Is the Collector Still King?

Under the above title, professional numismatists Julian Leidman and Mark Mendelson contributed an article to the "Monthly Summary" of the Coin Dealer Newsletter. Many of the thoughts are similar to those just expressed by Frank S. Robinson. In addition, the writers exhorted their fellow dealers to sow seeds for the future of numismatics by encouraging clients to learn about coins, to become collectors. Excerpts:

"We, as dealers, are becoming increasingly concerned about the lack of enthusiasm our fellow dealers seem to show for dealing with the public. If dealers don't begin to `fire-up' their customers' 'collecting' desires, they might as well fire up the furnaces to melt all those `rare' coins back into bullion - because that is what they will be worth.

"We feel that numismatics would prosper if dealers spent half as much time and energy on cultivating their customers as they do on slabbing, cracking [breaking coins out of slabs, to resubmit them in the hope of having them slabbed at higher grades], and short-term money-making... What percentage of dealers' time and effort is dedicated to motivating the public to collect or invest in coins? How often do dealers use their knowledge to support the long-term growth of the industry?

"Part of our uneasy feelings come from our extensive participation at major coin shows, where we see fewer collectors and potential customers in attendance... There must be a commitment of time to the customer, and specifically to helping him develop a sense of direction in his collecting. Most transactions are product-based; a customer wants a Morgan dollar, and a dealer sells him a Morgan dollar. This type of transaction is even more accentuated on the busy bourse floor where the customer is often a stranger. Regardless, every retail sale of numismatic property should be accompanied by an exchange of information, not just dollars...

"The dealer must examine to what degree the customer is a collector or an investor, what the customer reads, what his budget is, and his motivation behind his numismatic interests. The dealer should play a vital role in helping the neophyte collector discover what kind of collection he wants to put together...