by John M. Hotchner

Is there one unalterable truth for stamp collectors? If so, I would propose that it is a universal feeling that U.S. stamp design is less than spectacular, and many of us share a belief that if we were running things, we could do better. Perhaps.

In the past two days, I have heard complaints about the Forget-me-not stamp (It needs a frame to focus the design), the last George Washington stamp (It is too dark and George is lost in the dark framing), the Winter Flowers issue of 2014 (They look too much like Easter seals), and the World Stamp Show publicity stamps (A lost opportunity to picture stamp collecting or classic American stamps.)

While any or all of these criticisms may have merit, it is all second-guessing. And my guess is that all artists — even the great ones — had to put up with similar carping (“That’s supposed to be a smile on Mona Lisa? Looks more like she’s
suffering a gas attack after too many baked beans!”)

Well, we as collectors have the right to criticize, but it is all hot air unless we actually do something about it. And there are several strategies.

1. Don’t buy what you don’t like. Avoid such issues for use as postage, for your albums, and for gifts for children and grandchildren. The USPS tracks closely what sells, and just as important, what doesn’t. Vote with your wallet.
2. Learn how to draw a neat “X” in the album page box for stamps you will not add to your collection because you don’t like the art style, or you class them as just plain ugly. You are the arbiter of what makes the cut. And no one has to agree with you.
3. Create a Hall of Shame — a special section of your album in which you place all the stamps that annoy you.
4. If you have more stamps in that section than on your printed album pages, maybe it is time to curtail your collecting by ending at a given year.

You will need to be careful to differentiate whether it is the design you dislike or the subject. Sometimes, our view can be so colored by dislike of the subject that no design will hit the mark. On the other side of that fence, the flood of multi-colored fruits, flowers, foliage, fauna, flyers, food, and flags may have great popularity with the American public, but only a few stand out as clever and original depictions.

In my view about 10% of U.S. issues really rank high on both subject and design scales.

One in the 2015 crop is the U.S. Coast Guard commemorative released August 4. Full disclosure: I was involved in development of the subject while a member of the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee (1998-2010) but it had not gone to the artists at the point that I timed out from the Committee. So I was surprised and delighted by the exceptional art that illustrates the subject.

Contrast that with the New York 2016 publicity pair (right) — a good subject that in my opinion is a generic and uninspiring design that will inspire no one to attend the show.

What can we reasonably expect from U.S. stamp design? Certainly, we need to recognize that in stamps as in art generally, there will be a range of style. This is right and proper as stamps are a reflection of the breadth and diversity of American art; much like the stamp program having a commission to reflect the breadth and diversity of America itself and its population.

I well remember when modern art first made its appearance on a U.S. stamp with the 5¢ “Fine Arts” issue of 1964 (left). One would have thought listening to the reaction of collectors that the world as we knew it had come to an end.

There were similar protests when children’s art in the form of stick figures on the 20¢ Family Unity issue was included in 1984. And when cartoon-type art made its first appearance with the 1991 “Comedians” set of 29¢ stamps using the pen-and-ink impressions of Al Hirschfeld.

They were later followed by actual cartoons from the comics section of our daily press.

The latter complaints were especially mystifying to me as both political cartoons and the so-called “funny papers” are features of American journalism that have been developed to a high level in the United States. Stamps celebrating these American institutions are right on the mark, and the art is appropriate.

I personally don’t enjoy much of the poster art that has been and is used. The “Summer Harvest” issue is an example (right). And as to modern art, I think much of it is a fraud on the public when presented as works of inspiration possessed of deep and profound meaning. And yet, a portion of the public buys it and goes to see it in museums.

Can the U.S. stamp program ignore that? Should it? Regretfully, I have to admit that
it has its place.

So, my conclusion is that it is irrational to expect that every issue will please every collector. In fact, the USPS can expect criticism of some sort on the majority of its issuances if for no other reason than that the American public has a wide variety of likes and dislikes, and a wide variance of art appreciation, from those of us who merely know what we like, to those of us educated to know what we should like.

Which means that criticism will be plentiful and conflicting. And the USPS needs to listen to it, but act on it sparingly.

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Should you wish to comment on this column, or have questions or ideas you would like to have explored in a future column, please write to John Hotchner, VSC Contributor, P.O. Box 1125, Falls Church, VA 22041-0125, or email, putting “VSC” in the subject line.

Or comment right here.

How to Collect U.S. Commemoratives
by John M. Hotchner

In the last column, we talked in this space about How to Collect the Presidential Series of 1938-1954. This prompted a couple of readers to remark on a trend that has been growing among stamp show exhibitors: They are picking a specific commemorative or commemorative series, and finding everything about it that can be collected in order to tell the story of how it came to be created, to how it was used to move the mails.

How big a trend is this? I have either seen or been told of exhibits that have already appeared centered on the following commemoratives: 1904 Louisiana Purchase set of five (1¢, 2¢, 3¢, 5¢, 10¢) 1909 2¢ Hudson-Fultons 1909 2¢ Alaska-Yukon-Pacifics 1926 2¢ Sesquicentennial Exposition 1929 2¢ George Rogers Clark 1939 3¢ New York World’s Fair 1945-6 Roosevelt Memorial set of four (1¢, 2¢, 3¢, 5¢), 1945 5¢ Toward the United Nations, 1947 3¢ Centennial Philatelic Exhibition commemorative & 15¢ souvenir sheet, 1956 3¢ King Salmon, 1958 3¢ International Geophysical Year, 1958 4¢ Forest Conservation, 1959 4¢ Oregon Statehood, 1959 4¢ St. Lawrence Seaway, 1959 4¢ Dental Health, 1962 4¢ World United Against Malaria, 1964 5¢ New York World’s Fair, 1965 5¢ Churchill Memorial, 1968 6¢ Walt Disney, 1984 20¢ Smokey Bear, 1984 20¢ Roberto Clemente, 1928 5¢ Beacon Air Mail, and 1948 5¢ New York City Air Mail.

In addition, there are exhibits that are focused on the Black Heritage stamps, a series that began in 1978 and continues; and on the Chinese New Year series that began in 1991 and was capped with a 2005 sheetlet showing all of the 12 designs that had been previously issued. Finally there is also a very well done exhibit that covers the joint issues that the United States has had with other countries; usually with similar designs.

I know of other exhibits being built but not yet ready for prime time, and there are undoubtedly others both on the circuit and in planning that I’m not aware of. Even so, with fewer than 100 commemorative stamps having been given this kind of attention, there are still plenty of commemoratives to choose from if this form of collecting appeals to you.

There are a few exhibits I have not included here because they are totally focused on usages of the stamps and do not include the development of the stamp(s) themselves. Among these are, for example, the 1940 Famous Americans series, and the 3¢ 1946 Smithsonian issue.

Which brings me to the question of what a comprehensive exhibit contains. They start with the photo, painting or other basis for the stamp design, then come such essays as are in public hands. Next in the frames would be photo essays and publicity photos of the stamp(s) released by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and/or the Postal Service; followed by such proofs as may be in public hands. Check the Scott U.S. Specialized Catalogue to see what might exist in the way of essays and proofs for your favorite stamp(s).

