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# Veblen at the Boat Show: Anthropologist Wanted
- URL: https://www.sailiconvalley.com/veblen-at-the-boat-show-anthropologist-wanted/
- Published: 2026-07-18T18:01:47.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-17T14:08:37.000Z
- Author: Tony Gilbert
- Tags: Play

Before “flexing” was flexing, there was Thornstein Veblen. He identified social signals and flexes long before Silicon Valley knew what a [Patagonia sleeveless vest](https://www.tiktok.com/@morningbrew/video/7065401193425571118?is%5Ffrom%5Fwebapp=1&sender%5Fdevice=pc&ref=sailiconvalley.com) was, and certainly before executives [ditched neckties](https://www.hockerty.com/en-us/blog/business-casual-for-men?ref=sailiconvalley.com) for hoodies, in the ultimate workplace flex. 

Veblen actually lived in Silicon Valley before the *silicon*, with an [address](https://www.veblen.org/Veblen-Family/Photos/photos.html?ref=sailiconvalley.com) no less prestigious than on Sand Hill Road. But of course, back then, before it became the global headquarters for venture capital, Sand Hill Road was better known for just, well, *sand*. 

So we wonder what the author of [The Theory of the Leisure Class](https://www.gutenberg.org/files/833/833-h/833-h.htm?ref=sailiconvalley.com) would have said if he visited a boat show? Thornstein Veblen coined the phrase “conspicuous consumption,” and we can’t think of consumption more conspicuous than at a boat show. 

If you’re looking for social signals and flexes, then look no further than your local boat show – whether that be in Annapolis, the SF Bay Area, Florida, or Monaco. Peacocking and popped collars are part of the show – whether you go sockless when you wear your loafers or put on socks with embroidered sailboats, whether you wear a pink golf shirt or prefer a yachty blue blazer – boat shows are the place to see styles and fashions that are a world unto themselves. Not to mention the one-upsmanship of the boats at the boat show, where worth is measured by LOA – Length Overall. 

That’s why Sailicon Valley is searching for an anthropologist to accompany us on an assignment in Annapolis – the town with not only one but [*two*](https://www.sailiconvalley.com/why-are-there-two-helly-hansen-stores-in-annapolis-and-why-are-they-both-on-the-same-block/) Helly Hansen stores on the same block. Think [Bill Cunningham](https://youtu.be/9OLUmiyZc6E?si=i9p2QS5ZMKl6ku1n&ref=sailiconvalley.com) in the wilds of the Upper East Side, [David Attenborough](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfgxOcS4tTQ&ref=sailiconvalley.com) peering at peacocks, or [National Geographic](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTwT1-TpFhE&ref=sailiconvalley.com) does the docks. 

We’ll be at the [Annapolis Sailboat Show](https://www.annapolisboatshows.com/sailboat-show/?ref=sailiconvalley.com) in October documenting the *wildlife*. Will you be there? 

This is a serious ad for an anthropologist. Know someone we should be talking to about this? Hit us up. 

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