Reno Collectibles Show is locked in! Please complete my survey

[Barry Sherwood R-9037 (admin)]

Hi, everyone.  Just wanted to give you all a big update on the Reno Collectibles Show that I'm putting on May 2-4, 2025 in Reno, Nevada.  I've already added it to the calendar here on the forum.  The domain https://renocollectibles.com is registered but the website is barely started, so don't look there for many details just yet.  Give us a week or so to get some content up there.  In the meantime, bookmark it.  Also got a cool phone#.  775-360-4007.  That's right, Reno area code with a three-sixty for double-oh-seven.  Try to forget that one, eh?  I also created a facebook page which we'll keep updated with details and content, plus dealers and attendees can discuss the show and offer feedback as we go along.

Before I get into the nitty gritty, please PLEASE take a few minutes to complete this survey I drafted.  It will help me get a handle on who's interested in coming, what things I should plan to keep everyone entertained, and what will make this a success for dealers and attendees alike.  Find it here Reno Collectibles Survey.

The event will be held in the 45,000 sq ft Summit Pavilion at the Grand Sierra Resort in Reno, Nevada, which I'm super excited about as it's a great casino just 5 minutes from the airport (with a free shuttle), loads of restaurants and things for kids to do, a great pool with entertainment.  Their Grand Theater showroom has some of the greatest acts coming through every week, so I'm looking forward to see who's playing that weekend.

It's Cinco de Mayo weekend, Kentucky Derby weekend, and most importantly... it includes STAR WARS DAY (May the Fourth... be with you)!  How perfect is that?

The Summit Pavilion is the largest room they have and easiest for load-in and haul-out.  This will let me have a large show/dealer floor that can potentially accommodate 300-400 dealer tables.  I'm targeting a minimum of 100 and hope to hit 200.  The rest of the space will be airwalled into an eating area (VIP passholders will get breakfast, lunch, snacks, and drinks all 3 days) and a speaker area.

I plan to have a stage for announcements, live auctions, showcasing dealers and their products, in-show speakers.  Behind that will be a big screen where dealers and sponsors can have ads running in rotation to attract more traffic to their booth.

On the show floor there will be a cash bar and a cash food booth (GSR provided) so you can grab food and drinks without having to leave the venue.

I may or may not have a welcome banquet, but if I do, it will be open to dealers and attendees alike for a fee.  If we pre-sell enough tables, I can subsidize some of the cost to make it cheaper to come to than going to any of the restaurants.

I will definitely have a thank-you dinner and other surprises for my volunteers, so if you feel up to lending a hand, let me know.  I'm having the GSR provide and set up all of the tables, tablecloths, and chairs, so setup and tear down will be almost effortless compared to other events you may have helped with.  The main things I'll need help with are:

• setting up event (posters, banners, registration materials, etc)
• manning the registration table
• guarding the door to the food room
• providing overnight security (I can pay GSR or hire outside security to do it if no one volunteers)
• auctioneer
• auctioneer's assistants
• running tournaments
• show ambassadors
• bus tour guides (I've reached out to Phil Jensen and Howdy Herz to help with this)
• tour assistants
• speakers
• speaker wranglers (show runner for speakers)
• AV technician (GSR may handle that - I don't know)

The event will be FREE to attend.  All I will ask for is name, email, phone and permission to reach out for at least the duration of the show.  After that, people can opt-out if desired.  Early bird registration for attendees will earn them premium goodie bags (walk-ins will may not get goodie bags of any kind).  I'm working on creating online signup forms and QR codes to speed things up and eliminate as much paper as I can.  I don't yet know if I can make it open to under 18 years of age attendees as there will be alcohol available on the floor.

Because this is my first time organizing an event on my own, I NEED to make sure I can cover my expenses ASAP, so I'm going to offer early bird registration discounts for dealers AND rebates or future credit if I hit targets of 150, 200, 250, and 300 "tables".  So, everyone who wants a table will be encouraged to get others to show up as well, which will bring down the price for everyone and assure that there will be an event next year.

But it won't just be a buying/selling event.  I am working on the following events/activities as well:

• Poker tournament
• Blackjack tournament
• Slot tournament (it's quite possible it will be a SILVER STRIKE tournament!!)
• Guided bus tour of Reno's casinos, both old and new.  And possibly same for Virginia City and Carson City.
• Afternoon beer/snack break (on show floor, free to all attendees/dealers)
• Live auction
• Raffle
• Educational/fun speakers
• First year merchandise, which will itself be collectible, naturally.

I'm sorry for droning on here.  I hope you're as excited about this event as I am.  Please share the event to any and all people, groups, and businesses that are associated with collectibles of any kind.  I'm building a database of potential dealers and I'd appreciate any assistance in that arena.  Send me a spreadsheet and I'll import it to mine.  Doesn't matter if they're in the Reno area or not.  Although I expect most of the dealers to be local (Reno/Sparks/Carson City/Virginia City/Minden/Gardnerville/Lake Tahoe/Fernley/Fallon), we are reaching out to Sacramento, Bay Area, Central California, Southern California, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Utah as well, all of which are within a day's drive.  I also expect to see some familiar faces from places like Texas and the East Coast due to the anticipated size of this show and the fact that there will be a bevy of new buyers to check out the offerings.
Take care and I hope to hear from you all.  As a reminder, please click to fill out my Reno Collectibles Survey

-- Barry Sherwood