Next come the first day ceremony souvenirs, which should include a program (autographed if possible), and perhaps other items such as covers or blocks of the stamps signed by dignitaries not on the formal program. Then come the issued stamps starting with an absolutely superb copy of the featured stamp, plate blocks or other memorabilia signed by the designer/modeler and the engravers involved in the production of the stamp.

Issued stamps showing the type and location of normal or exceptional marginal markings are featured next, followed by such errors and varieties as have been discovered. It can be especially difficult to find these as errors (which exist in very small quantities) are listed, but there is no central listing for varieties such as misperforations, constant plate varieties, and color misregistrations — most of which will be equally scarce — and the collector has to search high and low for whatever may exist.

Now we get to the First Day Cover cachets. It will probably be the longest section of the exhibit. Much of what exists in this category has been recorded in publications of the American First Day Cover Society, but there are often small unrecorded productions of cachets that can be found randomly in dealer stocks, other collections, and in the archives of cachet makers. And there may be, especially with older stamps, uncacheted covers from unusual sources such as U.S. Navy ships.

Finally, the exhibit will end with commercial usages of the stamp showing how it was used to pay various rates and on mail to unusual destinations. This section is often frustratingly small. Why is this?

While definitives were and are often produced in quantities of many hundreds of millions, and sometimes in billions, commemorative production figures have mostly topped out in the 150 million range up until the 29¢ era (early ‘90s, when per-stamp production dropped to under 100 million in most cases, reflecting the larger number of stamps being issued). In addition, definitives are available for years; sometimes a dozen or more. Commemoratives can sell out much earlier, but in almost every case what is still not sold after 18 months is withdrawn and destroyed.

The result is that finding usages of any given stamp beyond routine first class, in the period when the commemorative was current, requires a lot of searching, a lot of knowledge as to where to look, diligent advertising of what is being sought, and much correspondence. The good news is that when you find the covers cost is generally pretty reasonable. It isn’t affording them, it is finding them that is the challenge; made more difficult by the fact that most dealers don’t stock “modern” (which is often anything in the last 75 years!) covers, because it is low profit margin material.

So, to do a commemorative exhibit requires, usually, years of acquisition and learning about what exists to be found. The learning is not trivial as it encompasses knowledge of production, EFOs, the range of First Day cachets, and contemporary rates and possible usages. I have a couple of ongoing projects in the acquisition/learning stage, and it may be that I will never be able to come up with enough material to get to an exhibit. But the journey in that direction is much of the fun of forming a commemorative collection.

If you are working on such a collection, D.A. Lux has continued my original list and publishes it monthly. If you would like your commemorative interest(s) included on The Hotchner Commemorative List, contact D.A. at dalux2041@gmail.com and include the Scott number and first day of issue of your stamp. Once on the list, other list members will be able to search their collections for the covers you need and will know your interests when they dig through the dollar and quarter boxes at their local stamp shows. This could be a way of helping to unearth new material to improve your collection!

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Should you wish to comment on this column, or have questions or ideas you would like to have explored in a future column, please write to John Hotchner, VSC Contributor, P.O. Box 1125, Falls Church, VA 22041-0125, or email, putting “VSC” in the subject line.

Or comment right here.

How to Collect the Presidentials of 1938-1954?
by John M. Hotchner

A friend recently told me he had accumulated quite a lot of Presidential Series material, and was thinking about what to do with it. He knew of my interest in the issue, and asked me “How do you collect the area? I want to get my material organized and developed into a collection. But I sure don’t want to start out on too grand a scale, and be overwhelmed — or worse, lose interest.”

He also suggested that I turn my response into an article, and I’m happy to oblige. First, let’s acknowledge that this is not an issue for most U.S. collectors. Most of us are pleased to have one Very Fine-or-better mint example of each value and/or one lightly cancelled used example. But over time, many of us acquire a few covers, maybe some color varieties and precancels, and the idea occurs to us that ratcheting up the challenge level might be fun.

Keep in mind that the Prexies (as they are often called), despite being 78 years young, are relatively modern by collecting standards. Thus, they combine — for 90% of the material — ease of availability with reasonable prices.

Still, a lot of people have gotten involved in “Prexie” collecting in the last 20 years (and the Liberty series after that, and Prominent American, Great Americans, etc.) So, the best material is going up in price, and the scarcer items are getting harder to locate. If you really want to get in on the ground floor of a collecting area, pick one of the more recent definitive series and start gathering material now.

But, back to the Prexies: There are three formats: the sheet stamps from 1/2¢ to $5, the coil stamps of two types (horizontal coils from 1¢ to 10¢; vertical coils from 1¢ to 3¢), and 1¢, 2¢ and 3¢ booklet panes. One approach to the Prexies is to specialize in the coils or the booklet panes. Of the available covers from the period, I would estimate that less than 5% are usages of coils or booklet pane singles or multiples. But the stamps themselves can be a challenge; especially if you enjoy plate number collecting. Miscuts of coils and booklet panes abound, and they are relatively inexpensive as used plate singles and even as mint miscut panes with a part of a plate number. For the 3¢ booklet pane there are 63 different plate numbers that can be found. The 3¢ horizontal coil has 224 plate numbers; while the four values (1¢, 1-1/2¢, 2¢ and 3¢) have a total of only ten plates for all.

There are also various booklet covers for different size booklets, and leader and end strips for coils.

Regarding the sheet stamps, meaningful subdivisions include the following possibilities:

• One or more specific values, or for higher values that were less utilized, in groups such as the 11¢-14¢, or the dollar values. Of course it is possible to add the coils and booklet pane stamps to a specific value collection, too. (The dollar values have an extra dimension as they are bicolors, and thus have registration problems that result in the portrait being registered high and low, to left and to right with respect to the frames).
• If you collect a specific value or group of values, you will need to look for varieties such as the following:

a. Precancels — both Bureau-printed (in the high hundreds of locations), and locally-printed (in the thousands of locations).

b. Perfins — the punched holes inside stamp designs that were meant to discourage employees of companies and non-profits from stealing the stamps intended for business use.

c. Socked-on-the-nose cancellations that can be focused on locations or dates.

d. EFOs, including color varieties, wet/ dry printings, misperfs, imperfs, counterfeits, plate varieties, rejection markings, double papers/paper splices, ghost plate numbers, thin papers, and more.

e. Plate numbers — used singles, or mint plate blocks — trying to get one of each number, or matched sets showing all sheet locations.

f. Canal Zone overprints on the 1/2¢ and 1-1/2¢.

You can add any or all of these to a collection by value, or make a specialty out of any one of these, or combine them in unusual ways. For example, I collect precancelled plate singles, and perfin EFOs (doubled, missing, inverted, etc.).

