When Can We Have Stamp Shows Again?

A number of shows have been cancelled this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some others have been postponed to July, August or later. And our local WSP show, SEAPEX, is still scheduled to be held in September.

But will it be possible or reasonably safe to be holding a stamp show before an effective vaccine has been widely available? Which might not be until over a year from now.

The precautions that would need to be taken could affect the viability of a show. Added space between dealers will mean fewer dealers, reducing the main source of income for a show.

A requirement to were masks could turn off some collectors, reducing attendance. And some collectors will be afraid to come, fearing to catch the coronavirus. The prospect of fewer collectors coming with their wallets will make dealers less willing to come.

Is is possible that we will need to wait until sometime next year before we can safely run a viable stamp show?

If we don't have a vaccine, then I don't see how stamp bourses can work. As you say, crowds would be pulled back, and many dealers make money on volume, not individual items. I like to take my time with some stamps, pulling each out and examining closely with my tongs and magnifying glass. I try not to touch them, but I do touch the stamp card itself. So the problem is going to be with the next person that wants to handle the same item. There may have to be a UV-C type of light disinfection to go between each person's handling of a stamp. I bet, however, that this could damage the actual stamp or the color at a minimum. No good options there.

So, unless someone is going to do some high resolution scans of front/back of everything they want to sell, then I will have a problem going to shows in the near future. Just my thoughts.

How would handling a 102 card expose you to the virus? If everyone is going to wait for a vaccine then everything may as well be cancelled for good. There are no truly effective vaccines for any coronavirus and life went on until now.

Can anybody explain, using real science, why it would be so unsafe to have a stamp show?

Remember that a lot of studies are showing that a large segment of the population has been infected already with little or no symptons. Keep that in mind when reviewing mortality and hospitilzation rates. And do not buy into all of the media hyperbole.

Why would it be so unsafe? Well, I don't know how the stamp collector's average age is in the States. I just can tell about Austria and Germany. Here 80 % are in a high risk age group, 60 or older. And if you take a look at the consequences of an infection, the average mortal rate of about 0,5 percent includes all age groups. From 60 years up it is much higher and some of my stamp collecting friends are over 80. Here an infection plus full recovery takes more than a bit of luck. In Italy, France and Spain there have been so many infected people that they had to decide whom to give intensive care, and guess who wasn't treated in some cases ... older people.

We here in Austria have taken the maybe strictest - and extremely quick - action against the virus two months ago, kept the virus under control perfectly and can now return to an almost normal life again step by step. But all mass events like concerts, trades, soccer games with viewers (even the Oktoberfest in Munich, which takes place in September) have been cancelled already for the next five(!) months.

Just a little story from Germany, where one single person was the source to infect 200 others in his company a few weeks ago, all because of not caring about social distancing.

The virus is still there, and the only way to stop it from spreading, is to keep the distance. So in my opinion there should not be any thoughts about stamp shows or veteran meetings, where risk groups meet and in the worst case get infected.

The treatment to prevent at least the most dangerous virus caused pneumonia is on its way, so stay save until that moment and look ahead to the stamp shows, trades, and concerts in 2021!

I'd imagine 2021 isn't a far stretch. Agree with above about the average stamp collector age and the majority are in the high risk age group. Personally due to events in my life I'll probably be on self quarantine until fall at a minimum. Crazy times we live in and the world is going change as we know it, 58,355 dead In the US as of this posting. Scary stuff.

Stamps are not worth my health.

Given the demographics of the majority of collectors and dealers I do not see many going to a show and in that case the dealers will not go either. I do not think they will start again until next year - I would not go to one any time soon. What organiser is going to risk making a loss on a show?


If you do not listen the the media what other sources are there for your information. A certain president's off the cuff remarks or your own "common" sense. In this case without evidence both are very fallible.

At present there is not scientific proof that have the virus once will protect you from catching it again and it also seems that the weaker the symptoms you have the lower you future resistance will be. It is still too early to make any reasoned assumptions - better safe than sorry.

A stamp dealer friend of mine has told me that his online sales have really surprised him. He thought that nobody would be "doing" stamps during this time, but he must have been wrong. The last month and a half have been his best sales ever.

Perhaps, stamp shows are a thing of the past.

I expect shows to return. Perhaps it will take a while, but those of us who enjoy them will not stop doing so. Shows did not end in 1918, which was a much worse situation. Yes it was a long time ago, but human nature has not changed since then.

Random antibody testing in NY now suggests an infection rate of 24.7 percent, or approximately 2 million peope which vastly changes the math when it comes to mortality and risk assessment. The jury is still out on whether or not surface touching has been a cause of one case of infection. In any case if you feel like sheltering in place for a year or two and can do so financially then go ahead. In 2019 there were 606,880 cancer deaths in the United States. Expect that number to shoot up now that hospitals are going broke and furloughing staff because fear has caused people to not go for help and institutions have shifted their entire focus to COVID-19 only to have entire floors of their facilities empty. If you are waiting for a "cure" for the coronavirus you may be in for a disappointment given that they have never been able to find one for any coronavirus.

Going to a stamp show at this time is akin to playing Russian roulette. I'll wait for a proven vaccine.

Shut down stamp shows forever.

Unintentional injuries causes tens of thousands of people to die each year, so you could trip and fall onto a pair of stamp tongs at a dealer table. Going to a stamp show exposes you to the flu, tens of thousands of people die each year from that. Going to a stamp show exposes you to the risk of an auto accident, tens of thousands of people die each year from that.

This is the problem with looking at the world from a 'prevention' perspective. For example, apply 'prevention' to another disease like alcoholism. We do not need additional evidence to understand that alcohol consumption results in an average of 88,000 deaths per year in the US. If the perspective is 'prevention', then clearly we should have prohibition. Diabetes also kills over 80,000 people each year, so is everyone cutting sugar out of their diets in the name of 'prevention'? Yet few people would support these kinds of Draconian approaches to 'prevention'.

'Prevention' is a truism, it is like arguing 'water is wet'. 'Prevention' is self-evident but I see very few people allowing 'prevention' to dictate their lives. But in these times, when fear denominates everything, perhaps the best approach is to just bunker in our homes and never go anywhere again.
Don

Personally, I'd be surprised to see large-scale public events (higher level football matches etc) in the UK before the end of the year. An interesting question for smaller scale gatherings - whether at shows or in pubs and restaurants - will be how many people choose to patronise them once they re-open.

Some risks for death are more preventable (reduction in risk) than others. People with diabetes, heart disease, etc. are mostly caused more by their own actions. Cancer is a wild card (smoking, environment (water, air, food), genetics).

You cannot get them at stamp show from someone else.

I would like to believe that humans would be more careful to not go to work sick, practice good hygiene, etc. but doubt it like many lessons learned in life. It would be sad if it is accepted as the new normal.

When I traveled in Asia, it was not uncommon to see people wearing masks in part out of respect for others and protecting themselves.

Well, I am certainly not afraid of catching anything off a 102 card. but I would be afraid of catching COVID-19 from some of the other people at the show. Our shows are not a crowded as I might normally like, but they are certainly crowded enough for that!

Imagine how a collector of disinfected mail might feel asking for covers now.

The bottom line is some collectors are itching to get back to a show while others are too afraid to go to one, so attendance would be lower. The smart show dealers will have pit more effort into online sales and/or working up new stock/weeding out tired material they, but they are are till hurting. The question is, would the lower attendance result in just a smaller profit for the dealers (any profit would be better than no income), or would it result in a loss (adding insult to injury)?