WIGAN EXHIBITION 2022 Saturday 1st & Sunday 2nd October

[5BarVT]

1 hour ago, Phatbob said:

The usual crowd of Anorakia Britannica on Saturday was noticably absent. :-(

There were two particularly loud Anorakia Britannica on Sunday!

Paul.

[Crantock]

Lets not forget that as a punter, and I drove from Birmingham, it was first rate.

[03060]

I came over from Leeds on the Sunday and was glad that I had as I thought that it was a great exhibition.

 

However, I'm finding fuel prices are seriously crippling my finances at the moment and I'm really having to think how and when I use my car, even for local driving.

 

I currently have a 90 mile round trip for each shift I work which is costing me at least £80 a week, double what it was costing me 4 years ago when I last worked at this company where the wages have not increased (nor likely to) this is eating up most of my 'disposable' income at the moment. Wigan was approx a 120+ mile round trip for me, approx £30 + entrance fee + sarnie and drink, so a £50 day out before I spend any money with the traders .... but this was the one (and only) exhibition that I was determined to make it to this year, 'normally' I would have gone to about 6 shows a year within a 25 mile radius and a couple that I would travel for, I had to dismiss the idea of going to TINGS as I just couldn't afford to go to both. I would also have been to the KWVR multiple times (just for brekkie and a dog walk sometimes) and the Middleton Railway several times ... I've been to each only once this year.

 

Ok, this is just one man's current thinking and problem .... but maybe there are many others in a similar frame of mind or financial position and so is worth mentioning as the organisers ponder the low attendance level. I'm just glad that I'm in a fixed rate energy scheme until next Autumn .... and don't eat much !

 

 

I did have a great day out and thank the Wigan organisers and Exhibitors for their efforts, if you can afford to put it on again I will again be making every effort to get there. Thankyou.

 

Regards,

Ian.

Edited October 22, 2022 by 03060
More waffle added.

[TEAMYAKIMA]

Speaking as someone who exhibited at the Wigan show twice in the 1980's and who has been tentatively put on the invite list for 2023, I would bend over backwards to cut costs and contribute to making a future exhibition financially viable.

[woodenhead]

2 hours ago, TEAMYAKIMA said:

Speaking as someone who exhibited at the Wigan show twice in the 1980's and who has been tentatively put on the invite list for 2023, I would bend over backwards to cut costs and contribute to making a future exhibition financially viable.

And how would you cut costs?  The only thing you can do is have less operators or bring your own 8 berth campervan.

[TEAMYAKIMA]

3 hours ago, woodenhead said:

And how would you cut costs?  The only thing you can do is have less operators or bring your own 8 berth campervan.

Well, in an ideal world my layout used to need a team of 7 or, even better, 8 in order to maximise its appeal to the viewing public - that would be five or, even better, six operating with two taking a break. I have recently introduced a new operating system which cuts that down to a team of six - 4 operating and 2 taking a break.

 

I am working on other ways to minimise costs. 

Edited October 23, 2022 by TEAMYAKIMA

[Eaton]

Now that the dust has settled and after due reflection we have come to the decision that Wigan 2022 will be our last exhibition and as a consequence there will be no October show in 2023. This has not been a hasty decision but one that we have been considering for some time given that we are no longer the spring chickens we once were.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the layout teams and traders who have attended Wigan over the years as without their support we would not have been able to make Wigan the show it was.

We would also like to thank the loyal team who helped us with the logistics of presenting such a large undertaking as without you we would have been unable to survive for so long.

 

THANK YOU ALL!! 

[ardbealach]

15 minutes ago, Eaton said:

Now that the dust has settled and after due reflection we have come to the decision that Wigan 2022 will be our last exhibition and as a consequence there will be no October show in 2023. This has not been a hasty decision but one that we have been considering for some time given that we are no longer the spring chickens we once were.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the layout teams and traders who have attended Wigan over the years as without their support we would not have been able to make Wigan the show it was.

We would also like to thank the loyal team who helped us with the logistics of presenting such a large undertaking as without you we would have been unable to survive for so long.

 

THANK YOU ALL!! 