And if this is not enough to whet your appetite, going into the covers arena can be fun. In this realm are

• Any of the above on cover, by value or groups of values, or by location.
• The range of services available, from various classes of mail to Air Mail, Special Delivery, Registered, Insured, Postage Due, Special Handling, and more.
• Solo uses for each stamp in the set.
• How rates for services changed over the course of the 16 years from 1938 to 1954. This is especially challenging with International Air Mail
• The progress of WWII as shown by mail sent to and from servicemen and women.
• The dangers of transportation of the mails as shown by wreck and crash mail (air, ship, train, mail trucks, etc.)
• A wide range of cachets on First Day Covers, including a second set of FDCs for Prexie stamps perforated by the new Electric Eye process (as shown on the right; three varieties on one FDC). The conversion took place from 1938 to 1942, and included three types of new marginal markings and plate number locations.
• Auxiliary markings on Prexie covers showing difficulties and delays in delivery of the mail.
• The wide range of commemorative and informative slogan cancellations that were used in the Prexie period.
• The Prexies on envelopes with thousands of different patriotic cachets used during the Second World War.

A consequence of getting involved in specialties like the Presidentials is the need for information to explain the things you have found, and to inform your search for new material. Essential to every Prexie collector is the book by Roland Rustad, titled The Prexies, released by the United States Stamp Society (USSS) in 1994. Happily, it is still available from the USSS Executive Secretary, PO Box 6634, Katy, TX 77491-6634 for $24 to members, and $30 to non-members, postpaid.

The USSS is also an excellent resource, and its $25 annual membership fee is well worth the cost. Among its active committees is one devoted to the Presidential series, chaired by Jeffrey Shapiro, PO Box 3211, Fayville, MA 01745-3211.

There are also several other national specialty societies that can be helpful in learning about Prexie material; among them the Auxiliary Markings Club, the Precancel Stamp Society, the Perfins Club, the EFO Collectors’ Club, and the Wreck and Crash Mail Society.

Collectors are sometimes a bit alarmed by the idea of leaving the safety of the printed album page and digging deeper into some aspect of U.S. philately. Let me assure you that the enjoyment of doing so is worth the effort, and there are lots of collectors accessible through the societies noted above, who will be delighted to help you navigate the challenges.

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Should you wish to comment on this column, or have questions or ideas you would like to have explored in a future column, please write to John Hotchner, VSC Contributor, P.O. Box 1125, Falls Church, VA 22041-0125, or email, putting “VSC” in the subject line.

Or comment right here.

Trying Something New — The Benefits of Getting Outside Your Comfort Zone
by John M. Hotchner

Stamp collecting is for most of us something that has grown to be distinctly within our comfort zone. That after all is its purpose, right? A refuge from the daily grind — A haven from the base of Maslow’s pyramid/hierarchy of needs, worrying about such things as breathing, food, water, employment security, the family, health, getting the roof fixed, etc.

And yet, comfort can be our enemy in the sense that sometimes, comfortable activities morph into dullness if they lack an element of challenge; and once you have filled 75% of the spaces in your album, and can’t afford much of what you are missing, the challenge tends to slip away.

At its most elemental, the answer to this is to simply start working on a new interest. A U.S. collector might delve into the Washington-Franklin series of 1908-1922, which has always seemed especially interesting with its multiple watermarks, perforations, die types, printing formats, etc. Or, another collector could venture into a specialized collection of space-related stamps: the errors and varieties, uses on cover, covers commemorating various events in the evolution of the space program, and more.

But there is another path. What I’d like to propose is that you consider stretching yourself — trying something that is perhaps counter-intuitive, something you recognize is a bit out of your comfort zone. In doing so, you can not only banish the dullness, but you can discover and exercise new skills that have lain dormant just waiting to be discovered. Mainly, as I will describe, this means going out into the multi-faceted world of philately and getting involved! Yes, it can be risky to do this. Not every one will agree with your opinions and ideas. Not everyone will take to the essential you, and you may trip over an occasional person you wish you had never met.

But the upside is that you will be challenged, and you will find new ways of enjoying your hobby and gaining from it. What am I talking about? Here is a short list:

1. Join a local stamp club and enjoy the sharing of information about stamps and hobby resources with others; who, if they don’t collect precisely what you do, at least understand the challenges of finding new material, using a catalog and finding the right blank pages for your album. This also offers the chance of connecting with others who might become trading partners, and putting together group visits to nearby stamp shows, which most collectors find enjoyable once they have been introduced to the show scene.
2. Serve. One step up from simply joining a club is to be active as a committee worker, chair, or even as an officer of the club. It is a truism that 5% of the club’s members do the work for all the rest to enjoy the benefits of the club. And the result is that there are never enough willing workers, and anyone who will help is welcomed with open arms. If you have never done anything like this before, not a problem. The jobs are manageable in scope, and allow for learning on the job; often from others who have had the job before. And this is one of those areas where you can exercise talents you didn’t know you had in a relatively low stress atmosphere.
3. Club By Mail. If you would prefer to do your stamp clubbing by mail and Internet rather than in person, join a national society. We have listed the ones that cover U.S. subjects on page 18 of this issue, but you can find many more that cover virtually every facet of worldwide stamp and cover collecting by going to the American Philatelic Society’s website: www.stamps.org ? and finding the listing of affiliates. Incidentally, every stamp collector should be a Member of America’s Stamp Club, the APS. The benefits in collecting resources are huge, and the monthly magazine will inform and expand your horizons. National clubs also need willing workers and officers. Once you have become familiar with what the club’s services are, you too can be part of the activities.
4. Be A Writer. Be it in a national publication like USSN or a society quarterly, or your stamp club’s newsletter, articles (be they short or long) about your special interests, your favorite finds, puzzles you are trying to solve, and lessons you have learned, are eagerly sought by editors. You don’t need to be a professional writer. Philatelic periodicals are low stress. Editors are oriented to help new writers put across their message(s), and are happy to work with you. And it is a wonderful way to connect with others who share your interests and have both material and information that will contribute to your enjoyment of the hobby.
5. Be A Talker. If you are comfortable with public speaking, and you belong to a garden club, a church group, have kids in a school that welcomes parent participation, are a member of a professional group (doctors, lawyers, real estate agents, etc.), you can be an ambassador for our hobby by showing stamps that relate to their interests, with some points on the joys of the hobby from your experience.
6. Do A Display. Public speaking may not be your thing, but you can still be an ambassador by putting a few pages from your album(s), or specially prepared pages, up in your local library, school, post office, law firm, or doctor’s office. The stamps you use can relate to the reason the office exists, or can match up with a current event, such as space exploration, elections, national garden month, or cancer awareness. The subjects are limitless. One page of your display can be used to tell viewers how to get involved with the hobby: when and where your local club meets, how to find the American Philatelic Society on the Internet, the dates and location of stamp shows in your area, etc.
7. Try Exhibiting. This is not for everyone as there is no other stage in philately where you actually invite others to evaluate the work you have done; which is to create a philatelic story illustrated by stamps and/or covers. Because of the judging aspect it is often difficult to get people to realize that the hardest part is getting started. Once you have decided that exhibiting is something you can and would like to do, there are lots of resources, starting with the website of the target=”new”>American Association of Philatelic Exhibitors? Many of AAPE’s members like to work with newcomers to help them do their first exhibit, and seeing your efforts in an exhibit frame is a payoff that will give you a great deal of pleasure. And, if you prefer, you can opt for your exhibits to be non-competitive, so that you don’t even need to worry about the judging.

