Has Greenbergs changed? anyone?

Classic Toy Trains Forum
1

anyone goto greenbergs this year?

i visited the greenbergs show in Fortwashington Pa this last wekend… I figured the show that was right before xmas would rock!! and boy was i disappointed! it was nothing like the greenbergs shows of yesteryear… (IVE BEEN GOIN ABOUT 30 YEARS OFF AND ON) there was little to no “O” and no “HO” running… mostly all N and G stuff… a oval of snap track with a train flyn around is not a running display IMHO (maybe all the good operating displays went to Jersey??) why was there two shows on the same weekend so close geographicly together?.. Fortwayne PA and Edison NJ .

Back in the day, I remember them having train races for the kids… engines that kids actually got to operate and compete with…on two identical tracks, now a days, they haD plastic sheets with grass n roads printed on it , taped to the floor so kids could crawl all over it pushing plastic and wooden toys around.

No garage venders which i LOVE, post war stuff was sky-high overpriced, even the used newer stuff rolling stock when I spotted it, was grossly overpriced… HO and N was also skyhigh overpriced, even the old beatup used stuff that was being passed off as new.

the prices were almost as bad as my local hobbie-shop !!

i was looking to buy a $99 0-6-0 new lionel switcher…I could not find one in the entire Expo Center!!!, also looking to buy 2 rail O gauge track to make my own third rail…nothing! , looking for live steam(any gauge), agaIN nothing!

all in all I think i’ll never goto another “trainshow” At least till ive heard that they’ve changed

7.00 PP to walk in the door, fuel costs, crowded parking, turnpike tolls, bridge tolls… sales tax … grossly overpriced food and drink…

all to visit a horrible show ? Maybe its these shows chasing people away to shop the internet?

I know now that next time ill just shop online… like ive done in the past

2

I haven’t been to a Greenberg this year, but I have been to them in years past, and I have found that I get more bang for my buck when I attend the “local” train shows at the fairgrounds, VFW, Moose Halls, Union Halls, etc.

My favorite show is held twice a year at the Clark County Fairgrounds, in Springfield, Ohio. It takes me about 40 minutes to drive to the show. The parking is free. The admission is $5.00 and there are 300 plus tables with garage vendors, junk trains, parts, new trains, all different scales. Vendors come from Cincinnati, Toledo, Indianapolis, Columbus, Kentucky, Illinois and Michigan.

I have heard from un-reliable sources, that the cost of a table at a “national” show has risen dramatically in the past several years.

3

The Greenburgs around here are not that bad, the layouts do get boring considering i saw them 10 or 12 times before. Plenty of dealers and theres allways a deal somewhere.

4

I attended a Greenberg show in Cleveland 2 yrs. ago and it was just OK , nothing special .
You can’t expect internet pricing at most train shows , these vendors don’t have the buying power of a large distributor . The NMRA sponsors a really good show at a local college and I usually can find anything I want . johnnyc

5

The last one I went to in Atlanta was for the birds. The first thing when you walked in was a large display of dolls. Prfobably more G and Thomas than O, It’s my last Greenberg show until I hear they improve. The new promoters have ruined a good thing.

6

It’s my observation that Greenberg shows have lost their luster. Not that they were all that great when they first started. But Greenberg did have the edge because they were among the first show promoters to rent space in large exposition halls, unlike the regular “train meets” which are held in smaller venues.

I remember some of the first Greenberg shows held in the NYC metro area. They used to segregate dealers/vendors according to their wares: Doll house and miniature dealers were in one area; while toy dealers were in another area; and train dealers were still in another area.

Myself and other dealers thought that was counterproductive, because that floor plan layout stymied impulse buying. We thought that it would have been better if Greenberg had intergrated their dealers…the way they do today.

Greenberg shows hype their shows as Train and Hobby Shows, but if this is true, why were some vendors selling Jewelry and Fingernail supplies at the most recent Edison Greenberg show?

But what really sucks is that Greenberg prohibits other train show promoters from displaying their show flyers upfront at the entrance on Greenberg’s mailing list tables.

Unlike all other train shows, Greenberg does not provide a hospitality table at their show for other show promoters to offer their show flyers and other train show advertising.

BillFromWayne
www.modeltrainjournal.com

7

The GATS shows are just as lousy. I have a better time and see more Lionel, AF at local TCA meets open to the public even down here in the south.

Charliebee

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thanks for everyones input to my ranting. Buckeye, that show sounds great! when does it come around? spring - fall? I’m willing to drive from NorthEastern Pa

9

The company that runs these shows, CIA, was running 2 shows within 75 miles of each other. I’m not sure where the dealers were since the show in Edison cost an arm and a leg to set up in. Prices started at $300. I talked to several people who attended both and they said that Edison was completely dead. Ft. Wash wasn’t very full either. Maybe next time Greenberg doesn’t try to split up it’s audience?

10

i was looking to buy a $99 0-6-0 new lionel switcher…I could not find one in the entire Expo Center!!!,<
don’t know much about the show, but good luck finding one these anywhere, as they sold out real quickly.

They have been going for $160 to $200 on ebay.

Lionel said they would release more in the next catalog in different roadnames.

11

Hi guys,

The Edison, N.J. show wasn’t a Greenberg show, it was a World’s Greatest Hobby on Tour show. While they share the same promoter, they are very different shows.

I was in Edison. On Saturday, there were between 9,000 and 10,000 people who walked through the gate. I don’t have a number for Sunday, but it was equally busy.

The WGH show isn’t supposed to be like a Greenberg Show. While a Greenberg Show is a traditional train show (mostly buying, not a lot of manufacturers booths and displays) the WGH show is supposed to be full of modular layouts, manufacturers, demonstrations, and anything else that attracts people that otherwise wouldn’t attend a traditional train show. So in that respect, the WGH show was very successful.

Sincerely,
Neil Besougloff
editor

12

I don’t know where you live, but I think the Great Scale Model Train Show in Timonium, MD is better than Greenbergs. About two years ago they started including toy trains. Their website is http://www.gsmts.com/
Enjoy
Paul

13

Wow, the WGH Show sure must of been a big money maker for the promoter. If they enjoyed a gate between 9,000 and 10,000 , (how many were children under 14). At $9 per adult admission plus the $450 to $995 booth rental fees, they took in over $100,000.
BillFromWayne

14

WGH Show
85K to 89K Advertising
35K to 45K Hall Rental
Tabel, Chairs, Booths, Security and Operating Layouts ???K
Profit? maybe[?]

[:D]But show was great for all, must have been between 35K to 40K people came to Show.Paid customers Saturday about 10K and Sunday about 7K.