Saskatoon Stamp Centre (SSC), a long-time staple of Canada’s philatelic community, is closing its doors after more than 55 years in business. Owner John Jamieson opened up shop as a retail store in 1965 before moving the mail-order business, something he supplemented by having a presence at major shows and conventions. All the while, Jamieson specialized in mostly high-quality Canadian and British North American stamps while making a name for himself with what he called “the unusual.” Compared to regular issues, even scarce ones, he deemed philatelic errors and varieties “far more interesting.” “I tended to focus on unusual stuff, and it paid off. When I first got into the business, we had a retail store, and people would come in and ask for things – and they weren’t asking for Bluenoses,” Jamieson said, referring to Canada’s popular 1929 stamp honouring the iconic Nova Scotia schooner. “They were usually asking for something a little more obscure – rare, but not valuable. And I thought, ‘People are looking for these things because they don’t have them. They can’t find them, but why can’t they find them?’ Continue reading →
John Jamieson, the long-time owner of the Saskatoon Stamp Centre, mans his booth at the National Postage Stamp Show (now the National Postage Stamp & Coin Show) in Toronto.
