A manic Manhattan multimillionaire went on a wild shopping spree at a Javits Center trade show, buying up $20 million in upscale tchotchkes before landing in a mental hospital.
Cigar-chomping Ed Bazinet, 68, spent four days going from booth to booth at the New York International Gift Fair, stunning vendors as he snatched up everything in sight — from ice- cream scoops to scented sachets to Scandinavian barbecue tools, witnesses told The Post.
The outrageous outlay raised alarms, and Bazinet was hospitalized, friends said yesterday.
Just before the Javits event, Bazinet tore through a Paris trade show and ordered $39.4 million worth of products, sources said.
In New York, Bazinet — who made his fortune selling miniature ceramic villages and porcelain Snow-baby figurines — went row to row, placing product orders ranging from $200,000 to $2 million, vendors said.
Word was spreading through the event to watch for the man bouncing from booth to booth.
“He’d just say, ‘Give me 1,000 of this and 1,000 of that!’” recalled designer Nima Oberoi.
Bazinet forked over a credit card to buy more than $200,000 worth of Oberoi’s cake platters and serving items before she cut him off.
“My antenna went up — he wasn’t looking at prices, and he was giving insane unit numbers. He didn’t ask questions about the products,” said Oberoi.
“I feel awful for him; there was clearly something going on.”
At elizabethW, maker of swank bath, body and home goods, Bazinet ordered $1.6 million of soap, sachets and clothes hanger covers, said President Michael Lindsay.
“It was fun while it lasted, but the poor guy,” said Lindsay. “We wish him well.”
At Bazinet’s apartment yesterday, three large, heavy boxes were delivered from a Minnesota hardware supplier.
Bazinet’s spokeswoman, Katherine Roepke, did not return calls for comment.