We talk about waning interest of the next generation in collecting but....

ms70 · February 17, 2019 8:27AM

How is this accurately gauged?

I see the ANA asks for a birth date when joining so is there a statistic attached to that? Is it a general feeling among dealers? How do we know?

Discuss

CCGGG · February 17, 2019 8:34AM

For a start, just look at the pictures from the various coin shows posted on this forum in the past year. 50 to 75% look like older bald guys. I can say that since I'm one of them.

ms70 · February 17, 2019 8:39AM

I'm wondering if on the flip side we are getting MORE older collectors to balance it out. Maybe we have the same amount of interest but YN's are just not blooming until later in life.

In other words are there less collectors out there in total?

shorecoll · February 17, 2019 8:43AM

Later blooming may be correct, my son and daughter-in-law got out of grad school with $200k in student loans. So... house purchase will be ~10 years after I did it, and collecting may have to start after that.

Paradisefound · February 17, 2019 9:03AM

I believe most would like to see the advancement of this hobby into the future and perhaps passing your wits down to your younger generation ...... son, daughter and the grands.

@ms70 is right on YN not advancing their interest into the future; for various reasons ...... relationship, tuitions, new gadgets, car payment and home mortgage as well as building a family.
IMHO most avid die hard collectors are on their 60's and up ...... minus young guns dealers in their late 30's (ie TND and specialist)

Paradisefound · February 17, 2019 9:07AM

I LOVE this hobby and has the mean to get what I wish but when it comes to decision making ........ there are wiser purchase to be made at certain time..... a spec house for example.
Wished there are 36 hours to a day ..... so much to do, to learn and to pursue Beautiful and rare historical coins are part of it ..... a smaller part.

topstuf · February 17, 2019 9:09AM

Don't forget that appreciation and discernment comes with a bit of age.

Zoins · February 17, 2019 9:11AM

New collectors are on places like Reddit and Instagram so it’s hard to see for many.

CCGGG · February 17, 2019 9:11AM

@topstuf said:
Don't forget that appreciation and discernment comes with a bit of age.

As well as the cash reserves to participate.

Paradisefound · February 17, 2019 9:13AM

.....so STOP unfavorable comment on those MODERNs this not so YN LOVES it and I am sure there are a 'training stock' for many real promising YN

@topstuf said:
Don't forget that appreciation and discernment comes with a bit of age.

topstuf · February 17, 2019 9:15AM

@Paradisefound said:
.....so STOP unfavorable comment on those MODERNs this not so YN LOVES it and I am sure there are a 'training stock' for many real promising YN

@topstuf said:
Don't forget that appreciation and discernment comes with a bit of age.

Where have I dissed moderns?
I mean, I can....but don't think I have.

Paradisefound · February 17, 2019 9:24AM

NOT YOU .... I just added to your quote because some did and I am so afraid to post any Moderns ever since let alone discussing them

@topstuf said:

@Paradisefound said:
.....so STOP unfavorable comment on those MODERNs this not so YN LOVES it and I am sure there are a 'training stock' for many real promising YN

@topstuf said:
Don't forget that appreciation and discernment comes with a bit of age.

Where have I dissed moderns?
I mean, I can....but don't think I have.

Paradisefound · February 17, 2019 9:26AM

How was your KONA this morning @topstuf ?

Zoins · February 17, 2019 9:27AM

@Paradisefound said:
NOT YOU .... I just added to your quote because some did and I am so afraid to post any Moderns ever since let alone discussing them

@topstuf said:

@Paradisefound said:
.....so STOP unfavorable comment on those MODERNs this not so YN LOVES it and I am sure there are a 'training stock' for many real promising YN

@topstuf said:
Don't forget that appreciation and discernment comes with a bit of age.

Where have I dissed moderns?
I mean, I can....but don't think I have.

