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Back to page 1
Milne: On a broader collecting plane, the PART 1 Commonwealth Catalogue, now, I believe, in its 103rd edition, is currently split into two volumes: A-I (including GB) and J-Z. How soon do you envisage this having to be a three-parter?
Aggersberg: The recently-published 2002 edition of the PART 1 is, once again, in two volumes. The future format of the Commonwealth listings is currently under review, with a number of options being discussed.
Milne: A good non-commital response! I'll keep an eye open to see which way you go.
Similarly, Gibbons' STAMPS OF THE WORLD - the beginner’s bible - is in three parts right now: A-F, G-N and O-Z. Your thoughts on its future, please.
Aggersberg: This year’s STAMPS OF THE WORLD, due for publication on the 23rd of November, will be in four volumes: A-D, E-J, K-R and S-Z.
Milne: That should prevent a hernia or two!
Because stamp-issuing entities around the world mercilessly continue to crank the handle of their printing presses, falsely continuing to believe that collectors’ pockets are bottomless, I sense a move, on an increasing number of collectors’ fronts, away from the pursuit of country collection completeness to a more selective seeking of “choice” thematics from a broad, diverse range of countries.
Do you believe this is so? And, if you do, are you seeing this by way of an upsurge in popularity of the many topical/thematic catalogues Gibbons produce?
Aggersberg: In general terms I would agree with your comments concerning the over-production of new issues. The proliferation of new stamps, plus many associated items, is likely to have a dramatic effect over time on the shape of the hobby.
Although it is possible that more collectors are moving towards thematics in the U.S., other trends are being exhibited here. Collectors in this country are tending to concentrate on older issues or are shifting their interests away from modern Commonwealth towards foreign countries, particularly those in Western Europe.
I think it is only a matter of time before thematic collectors realise that they are the ultimate goal of much of the exploitation.
Milne: You make some good points and some interesting observations in general.
In specific, I suppose you could extend these by a simple comparison of the collecting of GB issues of the QV and QE reigns.
With the former (which I pursue) there is a known number and quality of stamps out there. The thrill and exhileration for the collector is the hunting down of known and desired material.
In contrast, with the latter (which I no longer pursue), modern issues and their cost escalate each year — there’s the first count against them — but, worse, for the sake of completeness (and, as I said before, that remains still many a collector’s goal), the collector has to purchase stamps that, in value and design, are known (because of a cataloguer like Gibbons) but, if the collector were honest with him- or herself, are not really desired.
That's surely sad and bad!
Back to the subject of your thematic catalogues, which of these has the largest circulation? And which thematic area, currently not covered, is crying out for a catalogue editor’s attention?
Aggersberg: Our most popular thematic catalogue is COLLECT BIRDS ON STAMPS.
All of the catalogues in the thematic range are compiled by collectors who specialise in that particular subject. In fact, a new edition of COLLECT BIRDS ON STAMPS has been delayed by the need to find a new ornithological compiler. However, one has now been found and hopefully a new edition will be available next year.
Most of the main subjects have been covered. However, a volume to cover motor vehicles is currently at the editing stage, and a contract for one covering dinosaurs has just been signed.
Milne: Very interesting. Moving on, how do you currently rate the health and future of what I believe is the 21 “other country” catalogues that Gibbons produce?
Aggersberg: Demand for many of our foreign catalogues — PARTS 2 - 22 — is growing. A new edition of PART 6 (France) appeared on September 21st, repaged to an A4 format, which will be used in future for all such catalogues which extend to over 700 A5 pages. PART 11 (Scandinavia) and PART 7 (Germany) should follow before Christmas.
Milne: Is any country’s catalogue in that stable likely NOT to be reissued because of dwindling popularity? If so, which? And, conversely, is there a country currently not on board that is screaming out for attention?
Aggersberg: Obviously some of these catalogues are more popular than others. The three AFRICA catalogues (PARTS 12, 13 and 14) are particularly difficult as interest in many of the ex-French republics in that continent is very small. Hopefully, modern technology may provide us with an answer so that we can, in due time, supply the collector of post-independent Senegal, for example, with the pages he/she requires.
Milne: Being a Brit — and proud of it! — and having collected for over 50 years with a Gibbons catalogue of some type or other always by my side, I know that Gibbons catalogues date way back to 1865 and that the Company first instituted its unique numbering system in 1879 — a system that, with refinements, has lasted and been recognized worldwide for over 120 years. I also know that Gibbons proudly holds exclusive rights to those catalogue numbers.
However, in keeping with the times, I’m sure you would admit that stamp collecting has moved far away from its limited boundaries of those early days.
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| The first Gibbons catalogue, 1865. The image is from the prestige booklet referenced above. |
Further, the advent of the internet and international auction houses like eBay have moved a collector’s area of buying, selling or trading away from the very restricted environment of the local stamp club or bourse to a worldwide stage.
In that climate — and probably because I am a self-confessed eBay addict — isn’t the time now ripe for cataloguers like yourselves, Scott, Yvert and Michel to jointly come together in the interests of the hobby and agree to develop a concordance of stamp identification numbers to the greater good of ALL collectors worldwide?
