A customer told me about problems he’s been having trying to get exhibit frames for a small exhibit he’s trying to put together that is not for a stamp show. He wrote to the American Philatelic Society and they told him that they are trying to find a manufacturer who will make the frames for them for the 2016 show in New York. He also checked with the American Association of Philatelic Exhibitors. They didn’t offer any help.

Based on my comments last time about expanding my business interests, his suggestion to me was to go into business building exhibit frames.

Here is the problem. Demand for exhibit frames is pretty low. Every 10 years, you may need several hundred or a few thousand exhibit frames for a huge international show. But there is almost no demand at the small regional shows. When a small show buys frames, they’ll get a few dozen or a few hundred frames at a time. They will use those frames for the next 10+ years until they wear out.

Exhibit frames will have to be special ordered from a company that does metal fabrication.