How to Start a Collection 1-2-3

First, analyze your reasons. Are you hoping to "buy low and sell high?" Creating a collection of anything solely for investment purposes is seldom a good idea. One should approach collecting from the standpoint of self-satisfaction. Do the objects appeal to you? Are you happy to have them in your presence? In essence - do they stir emotions within you - rather than existing as mere objects to be stored away while awaiting their value to increase?

Quick start to a collection - buy a set

Buy something because you like it and want to have it - that way you will never be disappointed if 20 or 30 years from now they have not increased in monetary value. For example, some folks make a point of grabbing up every Rookie baseball card that's printed hoping that one (or more) of these players will become the next Mickey Mantle or Babe Ruth. The fact is the odds are overwhelmingly against that, and in the end the collector will have spent thousands of dollars to amass a collection that sits in a box and has less value that originally spent.

The second tip is like the first - purchase an item because you really want it - not because someone else says you should have it. You'll find lots of folks with something to sell saying "You're collection won't be complete without ____!" Let me tell you, a collection is never truly complete. There is always at least one more thing that could be added and if your goal is to create the best, most complete collection of XYZ widgets, you will end up spending lots of money and probably never achieve that goal. Don't let others define your collecting goal. Buy what makes you happy.

Beginnings of a small stamp collection

This also holds true for retailers who offer memorabilia that is specifically created to be collectible. You've seen these - they are almost always marked "Limited Edition" (LE) or "Special Edition" (SE). Hummel plates and figurines spring to mind. The seller wants you to think that the item is more desirable and holds more value because of scarcity but this is very rarely the case in the long run. LEs are usually numbered in the thousands, and when they sell out the manufacturer simply creates a slightly different version for another "Limited Edition" run. Of course, if you like and want to have a special edition item then don't deny yourself the pleasure. Just realize that a marketing scam is involved and don't pay more than it is personally worth to you.

And the third tip is like the first two - buy what you want regardless of any "rules." For example, many people focus on collecting items by only a particular artist. In the process, they obtain things that don't really appeal to them aesthetically but feel they must have, and they pass up some things they like only because they are unrelated to their collection's theme. Face it - a collection of Picassos may be impressive but not everything he created was great. Maybe adding in a Rembrandt or Van Gogh that catches your eye will be more enjoyable than a Picasso work which just doesn't "feel right." Remember - the goal of any good collection is to satisfy yourself - why buy something you don't care for, or take a pass on something because it doesn't "fit?" In point of fact, an eclectic collection is often more interesting than one that is too narrowly focused.

A Leica camera collection

The whole point is that YOU are in charge - you set the rules, or you have no rules whatsoever. Just get started with one thing that appeals to you - that you'd like to possess - and let it develop and flow from there. As you acquire more items you may see a pattern developing, or not. It doesn't matter so long as you're surrounding yourself with items that make you happy.

So why delay? Start today, or this week, with just one or two things, and let the collection begin. In a future article I'll get more specific about building a movie memorabilia collection.

Have you started collecting? Please share your experiences - the good, the bad, the ugly...

Author: Lee Richards