Very sad to read.  Wigan for me has always been - for a very long time - a premier show with an excellent choice of layouts every year.  Many thanks for all the efforts by the organisers. (Alisdair)

[Free At Last]

I looked forward every year to Wigan, but after this years exhibition I had already decided it was to be my last.

[woodenhead]

Well it was a fitting end this year, an excellent selection and an example of how an exhibition should be.

 

So thanks to you and the team for all the previous Wigan exhibitions, it's been a blast.

[t-b-g]

I can't say that I am surprised as when I was there this October, I looked around at the small number of people who had come along to the show and I spoke with a few traders who had not had very good weekends and I wondered if it was sustainable.

 

As a regular visitor to Wigan for quite a number of shows, either as a paying punter or as an exhibitor, I would just like to add my thanks for what has been a very good show indeed.

 

I fully understand the decision to bring it to an end but it will be missed by me and by many others.

 

Tony Gee

[03060]

A very great shame but wholly understandable in the circumstances. 

 

Thankyou  all, exhibitors, organisers, traders and helpers  for always putting on some great shows over the years that I've been able to get there, including this year which was an excellent show. Happy memories.

 

Kind regards,

Ian.

Edited November 17, 2022 by 03060

[Reorte]

All I can do is echo the sentiments above, it's sad news to hear but that's sometimes how the real world goes, it's understandable, so all that's left to say is thank you for all the great shows I've been to in the last several years since I got in to this hobby.

[ELTEL]

I would like to add my thanks to all concerned with the Wigan Show over the very many years I have attended either as a exhibitor or a regular visitor.

 

I don’t think I ever missed a exhibition for well over 25 years.

 

To me Wigan was always a premier show, and not one to be missed.

 

This years selection of layouts was one of the best ever.

 

The Wigan Show will be sadly missed.

 

Terry 
Stafford Railway Circle 

[Phatbob]

I'll really miss the Wigan show, as an exhibitor and punter, always a great weekend.

[AY Mod]

Very sorry to hear that, always one of the best shows. Sadly I couldn't be there this year, which becomes a longer-term regret.

[5 C]

Sad to hear there won't be a 2023 show.

 

This year was my first ever visit to the show and I have to agree it was top notch in terms of the layouts on offer. At the time it was hard to gauge the number of visitors simply due to the size and layout of the venue. It was never crowded but there seemed to be a steady flow of people throughout the time I was there.

 

Thanks to the team for your efforts this year. Glad I managed at least one visit, a shame there won't be more.

[JSModels]

As a trader, this was my very first attendance at the Wigan show. I thought that overall the exhibition was excellent, with a high quality of layouts and a great mix of traders. It was however quite disappointing in terms of takings, which was a direct consequence of the low visitor numbers. It's a shame, as I would have attended next year (a very good friend & mentor from the trade tells me I should never decide that a show isn't worth doing until I've done it three years in a row!)

 

Regards,

 

Jonathan

JSModels

[APOLLO]

Sad news, I've been attending for many years.

 

I'm not really surprised, the cost of holding such events just goes up year on year and we are all in increasingly difficult financial times. Today's budget does not bode well, and there will be less spare money around for many in the next few years.

 

I thought this years exhibition was excellent. Thanks to all the organisers for this and the many enjoyable Wigan exhibitions past.

 

So that leaves me with Leigh as my local exhibition next year, hopefully.

 

Brit15

[D.Platt]

I can only echo what has already been said , I have been going since the days when I think it was held in the technical college , always been a top exhibition and since the Manchester show moved out of the CIS I think without doubt Wigan has been the best in the north of England.

I know people are worried about the coming recession but being in my seventies I think I’ve seen one basically every ten years or so , was downsizing considered ?

 

So thank you for all the very happy memories I have from over the years .

[Eaton]

I don't think downsizing would have been the answer as it was the multiple problems that finally broke the camel's back. Diminishing trade support, lack of suitable local hotel accommodation and difficulties with local advertising and then on top of these a rail strike all contributed to a less than enjoyable weekend. 

I think we demonstrated the type of exhibition that we wished to hold and when  you feel that you can no longer achieve this then it seems the right time to call it a day. 

[14Steve14]

 

On 18/11/2022 at 11:21, Eaton said:

I don't think downsizing would have been the answer as it was the multiple problems that finally broke the camel's back. Diminishing trade support, lack of suitable local hotel accommodation and difficulties with local advertising and then on top of these a rail strike all contributed to a less than enjoyable weekend. 

