tools as well. I educate myself on these things long before the show, and then I am ready to select sellers who can help me and I engage them readily in conversation.