Music Valley Antiques Market Had Great Audience In Nashville

NASHVILLE, TENN.

:The youngest of the three antiques shows held during Nashville's famous Heart Week antiques event, Music Valley Antiques Market was a big hit according to dealers whose sales showed gains over the recent weeks and last year. Customers were buying more furniture at the show than in many of the recent markets with Nancy Roth a Trion, N.C., dealer selling several cupboards and some small furniture pieces.

Jon Jenkins, co-manager with Kay Puchstein of the show said, "Our gate [number of visitors] was the same as last fall but interestingly the number of early buyers was down and regular admissions was up so the numbers totaled the same even though our revenue was off a little." He added, "Dealer count was about the same, which really pleased us for the price of gas had us worried that we might take a hit, but it didn't happen."

Music Valley was started about a dozen years ago by Steve and Barbara Jenkins, Jenkins Management, and The Kramers, who have been managing the principle show of the week, Heart Of Country Antiques Show. There had been a show in the hotel, which was at that time a Ramada, and this show took the hotel's name for its own and for several years was just that, the Ramada Show during Heart Week. Hotel ownership and management and attitudes changed so the show was moved across the street to a tent large enough to house booths for 135 dealers. This continued for two and a half years when the hotel invited the show back to its new marquee, The Radisson.

Exhibits here are set in several different areas. The hotel is built around a central covered atrium which, for the show, has all the plants removed and exhibit booths built for the antiques dealers. There are also a ballroom, several conference rooms and last but not least guest rooms on the first two or three floors facing the atrium that are transformed into antiques show rooms. In total there were more than 130 exhibitors at this October 13-15 event.

Articles on display and for sale can vary with the taste and styles of the exhibitors. John Roth is a collector from Milan, Ohio, who usually has an assortment of typical early furniture but he also finds some sort of showstopper. This month he offered a cigar store Indian complete with its history and provenance. In addition he had a cast iron model of a train that he said weighed about 100 pounds and was used as a directional sign by a railroad for its round house.

Claude and Sharon Baker were in one of the conference rooms with a variety of furniture and small antique accessories. The Hamilton, Ohio, dealers said they "had a decent show." Their sales were a variety of the furniture pieces and small items, but there total was "respectable." Halsey Munson was in the same room and offering a collection of art and folk art covering three centuries. His favorite piece was an oil on canvas of a woman from the early 1800s.

The show has had two generations of Fithians for many years. Scott and Penny are from Cartersville, Ga., and specialize in delft. This comprised the majority of their sales for the show together with a valuable sampler. His parents also set up and right beside Scott in the ballroom. Trading as Judy Fithian Antiques, Marietta, Ga., they specialize in samplers. Their sales were also good with samplers the primary items from their inventory to find new homes.

Puchstein finds new dealers at many of the shows she and her husband do as dealers throughout the country. From their Round Top, Texas, experiences she was able to bring Michael Breddin, a dealer from Brenham, Texas, to join the group. He brought a large trailer full of Nineteenth Century painted furniture to the oversized space he rented. During the show he said sales seemed to be "looking good."

Liberty Tree Antiques is a dealer formerly from Tennessee but now living in Rockland, Maine. The principals' attendance at Music Valley allows them the opportunity to sell antiques and also visit old friends and family. Their inventory consisted primarily of early painted furniture and folk art pieces.

Another transplant to New England are Judi and Cy Stalmach, recently arriving in Stratford, Conn., from Brooklyn, Minn. They offered a booth filled with furniture that was warm with conservative, earthy colors that looked like it could have been Amish - stuffed chairs, rope stretcher couch, upholstered, and a padded chair with removable wings, which were probably to protect the sitter from drafts. Marion Atten, Pecatonica, Ill., had the booth adjoining the Stalmachs with a similar collection.

Lois Robinson has been doing shows for a very long time and she shows no signs of slowing down. Her inventory for this show included a very well made faux grain painted cupboard in very good condition; a maple table, drop leaf, with oversize top and a dry sink in a pale grain paint.

The merger of the Mainer Rose Reynolds and Indianan Tom Cheap into Period Antiques has been very successful. The couple, now residing in Scottsburg, Ind., had a very good show selling "some furniture, game boards, rugs, a little bit of everything. We did quite well." Tom added, "The spring show has always been the better of the two but this month our sales were as good as the spring ever gets."

The Jenkins announced during the show that even with the Heart show moving to Dallas next fall Music Valley Antiques Market will continue in Nashville. The dates are expected to be October 12-14, 2006. Mark calendars for that and also February 23-25 for the spring show - remember Nashville is much further south than New England.

For more information call Jenkins Management at 317-598-0012 or view JenkinsShows.com.