Moderns are great! I’m a big fan of yours! Keep on posting

ctf_error_coins · February 17, 2019 9:27AM

Some moderns are Awesome

Ultra Modern Mint Errors are even more Awesome ......

topstuf · February 17, 2019 9:30AM

@Paradisefound said:
How was your KONA this morning @topstuf ?

Paradisefound · February 17, 2019 9:33AM

U @Zoins

@Zoins said:

@Paradisefound said:
NOT YOU .... I just added to your quote because some did and I am so afraid to post any Moderns ever since let alone discussing them

@topstuf said:

@Paradisefound said:
.....so STOP unfavorable comment on those MODERNs this not so YN LOVES it and I am sure there are a 'training stock' for many real promising YN

@topstuf said:
Don't forget that appreciation and discernment comes with a bit of age.

Where have I dissed moderns?
I mean, I can....but don't think I have.

Moderns are great! I’m a big fan of yours! Keep on posting

WildIdea · February 17, 2019 9:37AM

There will always will always be someone somewhere interested in coins, the question is more about can the current market arena be stabilized and propped up forever.

Balltrash · February 17, 2019 9:41AM

I believe, as is the case with most other fields of collecting, that there very well may be a far larger collector base than any of us can imagine. The world is changing as are the ways that we (particularly younger people) interact with it. I have been collecting silver coins for years; yesterday was the first time I set foot in a coin show. It won't be my last but at the same time I found it was not particularly a place for me. I can accomplish my collecting goals online far more efficiently. Think of the sheer volume of material which is sold on eBay alone; it all has to be going somewhere. Not to mention the hundreds of millions of dollars of coins which are sold on other sites or through auction each year. Perhaps prices are "down" but I believe (firmly) that by and large this is the result of smarter and better educated consumers and not because there has been a mass exodus from the field. What used to be considered rare or hard to find is no more. Conversely, true rarities and pieces which are otherwise desirable seem to be fetching stronger prices than ever (with some exceptions of course but that I would attribute to typical ebbs and flows of any market). I also believe that the era of the "hoarder" collector has largely come to an end and younger buyers are far more selective. Just my two cents. And I am on the younger end of the those who will post on this thread.

ms70 · February 17, 2019 9:42AM

My main curiosity is how many collectors there are now (roughly of course) as compared to 10 or 20 years ago.

Are we losing collectors in total or is it just a demographic shift that makes us feel like coin collecting is losing appeal to youth?

dpoole · February 17, 2019 9:44AM

Welcome, Balltrash! Interesting and well-written perspective.

ctf_error_coins · February 17, 2019 9:49AM

Balltrash · February 17, 2019 10:40AM

@ms70 said:
My main curiosity is how many collectors there are now (roughly of course) as compared to 10 or 20 years ago.

Are we losing collectors in total or is it just a demographic shift that makes us feel like coin collecting is losing appeal to youth?

I think that it would be impossible for anyone to get a handle on that. I would bet that there are at the very least thousands of collectors who found interest in the field online and have collected through online sources. They don't frequent message boards, don't set foot in coin shows, and don't interact with people in the community otherwise. I am pretty deeply involved in the sports collectibles field and believe that there are more people than ever who collect cards and memorabilia but do so exclusively online and will never show face at a card show. Just a shifting style which has actually produced, by and large, a very well educated consumer base that buys what they like at prices they deem reasonable (not what a dealer or price guide tries to tell them things should be worth). It is actually a great thing for all hobbies.

Soldi · February 17, 2019 10:45AM

The Y/N has to have an interest in History and experiential things outside of putting coins in a holder or buying them in one TPG or another. They have to want to go to Harpers Ferry, or Mount Vernon or Fredricksburg and realizing it's charm as both a Colonial, as well as, a Civil War era site. Burnside's Bridge in Antietam, Gettysburg, Cornish NH and Augustus Saint Gauden along with the original MS Garden and Stanford White, Evelyn Nesbitt, Harry Kendal Thaw, Col. Green, Hetty Green, The World's Fairs Expo in Chicago and California you all know I can go on and on.

