January 2014 brings the beginning of an
exciting new year for the gemstone industry. The famous Tucson Gem &
Mineral show is looming and thousands of gemstone vendors around the world are
busy getting ready! Ten foot high Brazilian Amethyst geodes, 42 gallon drums
filled with rough, countless crystal specimens, Madagascan fossils, beads,
beads and more beads along with the rarest and most interesting cut gems you
could ever imagine are being prepared to be taken to the sunny little desert
town of Tucson, Arizona. This usually somewhat quite city is transformed into a
gemstone extravaganza for about 3 weeks with almost every hotel and convention
centre being booked out for the event. Not only are all the hotels filled with
exhibits, huge tents are put up around town to accommodate even more
booths!
This marvellous event is a must for any
gemstone enthusiast. The sheer amount and variety of gemstones that can be seen
makes the trip more than worthwhile. Its such a huge event that it is quite
impossible to see the whole show during the time that it runs. Due to the large
number of tents and exhibits, It can be quite overwhelming if you want to see
everything. Here are a few tips I have picked up over the years that have made
things a little easier for me:
1. Plan your days depending on what you want
to see. Often each show will have many vendors who sell a specific type of gem.
Knowing what you want to see and finding out where those types of gems are
being exhibited is a great way to save time. More often than not, for me
anyway, due to the sheer variety of gems, randomly going from exhibit to
exhibit can get really confusing. Make sure you get a Tucson Show Guide!
2. Check the dates and times for shows you
want to see. Many of the shows have different start and finish dates. At
certain hotel shows (Days Inn & Pueblo), vendors usually open early and hang
around after official ending hours. This means you can see more in one day if
you find out times and plan accordingly. I have been doing the Days Inn
(Globex) show for quite some time now and have realised we’re usually the first
ones there and the last ones to leave!
3. If you are there specifically for the big
fancy shows (AGTA, JCK, & GJX) its definitely worth planning ahead and
checking them out early to mid show. I’ve worked at a few AGTA and GJX shows
and for some reason everyone turns up right at the end. The closing times for
these shows are very strict and a huge rush right before pack up doesn’t make
for the greatest experience. A larger variety of gems to look at and an easier
experience can be achieved earlier in the show. Keep in mind these shows are
wholesale. This means that only people who have a business in the industry are
allowed in.
4. If you fall in love with something and
it’s a good price, just get it! It
is very tempting to leave something to go shopping around for a better price
but more often than not all of the dealers are extremely competitive and will
give you the best price they can. Its very easy to get caught up in other
exhibits and not have enough time to go back. The amount of times I’ve put
something aside only to come back later and see it gone has frustrated me to no
end! There are so many people that it isn’t worth it for the dealers to put
things aside for you for long periods of time. The unique stuff is usually
snatched up quite quickly. There’s nothing worse than the feeling of finding
something you may not see again and missing out.
5. Hire a car or take a cab. Although buses are
provided to and from the shows, they are usually completely packed with people.
This means more time hanging around and less time looking at gemstones. Due to
the show being spread over the whole town, legs can get extremely tired. Having
your own form of transport makes everything ten times easier.
If you happen to be in the area before the
show starts its definitely worth a drive out to the Quartzite Show &
Swap meet. Hundreds of RV’s
congregate in a field, most of them selling buckets of rough gems. The avid gem
collectors who own the RV’s usually mine and fossick these gems themselves.
Quartzite is a rock hounds dream.
The Tucson Gem show is renown for being one
of the best in the world and is a great place to meet jewellers, collectors,
buyers, miners, gem enthusiasts and gemologists. All in all you will most
likely see something you’ve never seen before, meet like-minded people and pick
up great bargains!
www.thegemstoneco.com
