BUYING

Do We Purchase Material Directly From Clients?

We are very active and competitive buyers of virtually anything philatelic. Our prime requirement is for high quality material that we can offer in our auctions but for material that is not suited to that purpose we do have other avenues whereby we can dispose of it. We are renowned for paying extremely competitive prices for fine material at auction. We are confident our offer will almost certainly outstrip the amount that would be realised by the seller if the material was offered at public auction, once the inevitable Buyer's Premiums, commission and other incidental charges have been factored in and deducted. Added to this is the fact that we offer immediate cash settlement which circumvents the delay incumbent in both entering the material for auction and then waiting for post-sale settlement. As many clients will be only too well aware this is a process that usually encompasses several months.

We are also highly active purchasers of sporting memorabilia. Again, almost anything sports related is of potential interest to us. We require material appertaining to virtually all sports and seek medals, trophies, autographs, original correspondence, programmes, badges, match/event worn kit and equipment, photographs and other associated ephemera. We do place a very high premium on history and provenance when buying in this field. 

The Buying Process

One inviolable principle that we never deviate from in relation to any item we purchase is that we must be afforded the opportunity to view and assess it in person. We consider condition to be absolutely crucial and will not give valuations or make offers solely on the basis of oral descriptions, letters, e-mail scans or photographs. There are three ways in which we can arrange to view material. They are as follows:

* The most efficient way is to arrange an appointment whereby we can view the material at our offices. This simply involves contacting us in advance and deciding upon a mutually agreeable time. We respectfully request that clients do not bring material to our offices on an unannounced and unsolicited basis as it will not always be convenient to give an opinion at busy times.

* We are happy to view material which is consigned to us by post. We are obliged if clients do contact us in advance to establish whether the material is of potential interest. We have no wish to waste your time if it is beyond our remit. There is no charge for this service except for return postage in the event that our offer proves unacceptable.

* For properties of considerable value we are willing to travel to view material at your convenience. We do require greater detail and more precise information concerning the exact nature of the material prior to committing to travelling long distances.     

VALUATIONS

Do We Offer A Valuation Service?

We are very happy to provide valuations. In the overwhelming majority of cases we make absolutely no charge for this service. Obviously in the case of larger properties we are obliged to levy a fee based on the amount of time and work involved in arriving at an authoritative valuation. However, if we make an offer on the material which proves acceptable, any charge will be waived.

We also offer valuations for both probate and insurance purposes. In these cases a fee will be payable as a written valuation is mandatory. In common with normal valuations the level of this fee depends solely on the amount of work required to reach a definitive judgement.