The point of all of this is that there are a great many ways to make the hobby more interesting. Some may involve moving out of your comfort zone, but the rewards can be immense in discovering new aspects of the hobby, new talents in yourself, and often, deep friendships with people with whom you have common interests. And in many of these activities you will also be helping to bring new stamp collectors into the fold; helping to assure the future of the hobby we all love.

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Should you wish to comment on this column, or have questions or ideas you would like to have explored in a future column, please write to John Hotchner, VSC Contributor, P.O. Box 1125, Falls Church, VA 22041-0125, or email, putting “VSC” in the subject line.

Or comment right here.

The Evolving of a Stamp Collection
by John M. Hotchner If I ever began a column with a subject and little idea what I would say about it, this is it. I’m prompted to think about it by a realization that my journey in the hobby has come a long way from the days when my father gave me as an 11-year-old a packet of 1,000 worldwide stamps, and said, in essence, “Have fun!” He did know that I would, as I had pressed him to let me get started as early as age 5.

So I began what I now consider my apprenticeship as a worldwide collector with no date limitations. And I assumed that would be my approach forever. In 1954, this was not an unreasonable approach. Today, what I see happening is that this is not the way that most who come to the hobby begin. Rather they start as topical collectors based on another interest they may have; be it trains, space, cats, Princess Diana, Chinese New Year, or anything else that might tickle a mind engaged in today’s events or other aspects of their lives.

I believe this trend is equally true whether the new collector is young or an adult, though I think that the urge to collect one’s own country of origin or citizenship is probably more an adult way to approach the hobby than the topical approach.

Worldwiders are a vanishing species, and where I see it continuing to be a presence is in the realm of collecting time periods. The early trend was to collect the first century, 1840-1940, because it limited the challenge. And to hear it discussed, the stamps of this period were if not more colorful and attractive, then they at least represented the time when stamps were actually issued to be used, and the quality of production resulted in aesthetically beautiful engraved designs.

Today, there seem to be more worldwiders who prefer later time periods, or worldwide stamps from the year of their birth, or stamps that are blue, or stamps that feature in their designs a particular type of subject. Yes, we are back to topicalists, who are indeed a species of worldwide collector!

What I have learned is that however our collecting interests end up, they are likely to have become something very different from where we began. There are many reasons. Regardless of how generally we begin, or with what subject, as we play with our stamps, and acquire more, it is only natural that we are attracted to some stamps more than others. For the true worldwider, that may be because of the attractiveness of the stamps, the content of the designs, a connection to family origin or history (to include service in an area under military occupation or in combat), and for other reasons.

For the country collector, usually a particular issue (The Prexies, The Liberties, Washington-Franklins, may stand out; or you may be attracted especially to the Columbian issues, or Revenues.

So long as the bank account holds out and you can buy anything you wish, collecting broadly is no problem. You can add to your collections what you find. But for those of us, in fact most of us, who have limited funds to spend on our hobby, there usually comes a time when we have to decide to focus on one or more particular areas of interest, and to stop spending our scarce resources on things that do not give as much pleasure.

For me there was another pressure to retreat from worldwide collecting. At age 12, I began going with my father to the New Delhi, India Stamp Club. At a particular meeting, the club was holding its members-only auction. I had just gotten my 5 Rupees allowance, and flush with cash decided to bid on a lot of inexpensive India official overprints. Trouble was that in my enthusiasm to win the lot, I did not realize that I was bidding against my Dad. He won the lot, but not until he had been bid up to a level beyond my 5 Rupees. He was not, in today’s jargon, a Happy Camper.

This led us, once he started speaking to me again, to dividing up the world into his countries and my countries. In the course of that division of labor, I was also forced to consider what my slim resources could support, and I ended up with about 15 countries that I really liked. He ended up with about the same number, but countries that stamp-for-stamp cost a lot more. We agreed that we would each pursue our own USA collections — only his would be mint and mine would be used. We, mostly me, also agreed that we would not bid against each other any more.

I ultimately dropped a couple of the countries I had chosen, and again, ultimately, inherited his collections. I have continued most of his countries along with mine; a combined total of 22 countries plus a few that I have picked up along the way like Italy (my wife’s heritage) and Peru because a nephew married into a Peruvian family.

The countries I have kept up have been for a variety of reasons. For example, Poland (heritage), China (interesting complexity of the overprints), France (attractiveness of the stamps), Russia and Soviet Union (academic interest; especially in the period up to 1925), the early stamps of Great Britain (the fascinating number cancellations), and India, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh (because of the history they represent and the fact that I lived in the region as a teenager).

For true worldwide collecting, my early collection of stamps honoring every aspect of United Nations involvement got cut down to what I could afford, including World Refugee Year, and World United Against Malaria. And my early interest in number and letter cancellations has evolved into a collection of stamps costing no more than 10¢ with a clear number and/or letter cancel. In my U.S. collecting, I fairly rapidly reached a point where I had everything I could reasonably afford — as a teenager, everything that cost under $2! But I discovered a wide range of specialized material that cost next to nothing at the time, but found interesting. And based on the prices, apparently this material had not been discovered by the mass of collectors.

Among these were the “F” category of Errors, Freaks and Oddities. I could not afford the Errors. But I could and did seek out misperforations, color varieties, paper folds and creases, and anything else from the production process that was defective and classed by most collectors as damaged stamps.

Also of interest and added to my U.S. collecting were in depth interests in plate singles of the Liberty issue, all Bureau precancels, non-Bureau precancels of the Washington-Franklin issue, and Christmas seals — which eventually evolved into specialized collections of the 1934 and 1935 seals.

But along the way, I was also bitten by the U.S. postal history bug, which never interested Dad. Specifically, I found fascinating the wide range of reasons that mail might be delayed through the fault of the mailer, the fault of the postal system, or how blind luck might intervene, such as with a plane crash, hurricane, or pranksters throwing firecrackers into a mail collection box.

While retaining my interest in stamps, the lure of covers has pushed me in new directions: for examples rates paid by the stamps used, covers rerouted because of the exigencies of war, and covers that were used to comply with the social practices surrounding the mourning of relatives, friends and high profile leaders.

Bottom line (a truly appropriate term), my trek through the by ways of stamp collecting has been influenced by financial resources, family and professional considerations, the aspects of specific countries that I have found interesting, and blind luck — the specialties I have been introduced to by other collectors.

The result of how my collecting has evolved is that I went from a worldwide collector to a collector of several of the world’s countries, and in many cases, have delved into one or more aspects of the philately of the countries I enjoy.

Along the way I have made peace with the fact that I will never own the great rarities of the countries I enjoy but in just about all cases I have collections that are over 90% complete, and there is enough variety of things to work on and update that I am never bored. Nor do I come close to breaking the bank in order to maintain my interests.

Who could ask for more?!

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Should you wish to comment on this editorial, or have questions or ideas you would like to have explored in a future column, please write to John Hotchner, VSC Contributor, P.O. Box 1125, Falls Church, VA 22041-0125, or email, putting “VSC” in the subject line.

