Knifemaker's not sociable

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Westflorida

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First off I will say I love knives and have collected them since I was 7 years old (customs since 11).

I posted a similar thread close to a year ago when I attended the Knifemaker's Guild Show. I have noticed the custom makers I met at the Blade Show are just not very outgoing toward potential customers. I was ignored everytime I went up to a table and looked at like I was interrupting them with the person they were speaking to behind the table. I am just wondering whether I am crazy for thinking this or not? I did notice all the factory booth's I went to the people were very nice (Emerson, Busse, William Henry, Etc). I did meet some very nice custom makers like Ernest Emerson, Koji Hara, and D'holder (who I bought a knife from). So please let me know your thoughts? I was very nice to everyone I met and asked politely to them if I could handle their knives.
 
Westflorida,
of course you have the option not to buy, however you should remember that everyone has a bad day. Yeah I know, a show isn't the best time to have a bad day but it happens.
Now, if someone really bothers you, perhaps you may want to take time to mention it to the show's promoters or possibly a professional guild or society that the particular knifemaker is associated with. Maybe nothing will happen, in fact, it is almost certain nothing official will happen, but a few words may be said to the maker, and they might get the idea, but either way, you've done your best to communicate. I don't know if that helps, but it was the best I could think of.
 
The Crawfords, Terzuola and Elishewitz, along with a few dealers were very nice to me at ECCKS and I'm just a 15 yr old kid
 
I don't know what the story is in this particular case but I'll give you my general philosophy on such things anyway.

If I'm going to buy something off somebody and they can't be bothered to deal with me or deal in a civil fashion then I simply walk away and spend my money elsewhere. One of my considerations is, if I get no attention before the sale, what sort of attention am I going to get AFTER the sale if there is a problem?
 
Gajinoz, good point

"One of my considerations is, if I get no attention before the sale, what sort of attention am I going to get AFTER the sale if there is a problem?"
 
Knifemakers are people. Some are friendlier than others. I can't see real success in a business like that without some customer contact, though. Why bother going to a show if you're not going to interact with the public?

So many of them are really outgoing. GarageBoy is right about the Crawfords, Bob Terzuola and Allen Elishewitz, and you were right about Ernie Emerson and all those strange Busse creatures :D

The last New York show I went to, I was tired, my leg hurt, and I was limping through the dense crowd, determined to see every knife in the place. As I was coming up on the Dozier table, Bob Dozier was talking to two men off to the side. He literally pushed them away and brought me into that clear area where I could rest.

You're always going to get people whose minds are elsewhere. Ignore them. There are too many other people's knives to buy! :p
 
Esav Benyamin said:
The last New York show I went to, I was tired, my leg hurt, and I was limping through the dense crowd, determined to see every knife in the place. As I was coming up on the Dozier table, Bob Dozier was talking to two men off to the side. He literally pushed them away and brought me into that clear area where I could rest. :p
Click to expand...


Bob Dozier is a true gentleman and a finer person you'd be fortunate to meet.
You KNOW he appreciates his customers and potential customers.
 
Without a single exception, every knifemaker that my daughter Kimberly and I approached at Blade were extremely pleasant, and were very willing to let the little girl in the wheelchair handle their expensive knives. She has limited hand dexterity but is capable of safely picking up and holding a knife. I knew this, but they didn't. Yet not one denied her permission to handle a knife, and were extremely patient in talking to her and answering her questions as I interpreted her sign language for them.

In fact, I commented to my wife after my first pass through the show with Kim that the entire crowd was the most friendly and accomodating of wheelchair navigation of any group of people we had ever encountered.
We had not one single unpleasant or indifferent encounter with any maker or attendee.
 
My experience at the latest Blade show (and earlier Blade shows) has been that many times the makers want to spend more time talking to me than I can spend with them. Its not that I don't enjoy the conversation, but if I am going to stop and look at a number of tables, I can't spend 15-20 minutes talking to each maker. Now I don't know Frank Centofante and wouldn't take up much of his time. I traded about seven sentences with him and then moved on. I might have spent more time at his table, but for some reason, all his knives were sold before I got to him. He was always polite, humble and willing to talk. I do know some of the less well known makers and met many more this week. Without exeception, the makers were gracious and more than willing to talk to me. Many times I had to break off the conversation.

I went by W.D. Pease's table several times on Saturday and Sunday and slowed down to look at a black lipped pearl handled knife that had not been purchased. Each time, he made an effort to pleasantly speak to me and pass the time. Friday I was dressed up and might have looked like I could afford one of his knives. On Saturday and Sunday, I went in shorts and did not look prosperous. Yet he was always nice and polite.

I always ask permission before I touch anything on a table and I always find something nice to say about the knives on the table. I imagine that I have just entered the knife maker's home and try to act appropriately. I am not suggesting that the person who started this thread didn't act politely or do anything wrong. I am just describing my own wonderful experience with the knife makers at Blade.
 
