2nd Edition of International EZ-Guide is Multi-Lingual

The World's Top Gem Shows /Asia, Europe, USA

Venues: 26 gem, mineral, fossil and jewelry show locations

Show Dates: June 2013 - June, 2014
Hours and admission requirements vary for each show

Contact: Xpo Press, Inc.
Email: support@xpopress.com

What you will find at (and about) these shows: Xpo Press has researched all of the top mineral-centric shows on each continent to determine the shows and showcases that meet our criteria for inclusion on our list of The World's Top Gem Shows. 

Enthusiastic about this sophomore edition of the Int'l EZ Guide (INEZ), Brad Hicks, Xpo Press, stated, "This year INEZ begins/began its year-long distribution schedule at the Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines Mineral & Gem Expo in France in June 2013, then makes/made it’s globetrotting appearance at every major gem and mineral show in the world through MineralienWelt -Idar-Oberstein in Germany in June 2014."

Want your show included in the next INEZ?  According to Mr. Hicks, this is how it's done!  Selection Criteria: 

1. The shows must have strong rock-mineral-fossil representation, not a jewelry or bead show 

2. They must have 100 vendors or more (slightly fewer will do if a show meets all other criteria, like the West Coast Show in Santa Ana, Calif., which has 80ish)

3. They must host an updated/accurate website

4. They must have a reliable contact person who is positive and eager to provide information to us about their show

5. They must welcome dealers/vendors from all continents to sell at their show (for example, the FIPP Brazil show, though certainly a major world gem show, is not included because non-South American dealers are restricted — and they don’t have a website that we can find)

6. They must agree to distribute INEZ at their show.

International EZ-Guide

Twenty-five-thousand International EZ-Guides are published and distributed at the largest gem and mineral shows in the world, that attract the world's best sellers and buyers of gemstones, minerals and fossils. Distribution of this Guide begins each June at the Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines Mineral & Gem Show in France, and continues for the following 12 months at over 20 shows in Asia, Europe, and the U.S.A. Xpo Press has researched all of the top mineral-centric shows on each continent to determine the shows that meet our criteria for inclusion in the International EZ-Guide's list of the top gem and mineral shows in the world. The International EZ-Guide is published in 7 languages, all in one annual publication — English, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Spanish — so readers who pick up the Guide at any show throughout the world will be able to read it in their native language.

International EZ-Guide Mission Statement: The purpose of the International EZ-Guide is to promote the selling and buying of gemstone, mineral and fossil products and services through organized industry-related shows and expos throughout the world, and to encourage dealers and show promoters to advertise themselves internationally.

A Decade of EZ-Guides, International Shows and QR Codes!

What a Whirlwind of a Show! 

What a YEAR!   


What do you mean it is only February?


OK - I am of to hibernate for a while...with the glow of the desert still warming my skin....WHAT? 


I need to write a show wrap up? OK...


It has been an amazing couple of months from working on and gathering the information for a brand new International Edition of the EZ-Guide (did you pick up your copy in Tucson?) - to getting the annual Tucson EZ-Guide out!


Did you notice that the Tucson EZ Guide has gone "high tech"?  QR Codes made it possible to include more info without the EZ-Guide ending up so big you couldn't carry it with you! 


Here is a  quickie guide for those of you who I didn't talk to in Tucson!!!  


A QR (Quick Response) Code  is much like the Bar Codes on the goods you purchase from most stores today.


Here is an easy explanation from the Master of Explanation, Lee LeFever of Common Craft:

"In our online world, everything is linked together. You visit a website, and click a link to visit another site, send a message, view a photo or download a video.  A simple click makes everything possible.On the other hand, our physical world is what you see walking down the street.   The problem is – nothing is clickable. You can’t click a URL on a container to see recipes.  You can’t click a statue to read about it on Wikipedia. So, you end up having to type in a link, take notes or just keep walking. But that’s starting to change.
You may have seen codes like these. They’re called QR or “quick response” codes and they mean
your camera phone can now be a little like a cashier’s scanner.
Once you have an QR reader app on your smartphone, you can point your camera phone at these codes and immediately grab useful information.
Let’s say you’re running errands and walk by a sign that says “New Show Coming Soon” and there’s a QR code.   You can just open your QR reader app, point your camera phone at the code and the app will automatically give you options.
No links to remember, no notes - just point your phone at the QR code and the real world becomes clickable."

So now the question becomes where do you find a QR Scanner for your Smart Phone?

Turns out that today you have a couple options - there are 291 options on Download.com

...or for those of you that are Microsoft users - Mashable recently wrote up the new MS Tag system...check out a couple and find the one that works for you!

OK - wrap up coming in the next day or so...