Thus, a collector in Hawaii who uses Scott, a Brit from Hull who only has Gibbons, a French dealer from Le Havre who quotes Yvert and a lady in Hamburg who is only familiar with Michel could “deal,” secure in the knowledge that they were communicating in “a common language” about the same stamp.
Do you think, sir, this will ever come to pass, and if not, why not?
Aggersberg: Each of the major catalogue publishers do, of course, hold the intellectual property rights for their products. All are commercial companies and such rights form an important part of the Company’s assets. Given the complicated nature of international copyrights, it is unlikely that any movement to co-ordinate the numbering systems would be successful.
Such a co-ordination may be desirable for the collector, but I feel I should point out that all of the major catalogues have been sustained by their commercial owners in the face of indifference on the part of the world’s postal administrations.
It is difficult to see how the hobby could have survived without the work of my predecessors or indeed their colleagues at Michel, Scott and Yvert & Tellier.
Milne: Aaaaah well! As a collector, perchance to dream!
In January of this year Gibbons launched an internet catalogue, allworldstamps. Is this under your charge at Ringwood as well?
Aggersberg: allworldstamps is constructed elsewhere but uses the same editorial material as supplied for hard copy catalogues.
Milne: The ultimate benefit to collectors of allworldstamps would seem to me to be immense in that there is, first of all, no cost additional to a user’s internet charge, plus the considerable advantage of getting constantly updated stamp information and prices - even between the annual catalogue issue dates.
Does Gibbons envisage continuing to publish for the foreseeable future hard copy catalogues as an adjunct to allworldstamps?
Aggersberg: Internet listings like allworldstamps will no doubt evolve. Stanley Gibbons believes that the internet provides an ideal vehicle for such listings but, like the catalogues themselves, the interpretation and the sites will develop over time. There is no intention for the foreseeable future to discontinue hard copy catalogues.
Milne: GBCCers whom I met in Chicago and who had logged on to allworldstamps reported some navigational negatives about the system in its current form. What steps (if any) have been taken/are likely to occur to modify/improve the current set-up?
Aggersberg: The present allworldstamps site is naturally, to some extent, experimental. No doubt alterations will take place to improve the presentation.
Milne: One of your main competitors, at least this side of the pond, Scott, has entered the CD ROM arena. Is Gibbons likely to follow? If so, when and with what?
Aggersberg: Stanley Gibbons perceives the internet as a better vehicle than CD ROMs, which have some of the drawbacks of a printed book, i.e. an updated version would be required at intervals. Internet listings can provide additional value by regular updates between editions or hard copy catalogues.
Milne: Have Stanley Gibbons Publications always been located in Ringwood, Hampshire? If not, when did you move and why?
Aggersberg: There have been Stanley Gibbons offices in Ringwood since 1981, originally set up to cope with orders for the Royal Wedding stamps (shown at right). Stanley Gibbons Publications moved in at the end of 1984. The Editorial Departments had previously been located at various offices in London and were basically relocated due to high office costs in London WC2.
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Milne: Share with us, please, some information on David Aggersberg, the person........ such as, where were you born? Where did you go to school/college? Have you brothers/sisters? Are you married? Have you children? What are your other interests?
Aggersberg: I was born in the town of Faversham in N.E. Kent and attended the grammar school there, although I consider my home town to be the adjacent seaside resort of Whitstable, where I lived for over 20 years.
I have one sister and am married with no children.
Being Editor of the Stanley Gibbons catalogues does not exactly leave one with too much free time, but I have a considerable interest in British Military History and slightly less in doing the gardening!
Milne: Are you a collector yourself? If so, what areas interest you most?
Aggersberg: I feel I see too many stamps during the day to enjoy collecting in my own time. I do purchase the odd Whitstable postcard, but otherwise my collecting interests are centred on toy soldiers. Unfortunately these take up much more room than stamps!
Milne: You haven’t seen my stamp den!
To close, from where you sit at the hub of the hobby, how do you perceive its health today? What should be done to cure/overcome any maladies you believe it has? And where do you predict the hobby being, say, twenty years from now?
Aggersberg: The strength of stamp collecting is that it is always evolving.
I suspect that the future will see much more emphasis on older issues (which I would define at this stage as being anything issued before 1960) with much less emphasis on the pursuit of completeness through the purchase of new issues. How the postal authorities will cope with this I am uncertain.
The collecting of Great Britain is likely to remain one of the most popular aspects, and it is hoped that Royal Mail will succeed in walking the very fine dividing line betwen sustaining interest and producing too many items for collectors with limited means.
Milne: Dear sir, thank you again for having given so generously of your time to answer my many questions.
Congrats on all you’ve achieved in your long and wonderful career at Gibbons. Until retirement comes its way, do keep up the good work with all you do.
Oh, and for what it’s worth (and perhaps it’s scary!), I totally agree with these crystal ball prognostications for the future that you put forward in your last response. I hope the powers that be will listen to us!
Again, sincere and appreciative thanks for your time.
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| Last update: Saturday, April 21, 2007 |
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| Copyright © 2007 by Great Britain Collectors Club | ||