We will now interrupt the regularly scheduled programming for this good old boys micro podcast. To show or not to show, and what I mean by that is uh as a maker, uh whether you should go to shows and do the show circuits or whether you shouldn't, right? Um a little a little history lesson or uh a back uh backstory to knives in I guess the modern era, okay? So there was a um probably as early as the turn of the century, um, and I say turn of the century as in the 1900s, uh remember that. Uh there there's been pockets of of cutlers in the United States and and handmade knife makers and blacksmiths and bladesmiths that uh operated in a locale that was uh more uh more specific to their area, as in, you know, maybe somebody knew them locally, uh, but as far as nationally, uh probably not. And as you kind of skirt up into the 1970s, uh where the creation of the the knife makers guild and um the ABS and things like that occurred, uh you have this uh this paradigm shift in knives, where custom knife makers or handmade knife makers are focusing on doing shows in order to broaden the exposure of the audience that they're uh that they're trying to present their knives to. And so what you what you see is the the knife makers guild is a perfect example of where these shows really sprang into being because um in order to be in the guild, a requirement was that you uh paid your your dues and you also went to shows and exhibited your knives. And so you you the the guild always represented this um this culture of of being at shows. Like you didn't get into a guild show unless you were a guild member, and you had to uh have a certain quality of work in order to get into the shows. And those are like some of the first examples of of knife shows that were not uh combined with uh guns specifically. Um uh so um what you uh what you see after the internet was created is that many more people uh decided to uh stop going to shows, or maybe it wasn't as important to go to shows, because you could develop a a culture or a customer uh relationship on your website and through emails and now through social media that you just um you were l limited, I'd say limited uh in in this sense, uh, to only the kind of relationships that you can nurture locally or through the show circuit before. Now, um I will say that shows have a culture and a focus that is that is very specific to shows. And I I really don't know how to explain it other than that. Um you can shake a person's hand, you can look them in the eye, you can talk to them, they can actually uh see and hold your knives, and it's a very personal experience. And no amount of videography, no amount of marketing uh can can replicate that on the internet. Um, you with the advent of social media, you can talk to people more and build relationships with them. And so what you've what you slowly see uh now in uh knife collecting and making and in uh pretty much internationally is that a lot of people want to have a personal relationship or a connection to the maker and then their knives versus the knives and their their work comes first. Like I don't know. There's there's lots of makers out there that you know you can hear uh through the uh the halls of the grapevines, I guess, uh that they didn't have really great personalities, but they made really incredible knives. Um and and uh there's lots of people that collected them because of their work alone, didn't matter what their personality was. Now you'll be hard pressed to get somebody to buy a knife from you if you don't have a personality that is uh at least endearing to um you know to your your fan base or whatever. So um all that is really reputation-based uh first and then your work second. And that's that has some pitfalls because there are some types of work that you might argue are you know a little bit more crude than others, uh, but it's they're really great makers, really great uh uh people, right? Um over what they're making, they're really great people, and so you want to support them because that's part of the growth processes, you know, maybe you make a knife that's a little bit more crude, uh, but you know, you want to stick with it and you really care about your customers and you want that feedback and everything. So I'm not saying that uh that each doesn't have its place, but uh think about this. Um when you're trying to decide on whether you want to do shows or not, or uh kind of what importance to put on shows, remember that even shows to some extent uh could go the way of the dodo. And the reason why is because everybody wants to be able to purchase stuff from the comfort of their own houses. Um Amazon has uh kind of ruined that experience because you know you used to have to go out to a department store or something like that in order to uh find things or a bookstore or whatever, and and you know, feel it, get to read it a little bit, um, and check out its quality. We don't really have to do that anymore. Uh or I think that the culture is that you accept that you don't, and because of that, um, you know, a lot of people are looking at other ways to um to define quality, and a lot of that again has to do with the maker relationship. So, kind of with that being said, as a maker, um, shows are expensive, they're just expensive to go to. Uh Blade Show, their table fees are 550 to 650, I think, depending if you're doing booths or other things like that, it's more expensive. Uh, if you need electricity, it's more expensive. And uh, you know, with travel and food and everything like that combined, you could be looking at uh you know a three-day experience uh that is you know north of foreground, right? Um it's and it and there's Blade Show uh Atlanta, there's Blade Show Texas, and there's Blade Show West, which uh is in Utah right now. And so just in the in the shows that that Blade Magazine puts on, uh there's the potential for $12,000 in table fees and uh and and show costs, right? Uh uh holistically. That's not to mention all the knives that you have to bring. Um, that's not to mention all the marketing that you do beforehand, and it has nothing to do with whether you go to that show and whether you have the attention or focus from people to um to sell enough knives to cover your costs. And so uh nice shows are risky. Uh the the more prominent the show is, the more it costs, the more risks that's introduced. And I think that that's important to know. Um, also, I I don't know if I necessarily believe that uh knife shows are really the place uh to make a killing on sales. There are some knife makers that sell out all the time. Um, you know, they have a uh a fan base that uh transcends that show. And then when they go to a show, people get to talk to them and everything, and they they might sell out. Um I don't if selling out of uh of all of your products is the primary focus, then there's a lot of elements that go into that that are beyond uh you know you going to that show. It usually means that you're bringing those customers to the show with you and they're interacting with you at the show because that's that's uh a place that you are, right? So um, you know, your fan club is meeting at a show, and that's really kind of the way it goes. So um you don't get any