(image courtesy My TVC 15)
Those interested in getting their sci-fi/horror/gaming/super-hero freak on came out in higher numbers than expected last weekend for HobbyStar Marketing‘s showcase pop culture convention, Fan Expo Canada. Although he did not offer any refunds, the sports and entertainment marketing company’s CEO Aman Gupta issued an apology on behalf of the Fan Expo team for its mismanagement of the event, which outpaced the Metro Toronto Convention Centre’s fire and safety limitations, causing huge lines, flared tempers, and great delays for those getting in and out of the building.
Bryan Munn at Sequential has a great roundup of links on the event, as well as this analysis:
The biggest problem day seemed to be Saturday, when the 27393-person capacity of the North Building was reached and hundreds more people were still trying to get in. Pass holders, vendors, and guests couldn’t get back in once they stepped out. Communication broke down, tickets continued to be sold, and there were reports of a near-riot.
Once inside, the infamous Stan Lee, who built Marvel Comics in the 1970s, was a headlining celebrity this year. Chris Randle at Comic Book Resources attended Fan Expo’s Stan Lee talk and has a thorough report. Here’s a quote:
Precisely who did what in creating which characters, and the issue of creators’ rights at a Marvel Comics that rapidly expanded under Lee, have been fraught, acrimonious controversies for several decades now. Lee alluded to this with roguish self-deflation when he added, “They did the work, I took the credit. It’s not the right way to collaborate. It should be the Stan Lee Method.”
Hobbystar has many conventions throughout the year, including two one-day comics events in the fall and winter, and a two-day event in the spring, which they market as Toronto ComiCON. Let’s hope they work out a few kinks before the next event.
Isn’t the North Building that Gupta is saying Hobbystar was ‘unfamiliar with’ the SAME BUILDING that housed the event from the late 90′s to roughly 2005? And they fixed the problems from 2009 so well, that the SAME problems reared their ugly head last weekend, to an even greater extent?
Gupta’s ‘apology’ is nothing more than a bunch of doublespeak and damage control.
The way the event was mismanaged, its a miracle that a stampede didn’t happen and that no one was seriously injured. It was a flustercluck.
I SERIOUSLY hope that those who purchased their tickets with credit cards dispute the charges, and get their money back. They did not get what was promised with admission, and that’s fraud on part of Hobbystar. And that the City of Toronto takes a hard look at Hobbystar’s business practices with overselling venues and blatent disregard of fire regulations 2 years running.
Hobbystar pulls similar stunts EVERY year, and the only way they will learn is if people fight back financially….since the bottom line is the only thing this company cares about.