Updated on Aug. 27.
Forced to cancel its fall Stampex show due to COVID-19, the U.K.-based Philatelic Traders’ Society (PTS) has unveiled plans for the world’s first “virtual international stamp show.”
Accessible through an Internet browser (no downloads required), Virtual Stampex show is billed as a chance to “buy, sell, learn, explore, network, showcase—all from the comfort of your own home.” Open 24 hours a day, the Oct. 1-3 show will welcome visitors via an interactive lobby, which allows show-goers to move around the venue and interact with dealers, seminar speakers, exhibits and more.
“Virtual Stampex is going to be the most exciting international event in the philatelic calendar this year,” said PTS Chair Suzanne Rae, of North Yorkshire, England, who’s also the owner of Art Stamped, a stamp-art business focused on postal-themed gifts and supplies.
More than 60 PTS dealer members and other “affiliated bodies,” including postal services like Jersey Post plus clubs like the American Philatelic Society – one of the show’s four partners – have confirmed their attendance on the bourse.
Along with the APS, the show’s partners include the Association of British Philatelic Societies (ABPS), which will host a competitive exhibition; the Museum of Philately, an interactive digital platform offered by the U.K.-based David Feldman auction firm; and the Royal Philatelic Society London (RPSL).
The only Canadian dealer slated to attend the show is Chris Green, owner of Ottawa’s Chris Green Stamps.
ATTENDING THE SHOW
For show-goers, registration opened on Aug. 1 via stampex.vfairs.com, where people can sign up to attend for free.
Beginning on Oct. 1, visitors can enter the show’s interactive lobby connecting collectors with dealers, auction houses, clubs and societies, postal administrations, museums, experts and other booth holders through embedded text, audio and video platforms. From the lobby, show-goers can visit the admission desk, bourse, auditorium – where the “Stampex Talks” series will take place – plus halls for the ABPS exhibition and the “Court of Honour,” the latter of which is provided by the Museum of Philately.
On the bourse, collectors can buy from dealers’ with direct links to their online shops and receive relevant information to take away in a virtual briefcase.
Sponsored by England’s Spink & Son auction house, the show will be accessible worldwide “on most devices, including Apple, Android, PC and Mac,” according to organizers.
To register for and attend Virtual Stampex, visit stampex.vfairs.com.