Trading on Success
Before the Northridge earthquake in 1994, the Valley was a hotbed of stamp and coin trade shows, with three popular events held regularly in the area.
The destructive tremor, however, put all three out of business because the buildings in which they were held were severely damaged. So in 1995, promoter Gary West brought the Greater Valley Stamp and Coin Expo to the Masonic Temple in Van Nuys.
Area collectors obviously were suffering from withdrawal because the response was great, making the event an instant hit. It wasn’t long before the small show, with about 22 tables, moved to a larger location at the nearby Airtel Plaza Hotel.
Now the show, held the first Sunday of every month, features at least 43 tables in the 3,500-square-foot hotel conference room with some overflow dealer tables lining the hallway outside the room.
“There are no other shows like this in the Valley,” West said. “There are more dealers on the waiting list than dealers in the show. It’s that popular.”
West also runs similar events in Ventura, San Diego, Long Beach, Riverside and Fullerton. None, he says, is as big or highly regarded as the one at the Airtel Plaza Hotel.
“The Van Nuys show is the granddaddy,” West said. “I wish they could all be so successful.”
The Van Nuys show’s appeal is that there’s something for everyone--from a kid looking for a bargain stamp of about 15 cents or the serious collector searching for a sheet of defective Marilyn Monroe stamps worth $18,000.
There’s also plenty in between. For instance, dealer Milton Madoff has covers--pre-stamped stationery that could be folded and then mailed--ranging from $1 to $15 in 50 decorative themes, including the Olympics, baseball, aviation and historic wars, to name a few.
Then there are the increasingly popular Princess Diana covers featuring the princess and Prince Charles from their 1981 royal wedding. Those go for $13. Madoff says he offers them at a 25% discount.
“They really weren’t popular till she died,” Madoff said. “Nobody even looked at them before.”
Down the aisle is a coin dealer with an array of valuable items such as an 1893 U.S. silver dollar priced at $900. Only 100,000 of those were made, compared to about 10 billion of a high mintage coin. In perfect condition, says dealer Chris Evans, that particular silver dollar is worth $100,000.
Evans also has commemorative medals of the Apollo II landing for $50. Only 5,000 of those were minted.
“The most popular coin is the U.S. silver dollar,” said Evans, who owns a coin shop in Granada Hills. “It’s affordable, it’s large and beautiful and one of the nicer looking U.S. coins.”
His favorite is a 1924 dollar made of gold. That coin isn’t for sale so he keeps it safely tucked away.
“It’s the most beautiful coin ever made,” Evans said. “It contains about one ounce of gold.”
Most dealers have boxes of coins that cost less than $1 each. People sit for hours digging through boxes and looking through catalogs.
One woman empties a small tin can of rusty old coins on a dealer’s table for an appraisal. Nearby, a man looks through books of stamps in search of an elusive stamp that will complete a years-old collection.
Others browse, walking slowly past each table and occasionally pausing to take a look at a rare item or a good deal.
“Most dealers have a bargain box on the table,” West said. “That attracts a lot of novice collectors.”
Big-time collectors know where the valuable stuff is: kept in a glass case or hidden in a wallet.
BE THERE
The Greater Valley Stamp and Coin Expo, Airtel Plaza Hotel, 7277 Valjean Ave., Van Nuys, is held the first Sunday of every month, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Free. (760) 721-1810.