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Stamp Collectors at the Bourse Part II
by John M. Hotchner

In the previous column we looked at some of the identifiable types of people who can be found wandering about the floor at your local stamp show or bourse. As is generally the case, most of them are found at dealers’ tables. This comports with reality as my experience is that only about 15-20% of those who come to a show will ever be found looking at exhibits. Yes, from my standpoint as a long-time exhibitor, it is sad that exhibits get so little attention, but totally understandable. Most visitors come to shows to add to their own collection, or to sell excess, not to look at other peoples’ collections. Their time is limited. There are more dealers than they can visit. And so, nature takes its course.

In this column we will look at a second group of buyers and what they mean for dealers. By way of introduction, let me repeat a paragraph from the previous column: “Stamp collectors have a passion for classification. It’s what we do — trying to match the stamp on hand to the picture and listing in the Scott catalogue. But for some of us, there is another aspect to philatelic classification: the fun of observing our fellow collectors and collectresses at stamp shows and bourses, and using their behaviors to fit them into the category of homo philatelicus that best describes their collecting interest and method. For us on the buyer side of the table this is sport. For dealers with limits on time, attention span, and stock, being able to recognize these types is a matter of life and profits. (NOTE: I will use the masculine pronoun below, but these folks can be of either gender.)

In Part I we covered the Scholar, the Looker, the Accumulator, the Heir, the Perfectionist, the Investor, the Busy Body, the Organizer, the Bargain Hunter, and the Browser. So, here we go with group 2:

The Auditor: This collector takes nothing on faith. When a dealer says the total is $X, the calculator comes out so that the Auditor can check the addition, the discount, and the rounded off penny. It isn’t that he necessarily distrusts, though that can play a part. It is more that he trusts himself more than anyone else, and has caught errors both in his favor and in the dealer’s enough times that ‘recalculating’ has become a way of life. His feeling of triumph is gratified whether he pays more or less. The game is in finding an error; not the direction of the error.

The Specialist: Related to the Scholar, the Specialist is less interested in new discoveries in inexpensive stamps, and more interested in finding varieties that are known to exist regardless of intrinsic value—whether catalogue-listed or noted in the April, 1934 issue of his specialty society’s journal. An example has not been seen by a specialist since, but knowing it exists, he is going to scour every dealer’s and collector’s holdings until he can report the first new find in 80 years. So much the better if he can get it at the price for a normal stamp, and discounted for imperfect condition or a hinge mark. But if he has to pay a premium, no problem.

The Amateur Dealer: This shopper thinks that one day he just might go into the business, and sees today’s excursion as a chance to practice his skills. What this means in practical terms is that he sees himself as buying for resale, and that means he looks for material he thinks will appreciate, and he must pay the lowest possible price for it in order to have a chance to make a profit. He fancies himself an expert in his field of interest, and some fancy themselves to be experts in the entire field of philately — or large chunks of it. They may self-identify to the table holder as being part of the fraternity, hoping to get a better discount, but unlike a practicing dealer, they will not have a resale certificate, or be a member of a professional dealers association. Chances are that when they find out how difficult dealing is beyond the simple admonition to buy low and sell high, they will abandon the project.

The Millionaire: Do you expect this person to be a joy to deal with? They can be. But another term for some of those with unlimited resources is The Miser. How do you think they got to be millionaires? Not by frittering away their bucks. They will generally go after high-end material, but even if they find something they want for a buck-fifty, they will be fierce negotiators. You think haggling over a quarter is not worth the aggravation? Be prepared to give in right off the bat, because that quarter may be the difference between making a $500 sale or not. Shopping for these people is a competitive sport.

The Historian: This guy is less interested in the stamp or cover than in the story behind the stamp or the cover. Scarcity will not sell the item. Condition will not sell the item. Only the background of the stamp will move this buyer to open his wallet. The story can be about who owned the stamp before, why the stamp was issued, oddities in the stamp design, or how the stamp came to have roulettes instead of perforations. Dealers with a great range of knowledge — or the gift of blarney — get a leg up with this customer.

The Geezer: Often in need of a magnifier, and notoriously slow to make a decision, this person can be 40 or 75. Age is not the major determinant in this behavior pattern. Being a geezer is a state of mind, and includes a certain lackadaisical view of clothing and personal grooming, a predisposition to squeeze a dime until FDR’s eyes bulge, and a refusal to buy anything that is marked at more than $2.

The Newbie: Whether it is unfamiliarity, shyness or a combination of the two, people who are new to the process — and even some experienced collectors — may lack the confidence to participate without being welcomed and guided. What is there to be afraid of? If you don’t know what is happening… If you don’t know what is expected of you… If you aren’t prepared to spend much money, the busy marketplace can be a bit threatening; especially so if you have to figure it out by yourself, and that is where shyness makes it even more difficult. Those with this mindset tend to hang back from the tables, and have some difficulty answering questions — or asking them. If you know someone just getting their feet wet, offer to explain what is happening. A dealer might offer to explain what is going on at his table.

The Clueless: As compared to the Newbie, Clueless has no problem participating in the show scene, or approaching dealers, but seems to have no concept of what the dealer can actually provide in that setting. He will ask questions like, “Why didn’t you bring your stock of used modern U.S.?” or “I’m looking for bids on this batch of covers — what’ll you offer me for it?” or “I need a copy of Scott 29. Can you beat the price that the dealer over there is asking for his example?”

The Forlorn: A strange title, you say? True, but accurate. These are collectors who have cut themselves a slice of the philatelic pie that is so narrow that they hardly ever find anything to add to their collection. Yet they still come and ask each dealer if they have any covers with first issues of Mongolia, or stamps picturing lawnmowers, or double transfers on the high value definitives of Portuguese India. They don’t expect a “yes” but somehow believe that it is not pointless to ask. After all, three years ago, they found a dealer by this method who had one such cover… and it is a prize resident of their collection to this day.

Most of us are not a purebred example that fits one of these categories exclusively. Rather we can find a bit of ourselves in several of the categories — both positive and negative. This makes the dealer’s task of figuring out not just what to show us, but how to help us, that much more difficult. But successful dealers develop a sixth sense and become adept at calming the excited, providing clarity to the confused, and information to the baffled. If we can walk out of a show with just one really neat acquisition, going to the show will have been worthwhile, and we should thank the dealer community for its services to the hobby.

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Should you wish to comment on this editorial, or have questions or ideas you would like to have explored in a future column, please write to John Hotchner, VSC Contributor, P.O. Box 1125, Falls Church, VA 22041-0125, or email, putting “VSC” in the subject line.

Or comment right here.

Stamp Collectors at The Bourse
By John M. HotchnerStamp collectors have a passion for classification. It’s what we do — trying to match the stamp on hand to the picture and listing in the Scott catalogue. But for some of us, there is another aspect to philatelic classification: the fun of observing our fellow collectors and collectresses at stamp shows and bourses, and using their behaviors to fit them into the category of homo philatelicus that best describes their collecting interest and method. For us on the buyer side of the table this is sport. For dealers with limits on time, attention span and stock, being able to recognize these types is a matter of life and profits.

