National Postage Stamp and Coin Show opens today

By Jesse Robitaille

The sixth National Postage Stamp and Coin Show is expected to continue the momentum of past shows when it opens its doors in Mississauga today.

Nearly 50 dealers will return to the Hilton Mississauga’s 9,000-square-foot Graydon Hall this weekend, when they are expected to meet more than 1,000 collectors for the fall edition of the biannual event.

“This is one of the biggest shows we have, and it’s a nice way to start the fall season,” said dealer Stephan Bilodeau, owner of Canadian-Stamps, who added it’s a “great reason” to come down from his hometown in Cantley, Qué. “It’s well worth it.”

Bilodeau has manned a booth on the bourse of each show since Trajan Publishing Corp., publisher of Canadian Coin News and Canadian Stamp News, acquired the rights from the Canadian Stamp Dealers’ Association in 2015.

“It’s one of the best shows,” he said, citing organizers’ attention to detail as well as the event’s consistently strong attendance as reasons why he continues to attend.

“In my experience, I have not seen so many people lining up out front before the show,” said Sam Chiu, vice-president of The Royal Philatelic Society of Canada (RPSC), about this spring’s show, which saw 1,000 people walk through the doors.

FREE PARKING

If you are attending the National Postage Stamp and Coin Show, parking at the Hilton Mississauga is free while at the show. The Hilton will be placing a notice on its parking meters listing shows and events, including our show, exempt from having to pay parking. Instead of paying the meters, attendees of our show are asked to sign in with their license plate number on a sheet of paper at the show admission desk. Do not pay the fee at the hotel’s automated parking meters. There are no refunds from the hotel or show organizers.

Nearly 50 dealers of philatelic and numismatic material will be on the bourse this weekend.

DEALERS, SEMINARS & MORE

One attendee, Joe Trauzzi, said he will return to the show again this September.

“I really enjoy the seminars, but mainly I go for the dealers,” said Trauzzi, who’s vice-president (liason) of the Grand River Valley Philatelic Association, a member of the Bramalea Stamp Club and show chair for the 2019 RPSC Convention. “I’m looking forward to attending the show again this fall.”

Another dealer who will man a booth on the bourse again this fall is Roy Houtby, owner of Roy’s Stamps and a member of the American Philatelic Society (APS) Dealer Advisory Council.

“It’s a strong show, and the Toronto market is very good. We like to be there a couple times a year, and we’ve done very well there over the years. It’s well run, and we appreciate the support provided to the dealers. We’ll keep coming back.”

The bourse is located in the hotel’s 9,000-square-foot Graydon Hall.

Houtby also lauded last spring’s high attendance.

“Attendance was great, and it appears that the dealers were very pleased with the overall results of the show,” he said, adding he attends upwards of 30 shows a year and the National Postage Stamp and Coin Show “is now one of our top events.”

“This is the best show,” said John Brown, owner of The Connoisseur, a coin dealer based in Naughton, Ont.

Brown, who will also be returning to the bourse this weekend, applauded the event’s record-setting attendance.

“Thanks to being well advertised, the amount of people that came through the doors was rewarding; more people translates to more sales.”

THREE ENGAGING SEMINARS

Three engaging seminars and a combined coin and stamp auction exclusively for children will be held at this weekend’s National Postage Stamp and Coin Show in Mississauga.

The first two sessions, to be held today, will explore marketing and communications for the 21st-century hobbyist and error coin production, respectively.

The final seminar, to be held tomorrow, will be geared towards engaging young collectors.

Later that day, a “Young Collectors” auction will be hosted by Lisa McPherson, national youth co-ordination of the RCNA and first vice-president of the Ontario Numismatic Association. Tomorrow’s auction, which is free for children to participate in, will feature at least 25 lots of coin and stamp material thanks to donations from show organizers, dealers and participating hobby associations.

For more information about the seminars, click here.

More than 1,000 people attended the show this spring.

NEXT YEAR’S SHOWS

The Spring 2019 National Postage Stamp and Coin Show will be held on March 23-24 at the same location, the Hilton Mississauga, which is located directly off Highway 401 on Mississauga Road. As always, admission is $3 on Saturday and free on Sunday, and free on-site parking is available to show attendees. Next year’s fall show will be held Sept. 7-8, 2019.

For more information about the biannual show, visit stampandcoinshow.com.

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