It seems like the hobby of collecting may have become an activity of yesterday. It used to be that you couldn’t visit someone’s Hope home and not find Salt and Pepper Shakers, Snowglobes or a Pooh Bear collection.
Hope baby-boomers really enjoyed collecting items. The tendency today is to be a minimalist.
So when you’re ready to downsize or sadly when a collector relative dies what do you do with their Comic Books, Paper Weights or Pooh collection?
You could try to sell the Pooh Bear Collectibles online. Some of the issues you might face when selling online include: setting up a payment account, figuring out attractive listing descriptions, locating postage, packaging materials and weighing each item, answering question messages from potential buyers, dealing with returns on damaged items, etc.
Also, figuring out pricing can be challenging. Grandmother may have paid $40 for an item but the online going rate is only $2.79. You need to ask yourself the question “is my time worth just a few dollars”? Online selling can take plenty of time.
You can give it to a place like a Hope Salvation Army. They will take it. However, some people struggle with the thought of their Great Aunt’s cherished items being separated and sold for .99 cents. The plush could become a dog toy.
You could donate any plush to a Hope kids place. However, many places only want items that are new, in the original boxes and are 5 years old or newer. Plus, your Grandma really took care of the plush and displayed them. Some people have a hard time with a plush collectible becoming a plush child toy.
Many times I have been contacted by family members and asked if they can donate and if I will accept Winnie the Pooh Items.
My answer is yes! I am always honored and humbled to – in my words – “to take care of their collection”.
If I am talking to the Hope collector and owner I let them know which numbers their items will be in the Guinness World Record Largest Pooh Collection. Their items becomes part of history vs. being sold for a buck at a rummage sale. I let them know I will showcase their donated collection along with mine. I consider their collectibles as THEIR collection in my database.
When someone donates Winnie the Pooh Collectibles I think it makes people feel better which I am happy for. Letting go of “things” can be hard for a collector and owners and even sometimes for family members. As much as we don’t want to be labeled as “materialistic” – things we buy and collect can have sentimental attachments and it’s those feelings that we are attached to probably more than the items. People remember where they were when they received an item, who they were with or even where in their life cycle they were. They don’t want those memories to vanish with the collectibles. You can put a price tag on a plush or jacket but you can’t put a value on happiness.
By donating Pooh Collectibles to the Guinness World Record Pooh Collection the collection stays entact and the memories are still there too. In fact, if the collector wants, they can even visit their items when traveling from Hope to WI.
If you have a collection of Pooh items to donate, feel free to contact me and we can coordinate adding your Grandmother’s Pooh Bear Items to history and the Pooh Bear Museum.
Deb Hoffmann - 414-708-0633