(NOTE: I will use the masculine pronoun below, but these folks can be of either gender.)

The Scholar: This ultra-serious collector comes equipped with a portable microscope, tongs, a perf gauge, and often a briefcase full of specialized philatelic literature. Though he will hop on a bargain in a heartbeat, his passion has little to do with dollars and cents. He is to be found especially at any dealer booth selling stamps for 5¢ apiece out of old picked-over albums. His specialty is socked-on-the-nose cancellations and perforation-combinations that are not specifically listed in the catalogue.

The Looker: This person is not actually a stamp collector. He masquerades as one; carefully looking through dealers’ stocks to find the perfect example of a stamp in which he has an interest. Having found it, he heaves a great sigh of satisfaction — and puts the stamp back in its holder; and hands it to the dealer to hold for him until later in the day. And is never heard from again.

The Accumulator: This type knows what he likes, and is discriminating. Price is important, but not as important as seeing and purchasing stamps he does not remember having. Memory is the key. He extracts a promise from the dealer to take back anything he already has, but the dealer is safe. Our friend may have 15 additional copies, but he takes his purchases home and throws them in a box, or filing cabinet, or many boxes. There they will sit for the remainder of his natural life as he would not dream of wasting money on an album, or any other means of organizing what he owns. He will get to his growing mass of material “some day.”

The Heir: This is a person who thinks he might be interested in stamp collecting, as he has inherited someone else’s collection. He tried to sell it, but was disappointed with the offer he got, as compared to what he thought the value was from word-of-mouth or from consulting the Scott Catalogue at the local library. The problem, of course, is that the parallel will also be disappointing: the price of material he needs to add to the collection. The dealer will have to spend a lot of time explaining the buying and selling of stamps to the heir; often not the first time the heir has heard this lecture. By about the fourth time from different people, he will be inclined to believe what he is being told — as opposed to believing that folks are just trying to rip him off.

The Perfectionist: This type comes in two grades: Annoying and Superb. The former wants perfection on inexpensive stamps, but does not want to pay any premium for them. And by perfection, we are talking about light cancels, VF+ centering, pristine gum, and bright color. Nothing else will do.

The latter can actually be a pleasure to deal with as he understands the scarcity of perfect stamps in the realm he is seeking, which is most often old and difficult material. And he understands that scarcity equals higher prices, and that such material is called “investment grade” for a reason. He will happily pull out the checkbook to be able to add exceptional material to his collection, but there is a downside: His standards can be frustrating for a dealer to have to meet.

The Investor: Related to the Perfectionist, this collector can be focused on condition, but only to the extent he is a real collector. Many of this sort are not as concerned with condition as they should be. They read in the philatelic press that this or that stamp or set is on the rise, was issued in low numbers, or is part of a growing collecting area, and figure it is a good bet to increase in value. The tip off as to who is in this category is when they buy multiple copies of an item if they feel the item is priced at a level allowing for early growth. The problem is that their definition of “early” is probably not a good match for reality. They often think it terms of months, while most significant appreciation takes place over years.

The Busy Body: This collector frequents the dealers who love to tell stories — especially about other collectors and dealer colleagues. Names are as important as stamps to the Busy Body. And a successful visit does not necessarily require the purchase of stamps. A good nugget of information will do just as well.

The Organizer: With want lists in hand, the organizer knows what he has, what he needs, what the values are, and has a firm idea of acceptable condition. Want lists can be in marked catalogues, on paper, in electronic form, or in rare instances, in his head. Whatever the method, he is a delight to deal with as he has everything he needs at his fingertips, reviews stock efficiently, and moves on; requiring a minimum of dealer tending.

The Bargain Hunter (also known as the Negotiator): Don’t ever expect to see this collector pay the marked price. Whatever it is, it is too high; and it does not matter whether it is one 50¢ stamp, or a $100 collection, or a high quality rare item worth thousands. He will only buy if he gains a sense that he has gotten the better of the dealer. Of course this invites dealers to price material much higher than the price at which they are willing to sell it, but there is a price for that approach because of the next category.

The Browser (also known as the Shy Shopper): Yes, this collector will buy material, but is uncomfortable negotiating, pointing out flaws, asking for other copies for comparison to find the best condition, and even asking for a specific category of material to look at. He will look at what is on display and decide to buy (or not) based on the marked price. The dealer may never know he could have made a sale if the item(s) had been marked at a more reasonable level. (This is one of the many reasons that being a dealer is not as easy as it looks!)

Do you recognize yourself in any of the brief descriptions given above? If not, tune in for next column here on The Virtual Stamp Club. We will have another group of philatelic customers who may ring a bell.

Don’t see yourself or your friend here? Check out Part II.

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Should you wish to comment on this editorial, or have questions or ideas you would like to have explored in a future column, please write to John Hotchner, VSC Contributor, P.O. Box 1125, Falls Church, VA 22041-0125, or email, putting “VSC” in the subject line.

Or comment right here.

First Day Cover Collecting Includes Fascinating Byways
by John M. Hotchner

As a kid I sent off for First Day Covers (FDCs) of new issues, and was thrilled when cancelled covers arrived in the mailbox. And then, for whatever reason I can’t recall, I turned up my nose and dropped FDCs as a collecting area. It was foolish of me to do that — perhaps influenced by the mantra among experienced collectors that FDCs were only for beginners.

What I didn’t realize at the time was the rich diversity of First Day Covers. They actually go back to the 19th century, when a stamp might have been used on a known first day of release, but there was no organized first day ceremony, and no organization keeping track. Stamps were placed on sale at post offices as received and the result is that the Scott U.S. Specialized Catalogue generally lists Earliest Documented Use (EDU) dates in this era rather than first days.

It is a sport among collectors of 19th century U.S. stamps to find covers or socked-on-the-nose stamps that push the EDU dates further back than the Scott listing. There are also a good many EDUs listed for the first 20+ years of the 20th century, as it seems that only commemoratives had stated first days until the coming of the 1922 Fourth Bureau Issue definitives. By this time, there were many collectors of FDCs, but the only identifier was the cancellation date. If you didn’t know what to look for, you could easily miss the significance of a FDC.

That all changed when George W. Linn, the founder of Linn’s Stamp News, added text to the covers he prepared for the issuance of the perf 11 flat-plate Warren G. Harding Memorial stamp (Scott 610), released on September 1, 1923, shortly after the death-in-office of the president. As shown here, his covers had black mourning bands and the words “In Memoriam, Warren G. Harding, Twenty-Sixth President, Born Nov. 2, 1865 Died August 7, 1923.” These covers exist in several different sizes.

That changed the playing field. Text or illustrations on a first day cover have come to be called “cachets,” and cachetmakers sold their creations; competing to create the most popular art. Some collectors chose a cachetmaker and tried to get every one of his or her covers for their first days. Other collectors rejected this new fad, and stayed with the plain cancelled cover. It is estimated that until about 1936, the majority of FDCs were of the uncacheted type, and virtually all were addressed and actually went through the mail.

