The following was written by Chris.

We attended the annual ANA World’s Fair of Money in Oklahoma City last week. Ok, let me get this out of the way. The decision to host the biggest coin show of the year in a city that is relatively inaccessible from many major cities was perplexing. The airfare there was the most we have spent as a company…ever. And more importantly, there were significant increases in security concerns during the trip there and back due to having to make connections. The main hotel for the event was very expensive, though I will say that those of us (yours truly included) that stayed elsewhere got fairly reasonable rates.

I have almost zero input to provide for the city itself, as my time was limited to walks from my hotel to the convention center, and the time I spent in the convention center. Dinner every night was Grubhub to my hotel room. Good times. I regret not being able to see what OKC had to offer. I will say that that the walk from my hotel to the show was convenient and felt safe. The convention center itself was great. The Oklahoma heat was intense, but I spent the previous weekend in New Orleans (different heat, but still heat), so I dealt with it fine, particularly considering my walk to the show was very short and half of it through air-conditioned spaces.

Time to move on to the show itself. There were a couple of dealers with whom I do regular coin show business that did not attend due to the location. The world coin dealer attendance seemed soft to me, and it was probably because of the location and associated costs. As for the regular wholesalers and dealers that were there, I was definitely pleased with what I was able to buy from them.  If you combine what Tom, Frank, and I bought at the show, it’s probably the biggest buying show we’ve had. As for sales, it was definitely the best show we’ve had in many years. I saw no weakness in the market in the areas in which we deal. Obviously, ugly/low-end coins sell at discounts, and pretty or PQ coins command strong premiums.

I’m not sure how public attendance turned out. It was definitely not overwhelming, although to be fair, I left Thursday night. Perhaps it picked up Friday and Saturday, as it’s easier for working folks to attend on those days. I did have the pleasure of seeing a couple of our regular customers, as well as meeting one of them for the first time (shout-out to Mike from Norman!).

Next year it’s back to Rosemont, IL. I like the location for the convenience, price, and restaurants in the area. I do wish they’d go back to having it in various cities every year. My issue with the location of this past show aside, it’s nice to see different places.

I said Rosemont in error for next year's ANA show. It is in Pittsburgh for 2026, then back to Rosemont in 2027.

The following was written by Frank.

My journey with Northeast Numismatics began in the Spring of 2019. I had recently turned 16 and wanted a part time job to keep me busy after school and during the summer. At 16, I had been passionate about collecting coins for quite some time, so I figured I’d try to land a job at a local coin shop. I Googled “coin shops near me” and Northeast Numismatics was the first result. I gave them a cold call, introduced myself, and explained my interest in working for them. Before I knew it, I had an interview with Tom and Chris.

We had arranged a “trial week” in April during school vacation, which went quite well. From there, I worked anytime I could after school and during the summers throughout high school. I was accepted into Bentley University, a business school here in Massachusetts and pursued a degree in business management along with a law minor. Throughout college, I spent much of my free time during the school week and summer at Northeast. During my last semester of college, I spent more time in the office than in the classroom.

I have also taken part in a few educational events about grading and the coin business. I was fortunate enough to earn a scholarship to the ANA Summer Seminar twice, where I took grading courses. (From Chris: Frank humbly did not mention the fact that he scored the highest in the class on the grading test!) I also attended Witter Coin U in San Francisco twice, which is similar to Summer Seminar, but geared towards young numismatists. We learned more about grading and the coin business, which I really enjoyed.

Stacks Bowers in Costa Mesa, California also had a similar educational event a couple summers ago. This seemed to be more of an advanced class about grading and conducting business properly. I gained new friends and business relationships with many people from these events, of which I am very grateful for.

I officially started here at Northeast on June 2nd, a couple weeks after graduation. I have enjoyed my 6 years at Northeast and look forward to many more!

We are excited to announce that Frank Sawin, who has been with Northeast on a part-time basis for the last six years, has taken on a full-time position with us as a numismatist. He just graduated with a degree in business from Bentley University here in Massachusetts. Many of you know Frank from his Frankly Speaking blog posts, his social media presence, seeing him at local and major shows, or doing business with him here in our office in Concord. 

