The Story of our Blackpool Magic Convention Stand
By Damian Jennings - Tuesday, February 11, 2020
Flash back ten years ago this week and you would have seen Andi Gladwin and Joshua Jay standing on the balcony at the Blackpool Magic Convention with a small table with a quickly-designed banner stand behind them. There were just two Vanishing Inc. products: High Spots and Holy Blank by Caleb Wiles, plus a few of Andi and Josh's own books and tricks.
"It always felt like the beginning of something - but we didn't know what." Josh said. Back then, Vanishing Inc. had only just been formed and while there was some excitement in the air about what the pair could achieve together, nobody really knew how quickly it would grow, and what it would become.
As the company grew, so did the dealer stand. For a few years, we had the longest stand at the convention (a weird claim to fame!), simply because we had so many performers working behind it. In any one year, you might have seen Luke Jermay, Chris Rawlins, Ben Earl, Ondrej Pšenicka, or The Other Brothers. Sometimes all of them. It was always a tight squeeze - but also become the place in the Blackpool Magic Convention dealers room to see the latest, greatest magic.
But we quickly outgrew the standard dealers table format. "We don't exhibit at many magic conventions; just Blackpool Magic Convention and MAGIC Live," Andi said. "So when we do exhibit, it's important to us to make a splash. As with everything we do, we take inspiration from outside of magic, where there are fewer limitations." That's why we made the stand a destination instead of a table.
Now, when you visit us, you walk into our booth. It may well be the biggest magic dealers stand ever. This year, you'll see Christian Grace's long-awaited follow-up to Level One, Luke Jermay's new card magic release, and a whole host of new books and products. You might even be able to get your copy of Andi Gladwin and Ben Hart's new books signed by the authors.
"The whole stand is designed from the ground up. We've built custom bookshelves, tables, and even the floor is Vanishing Inc. branded. It takes months to produce and days to set up, but the end result is, we think, the best way to see and buy our magic," General Manager, George Luck said.
So, if you're coming to the Blackpool Magic Convention, come on in to our stand. You can't miss us!
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