In 1937, the now familiar “First Day of Issue” cancellation was used for the first time on the 3¢ stamp commemorating the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 (Scott 795). This is a curiosity as a significant percentage of FDCs dating back to this time — some would say a majority — have not actually been cancelled on the first day. The requester generally has had up to 30 days after issuance to send in cacheted covers to have the stamp and first day cancel added.

Although it has developed that there are standard printed cachets that are most often encountered, ArtCraft being most often seen, many other cachetmakers have had long, or shorter runs producing their unique art. Often printed in small quantities, and sometimes hand drawn in even smaller quantities, FDC collectors of today often enjoy collecting the work of a specific cachetmaker. Others focus in on the stamp, and try to get as many different cachets as can be found for that stamp.

I’ve returned to FDC collecting as a member of the latter group. Although I accumulate the FDCs associated with about a dozen commemoratives, my favorite stamps are the Mothers of America issues of 1934 (an example is shown at above right), and the Adlai Stevenson issue of 1965. (A Marg cachet is shown at left.) The latter illustrates another aspect of my FDC collecting. In this case, the United Nations Association of the United States of America (a non-governmental organization), used the occasion of the release of the Stevenson stamp to do a special cachet, and stuffed these envelopes with a fund-raising letter.

Other organizations used standard philatelic cachets, but included fund=raising letters, or letters trying to sell a product by relating the stamp issuance to it. An example is a letter included with an ArtCraft cachet for the Stevenson issue from the Prudence Mutual Casualty Company of Chicago, Illinois. Quoted in part it says:

“This FDC honors Adlai Stevenson and comes to you from Bloomington, Illinois, where the Ambassador to the United Nations grew up and is buried…. President Johnson requested the issuance of this stamp in a letter to PMG John A. Gronouski, in which he noted that ‘Adlai Stevenson enlarged our horizons as Americans and helped to light the hopes of mankind all around the world.’… President Johnson, recognizing the importance of the fight against Cancer, authorized issuance of a special stamp in April, 1965, in honor of the Crusade Against Cancer. At the same time, Prudence designed a new Cancer Expense Policy which protects the policy owner against the extreme costs of cancer to a maximum of $10,750.00. Every individual and family should have this low-cost protection.”

It is signed by a printed signature of the president of Prudence.

I find these types of FDCs fascinating and collect the full range of business and non-profit cachets and messages; regardless of which stamp was being released. One sub-genre of these is Congressional FDCs. These were prepared with the idea of sending them to friends and constituents with letters soliciting support for initiatives the Congressperson was involved in, and less often, support for their reelection efforts.

I also dabble in autographed FDCs, pre-first days, and have a pretty good collection of programs from first day ceremonies. The point here is that FDC-collecting can be a serious challenge, a fascinating reflection of the times of the stamps, and an excellent glimpse of the history behind the stamp. Whether you choose to collect the current stamps on standard cachets or to go further afield as noted above, FDC collecting is just plain fun.

There is a national association of FDC collectors called the American First Day Cover Society (AFDCS) devoted to helping collectors understand and appreciate the field.

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Should you wish to comment on this column, or have questions or ideas you would like to have explored in a future column, please write to John Hotchner, VSC Contributor, P.O. Box 1125, Falls Church, VA 22041-0125, or email, putting “VSC” in the subject line.

Or comment right here..

Didja hear the one about the stamp collector who…?
by John M. Hotchner

When I wear a name badge showing I am a member of the Errors, Freaks and Oddities Collectors’ Club, my wife has been known to chide me with “Which one are you?” And it is undeniable that there is a perception that some, if not all stamp collectors are a bit “off”. As a group we are possessed of a demon that demands we acquire ever more little colored pieces of paper, and often the envelopes on which they have been used. In doing so, we set ourselves apart from most other people and inhabit a mostly solitary world of cancellations, catalogue values, perforation measurements, and other trivia where stamps become a passion that is barely comprehensible to family, friends, colleagues at work, and casual acquaintances. And what others do not understand, they often denigrate or, worse, assign a personality warp to those who practice the unimagined art.

Enough for that meaning of “funny.” It struck me recently as I chuckled my way through a Carol Burnett rerun, that the world is full of comedy, and yet we see little of it in our hobby. It is possible that this is because the practitioners of the hobby in a public setting are involved in serious pursuits; running clubs and societies, studying the endless questions our material raises and writing articles proposing answers, or exhibiting our stamps and covers in competition. These things can be fun, but are rarely treated as being in any sense funny.

Extend this to the questions that are a constant in letters to the editor: How many stamps per year is the right number? What is attractive and effective stamp design? Is there a good way to separate self-stick stamps from paper? What is the latest outrage in postal service policy? Monologue and even dialogue on these subjects is passionate, but distinctly unfunny.

In fact, when an opportunity comes up to address humor, such as cartoon or other representational art used as stamp designs, the overwhelming response is that this is not serious art, or a serious way to treat a serious subject!

And yet, stamp collecting is supposed to be fun, a respite from the serious matters that make up our normal day-to-day. Part of that fun is humor. We are hard-wired as human beings to enjoy a good laugh. Is there any list of qualities for a possible mate that does not include “a good sense of humor?” Certainly laughing together is an essential glue of any relationship. But I digress…

The fact is that Humorless equals Unattractive. So, is it any wonder that stamp collecting is having an increasingly hard time competing for new adherents when our image is often that of serious clinicians rather than people having fun and sharing smiles?

OK, it is a fact that we are probably dealing with a leopard that is not going to change its spots, but is there any way to increase the humor quotient in philately … to make the hobby more appealing to those who enjoy a good laugh?

I think there is. Our hobby’s public face is multifaceted. It includes our publications, our websites, our exhibits and exhibitions, and ourselves as collectors in how we present ourselves to the unwashed. In the good old days of philately when I was getting involved, there were humor-based columns in our publications, cartoons, an emphasis on the fun in philately. That is much less seen these days, replaced by what to an outsider would be as dull and useless as an insider’s understanding of the workings of the stock market to a non-investor. Make no mistake: Much of this is fascinating to the insider — the serious collector. But it does not sit well with another audience: those we want to bring into the hobby, or even many of those who are beginners and considering whether to devote more time and effort to the hobby.

Part of this problem lies with writers, and part of it lies with editors. When I began my series of cartoon contests in Linn’s many moons ago, the editor at the time was not in favor of the idea. His take was the concept would fail because “Stamp collectors have no sense of humor.” I’m glad I persisted, as 20+ years later, I think the monthly Cartoon Caption Contest has proved otherwise. Everyone has a sense of humor, but as any successful comedian will tell you, it is hard and serious work to make people laugh.

Our hobby’s websites are unfortunately tracking with our print publications. In fact they are often just our print publications. I’m not an expert here, as (showing my age) I don’t have as detailed a sense of what is going on in cyberspace as I do in the print realm. But the Internet is an increasingly important recruiting tool for appealing to younger folks, and it needs to have a humor component every bit as much as the print media does.

