Displays at Coin Shows

I sometimes wish sellers would have better displays of their coins at shows. When I ask to see something, they often have to dig through boxes of crap behind the table and pull out an old chipboard box with the coins that I'm looking for. Which is nice (I mean, the dealer brought them to the show(!), which often doesn't happen), but it'd be nice to have everything in their show inventory displayed. If I always have to ask, and if their bowels are acting up that day, they may not be very interested in digging through the crap to find it for me. I saw this display from the Berlin (Germany) Coin Fair (below). I wonder what set up this is? What brand of trays/display is this dealer using?

 

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If I were a dealer, I sure wouldn't want a display like that. Not only would it be difficult for a customer to view coins in the rear without leaning on other coins, but it would make it pretty easy for a thief to slip a few in his pocket.

Chris

 

the idea is good, but it needs to be under glass to prevent theft. the coins upright would be to hard to see and get to.

 

Very inefficient use of real estate (i.e. low coins per square foot).

 

I personally like it. I have seen coins in folders but just don't appreciate moving having folders and flipping pages of them. I believe the era of digital photography albums will come to coin shows much earlier than what many may believe.

Like what Hertiage has, digital photography has done amazing wonders and you can zoom in and out. Don't get me wrong, having to see the coin in real definitely beats seeing mere photos.

But when you talk about security, poor knowledge of people handling coins, heat, humidity, etc - there's just too many factors that dealers are weary of displaying expensive coins, much less showing them off to potential customers. With a proper digital inventory and if you can show them off to let's say on tablets, it encourages customers to browse through.

Of course to setup such system does take time and money. It really comes down to how well programmers make it easier and innovative for everyone. Take for instance smartphones. Ten years ago, that would be hard to imagine. Technology changes that quick.

Programmers - if you happen to lurk around, would you like to take this as a challenge?

 

what would be nice is to walk up to any dealer with a laptop computer and say I want to see all of your world coins (country name) ? and then ask to see a specific coin. hopefully that is the future. I am finding it very hard to search dealers 2X2 boxes because they are usually super tight and you have to get coins out to even move them forward as you view them. do not get me wrong I like looking threw boxes, but if you are at very large show and you see some new dealers there and you want to look at a new dealers world coins it would save a lot of time.

 

A dealer at a show last weekend had a nice set up. He has what looks like a tool chest with 6-7 sliding drawers. On each drawer were two of the felt 2x2 holders (maybe 70 coins per level). You could slide each drawer out to see different denominations. Great use of space.

 

Not sure if this is what you meant, but tablet computers are getting cheap as dirt. A dealer could have half a dozen of these with pics of his coins (at least higher priced ones, I still love junk boxes) that you could go through.

 

It is difficult, and time consuming for dealers to set up such displays which is why the often don't, but I empathize with you.

 

True enough.

But what is the point of an easily-accessible, open, and "clear-to-the-customer-this-is-what-I-have-here" display of sale items? It's to SELL THE COINS! Seller wins, customer wins.

Now, I think the 2X2 binder approach is about the best a lot of sellers can reasonably do at shows. Those actually aren't bad (don't you think?), but I find I have to wait for that dude that's always hogging the table (and the only chair) to get through the binder before I get to have a look at it. Same goes for bins of coins. But these are decent second options.

I don't care. I think this is the best display of coins at a show I've ever seen. I would make a purchase just 'cause of the display.

 

I think you're wrong there, but this is mostly just a preference issue. We'd have to have it in front of us to see what it's like in real life. I don't think it would be that hard to see the coins in the back.

And there is no more of a security issue than with that dude sitting in the chair, hogging your table, with 8 of your chipboard boxes in front of him (one hand under the table, btw).

Hey: Try stealing a coin from the display shown here. First, you have to lift a thick acetate slab lying on top of the tray and somehow get your hands under it. Very detectible. If I were a thief, I think I'd find the boxes, bins, and binders a lot more of an easy target than this. I mean the dealer is right there, on the side watching you. "Go ahead, make my day..."

 

Note to self: Do not hire this man as your security chief!

Chris

 

I actually agree, that is one, cool display! I would love to see more like that, too, but I think Chris may have a point.

 

It'd be interesting to find out if this particular seller, using this set up, actually HAS a theft problem.

According to you, he should.

 

Sooner or later!

If the dealer was on the far end of the display, and a thief was at the opposite end, you don't think it would be easy use the left hand to slip some coins from a binder like that 4-ring binder if it were near the end? What about that 10x10 that is sitting on top of the other display cases?

Chris

 

Go to a coin show and look at the seller's collection on a laptop computer. It is kind of like going to Greece and spending your time on an iphone. Can anyone spell "boring"?

 

Sure, real thieves are going to attempt steal, that much is true. And ratty, deteriorating 10X10s stacked on top of one another (seven, EIGHT high!) is a common set up at the coin shows I attend, so the photo above is NOT worse at all. These are stacked only TWO high.

I also notice how CLEAN this set up looks: So different from displays that I have the privilege to witness. They often look like a pile, with sloppy crap spilling all over the place. And there's all kinds of "4-ring binders near the end of tables" at every coin show all over North America. Nothing you mentioned is a unique theft risk to this set up. I think it's pretty nice. My opinion.

Perhaps this seller above could use locked display cases (Allstate Model 150s)? However, my local coin show was once robbed by thieves who stole ENTIRE locked cases. Any system requires eyes providing security over blind spots as much as possible, all the time that they are not sitting in a reasonably secure location.

 

I wouldn't envision this as the way to show coins, but just a way to inform the customer of what is available at the show, particularly for a seller's more high-value coins, without the security risk of having them laid out in a display box. I still like having coins out on a table to see, too.

If this device were interactive, the customer could browse inventory, and then ask to see the coin, which the seller has there at the show. So you would get to see the coin, and not just an image. That's what I see as the technology advantage.

Not sure that sellers would image all of their inventory, though. The process of imaging things (at least providing good images) is still tedious.

 

If I had my way, a couple of touch screen monitors, zoom in HD, then open its exact physical location from info, and then ka-ching! Thank you, please come again.

 

Me I just do my 2 cases or so of mostly slabbed stuff. I don't carry a ton of inventory look more for quality and originality. But I'm fairly new at doing shows