GREAT WEST PROGRAMME & MEMORABILIA FAIR DECEMBER 2014

[Westwardprogs]

I should like to place on record my appreciation of everyone who supported the inaugural Great West Fair held at Bath City FC on December 30 last. We had an attendance of around 40, and there were 13 stall-holders present. Since the event was held, I have received a lot of feedback from both the collectors and dealers present.
Virtually without exception, collectors have expressed appreciation that such a major event was staged in the West Country – it was the largest in the region for several years. Furthermore, several of them invested quite significant sums of money in enhancing their collections.
As a consequence, one major national dealer had higher takings at Bath than he achieved at the Manchester Fair four days earlier, while another did better at Bath than he had at Sheffield three days earlier. That was impressive as the Manchester and Sheffield Fairs are well-established, highly-reputable events!
Further, everyone agreed that the venue provided by Bath City FC was excellent, and ideal for a Fair of this size.
In the circumstances, I am proposing to organise another event at Bath next December and I am hopeful that another decent line-up of dealers can be assembled.
My view is that perseverance pays. In this regard I am conscious of the success achieved by Barry Dixey and Michael Barnes in reviving the West London Fair over the past 18 months. Therefore, if we can build on the word of mouth recommendation of the 40 attendees at the recent Bath event, and increase the attendance to about 60 next time, then 90 in 2015 and 100+ from 2016 onwards, then we shall have succeeded in establishing a worthwhile annual Fair in the West Country – that’s my aim.
The actual date of the 2014 Fair will not be fixed until July, when the fixtures for next season and the dates of the other major seasonal fairs have been fixed – and it may well be on a Sunday instead of in midweek. Watch this space!