YORK, Pa – On Saturday, Aug. 23, Geppi’s Entertainment Auctions & Publications, and Dan Morphy, will host the 14th edition of the York Antique Toy, Doll, Holiday & Advertising Show at the Memorial Hall, York Fairgrounds, in York, Pa. The semiannual show has developed into a powerhouse event with approximately 175 top-notch dealers from North America and Europe participating.
The popular specialty event features wide aisles, excellent food service and ample, close-in parking. Exhibitors will drive long distances to sell at Morphy’s show because it’s not a long, drawn-out affair – it’s a one-day event with a seven-hour early buying session the day before. “And it’s very cost efficient,” Morphy noted. A standard 8 by 10ft booth with one table included costs only $160 to rent.
Early buyers initially enter the building at the same time as the dealers, at 10 a.m. on the day before the show (Friday, Aug. 22). The number of earlybirds paying $50 to enter at that time to get first pick has grown with each successive show. “Early buyers who come to my show are the serious collectors,” said Morphy. “I’ve never seen a single one of them walk out empty handed. They’re for real.”
Morphy has redoubled marketing and advertising efforts to improve the show’s attendance, which has averaged around 1,000 paid admissions in the past. Obviously, dealers are finding it lucrative to set up at Morphy’s show, often maximizing their time spent in southeastern Pennsylvania with side trips to Adamstown, a mecca of acclaimed antique malls, including Morphy’s Adamstown Antique Gallery. “I honestly can’t name more than five dealers we’ve lost since starting the show. Some of the regulars can’t do both the February and August editions because of other commitments, but they keep coming back. It’s a cheap, easy, convenient show to do, and for better or worse, it works.”
The mix at the show is around 35 percent antique and vintage toys, 35 percent antique advertising, 15 percent dolls and 15 percent holiday. Many of the dealers offer a cross-selection from all four categories. “There’s a natural crossover among the collectors and dealers who sell these types of items, anyway,” said Morphy, “but it also makes good sense to diversify. In today’s market, you have to be more general in what you sell. Besides, a lot of people collect in multiple categories, so you’d might as well cater to them.”
The show also provides an ideal setting in which Morphy and Tommy Sage – co-founders of Morphy Auctions, now owned by Geppi’s Entertainment Auctions & Publications (which also owns the York Toy Show) – can meet one on one with potential consignors, whether they have an interest in selling a single better-quality item or an entire collection. Morphy Auctions’ well-attended events held at Adamstown Antique Gallery are known for the consistently superior merchandise offered, ranging from top-quality toys, banks and antique advertising to premium-quality Americana in all its forms.
“I think we’re doing everything right in terms of catering to the dealers, which is so important to the continued success of the show,” Morphy concluded. “When you have the best dealers on board, the collectors will come. The word is getting out there that this is not like any other East Coast show, and I’m committed to continuing to build its reputation as a show not to be missed.”
Dan Morphy’s Antique Toy, Doll, Holiday & Advertising Show will take place from 9-3 on Saturday, Aug. 23, at the Memorial Hall, York Fairgrounds, 334 Carlisle Ave. in York, Pa. Admission: $7. Early buying is from 10-5 on Friday, Aug. 22 (early admission: $50). Parking is free on both days. For easy online access to an exhibitor’s contract, log on to www.aagal.com.