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Top investment opportunity?

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    Top investment opportunity?

    Pardon me if this has been mentioned before, but a chap on the radio yesterday suggested that buying UK first and second class stamps is a sound investment.

    They are not marked with the price, they are valid forever, and as the price keeps going up every year or two (the recent hike was over 10%), you could buy a large amount and watch their resale value rise.

    What's the flaw? Is resale lawful, on eBay or a market stall for example?

    #2
    Originally posted by Doggy Styles View Post
    Pardon me if this has been mentioned before, but a chap on the radio yesterday suggested that buying UK first and second class stamps is a sound investment.

    They are not marked with the price, they are valid forever, and as the price keeps going up every year or two (the recent hike was over 10%), you could buy a large amount and watch their resale value rise.

    What's the flaw? Is resale lawful, on eBay or a market stall for example?
    Nothing illegal about it, resale is perfectly legal. However you might find it hard to find a buyer for the number of stamps you are talking about when you want to realize your investment.
    "Being nice costs nothing and sometimes gets you extra bacon" - Pondlife.

    Comment


      #3
      Originally posted by DaveB View Post
      Nothing illegal about it, resale is perfectly legal. However you might find it hard to find a buyer for the number of stamps you are talking about when you want to realize your investment.
      More to the point - who is going to stick that amount of stamps when they probably have a franking machine.

      Comment


        #4
        Probably makes sense to work out how many stamps you will get through in the rest of your lifetime and buy them all now. If you dies young you can leave them to your children, and over time, inflation means you will be saving money ever year.

        Not going to make you Richard Branson though is it?

        Comment


          #5
          Superdrug were also doing 8% discount, IIRC.

          I tend to buy mine in bulk from Makro which also saves a little.
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            #6
            You can print your own these days. Anyone tried it?

            I also really like the self-serve machines in the Post Office. Especially because like self-scan supermarket tills, most are too scared to use them and they are normally empty while a queue for manned tills stretches out to the PO front door.
            Originally posted by MaryPoppins
            I'd still not breastfeed a nazi
            Originally posted by vetran
            Urine is quite nourishing

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              #7
              Originally posted by d000hg View Post
              You can print your own these days. Anyone tried it?
              Yes and I gave up after spending hours trying to figure out how to get an A4 sized stamp on a widgee envelope.

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by DimPrawn View Post
                Not going to make you Richard Branson though is it?
                Hmm. You're probably right.

                If some big chains are offering discounts, they are probably doing the same thing anyway. In which case your only chance is to sell in bulk to new chains in the future. I guess you'd need specialised storage too, what with the gluey components.

                I doubt I could be arsed, all things considered.

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                  #9
                  Warren Buffet did this with a US stamp that was going out of production and he reckoned would become a good investment.

                  He bought so many of the things that they bumped up production of them.

                  Suddenly they weren't rare any more.
                  Behold the warranty -- the bold print giveth and the fine print taketh away.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by Doggy Styles View Post
                    What's the flaw?
                    I think the flaw would be risk of a privitisation of Royal Mail, which might not force the new providers to honour old stamps.

                    Last I heard (several years ago), collectible stamps had been a consistently good investment Maybe look into that?

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