Human Factor.. Too many people in a crowded room, jet-lagged and tonnes of inquiries can really wear down a person.. I have good experiences with Earnest Emerson, Robert Terzuola, Pat and Wes Crawford and Bob Dozier at the only show I've attended at NYC a coupla years back.. :cool: Factory folks are cool too! Them Spydercrew from Spyderco are my favourite! :D

Sam
 
Shows are hard work, trying to meet and greet each and every person who stops at the table. The hardest part is being able to stop talking with someone and move to the next visitor without offending the first person.

I expect that fatigue comes into the equation as well, given that the larger booths have more staff than the individual maker's tables.

All this is no excuse to ignore the public who are supporting your industry by attending the show but I would suggest that you arrive early in the day when we are fresher and looking forward to meeting and greeting the public.
 
I've been to quite a few Custom shows and everyone was nice when they were done talking to whoever was in front of me they took an equal interest in my questions and spent an appropriate amount of time responding.

Many makers when I expressed an interest in making knives in the earlier days, invited me to their shop, or helped me on the spot.

I've also seen makers ignore people who didn't follow trade show etiquette, people who pick up knives without asking first, place their bags and packages on the makers table obscuring, and sometimes covering their knives, trying to sell personal knives in front of dealer tables, barge into conversations they are not part of, and so on.

I'm not saying you did any of those things, but consider this they spend good money on these tables and like anyone else who needs to make a living they are going to invest more time in someone that they feel is going to lay cash on the table.
 
I've been to a lot of gun and knife shows and each dealer, knifemaker, etc. is different. However overall, they are their for the companionship of people with similar interests and to sell, and thus welcome people's comments and questions. There are a few old curmudgeons and some hard sellers, but that's to be expected.

So to answer your question:

"I am just wondering whether I am crazy for thinking this or not?"

Maybe it is you. Some people have minor behavioral disorders that keep them from interacting with people in the manner they wish. They often then compensate by transferring the problem to the other person, when the problem lies with themselves. Maybe you start of your knife shows off with some tension. Do you have to argue with your wife to get permission and thus approach the show with an "attitude." Also, it could be your appearance, do you have a swastika tatooed in the middle of your forehead? :)
 
Every show I have been to they have been very sociable.... but the show around here in decmeber isnt near the size of Blade.
 
This was my third straight year to attend Blade. Every maker I tried to talk to was friendly and socialable. They all took time to answer my questions and many of the forum makers recognized my name and wanted to just chat. I had a great time and never felt shunned by any maker.

JR
 
I met a lot of friendly folks there. PJ Tomes has to be among the nicest most genuine down to earth and flat out friendly knifemakers I have ever met. He doesn't always remember my name but he does remember the face and that means something to me. I also own four of his knives. J & Tess Neilson also stand out as just good and friendly people. I really very badly wanted one of his knives too but I had already hit my knife spending limit for the show. There were many others that I saw who were very friendly. As a matter of fact there were only a couple of booths where I didn't feel welcome at Blade and just as Westflorida said I kept on walking. I can see though how sitting around for hours and hours greeting thousands of shoppers (some being probably weird and/or rude) could wear on anyone though.

Jon
 
I didn't make it to this year's Blade but I have been to several.

One factor that you should consider is the sheer number of people. It may be that after several hundred "I'm just looking" responses the makers begin to wait for the show patron to initiate the conversation.

I don't recall ever being treated with anything but courtesy and respect at Blade.
 
brownshoe said:
Also, it could be your appearance, do you have a swastika tatooed in the middle of your forehead? :)
Click to expand...

You mean, this could be a problem?


;)
 
hi west florida i'm from south florida originally from new york.at the new york intl. shows that i attended from 1982 to 1993 most makers and purveyors were top draw with one or two exceptions. always friendly and professional were the crawfords, bob terzuola, chris reeve , phil hartford just to name a few. but like you when i came to florida i entered a different kind of show .down by me they are gun and knife shows and most knives are sold by dealers or purveyors.most are o.k. aqnd mostly friendly but then i encounter what you are writing about.guys that dont look up at you when you stand at their table or seem angry for no good reason . its funny but i notice that if i have a bag in my hand from another purchase they pay more attention to me. my humble advice is avoid the rude ones and allow for the fact they could be having a bad day or week and dont take it personally.have fun , high.p.sthats hartsfield not hartford, sorry phil.
 
Knifemakers have to wear a lot of hats in the business, between that of maker, salesman, bookkeeper, materials ordering, etc. It's generally a lonely pursuit, working in the shop. And you have all types of personalities of the makers where some can go comfortably from one aspect to another. Some might be outgoing and others might be more circumspect. Then, there's the vagaries of what it takes to go to the show and then dealing with folks who are knowledgeable and those who are not. It's hard to be all things and do it all well. But after all, taking the time to get there should be impetus for makers to put on the best they can to try and make it all worthwhile and not shoot themselves in the foot at the point of making sales.
 
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