discounts or specific accolades uh for uh bringing uh you know specific customers to shows, uh, so it's not like there's a lot of uh loyalty there. Um, you know, you are one person and one table in a sea of a lot of them, and you know, competition is pretty much equal as far as the show venue is concerned. Doesn't matter whether it's Blade Magazine or any of the other various shows. You know, there's some invite-only shows and things like that, but the the exclivicity um anymore doesn't really necessarily equal um more sales. Um, so if if sales is your desire, um, I don't know if I would necessarily consider the show circuit seriously. However, uh there is a lot of really great things that come out of shows. One is you get to look around at everybody's work, and it uh it is very humbling to me as a maker to look at just so many incredible people uh crammed into a building like that. Um there's never been a situation where I've been the top dog in any given show, and I think that that's uh that's always inspiring uh to look and see what uh your peers and your mentors and everything like that are creating and bringing and exhibiting. Um so it gives you know inspiration. Uh there's lots of handle materials and other things like that that also come along with shows because there's a lot of suppliers that come. And so um, you know, there's that, right? Um the other thing is that there's few things in knives that that pull a broad range of audiences together and creates a buzz about them. Uh the the the blade magazines, blade shows are kind of that way. Um, they're all of them are just a high energy. You have a lot of different people that are coming to them, you have a lot of different types of knives and a lot of different subcultures and knives, and it's really just cool to be a part of it. You know, they have awards, um, they have uh parties every night where people get together, and so there's things like that that uh are definitely ways that you can mingle and talk to other knife makers and talk to customers and things like that. So, you know, making yourself available is really cool. And there's there's some people that you just would be able to see it shows that maybe they don't have the time for um otherwise, you know, just like like monumental figures and knives that you'd be able to shake their hand and just get a few uh words and you know congratulate them or show appreciation in some way or uh whatever, right? So it is kind of like the red carpet or the Oscars for knife shows is uh is Blade, uh really. Um in smaller shows, you know, uh you usually have a little bit more uh localized fan bases and things like that, but um in general it's usually like a micro version of Blade Show, um where you still have those same types of cultures and things, but usually usually on a smaller scale. I think what separates shows from everything else is what type of relationship you want to build with your customer base. And as a customer, it's what um what really your focus is when you're buying something. Um you know, knife collecting is a really beautiful thing, there's a lot of just really great people out there and really great products, but um I I think that if you want to go alone, you have a lot of work ahead of you because in the internet and in social media and everything, you really have to expose um the soft underbelly of your life to uh you know people, the world, right? Because you never know who is going to be a fan of you unless you um either create a persona or uh or act like yourself and you put that all out on the internet for everybody to see. And I prefer um one-on-one relationships, like I, you know, I know you, your numbers in my cell phone, um, you can call me anytime, you have questions, things like that. You know, we're working on uh off of a mutually beneficial relationship where I learn things from you and you learn things from me. And um, I really like those because uh I would like to be able to develop friends um that share a common interest in knives. And if I'm making something that you like, I'd like to be able to sell it to you. Um I'd like to be able to make it for you. The selling component is not it is not the focus, the selling component is that I have a a skill set and you uh are looking for something and maybe I can build it for you. And I think that that's great. Um, but you know, it it depends on where you're at. Uh it depends on uh what kind of money you need to make in order to be able to uh support yourself in knives. It depends on um whether you justify it as a really expensive hobby or whether it's a business to you. And those are things I can't really make the decision for uh for you with, but um, there's a lot of upfront uh with with both. Um one is a lot of investment in building up your the culture um that you want to have for your own business, uh, the other um is an upfront cost of the shows, uh, but you know the the knife culture is kind of intrinsic within shows, and so maybe after a few years of going to uh shows uh regularly and and and customers being able to count on you being there, it's a little bit easier for them to purchase things and maybe want to get to know you and kind of know what your habits are a little bit at shows. So um, you know, those are kind of like the way that I weigh those things out. I've done both. Um I can't I can't necessarily say honestly that I'm great at either one. Um I have you know people that follow me and are interested in my work um online, and I have uh a separate group of uh sometimes similar but also separate group uh that you know we get together at shows and we uh spur each other on and uh so on. So I I think it really is up to you to decide on which avenue you go down, and uh, whatever the case, uh you know, you need to make sure that you're building a really solid uh base of people that can support your work and that you're also using that as a feedback loop to be able to develop better products and better uh better R. Um because at the at the root of it, uh you can make things in a vacuum just because you want them to exist in the world. Um but it becomes a lot easier um and it becomes a lot more motivational when you have you know good, trusted people that can uh you know give you some feedback or that uh really buy into what it is that you're doing in order to move you on to the next thing that you're doing in knives. Um it's the same way. I mean, you look at Pablo Picasso, most of his art was not uh very popular or worth as much as it is today until after he died. And knives, we we have this culture where uh there's a lot of knife makers that get a lot of notoriety um before they die. You know, they there's they they get it within their lifespan, and that's I think really great. Uh but it also takes an awful lot of something special to get to that place. So um either way, it does either one is hard work, and you have to remember that. So get some people that that like your work, be willing to take feedback and uh and also you know focus on what makes uh you passionate about about knives, what sparks that for you. And if you can do that, I think it's a little bit easier to obtain um uh a customer base to help support you in the long run. Hope that helps.