I’m wondering what the future holds for the Netley Marsh Eurojumble. Billed as one of the biggest Motorcycle only Autojumbles in the UK. It’s always been a little unusual in that it’s held over two days, Friday and Saturday, but it’s done that way as there are lots of people in the area for the huge Beaulieu, mainly cars, Autojumble held over the weekend. I went on Friday last week and was disappointed. I was only there a couple of hours but had seen all I wanted to in ½ that time really. I didn’t feel like I got my £12s worth of entertainment this year. I’ve been going for years, and there have always been lots of different accents and languages to be heard as you wander round. There was even a Swedish coach in the car park this time, alongside the usual large numbers of European registered motorhomes and campers. Again this year it was smaller than ever. It’s @ ½ the size it was pre-Covid. The standard of the majority of parts on offer this year really did look more like Rubbish than ever. There were far more stands that looked like the contents of someone’s shed tipped in a pile on the Grass than more professional vendors laying cleaned and catalogued parts out in bins or on tables. There were many traders sitting in chairs looking absolutely p155ed off, which to be honest doesn’t encourage you onto their pitch. One of the organisers was wandering round talking to stallholders, and was taking a lot of flak. I overheard one trader saying he’d taken less all day that what it had cost him to buy lunch. As I was leaving @15.00hrs there were several stallholders packing up to leave, and a couple had already gone.
I should add that a lot of the ‘traders’ don’t help themselves. I’m not encouraged to stop and investigate further a jumbled pile of rusty old parts just tipped out on the grass. The picture isn’t helped if I look up and see a really p155ed of looking bloke sat in a camping chair in front of a rusty old van. 9 times out of 10 the van door is open with last nights improvised bed and bedding hanging out to air, and the guy looks and smells like he’s still in the clothes he left home in the previous morning. .
It might well be related to Brexit rather than Covid. Traders bringing in parts from Europe may be liable for import duty and be required to fill in a load of ballache paperwork upon arrival at a UK port. They may also be required to account for and pay VAT to HMRC on whatever they sell at the autojumble. Then, they might also have to deal with the same or similar fuckery in respect of any parts they bought here when they return home.