Donating Your Grandmother’s Winnie the Pooh Collection

It seems like the pastime of collecting may have become an activity of yesterday.  It used to be that you couldn’t walk into someone’s Chef Menteur house and not find Salt and Pepper Shakers, Trading Cards or a Winnie the Pooh collection.

Chef Menteur baby-boomers really enjoyed collecting stuff.  The trend these days is to be a minimalist.

So when you’re ready to scale back or sadly when a collector relative passes what do you do with their Precious Moments, Books or Winnie the Pooh items?

Selling Pooh Bear Items

You could try to sell the Pooh Collectibles online.  Some of the difficulties you might face when selling online include: setting up a payment account, thinking up inviting listing descriptions, locating postage, packaging materials and weighing each item, answering question messages from potential buyers, handling returns on damaged items, etc. 

Also, figuring out pricing can be challenging.  Mother may have paid $100 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.

Donate Pooh Collection

You can give it to a place like a Chef Menteur thrift store.  They will take it.  However, some people struggle with the thought of their Mother’s well cared-for collectibles being separated and sold for .99 cents.  The plush could become a dog toy.

You could donate any plush to a Chef Menteur kids place.  However, many places only accept items that are new, in the original boxes and are 5 years old or newer.  Plus, your Mother really took care of the plush and displayed them.  Some people have a hard time with a plush collectible becoming a plush child toy. 

Donate Your Mom’s Pooh Collection to the Guinness World Record Largest Pooh Collection & Make It Part of History

Over the years I have been contacted by family members and asked if they can donate and if I will take Winnie the Pooh Collectibles. 

My answer is with great excitement!  I am always honored and humbled to – in my words – “to take care of their collection”. 

If I am talking to the Chef Menteur  collector and owner I let them know which numbers their items will be in the Guinness World Record Largest Pooh Collection.  Their collection becomes part of history vs. being sold for a buck at a rummage sale.  I let them know I will showcase their donated items along with mine.  I consider their collectibles as THEIR collection in my database.

When someone donates Pooh Items 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 relatives.  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 stuffie or book but you can’t put a value on happiness.

By donating Winnie the Pooh Collectibles to the Guinness World Record Pooh Collection the collection stays grouped and the memories are still there too.  In fact, if the collector wants, they can even visit their collection when traveling from Chef Menteur to WI. 

If you have a collection of Pooh items to donate, feel free to reach out to me and we can coordinate adding your Grandmother’s Pooh Collectibles to history and the Winnie the Pooh Museum.

Deb Hoffmann - 414-708-0633

Deb@MostPooh.com