[press release]
CHICAGOPEX 2023 Stamp Show Marks 137 Years of Chicago Philatelic Society

CHICAGO, Nov. 4, 2023 – Chicago Philatelic Society (CPS) will present its annual philatelic exhibition, CHICAGOPEX, Nov. 17, 18 and 19, 2023, at the Westin Chicago Northwest, 400 Park Blvd., Itasca, Ill. 60413.

2023 is the 137th anniversary of the Chicago Philatelic Society, which was founded in 1886 and is chapter no. 1 of the American Philatelic Society. Scott English, APS executive director, will attend the show on Friday and host a town hall where attendees can learn about the latest national society news and ask questions.

The show also features the AmeriStamp Expo in partnership with the American Association of Philatelic Exhibitors. This event includes the Single Frame Champion of Champions competition, which highlights the best single-frame exhibits from World Series of Philately shows held during the prior year. AmeriStamp Expo also features the annual AAPE single-frame team competition.

In addition, two specialty societies will convene at CHICAGOPEX: the Collectors Club [of New York] and the American Revenue Association. The American First Day Cover Society is holding a regional meeting.

Notable events include book signings daily during lunchtime. On Saturday, there will be a hands-on workshop for Boy Scouts to earn a badge for stamp collecting. Advanced registration is required for the workshop.

Philatelic exhibit frames are full! CPS expects nearly 300 frames of competitive philatelic material to be on display. Viewing philatelic exhibits gives attendees a chance to see rare and notable material.

2023 marks the 57th anniversary of the show’s philatelic literature competition, with books and other materials on display. This is one of two such annual competitions for print material in the U.S. The competition also accepts digital entries.

The show bourse is expected to feature at least 62 dealers from the U.S. and Europe, offering a vast array of material to interest everyone from the beginning collector to the advanced collector and exhibitor. The U.S. Postal Service and the U.N. Postal Administration will also attend.

The show includes a youth / beginners’ booth and speakers for the Chicago Philatelic Society, the Collectors Club of Chicago, Germany Philatelic Society Chapter #5, the Illinois Postal History Society, North Shore Philatelic Society and the convening societies. Most meetings and talks are free and open to the public.

Saturday night will feature a catered awards banquet. Tickets must be purchased in advance; dress is business casual. Please see the CHICAGOPEX website for details.

Admission and parking are free. Show hours are: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Attendees are asked to contact the hotel (phone: 630-773-4000) to make reservations and to mention Chicago Philatelic Society for the special room rate.

Three more World Series of Philately exhibitions will not be held in 2023. The American Philatelic Society Board of Directors in mid-June approved “bye” requests for NOJEX and the Minnesota Stamp Expo and suspending SEAPEX for violating the World Series of Philately rules.

The World Series of Philately is the APS-accreditation process for national-level competitive exhibitions in the United States and Canada. The shows which host these exhibitions are usually the top stamp collecting shows in North America. A complete list of WSP shows, their dates and other information, can be found here.

NOJEX is held in northern New Jersey (“NOrthern Jersey EXhibition”). According to the APS, “n requesting the 2023 bye from the World Series of Philately, NOJEX Chair Robert Rose informed the APS that the ASDA withdrew from the partnership in April and the NOJEX Committee could not secure a venue at that late date. He also noted, ‘We are committed to returning in 2024.'”

Minnesota Stamp Expo has been held at the Crystal Community Center in Crystal, Minnesota, taking a bye in 2020 due to COVID.

Earlier this year, the City of Crystal began major parking lot renovations to the Crystal Community Center with an expected completion date months before the scheduled dates of the show. In early June, the show committee learned that unexpected construction delays would push completion back to August 2023. After investigating relocating the show or alternative parking options, the show committee determined either action would negatively impact the show’s success.

Both requests were recommended unanimously by the APS’ Committee on Accreditation of National Exhibitions (CANEJ).

CANEJ also found that SEAPEX, in the Seattle area, had violated three separate WSP Rules, including failure to meet reporting deadlines, failure to maintain the level of excellence expected of a WSP show, and violating one or more WSP Exhibition rules. It recommended suspending SEAPEX pending reforms of the committee organization, website, and proof of a venue for 2024 by January 1, 2024.

SEAPEX is the second WSP suspension in the last year. In November 2022, the APS Board of Directors unanimously approved suspending the WSP status for ARIPEX for 2023. If it has not made the changes stipulated by CANEJ by August 1, its status as a WSP show may be revoked permanently.

COLOPEX, in Columbus, Ohio, earlier received a “bye” for 2023, because of its proximity to Great American Stamp Show 2023 in Cleveland, only about 140 miles away and two months later.

A bye or suspension does not necessarily mean canceling the entire show, only the sanctioned exhibition.

From the show committee:

We regret to announce that circumstances have forced us to cancel the 2023 Minnesota Stamp Expo. This is very disappointing to the show committee and our sponsoring clubs.

Our show is held at the Crystal Community Center, the show venue since 1999. This spring we were informed that the City of Crystal elected to undertake a major renovation of the Center’s main parking lot, with space for 300 vehicles. The renovation is more than a simple repavement; it involves installation of a large storm water collection tank under the parking lot. We were told the project would begin in early spring and take about a month. With that timetable the project should have been completed well before our show dates of July 21-23. On that basis we continued to plan for the show as scheduled.

Last week we were informed the project is behind schedule and will stretch into August. While the Community Center remains open, there is no parking available in the main parking lot (see above), and only minimal parking available in an adjacent lot that also serves the Crystal Aquatic Center (which is always busy during the summer months).

The show committee considered options for holding the show as scheduled, including staying at the Community Center and trying to come up with alternative parking options, or relocating the show to another suitable venue. Unfortunately, no options appear viable. Suitable alternate venues are not available on short notice. Telling show dealers, exhibitors, judges and attendees to find their own place to park in the surrounding community was deemed to be very undesirable. A remote parking and shuttle service was also considered but, if the details could be worked out (not assured), would still be a major inconvenience to anyone wanting to attend the show. Many would no doubt simply skip the show completely, resulting in poor attendance and disappointing sales for our dealers.

Given all the obstacles, the committee made the difficult decision to not hold the 2023 show. We have asked the APS to grant a bye for our show for this year, thus preserving our World Series of Philately status for future years.

Thanks for your past, present and future support of the Minnesota Stamp Expo.
We look forward to seeing you in 2024!