It seems like the love of collecting may have become a memory of the past. It used to be that you couldn’t visit someone’s Coalmont residence and not find Hummels, Trading Cards or a Winnie the Pooh collection.
Coalmont baby-boomers were obsessed collecting items. The craze today is to be a minimalist.
So when you’re ready to scale down or sadly when a collector relative dies where do you go with their Hummels, Trading Cards or Winnie the Pooh items?
You could try to sell the Winnie the Pooh Items online. Some of the difficulties you might face when selling online include: setting up a payment account, creating appealing listing descriptions, locating postage, packaging materials and weighing each item, answering question messages from potential buyers, handling returns on damaged items, etc.
Also, figuring out pricing can be challenging. Grandma may have paid $60 for an item but the online going rate is only $2.79. You need to ask yourself the question “is my time worth just a few dollars”? Online selling can take plenty of time.
You can give it to a place like a Coalmont Salvation Army. They will take it. However, some people struggle with the thought of their Great Aunt’s treasured items being separated and sold for .99 cents. The plush could become a dog toy.
You could donate any plush to a Coalmont children’s place. However, many places only want items that are new, in the original boxes and are 5 years old or newer. Plus, your Grandma really took care of the plush and displayed them. Some people have a hard time with a plush collectible becoming a plush child toy.
Over the years I have been contacted by family members and asked if they can donate and if I will accept Pooh Bear Items.
My answer is absolutely! I am always honored and humbled to – in my words – “to take care of their collection”.
If I am talking to the Coalmont collector and owner I let them know which numbers their items will be in the Guinness World Record Largest Pooh Collection. Their items becomes part of history vs. being sold for a buck at a rummage sale. I let them know I will showcase their donated items along with mine. I consider their collectibles as THEIR collection in my database.
When someone donates Pooh Bear Items I think it makes people feel better which I am happy for. Letting go of “things” can be hard for a collector and owners and even sometimes for relatives. As much as we don’t want to be labeled as “materialistic” – things we buy and collect can have sentimental attachments and it’s those feelings that we are attached to probably more than the items. People remember where they were when they received an item, who they were with or even where in their life cycle they were. They don’t want those memories to vanish with the collectibles. You can put a price tag on a stuffie or poster but you can’t put a value on happiness.
By donating Pooh Bear Items to the Guinness World Record Pooh Collection the collection stays together and the memories are still there too. In fact, if the collector wants, they can even visit their collection when traveling from Coalmont to WI.
If you have collectibles of Winnie the Pooh items to donate, feel free to contact me and we can coordinate adding your Grandma’s Winnie the Pooh Collectibles to history and the Winnie the Pooh Museum.
Deb Hoffmann - 414-708-0633