Over the course of the history of our hobby collector attitudes towards quality have changed significantly. In the early days of our hobby little attention was paid to even the most rudimentary principles of quality. Any stamp, no matter how damaged, was collectible and we see early collections that have items in them that are […]
One area where the Scott catalog is inconsistent and unreliable concerns shades. Most stamps of the Nineteenth Century exist in numerous shades. The reason is simple. Ink colors were hard to match and when different printings of the same stamps were made, while the printers attempted to match the inks, there was no foolproof way
The question of how to add to inventory is the single toughest question that a new stamp dealer has to answer. The only steady way that most dealers have of buying stamps for inventory is either buying at auction or buying from wholesalers. And there are two main difficulties in doing this-accurately grading the quality
Adding to Inventory Read More »
Having a small business going into retirement can be a very nice part time activity. Using your collection duplicates and carefully adding to your stock can help you build an inventory that is salable and desireable. Here are few ground rules for making it work. First, stick to selling the stamps of one country or
Part Time Stamp Dealing Read More »
Angie was in her early forties and had began collecting in a serious way after her husband died. She was in social service work, comfortable financial circumstances, and was an interesting and attractive woman. Will was a few years older, a widower, attorney and also an avid collector. Both would come to our office every
One of the things that happens when recessions start is that economic data tends to understate what is happening. Specifically, at the start of a recession you tend to get unemployment numbers that indicate that the job market is getting bad and that GDP is contracting. As time goes on and the recession begins to
Grace and Calvin Coolidge were considered generous and gracious people. But little did they realize that the invitations that they sent out in 1927 had more than just the significance of being able to have cocktails with the President. On the White House stationary that was used for this invitation the President used a rare
A Valuable Presidential Invitation Read More »
Remember how you organized your day was in 1970. Your clock radio alarm went off and you listened to a bit of news or some music while the percolator made coffee. The morning newspaper was at the front door and you read that before going off to work. At your office you did your professional tasks
When Collectors Buy Stamps Read More »
Nobody has yet improved on Adam Smith’s version of capitalism. Put different companies and concepts in the economic arena and the invisible hand will pick the most efficient idea and the one that, at its price, most people want to consume. But for the invisible hand to work, the competition has to be fair. And for