But after the success of her Glasgow fair, one should never underestimate Mrs Foster's determination, or the enduring success of her formula, and after a surprisingly good first outing last year, Antiques For Everyone - Earls Court Two returns for a second run from August 19 to 22.
At around 200, the exhibitor total is down on last year, but although there has been a significant turnover of dealers, most of the bigger names of last year are back.
Following the Antiques For Everyone pattern initiated by Fran Foster at Birmingham's NEC as far back as 1986, the fair will feature the bright and breezy Section Two, where a dateline of 1950 exists for most things, and the smarter Section One, where most stock is pre-1950 although furniture is pre-1914.
In the latter section, at the discretion of the organisers, certain specialist dealers can bring later work (Kensington glass dealer Jeanette Hayhurst is one). However, Mrs Foster insists that everything is vetted for quality and authenticity.
Among the new exhibitors in Section One are Callaghan Fine Paintings from Shrewsbury, Sheldon Shapiro from London with Russian and French objects of art, Bay Tree Antiques from Wilton with period furniture and London's Hamshere Gallery with animal jewellery.
Those joining Section Two include De Porcelyne Lampetkan from Holland, Linda Gumb from London with textiles and James Strang from Fife with 20th century decorative arts.
It will be interesting to see if the fair prospers this year. Last August many thought it looked smarter than the Birmingham originals and, unlike Birmingham, business seemed to be better in Section One than Two, with the better quality, more expensive items finding buyers.
With summer Olympia moving relentlessly upmarket with the emphasis on design and decorators, Mrs Foster may well have found a niche with a broadly-based, large, unpretentious middle-market summer fair in London. There is no other.
An added attraction is a loan exhibition of Victorian biscuit tins, and admission is £10.
