Boston 2026 - Any Reports?

"Dealers with tons of face-value sheets were very busy the entire time."

One of those dealers appeared to be selling counterfeits.

How did we veer into "treasure hunting or gambling for youngsters"?

WARNING, AI:




AI returned known to me award errors previously.

The show catalog debacle is telling. The hobby leaders are still thinking in the past. The catalog should have been a free digital product. While we are talking about youth involvement we should recognize that youth are going to use app's and electronic versions of things readily. That printed catalog is a Do-Do.

It also sounds as if whomever had the final say on show flow and layout never took virtual tours through proposed layouts to see where visibility, travel path and signage problems were. Even the tiniest design firms now do that for home builds and other projects.

We need more progressive (younger) leadership and this has been pointed out for a long time now.

Edit to Add:

Did the Show capture valuable data from each visitor?(think how voter registration OP's work now) If not, an extremely valuable opportunity was missed. Did every visitor have to register I guess is the question or could you simply show up. The info you want is contact and demographic if possible for casuals that you might coax into a more serious relationship with the hobby.

Was their booth adjacent to the USPS because that would be the ultimate irony.

I feel topicals are the leading gateway drug for stamp collecting. If they have any meaningful collecting gene they will detour, expand, and evolve. It may expand beyond stamps or the activity may include stamps.

Unfortunately, unlike many collectibles, stamps are far more fragile than the collectibles on cards. Slabbing may help in the fragile aspect (adds protection and portability) but has been mostly about increasing the investment aspects and not able expanding collecting.

If there was a specific sheet I wanted, I would pay face value.

Yes people had to register. I would like to know how it is known about the counterfeit stamps. Or is that just a guess?

BTW, there were people going around the show giving stamps away, and there were huge bins of free stamps in the kids and newbies area.

Another thing. There were no announcements. At the GASS shows they announce meetings as well as show opening & closing (& I think impending closing).

" I would like to know how it is known about the counterfeit stamps. Or is that just a guess?"

I didn't say known, I said appeared. We've already had this discussion about lots being offered by an auction. Big piles of very recent issues, this time by a dealer with a reputation.

There was a free app with agenda, etc. I don't think anyone used it.

Rather than waste money developing a largely unused app, just take a fraction of it and print up a bunch of maps and exhibit listings. I know you can't sell ad space in something like that, but it's not like anyone was buying the book that the advertisers shelled out so much to appear in, anyway.

Just a couple of sheets of 8.5x11 paper would have done fine - in fact, better than an app. Phone batteries die during the course of a day, etc. We're a paper hobby; even the kids should be fine with paper maps.

Quibbles aside, it was a great show with absolutely amazing content - and sure, it's easy for me to criticize since I wasn't involved in the planning, which was a headache and a half. But I think it's an important lesson to bear in mind for the next show.




Yikes, I didn't hear about this. Did the dealer take them back?

Then you should have bought some and checked them. Then you would know, instead of guessing.

The app was painful to use, missing important information and worse than a simple scan of the show book would have been w hyper links. So very many easy and simple ways to have improved the book and the so-called app. Start w a map showing actual frame numbers and the names of the booth/table holders. Could have been "zoomable" or just done over multiple pages. Then there's the event listing which showed date/time and org name, but not the presenter or title. So no useful overview.

So very many opportunities missed. Including live streaming of every single event. I'm kind of surprised that the USPS isn't doing that for all of their FDoI events.

I certainly agree that mistakes were made, especially where the book and lack of maps was concerned. I wish they had zoomed the meetings too, the one meeting I went to on flat plat coils was excellent, and I would love to be able to go back to it.

Not offering streaming video usually is a conscious decision of the show organizers. Why should distant viewers receive free, valuable content without exposure to the advertising and dealers who pay for the show; if you want the content, show up in person. Cost is another reason. The hall is union controlled so you cannot have an officially sanctioned Gen Z volunteer set up their iPhone on a Velbon tripod and stream away for free. You have to use the union A/V vendor and those usually start at $250/hr plus equipment rental fees.

TOTALLY CONFUSED------ with all the crying going on here .

I am a middle range collector who decided NOT to go . Glad, that was the right decision .

The show had great events for beginners and newby's , lots to see and do and learn --THUMPS UP on that !

The show was great for the philatelic Whales , could of match them in a few areas but found out they are not my kind of people to talk to ,plus was not about to add that kind of material any more to my collection .

So that leaves the middle collector , First the exhibits were mostly high price stuff not the stuff I am planning to get into ,nice but not going to help me . Then not going to start elbowing a bunch of kids to look at 2 cents material on a table .

So for me the attention was two things -- buying something at the glorify bourse tables from dealers who are trying to cover their over the top cost of being at Boston Expo .

That leaves only the seminars ,which I believe is a learning experience for a mid-range collector,so kind of expensive to go from Florida to Boston for a few 60 minute seminars

Now I understand why the mid-range collectors didn't show up in Boston but will spend their money at stamp auctions and local shows .