This may not mean much to a lot of you, but since I live so close to Santa Clara it has a big impact on me, and at least several of my readers. Without further ado, here is the press release:
Collectors Universe Acquires Long Beach & Santa Clara Expos
Expansion of Philatelic Sections Planned(Newport Beach, Calif.) – Publicly-held Collectors Universe, Inc., Newport Beach, California, the parent company of Professional Stamp Experts (PSE), has acquired Expos Unlimited L.L.C., Santa Barbara, California, owners and managers of the popular Long Beach and Santa Clara Coin, Stamp & Collectibles Expos.
The Long Beach Stamp Club hosts the LOBEX philatelic section of each Long Beach Expo.
Expos General Chairman Ronald J. Gillio, and his Santa Barbara-based tradeshow team will continue to manage the Northern and Southern California collectibles shows for at least five years. There are three annual Long Beach events and two annual Santa Clara shows that each attracts thousands of collectors and dealers.
In addition to PSE, Collectors Universe is the parent company of other corporate divisions that certify coins, sports-related items, autographs and diamonds.
“Our strategic acquisition of Expos underscores our mission to enable and facilitate transactions in our targeted collectibles markets. The Long Beach Expo is one of the most important shows in the collectibles business, and this acquisition secures this venue for the future,” said David Hall, President of Collectors Universe.
“The Long Beach Expo has been one of the most important collectibles shows in the world for over 40 years, and it is the only private, for-profit large convention of its kind. By acquiring Expos Unlimited, we believe we can both build on the success of this show, and also expand the number of dealers in the stamp section, increase the number of stamp collectors in attendance, as well as add other collectibles categories, such as sports.”
Collectors Universe paid $2.4 million in cash at closing for Expos Unlimited. The total consideration for Expos also includes certain contingent payments up to an aggregate of $750,000 which depend on the financial performance of Expos over the next five years.
“I’m excited for Expos to become a Collectors Universe company,” said Gillio.
“By teaming up with Collectors Universe, we foresee additional opportunities to make the Long Beach and Santa Clara Expos even more vital to the collecting interests of our core coin and stamp enthusiasts and dealers.”
The next Long Beach Coin, Stamp & Collectibles Expo will be held September 14 – 16, 2006 in the Long Beach, California Convention Center. The next Santa Clara Expo will be conducted November 16 – 19 in the Santa Clara, California Convention Center.
For additional information, contact the Expo office, 8 West Figueroa St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101. Phone: (805) 962-9939. Online at www.LongBeachShow.com and www.SantaClaraExpo.com .
Collectors Universe, Inc. is a leading provider of value added services to the high-value collectibles and diamond markets. The company authenticates and grades collectible coins, sports cards, autographs, stamps, currency and diamonds. The company also compiles and publishes authoritative information about United States and world coins, collectible sports cards and sports memorabilia, collectible stamps and diamonds. The information is accessible to collectors and dealers at the company’s web site, www.collectors.com , and is also published in print.
