Buying Individual Specimens Of Modern US Stamps From Post Offices

I've just returned from a great vacation in the USA, including a cruise from Seattle to Alaska.

When visiting other countries I always go to the post office to get a few examples of current mint stamps for my collection.

On this recent visit, I was slightly disappointed that some commemorative stamps were only being sold in complete sheets. I can understand staff being unwilling to split up a booklet, but is it usual nowadays to have to buy stamps in sheets?

One example is the cute pair of 'Love' stamps with the puppy and kitten. The Post Office in downtown San Fransisco would only sell them to me as a complete sheet. I was however able to buy individual stamps in the post office in Skagway in Alaska!

It's great however to find that the USA still has proper post offices! In the UK, even in large cities many main post offices have been closed and replaced by counters inside another store, usually a branch of stationers' and booksellers' W H Smith.

From my experience, new issues are usually sold only in sheets while older issues from several months ago are more often sold in whatever amount you desire.

However, it is mainly up to the person running the post office which stamps are to be sold only in sheet and which don't have to.

I'm not aware of a Post Office policy of only selling stamps in full sheets. Frankly, they should be happy to sell stamps in any amount requested. It sounds like the P.O.s in large cities are getting a bit contemptuous of their customers. Generally small towns and branch offices will be the most customer-friendly.

Thanks for the advice. I'll try smaller branches in the future!

You may have run into the following:




https://blog.norphil.co.uk/2013/11/...es-post.html

Thanks NSK!

I think it also may depend on what the individual has in their drawer for loose stamps. I know I bought one each of the above mentioned cat and dog Love stamps at the Fort Knox, KY post office as singles. They were happy to sell one of every sheet they had "broken" for individual sales. Once they sheet or two are used then they use another. I assume other post offices do the same to keep from having large numbers of partially used sheets.

In the USA, inventory control is greatly facilitated by selling stamps in full panes only. Notable exceptions being stamps with denominations of $1 or more (i.e. Priority Mail and Express Mail) and even then, most clerks would much rather use their meter instead of applying stamps. It's less work for them and service is faster.

Also, US Post Offices don't get sent every new issue by default; they have to order whatever they need/want. The USPS online store stopped selling singles several years ago; they only sell full panes and coil rolls. I suspect a big factor in that decision is the fact that today's self adhesive stamps are die cut rather than perforated, which makes separating individual stamps with their backing still attached very difficult as the adhesive is continuous across the pane. They are designed to be peeled off one by one and applied to the envelope.

The new issue announcements in the USPS Postal Bulletin specify which issues must be sold as full panes only. If that's not mentioned for a particular issue, presumably a pane may be broken. Of course, any given postal worker may be more or less liberal when it comes to breaking panes.

Booklets and retail coils are not supposed to be broken.