Amazon woos serious coin collectors
Customers can now shop on Amazon for collectible U.S. coins from industry leading dealers including Stack’s Bowers Galleries, Kagin’s, David Lawrence Rare Coins and Liberty Coin — all from the newly launched Collectible Coins store.
The marketplace gives customers direct access to more than 10,000 unique U.S. coins from more than 75 industry-leading dealers showcasing a wide variety of professionally graded and authenticated coins. The store is one of the largest online destinations to discover and purchase graded U.S. coins, featuring easy-to-use search tools.
“Collectors of rare coins are passionate about the hobby because coins represent the intersection of history, collectibility and wealth,” said Steve Johnson, director for the Amazon Marketplace. “Coins have been one of the most searched for items in our collectibles stores. The introduction of the Collectible Coins store was inspired by customer demand and the need to provide a unique experience for customers to discover graded and rare U.S. coins from reputable dealers. We’re thrilled to bring the excitement and discovery of coin collecting to Amazon.”
“Collecting rare coins is a unique opportunity to hold history in your hand, along with the knowledge that you own a lasting symbol that has inherent value and importance,” said Brian Kendrella, president for Stack’s Bowers Galleries, headquartered in Irvine, Calif., and with operations in New York, Hong Kong and Paris. “We are excited about the opportunity to showcase our unique numismatic products to Amazon’s customers and reach a broad customer base that may be new to the joys of coin collecting.”
Customers can browse historic collections, including buried treasure coins from the Saddle Ridge Hoard recently discovered in California that received national notoriety including the 1866 $20 Liberty Head, No Motto for $1.2 million. The store also features hard-to-find and precious metal coins including Gold Buffalo, Morgan Silver dollars, American Silver Eagles and American Gold Eagles.
“Amazon can offer millions of new individuals access to the wonderful world of numismatics. With direct access to the Saddle Ridge Hoard Treasure, the largest buried treasure find in U.S. history, Amazon customers can appreciate why this collectible field is called the Hobby of Kings,” said Don Kagin, Ph.D, owner of Kagin’s, based in the San Francisco area. “Coins are historical artifacts that tell us more about a culture or civilization than anything else. They represent history in your hands. Amazon has made a commitment to provide the necessary resources to make their store a vital and first class experience for the collecting public and coin dealers. It offers an alternative to other numismatic platforms that just do not reach as many individuals.”
“Liberty Coin offers one the widest selection of collectible coins found anywhere, including all of the U.S. Mint’s products produced since the 1950’s. After 48 years of building a successful rare coin business we now have the ability to reach a much larger audience,” said Jim Foster, CEO for Liberty Coin, headquartered in Los Angeles. “The opportunity to sell on Amazon is incredible. The Amazon customer experience is the best in the world and offers shoppers more product choices than anywhere online. The innovative marketplace with great features provides us with access to an enormous base of potential new customers searching for our coins.”