Frank has become quite the seasoned numismatist in his years with Northeast, and is now one of our principal buyers. He will be attending all coin shows with us, and most likely will be traveling to some by himself to represent Northeast. We are thrilled to have him on board.

The Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG) held a dinner and awards banquet at the CSNS coin show this past April. Several awards are given out, including the Abe Kosoff Founders Award and the Harvey G. Stack Lifetime Achievement Award. As part of PNG’s mission to cultivate and expand the next generation of the numismatic industry, they give out a NexGen Future Star Numismatist Award. This is given to a young numismatist who evokes the most promise as a strong performer as a professional numismatist in the future. We are very proud to say that Frank was the recipient of that award this year. Congratulations, Frank! It is well-deserved.

We encourage you to welcome Frank on board as our newest full-time team member. He can be reached at frank@northeastcoin.com.

The following was written by Chris.

In September of 2023, I posted a Long Beach Expo show report on our blog. If interested, you can read it here. My comments regarding the lack of dealer attendance were somewhat prophetic, I suppose. In January, we received the following email regarding the show.

Dear Long Beach Expo Community,

For over 60 years, the Long Beach Expo has been more than just a marketplace — it has been a gathering place for the numismatic and collectibles community. Together, we've celebrated our shared passions, made lasting connections, and enjoyed the thrill of discovery on the beautiful California coast.

As we all experienced, the COVID-19 pandemic reshaped how events are organized and attended. While our community rebounded with enthusiasm, the rising costs of hosting these events have created challenges. We've worked tirelessly to balance those costs without compromising your experience or passing along undue expenses. We deeply value the vibrant, loyal community that makes the Long Beach Expo so special.

After careful consideration, we have decided to pause the June and September shows for 2025 and focus our efforts on delivering an exceptional experience at the February event. This adjustment allows us to better support our community and realign with our parent company, PCGS, and its core mission: providing industry-leading grading and authentication services that advance the hobby we all love.

We are fortunate to have such a vibrant and loyal community, and we are excited about the opportunity to reassess how we can best serve you. We want to thank our dedicated community of dealers, vendors, sponsors, attendees, and friends who make this show such an amazing event. We also want to extend our gratitude to our long-standing official auctioneer of the Long Beach Expo - Heritage Auctions. Your world-renowned auctions are a staple of the numismatic auction calendar and we are fortunate to be able to host both your live auctions and lot viewings over the years.

We are grateful for your continued support and excited about the opportunities ahead. Thank you for being such an integral part of this journey.

We look forward to welcoming you next month for an unforgettable February Long Beach Expo!

It was a disappointing email to receive. I have been attending that show for close to 30 years, and it was always one of my favorites. Even as the show declined, I still enjoyed attending it. My experience there this past February was very similar to my experience I posted about previously, perhaps with even fewer dealers this time. I flew in Tuesday around noon and left Wednesday night, with maybe 2 1/2 boxes of new purchases. Tom attended this one also, and bought a box or two himself. It was still worth my time and the expense of going there.

Many folks are speculating, myself included, that this past show might be the last one ever. You'll note in the email above that they are pausing the June and September shows this year. I think canceling would have been the more appropriate word. I do hope that they are able to revive the Long Beach show to some extent. Maybe just host it two times a year? Anyway, we very well may be looking at the end of an era.  : (

The following was written by Chris.

While I sometimes bet (and usually lose) on the New England Patriots, I’m not a big gambler. I suppose that changed a bit while I was at the most recent coin show. I was negotiating on a coin that a dealer had for sale. He wanted $4600, and I wanted to pay $4400. His response? “I’ll sell it for $4500, or we can flip for it.” If I win, I get the coin at $4400. If he wins, I have to pay $4600. So, I put $200 of my boss’ money on the line and shook his hand.

He came out from behind his table to flip the coin in the aisle. I was to call it while the coin was in the air, then let it hit the concrete bourse floor. I called heads, the coin hits the floor and bounces and rolls around and…HEADS! But here’s the kicker. It was an 1893-S Morgan! I kid you not. Fortunately, it was already damaged and scratched before the toss, but it was pretty wild to see an 1893-S intentionally bouncing around on the hard ground.

Here's the $4400 “prize.”