Our exhibits and exhibitions — Competition is a good thing. It encourages our best effort, and in philately, it is responsible for much of the geometric growth of knowledge that makes philately a rich and inviting place for specialists. But there is a down side. Despite the fact that it is the exhibit being judged, it can be hard to separate the self from the exhibit; leading to a feeling of being personally judged. Combine this with the scholarship required to attain a Gold medal, and we have seen a trend toward the scientific approach to building competitive exhibits, with the result that many (including some of mine) are dull and boring. It may not be possible to fix this, but again, it is possible to bring more fun into the frames.

How? I’d like to see much more in the way of non-competitive exhibits at our shows; exhibits that are maybe not explicitly funny, but are at least FUN, and present that side of the hobby. Examples? The late Clyde Jennings’ exhibit on outhouses. The late John Briggs’ exhibit on “How to win a gold medal: craftiness in philatelic exhibiting.” The late Jo Bleakley’s “Frog and Toad Trivia.” The late Vernon Moore’s multiframe on music; and other entertaining exhibits… Are you seeing a pattern here? We need a new generation of exhibitors who are not devoted to just the search for Gold medals, but are motivated to present the fun of philately.

And the people, ah, the people. Get any two stamp collectors together talking about their hobby, their dealer experiences, other collectors, and their search for material, and there will be plenty of laughs. But put a stamp collector and a non-collector together, and the discussion will quickly default to values, the benefits of the hobby, and similar serious issues. The fun part does not sparkle in these interchanges.

And speaking of sparkling, if the public face of the hobby is its people, then we need more people like the earlier mentioned Clyde Jennings; not just for his wonderful exhibits (both Gold winners and fun exhibits), but for his wardrobe. Clyde owned a wide range of matching sport coats and slacks (and underwear!) in just about all hues of the rainbow. He always stood out in a crowd, and he always provoked and enjoyed the humorous comments on his newest garb. Just by being there, he made any philatelic event a fun place to be. And while he took his exhibiting pursuits seriously, his object was to bring joy to the faces of those with whom he came in contact. In doing so he made the hobby attractive. We need many more people so motivated.

Fun and humor are not the same thing, but they are first cousins. We need much more of both in our public face. Readers are invited to drop me a line with your ideas on how we can promote those aspects of our hobby; especially among those who are not now collectors.

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Should you wish to comment on this column, or have questions or ideas you would like to have explored in a future column, please write to John Hotchner, VSC Contributor, P.O. Box 1125, Falls Church, VA 22041-0125, or email, putting “VSC” in the subject line.

Or comment right here.

So, You Think Being A Dealer Would Be Easy?
by John M. Hotchner

(This is written in first person for effect, though I have only worked for a dealer.)

1. If I were to calculate the value of my time spent cataloging and looking up references in order to price my material fairly and to sell, my return per hours spent would be minimal.
2. And that’s before I spend additional time calculating offers on material collectors and dealers are selling. And the time spent keeping up with philatelic news and trends by means of reading philatelic periodicals and other literature.
3. For every item I sell, I must buy something on which I can make a reasonable profit in the future. Since only half or less of what I buy will sell again within a year, I actually need to buy more, knowing that I may have to discount some of it eventually to clear it out.
4. Every transaction has to be recorded for the benefit of the tax man — federal, state and local. And it has to be recorded in a consistent and usable format. I wish I’d paid better attention in my “business math” course in high school. College calculus doesn’t help much.
5. I am expected to be an expert on all things philatelic by my customers: to be able to spot fakes at 500 paces, to answer even the most elemental questions as well as the tough ones patiently and in depth, and to be able to predict what will gain or lose value on the long term. The good news is that philately is a continuing education. One cannot help but learn new things.
6. Increasingly, I need to be a technical wizard to reach my potential customers “where they are” on the Internet, Twitter, texting, etc. None of this comes for free — either in terms of time or money. This is a good thing as I can now speak my children’s language, though I could use more of their technical savvy.
7. And I must balance those methods of outreach with more traditional direct and in-person outreach such as print advertising, taking a table at stamp shows, getting involved as an active member of a local club, and even contributing articles on my business or my specialties to the philatelic press.
8. I must — often a pleasurable experience, but just as often not — to shows, to evaluate prospective purchases, to meet clients. And once I make a commitment to be there, neither rain nor snow nor hurricane is an adequate excuse for not showing up as promised. Even illness doesn’t cut it unless I or one of my nearest and dearest is in extremis. And yes, I must keep track of all those expenses, including the extra hotel nights when weather cancels planes or closes highways.
9. Connected to #8, I have to explain to my significant other and family members why their spur-of-the-moment or short-term plans for birthday parties, school events, weddings, births, and even deaths conflict with my commitments made sometimes two or three years into the future. Against this problem is the fact that mostly when I am home, my time is my own. I’m not punching a clock.
10. I must maintain a home office — or even more significant, a business address — where I do my work, run my business, communicate with my customers, and store my stock. While a tax-deductible set of expenses (again that accounting!), those costs have to be figured into the pricing of my material,
11. They know me at the post office, where the increasingly intricate rules for mailing flats and using controlled mail mean I must stand in line just about every day. Oh, yes, and there are the constantly increasing rates, too.
12. I must maintain a significant philatelic library covering the areas in which I am active, including “investing” in the most current catalogues and specialty society literature, as well as the standard references from the past.
13. I need to be master of the watermark tray, the perforation gauge, color charts, and cancellation measurement devices — even a small mistake can cost me a bundle of bucks, or make me look like a complete idiot to my customers.
14. My customers are not only my bread-and-butter; they are the reason I got into the business. I enjoy them and enjoy filling their wants. And yet, some few seem to go out of their way to be ill-humored, overly contentious on prices, and/or are so taken by their own importance that they treat me like a bug they can squash. I try to stay detached and not take it personally.
15. Studying the souk in Damascus is a sport for me as I have had to integrate the lessons of human impulse, financial motivations, and the game of bargaining in how I negotiate with customers. Reaching a mutually agreed price — whether buying or selling — is a good deal more complicated than marking an item at $5 (or $500) and waiting for someone who wants it that badly to show up. Some dealers will not move on price. I don’t like to, but for good customers, or ones who buy a lot…
16. I often need to find and employ knowledgeable and honest part-time help to keep my stock in order, to service customer orders, to help cover my booth at shows, but also to design my web interfaces, and to help with my accounting and tax chores. This brings a new level of complexity to my “sole proprietorship”.
17. I must maintain good relations with other dealers in the community; not only because it is the right thing to do, but because we often help each other with knowledge, with references to available material, with mentoring, and in many other ways.

And yet despite the requirements and the obstacles, I love the hobby, the great majority of its practitioners, their lust for challenge and discovery, and simply handling stamps and covers. I enjoy seeing material I’ve sold being used in exhibits, in articles, and achieving new catalogue status. I enjoy the discoveries I make, and even the ones that others make in my stock. (After all, I got the price I needed when I sold the item.)

No occupation is without its hurdles, and despite mine, I enjoy most of the work, and it does put dinner on the table!

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Should you wish to comment on this column, or have questions or ideas you would like to have explored in a future column, please write to John Hotchner, VSC Contribu-tor, P.O. Box 1125, Falls Church, VA 22041-0125, or email, putting “VSC” in the subject line.

Or comment right here.