I think we demonstrated the type of exhibition that we wished to hold and when  you feel that you can no longer achieve this then it seems the right time to call it a day. 

I am a trader and attend a select few shows a year nowhere near wigan.  Sad to hear that any show will not be happening next year. Shows are a great way to attract new people to the hobby and hopefully some new members to a club. Here is a bit about our experience from shows this year in and around us in the mid to south west of the country.

 

Our first show of the year in June we took £36 on the first day where we would normally take hundreds. If my daughter had not persuaded me to stay for the 2nd day we would have gone home. Luckily we pulled out of another show which only had 300 visitors when they were expecting 1000s. As a trader costs of stands has increased and at the end of the day we have to make money, thats the whole idea. Over the year we have possibly just broken even or are not too far out of pocket so its not been a total waste of time. It has made us re-evaluate what we will be doing next year. 

 

We have now decided to only take on any new one day shows. It may be an answer to only have one day shows, which will help keep costs down and possibly get higher visitor numbers as its just for the one day. Half the costs to traders, half the expenses for exhibitors but hopefully near the same numbers compared to a whole weekend show. 

 

Just a few ideas from a trader.

[Jol Wilkinson]

On 20/11/2022 at 16:45, 14Steve14 said:

 

I am a trader and attend a select few shows a year nowhere near wigan.  Sad to hear that any show will not be happening next year. Shows are a great way to attract new people to the hobby and hopefully some new members to a club. Here is a bit about our experience from shows this year in and around us in the mid to south west of the country.

 

Our first show of the year in June we took £36 on the first day where we would normally take hundreds. If my daughter had not persuaded me to stay for the 2nd day we would have gone home. Luckily we pulled out of another show which only had 300 visitors when they were expecting 1000s. As a trader costs of stands has increased and at the end of the day we have to make money, thats the whole idea. Over the year we have possibly just broken even or are not too far out of pocket so its not been a total waste of time. It has made us re-evaluate what we will be doing next year. 

 

We have now decided to only take on any new one day shows. It may be an answer to only have one day shows, which will help keep costs down and possibly get higher visitor numbers as its just for the one day. Half the costs to traders, half the expenses for exhibitors but hopefully near the same numbers compared to a whole weekend show. 

 

Just a few ideas from a trader.

The problem for traders with one day shows is that, unless you are local to the exhibition venue, you still have the transport costs and may have to have hotel accommodation anyway. So costs, other than stand rent, may not be halved anyway.

 

For years there have been too many shows, often with indifferent layouts or some that appear too often to provide any "novelty". They are often one day club shows and don't attract the more specialist traders, who, for some of us, provide the materials, tools, kits and other items that we want for our model making activities.

 

No doubt an aging modelling profile and the current economic situation, as well as the impact of Covid, are not helping. Likewise, the stress, both personal and financial, placed upon the organisers and clubs. Perhaps one way forward might be for several clubs/groups to get together to organise a show together. Where there is a relatively large modelling population such as around major centres, then it might be that a show such as Wigan could continue to be viable.

[TheQ]

Sad to see your Show departing,

 

We've lost our own "big show" though through halls not being available at a suitable price.

Our alternative has been to go to 2 small shows at more local halls. so far this has been successful. easier to set up, easier to transport and less stressful to the club organisers and members. They have attracted new members. profit wise the two shows in May and August have made up for the lost income of the big show.

 

However that means only 1 or two local traders as otherwise we can't get enough layouts in to satisfy the general public..

 

Hopefully you'll be able to do the same as us.

[D9020 Nimbus]

I can't help wondering if the changes of calendar date have had an impact. Wigan used to be in December, moved to June, then to October. Local to me, the Blyth & Tyne society's show has been another "mover", from November to December to August to December to July, and has now shrunk drastically from its days as "Railex NE”. By contrast the Newcastle show has always been the same weekend in November, although it has changed venue several times.

 

While these changes of date were, I'm sure, all made for good reasons, it's my opinion that moving the date of a show may be more harmful than changing venue — the B&T show changed both (six different venues in the last 15 years).