Another investment strategy is a modification of the old cornering-the-market theme. This is for high rollers only, affords considerable risk, but also can be used to advantage by astute speculators. Essentially, the scheme entails buying all of a specific philatelic item that you can and through this means pushing up the price. For example, you and some partners decide that zeppelins selling at $5,000 a set are too cheap, and you purchase all that you can at that price. Approximately 250 sets come on the market each month, so you can see that his would take some money. But the nice part about this plan is that you don’t end up buying all of the sets (indeed, usually only a fraction of them), because at every increased incremental level there are some sets that sell to collectors and other investors at slightly more than you are willing to pay.
There are several problems with cornering the market. First of all, as the price increases, your money purchases fewer and fewer of the items that you are trying to control. A the same time, because of higher price levels, collectors who bought their sets years ago seek to liquidate at the new higher level, thereby increasing (sometimes dramatically) the number of the particular stamps that are offered each month. As a general rule of thumb, if you are considering cornering any philatelic market, assume your capital needs as follows: You’ll need to be able to buy about 20 percent of the known supply of the item, at a price that you should assume will average out to be about twice what it was when the item started.
Actually, the cornering-the-market game is much more profitable to the side players than it ever is the chump who sticks it out from beginning to end. By watching price movements, and determining whether a control group seems to be developing, a sophisticated investor can buy along with them, liquidating with most profits well before the bubble bursts. Remember, in stamps as in most other investments, those seeking big profits usually received for their efforts big losses; whereas those who are satisfied with more prudent results often do quite well.