Then and only then, does the Y/N realize how much the coins are valued above what is paid.
The so called "tuition of mistakes" has got to end.
We have to nurture them and guide them.

Man oh man! It was so much easier when Bower's and Merena could afford those great catalogs "gratis"
It would be so much more "touchy feely" then the computers. You got something to hold in your hand.

Coins are cool.
Maybe they "Y/Ns" just cannot afford them or yet afford them.

SimpleCollector · February 17, 2019 1:29PM

Nice post balltrash...like the perspective

bidask · February 17, 2019 2:26PM

I snapped this shot midday Friday at the recent Long Beach show.

291fifth · February 17, 2019 2:41PM

@Zoins said:
New collectors are on places like Reddit and Instagram so it’s hard to see for many.

I have to wonder if these are the people who are bidding and buying all the counterfeit items that are seen in on-line auctions. Just where do all the bids for obviously fake CC dollars and 1893-S Morgans come from?

Zoins · February 17, 2019 3:15PM

@291fifth said:

@Zoins said:
New collectors are on places like Reddit and Instagram so it’s hard to see for many.

I have to wonder if these are the people who are bidding and buying all the counterfeit items that are seen in on-line auctions. Just where do all the bids for obviously fake CC dollars and 1893-S Morgans come from?

I’ve seen a lot of TrueViews on Instagram and collector bullion on Reddit. I’ve been wondering if the people buying counterfeits don’t spend time on online communities.

ricko · February 17, 2019 5:42PM

@Balltrash....Welcome aboard....Good input and perspective. I personally believe the collector base is as large or larger than ever... the market has shifted, but many do not recognize it. The online market (websites, instagram etc....) is huge and incredibly active. Another fact, that does not support the gloom and doom.. are the great show reports we see. I have been on this forum for over 20 years... and the same tired refrain has been played over and over again.. and yet, here we are...Cheers, RickO

illini420 · February 17, 2019 6:50PM

@bidask said:
I snapped this shot midday Friday at the recent Long Beach show.

The youth activities, including the Long Beach coin treasure hunt, all take place on Saturday at the show. So yes, the table would be totally empty on a Friday. Kids are in school.

savitale · February 17, 2019 8:46PM

I've never seen any data that shows there are fewer coin collectors today. I don't know how one would even collect that data and compare it to data that doesn't exist from the past. I do believe there are fewer youngsters filling albums from circulation. I'll bet ANA membership is down. Coin show attendance is probably down too. There are fewer local coin stores than in the past. But none of that is solid evidence that there are fewer collectors. I would suggest many collectors are just going about their hobby in different ways than they did 40 or 50 years ago.

Gluggo · February 17, 2019 8:48PM

I never been to a coin show.

bidask · February 17, 2019 9:09PM

@Gluggo said:
I never been to a coin show.

Go to one you will have a great time !!

ElmerFusterpuck · February 17, 2019 9:27PM

Sigh. Some posters still predict the death of this hobby by who they see at shows. Please stop pretending other venues don't exist. As mentioned before, I skew the demographic on Instagram and personally see quite a chunk of younger folks either just starting out in our hobby and expressing true interest or actually getting into the business via these new venues.

I get questions off and on from some of them, some are just starting out on something like a 7070, and some are overseas looking at legit coins in auctions. It's not just clubs and shows anymore.

bidask · February 17, 2019 9:36PM

@ElmerFusterpuck said:
Sigh. Some posters still predict the death of this hobby by who they see at shows. Please stop pretending other venues don't exist. As mentioned before, I skew the demographic on Instagram and personally see quite a chunk of younger folks either just starting out in our hobby and expressing true interest or actually getting into the business via these new venues.

I get questions off and on from some of them, some are just starting out on something like a 7070, and some are overseas looking at legit coins in auctions. It's not just clubs and shows anymore.

Good point .....
Most on these boards have never used instagram I am thinking. Including me.

We talk about waning interest of the next generation in collecting but....

Comments

Leave a Comment