Antiques by the Bay, Inc.- Jan 4, 2009 - Alameda, CA

Antiques by The Bay, Inc. Next show: June 4, 2009. The show is located on the main runway at Alameda Point - click here for directions vendor booth applications website


over 800 outdoor dealers selling their merchandise on the first Sunday of every month at the former Alameda Point Naval Air Station in Alameda, California. Everything sold at our show must be at least twenty years old and there are no reproductions allowed. The Alameda Point Antiques and Collectibles Faire entered its fifth year as of September 2003. The show has grown in leaps and bounds, giving Northern California the largest antiques and collectibles faire ever. In 1998, the show started out with 250 booths and an attendance of about 3300 antique shoppers. This year, we broke all of our records with 800 booths and a growing attendance that recently topped out at 10,000 customers. No pets are allowed as we are adjacent to a National Wildlife Refuge. We have grown in reputation as well as size. The Alameda Point Antiques and Collectibles Faire has been featured in Sunset Magazine, as well as Home and Garden Television's antiques show, "Flea Market Finds,"and attracts buyers from as far away as Japan.The Alameda Point Antiques and Collectibles Faire is co-produced by Betsy and Jerry Goldman and Allen Michaan and Sandra Michaan.

Glendale Chocolate Affair - Looking for Criminals?

The promoters are subjecting their vendors to a background check to see if they are criminals and actually forcing them to pay them $60 for the favor. I recently posted this to one of my other blogs, Events and Festivals and I decided that we need more exposure on this. This fee is on top of the $475 they are charging for spaces at the Glendale Chocolate Affair.

Glendale Chocolate Affair. Vendor Applications I was just looking through a number of event listings on a website and I noticed that vendors are forced to pay $60 for a 'background check fee.' They are charging $450.00 for an Arts and Crafts booth...at least they supply the booth, but that, my friends is pretty darn high, especially in this life and times.

Let's dwell on that $60 fee for a background check for a few seconds. I am certain that vendors will have to provide their SSN, Drivers License Number and probably some other material for them to run a trace on. Now, here ya go. We have somebody paying $475 for a 10x10 spot to sell their artwork, Do you think that somebody selling their lovely artwork at this show should be subjected to having a police check on them looking for warrants, etc. Do you really think these people are criminals. Only reason these people are not objecting is that they need to make money and moreso, enjoy displaying their artwork for people to see.

These individuals are being treated like criminals. A year ago, I (and several other vendors) had to shell out $25 for a 'police permit' which is the same thing and I felt that my rights were violated. Seriously, do they consider vendors to be criminals? That would piss me off if I was extorted like that for $60 in order to run a background check on me.

I know for darn sure this does not cost $60 and I find this to be a slap in the face of vendors. What are they doing.....feeding the person a nice steak dinner while that person sits at his computer and enters the person's name into some software. They do not have the right to force vendors to fork over the $60. Seems to me that the promoters of this event are the real criminals. I have nothing to do with this event, but I read about it and I am perturbed and I really frown over things like this. Vendors should voice their disapproval over this and demand their $60 money back. Sorry. Not right by any standards. Heck, these people could get away with charging vendors a $50 bathroom /porta pottie fee and get away with it.