A Message from the President
Nancy Johnson, Collectors Extravaganzaâ
An I Ching Image bearing the meaning-Chaos, where brilliant dreams
are born.
It probably was chaos on a small scale when PSMA was formed by
northeastern antiques shows managers in 1987. The managers regarded
themselves more as adversaries than partners in a greater industry,
there was little communication between the managers, and the antiques
show world seemed centered "east and north of Philadelphia."
But thanks to those managers, one of whom is our current Secretary,
Vivien Cord, we have a national organization with national name
recognition. Our Officers and Board come from eight states, coast-
to-coast, plus D.C., and represent antiques shows but also art
shows, blue grass festivals, chocolate festivals, arts and crafts
shows, hunting expositions, bridal events, and pet expos! We have a
full-time association office to do the day-to-day work of running
PSMA. I often wonder if PSMA's founding "fathers and mothers"
would have envisioned our growth and event representation.
I have just begun what will be my fourth and last two-year term as
your President, having been Vice President for two terms and a Board
member for four years prior. I was Vice President during the 9/11
tragedy, another time of chaos for our industry, and we not only
survived, but also learned the value of banding together with our consumer
show message. It was the explosion of fakes and reproductions that
brought us together to create something indeed wonderful. The PSMA/
FTC project is a "success in motion" with much more work to do,
but what a start!
In the last three months, I have seen interest and participation in
PSMA at an all-time high. One does not have to be a Board member to
participate, and we are experiencing that through our conference
calls, list-serve and exchanges of e-mails 1:1 between members. The
chaotic economic times we live in have brought us together to work
once again.
Let's make 2009 one of PSMA's most productive years!
PSMA FAKES AND FRAUDS EFFORT HAS INTERNATIONAL IMPACT
As most members are aware, the PSMA in cooperation with the Federal Trade Commission has been working to create awareness among consumers of the fakes that are circulating in the antiques and crafts marketplace, masquerading as "originals." We have recently been contacted by an individual in the United Kingdom who writes for antiques journals in both the United Kingdom and Australia, that this is a problem that is also very much evident in these countries. He has sought permission to write about our program of bringing this issue to the attention of the consumer in these two countries through our "Bookmark" program. If you have not yet ordered your bookmarks (the first 1,000 are free to PSMA members), you should do so today. Issues such as these, whereby the outcome is a defrauded consumer, only create discomfort and question the professionalism of show promoters and their exhibitors. PSMA is hopeful that this effort will educate consumers to be aware and to ask the appropriate questions and request documentation to avoid being defrauded.
PSMA BOARD OF DIRECTORS ACT TO REMOVE SHOW CALENDAR FROM PSMA.ORG WEBSITE
After much discussion at several Board and Committee meetings, it was the website Committee's unanimous decision to remove the PSMA show calendar from the Website. Initially, the website was thought to be the ideal means of being able to update our show calendar information electronically so that it would be available to all members and to consumers seeking shows of various types in various geographic locales. Because participation by members in listing their shows on the calendar has been declining over recent years, and as a result of much discussion, it was agreed that the show calendar is not the vehicle that is driving consumers to our members' shows. Most agreed that, for example, a consumer who is interested in attending an antiques show in New York will first "google" those words ("antiques shows New York") and not seek out a website devoted to show promoters all across the country. The exception to this is perhaps the consumer who is seeking information about a show promoter they already know and are seeking their specific show information. However, most Board members felt that if that were the case, they might get more specific show information by again "googling" that promoter's name or by going to the promoter's individual website. This decision was not one taken lightly and represents a change in the philosophy of the Board as we move more into the electronic age. This change will be evident on our web page (PSMASHOWS.org) during the first week in February 2009.
MEMBERSHIP CARDS BEING DISSEMINATED TO PAID MEMBERS AT THIS TIME
Just a reminder to members that the dues invoicing for the 2009 membership year has gone out to all members and that dues are payable upon receipt. For those of you who have paid your dues, you will be receiving your membership card in the mail in the next several days if you have not already received your card.
PSMA MOVES TO AN ELECTRONIC FORMAT FOR MAILINGS AND COMMUNICATION WITH MEMBERS
PSMA continues to move forward into the electronic medium. We are a relatively small not-for-profit organization with limited funds, and as such, we are making every effort to keep our expenses to a minimum. In the future, we will be only disseminating notices, newsletters and other important documents by electronic medium. There are still some of our members who have not provided us with their email addresses and we have accommodated you by sending your information to you by traditional USPS mailings. In the next several months, in an attempt to reduce our mailing expenses, we are planning to go "all electronic" so we will not be able to accommodate those of you who do not have email addresses. By this time, you should have received a member update request from the PSMA offices. We are seeking to update all our records including email addresses. We ask you to complete this information update form as we are attempting to update our records and categorize members both geographically and by the type of show they traditionally promote. We have been able to keep our membership dues significantly lower than other organizations in our "arena" and this is yet another means by which we can accomplish this objective.
