NewswireToday - /newswire/ - Crystal River, FL, United States, 01/16/2009 - The new owners of the WPBAF plan to promote upgrades to the Festival.

The West Palm Beach Antiques Festival will conduct its annual “Spectacular” sale and event on February 6-8 at Americraft Expo Center at the South Florida Fair in West Palm Beach. The show, formerly known as the West Palm Beach Antiques and Collectibles Show, will be the first Spectacular event under the new ownership of veteran show promoters Kay and Bill Puchstein and Yvonne and Jim Tucker who acquired the Show from dmg world media in December 2008.

Yvonne Tucker and Kay Puchstein, while pleased that the Festival ran so smoothly in the transitional event in January and received very positive feedback, have collaborated on plans to improve both attendance and dealer participation. Both have extensive experience both inside and outside Florida in promoting well run, successful antiques shows. One major step will be partnering with local charities beginning with the local chapter of the Red Cross to increase visibility for both parties.

In addition the Festival will begin to target market its advertising to local audiences for increased attendance through the use of signs, newspaper advertisements and articles and a local radio presence. The new owners feel that increased attendance and higher sales by dealers will attract new dealers to help the festival grow in the long term.

One immediate upgrade will be the appearance of the main entrance area. For the February Spectacular event the entry foyer will be decorated with tasteful art and artifacts to create a more upscale theme for the entire Festival. Overall the aim is to improve the general appearance of the Festival while keeping the atmosphere cordial and comfortable for both dealers and visitors. To help make the Festival more dealer friendly Tucker and Puchstein will streamline the registration process and make “load in” and “load out” a little easier.

Tucker and Puchstein reported that the January Festival had around 400 dealers on hand and the February Spectacular will have more than 500 with plenty of inside and outside space still available.

The Americraft Expo Center at the South Florida Fair is located off Southern Boulevard in West Palm Beach, FL, 1.5 miles west of the Florida Turnpike and 1 mile east of 441/SR7. Show hours are 12 pm–5 pm Friday, 9 am–5 pm Saturday and 10 am–4:30 pm Sunday. Daily admission for the Spectacular is $8.00 for adults with a Senior rate of $6.00 for 62 and over and multi-day tickets are available for $15.00. Children under 12 are free. There is no charge for parking at the Fairgrounds. For more information contact the West Palm Beach Antiques Festival at (941) 697-7475.

Agency / Source: Gail Taylor Furniture Detective

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