Apfelbaum was founded as a stamp dealing company over 100 years ago in 1910 and has been owned and operated by my family since Maurice, my great grandfather, started the business. We opened our first stamp shop in 1930 and held our first auction in 1940. When we first began selling stamps, postmen delivered your mail by horse; today there is email.
Business methods have changed and ways of selling too. Apfelbaum today has no store, and, though clients are welcomed to come and examine lots that are offered for sale, most of the stamps we sell are scanned so that buyers can view them from the comfort of their home or office. And we continue to innovate. In 1960, we began our lifetime guarantee of genuineness and accuracy of descriptions. Apfelbaum alone of all the world’s stamp sellers guarantees forever everything that we sell. We are constantly looking at our business and asking ourselves what, if we were buying from us, we would like to see. Last year we began free shipping anywhere in the United States on all purchases from individual lots to large multi-carton holdings (we are the only philatelic auctioneer that does this). We ship all lots within 24 hours of purchase, and everything we sell has a full, immediate cash back guarantee of complete satisfaction.
The Apfelbaum family that owns and operates the company today have interests outside the hobby and are active buyers of books, shoes, and electronics. Like you, we deal with the world’s best customer service companies on a regular basis. It is our continuing goal to make your experiences of buying and selling your stamps as pleasant and profitable to you as possible and to make your philatelic experiences your best buying experiences overall. We do it because it is the right thing to do, but as we treat our clients in this way, we are reminded of the great paradox of capitalism