These factors are or were:
- The Weather: Trivial as it may seem, it rained torrentially and relentlessly in New York on Friday, the first full day of the fair. This downpour understandably reduced the gate. The New York City mass transit system is no thrill in the rain, and it is nearly impossible to get a cab in a downpour. The Armory’s World War One-era air ventillation system didn’t help either.
- The War: It should come as no profound surprise that the War in Iraq and uncertainty in the Middle East have projected many people into a sort of walking depression. This is particularly true in New York City, where security measures are everywhere visible and many people remain concerned about future attacks.
- The Economy: Our formerly robust market is now in its third year of downturn and feels even worse when contrasted with the extravagantly successful 1990s.
- The "Hidden" Factor: The Conversion of Book Sales to the Internet: The biggest change in the used, rare, and antiquarian book business in last 25 years has been the emergence of the internet as an increasingly effective way to buy, collect and sell books. Since 1996, there has been a steady conversion of the used, rare, and antiquarian book business from the dealer to collector model to the less restricted internet sales model. Each dealer’s internet experience is different. Our own recent surveys suggest the conversion of the book business from the one way dealer-collector model to a two way listing to buyer model is well underway.
