Earning Money On Coins

im a specialist coin dealer so maybe I can offer some insight into specialization.

i focus on US Large Cents. its the majority of my inventory.

i dont have a store front. there arent enough dedicated large cent collectors in my state to make that profitable. I do shows and travel to larger events. I sell online. I sell to personal contacts. the hotel bar at the convention is one of the best places to sell coins.

the local coin shows are good buying opportunities. all of the shops and dealers know I exist and that I will buy their better dates and rare varieties. they bring them to me. they also bring me the ones they cant identify. I was involved in the discovery the 13th known 1793 S-15 (sometimes called the aristocrat of large cents) because a dealer brought it to us. he couldn't identify it and didnt know what he had. everybody made money on that deal.

the type set collectors come to me to fill their holes. I have the best selection of large cents. if I dont have it I know where to get it.

the narrow focus allows me to spend time on fun stuff. I like to help the kids at the coin shows and use that time to promote numismatics to novice collectors.

specializing allows me to work collaboratively with the other dealers. they have specialties too. some like type. some like toner Morgans. they all like something. I like to view them as coworkers collaborating to help the collectors build their collections.

generalists cant ever be the best at what they do. there is too much to know. having a narrow focus is the only way to be the best in a category.

specialization offers opportunities. the ANA (americas congressionally chartered coin club) has me teaching classes on large cents. people pay more than $1,000 a head to come and learn about these coins from me. if thats not a captive audience I dont know what is.

narrow focus has treated me well.

for something like large cents you are mostly dealing with intermediate to advanced collectors. very few people start collecting coins with a large cent. even fewer jump into varieties early.

since the customers are usually fairly savvy they tend to find you. if you have the coins they want they will track them down. coin collectors love the hunt.

word of mouth is the best advertising you can get but it also takes time. there isn't really a shortcut there. it takes a lifetime to build up a customer base. its a lot of small victories that add up rather than a single big event.

buying things at the right price matters way more than finding a buyer. if you buy it right there will always be someone to sell it to.

being a coin dealer is a lot more work than many collectors realize. its not for everyone. its hours of holdering boring inventory. its driving cross country to events. staying in crappy hotels connected to crappy convention centers. eating crappy convention center food. its grinding out small margins over and over again. the health plan sucks. the money is inconsistent. sometimes you work a 60 hour show and lose money. shipping...so much shipping. outlaying $2k in the hopes of making 20 bucks. because the bankroll matters so much every cent you spend on something else reduces your future profit potential.

all that said I love it. I get to handle coins that I couldnt afford normally. I get to travel the country and experience tons of different places. I get to eat at all sorts of interesting restaurants. I get to randomly sell something while watching a movie. sometimes you cover a week or a months worth of bills by mailing a single package. I always have petty cash. its not for everyone but it works well for me.

My personal take is that, yes, you CAN make money from coins. After all, that's why local coin shops exist. They don't exist for our entertainment - they exist as businesses to make money. Given that there's at least one LCS in every town pretty much, I would venture to guess that they make decent money, at least to keep the lights on. That being said, I would imagine that you would need a LOT of coin knowledge and business savvy to run a successful coin shop, whether it's offline or online.

Be a very astute professional coin dealer.

All the extensive knowledge in the world will not a
Successful coin dealer make !
Recipe for success includes a deep understanding
of how to run any business and a large bank roll .
Otherwise one is just " whistling past a graveyard! "

I earn a lot of money on coins on a daily basis.

Being a burglar really pays off...

We condemn.

I already have a job :) The reason for my "sarcasm" is this, if you make buying and selling coins your JOB, you can make money ... it's hard work that requires dedication, adaptation, instincts, education, networking etc.etc. Sound familiar ? It sounds just like my job. I have sold some items that I didn't want but my primary purpose is to continue enjoying coins (I love them) and preserving some hard assets for my peace of mind. Best of Luck - Tiny