You gotta love the Tucson Show. The weather is great (most of the time), 4th avenue is a blast, mountain views everywhere, lots of familiar friendly faces, and you always see amazing minerals you have never seen before. What more could you want? Despite that this was a "recession" year, there was an upside to be found. Hotels were actually available and not at the price of your firstborn child, restaurants had no waits, and for shoppers there was less competition over the good material. On the last weekend there was still quality available at discount prices. For most dealers, Tucson was a little disappointing. I spoke with the representative of a major freight and logistics company and he said business was down 50%. Since he serves all different categories of mineral dealers, that would suggest business was down across the board. While economic downtimes are always a challenge, it's a great opportunity for dealers to reevaluate business models and to make sure to do everything possible to maintain or increase quality while seeking ways to lower costs and streamline sources. I am back in Brazil and close to the action at the mines, so feel free to drop me a line if I can help you. Also, if you were in Tucson I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions so feel free to leave your comments on the blog.