...REMEMBER... USE THE PSMA LISTSERVE
Several weeks ago, every member of PSMA for whom we had a valid email address received an invitation to join the PSMA Listserve on Yahoo Groups. The listserve is designed to be a new member service of PSMA but it can only be utilized if you join the Yahoo Groups. It's an opportunity to network with your fellow managers without leaving the comfort and convenience of your own office. Have a question? Want to find out how other show managers handle a particular situation? Wish to pose that question anonymously? All this can be done in a matter of moments, and your question goes out to the entire PSMA membership. There has already been some great information exchanged on the listserve. Don't miss out...even if you don't want to pose a question, you get the benefit of hearing what the issues and/or questions are and you can choose to respond or ignore the question. Based on our experience, our PSMA members have a great deal to offer in the way of first-hand experience with any number of issues that face our members on a daily basis.
However, the listserve is like the lottery. If you don't buy a ticket...you can't win. If you don't join our listserve in the Yahoo Groups, you won't be able to participate. All participants in our Show Managers Group must be approved by the PSMA office, so you must first be invited to participate. If you have deleted or never received your email invitation to join, call Mitch or Lori at the PSMA offices and we will forward another invitation to you to join.
A MAJOR STEP IN FIGHTING FRAUD
Bloomfield, Ct. – History has been made! The Federal Trade Commission and the Professional Show Managers Association (PSMA) have jointly taken a giant step in educating the public about fraud in the world of antiques and collectibles.
A yearlong crusade, led by Nancy Johnson and Dordy Fontinel, board members of the Professional Show Managers Association, has resulted in the printing and mass distribution of hundreds of thousands of colorful informative bookmarks. Titled “Antiques, How to Shop Wisely”, the educational pieces give bullet points of information to be considered when shopping for antiques:
“When shopping for antiques and collectibles, ask the dealer. How long have you been in business? How do you know any item is genuine, not a fake or reproduction? What are your criteria for identifying the item? Will you give me a written guarantee that the item is authentic? What is your return policy?”
In addition, Johnson and Fontinel were successful in their request that Consumer Information on Safely Shopping for Antiques and Collectibles be added to the FTC website. The two women spent nearly six months working with the FTC on the specific information that is now available. The recently posted article may be accessed by visiting the FTC.gov website or simply googling FTC antiques.
When PSMA President Nancy Johnson wrote an article in the Association’s Winter 2007 newsletter entitled “When Did It Become OK To Cheat Someone?”, a commentary on our world’s complacency about being defrauded, show promoter Dordy Fontinel responded and began a dialogue with Johnson about the problem of fakes and fraud in the world of antiques and collectibles. This dialogue resulted in Fontinel speaking with Sen. John Warner, subsequent meetings with his staff and the Federal Trade Commission.
Last June, Fontinel and Johnson met with Jeanne Bumpus, Director of Congressional Affairs at the FTC, and members of the planning and information division of the FTC. Their goal was to have Antiques & Collectibles recognized as “consumer items” and to encourage the FTC to take note of the rampant fraud, which is taking place under the guise of “Antiques”. The FTC agreed and the process began. Knowingly selling a fake is criminal fraud in most states.
PSMA also feels that the bookmarks will provide a convenient opportunity for anyone interested in educating the buying public and fighting the cause. PSMA encourages show promoters, dealers, shop and mall managers, club members, and auctioneers to get involved, therefore PSMA is offering the bookmarks at their cost.
The battle has just begun! Now that the FTC has issued an Alert that selling an antique or collectible item that is not authentic is Fraud, Fontinel and Johnson feel more consumer protection will occur on the state and local level.
To order bookmarks, send a check made payable to PSMA to the PSMA Offices, Attn: FTC Project, P.O. Box 30, Bloomfield CT 06002. The cost of the bookmarks, including Priority Mail, is $25 per 1000 or a single package of 200 for $10. (PSMA is a non-profit trade association of consumer show managers, with the majority of its members in the Antiques & Collectible fields.)
For more information, please contact:
Nancy Johnson, President
Professional Show Managers Association
njohnson@collectorsextravaganza.com
515.262.6714
Dordy Fontinel, Board Member
Professional Show Managers Association
dfshows@verizon.net
703.779.2800
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