WARCI Announces 2021 Swap Meet Plans

The 2021 Wisconsin Antique Radio Club swap meet calendar has been decided! We’ve reduced our schedule to 5 swap meets in hopes of providing a realistic timeline for the latter portion of the year. The meet dates are as follows:

To maintain our regular meet schedule, WARCI must increase its income to meet our projected future expenses. For 2021 and beyond, WARCI board approved the following measures effective November 16th, 2020:

  • Raise WARCI Dues to $18/year: WARCI’s annual dues have been held low for many years. Dues started out at $12 in 1997 and have been $15 going as far back as 2008. This minor increase in annual dues collected in 2021 and beyond will generate additional income for WARCI while still keeping us at an attractive rate compared to other organizations.
  • Membership Required to Sell: By requiring that all sellers be members, WARCI will generate additional income and encourage new (and hopefully repeat!) membership. We will encourage new membership by offering the first table free to all new members (renewals excluded).
  • Increase Seller Fees to $10: To simplify fee collection, WARCI is increasing seller fees for 2021 and beyond to $10. WARCI prefers this fee increase over charging per-table as the latter discourages sellers who set up large displays.
  • Charging Sellers at September Swap Meet: When the WARCI “Oktoberfest” auction debuted in 2011, the proceeds generated from the auction were enough to offset the income generated by seller fees, which were waived in subsequent years. Although the WARCI auctions ceased after 2015, we continued to keep the September meet free as a thank you to all of our regular sellers. As a result, the September meet has become one of WARCI’s largest. Unfortunately, it is also one of WARCI’s largest expenses. Reinstating fees for this meet will help generate additional income for the club.

In addition, WARCI has announced the following action plan for 2020 meets:

The health and safety of our members is our first priority.  With that in mind, we’ve enacted the following guidelines for our 2021 meets to ensure that WARCI is providing the safest event possible:

  • Outdoor Meets, Rain or Shine: To reduce the potential for transmission, all 2021 meets have been moved to an outdoors-only format.  Venues will remain open for use of restroom facilities.  Since the Madison swap meet has existing indoor vendor stalls, they will be open at the discretion of the individual vendors.
  • No Food Service: WARCI will suspend the complimentary pizzas following the 2021 meets to reduce the likelihood of virus transmission.
  • Wear Your Mask: In keeping with CDC guidelines, WARCI recommends wearing a mask if you are not fully vaccinated.
  • Practice Social Distancing: Skip the handshake!  Keep 6ft between you and other swap meet participants whenever possible. 
  • Hand Sanitizer Provided: WARCI will provide hand sanitizer at meets to encourage good hygiene.
  • Use Common Sense: If you are feeling sick or believe you have been exposed to someone with COVID, please remain at home.

WARCI will continue to monitor COVID statistics and adjust the 2021 swap meet schedule as necessary.  Stay tuned to www.warci.org for updates.

WARCI looks forward to seeing you in-person in 2021!