Paul’s wide smile and Acubra hat are well-known in the Birkenhead community. His regular routine includes volunteering on a Monday and Thursday at the Hospice speciality second hand book shop, Finally Books, located in Birkenhead. He is enthusiastic about his volunteering experience with Hospice. “It’s a joy to be working with books and with people who both love them and are very knowledgeable about them,” he says
Part of the Birkenhead team since 2010 Paul describes his main role as “making the tea and taking out the rubbish” which is a typical understatement. Former shop manager, Chris McCullough, calls Paul “our man about the shop” for his willingness to take on any task and quietly chip away at it until it is complete.
This year Paul took on the challenge of sorting, cleaning, valuing and selling an assortment of stamp collections donated by the community. Paul is quick to admit that he didn’t know a lot about stamps when he started, however he quickly realised that there was more value in selling stamps individually rather than in albums. Paul, a self-confessed history buff, has found researching stamps a great way to learn about history and the countries of the world. His extensive enquiries have included exploring Post Office guidelines, searching the internet and stamp catalogues. “The more you look at it the more you learn,” he says.
Paul estimates he has processed around 10,000 stamps to date. “The backlog was immense,” he explains. “There can be hours of work to find a stamp in a catalogue.” Paul is currently working on a German stamp from 1893 which, he believes, could be worth anything from ten cents to $2000.00. He plans to consult an expert, to determine the value.
The collection’s reputation is spreading and there is a regular group of collectors who now come to the shop on a Thursday to see what’s new. “The customers seem to know what they are looking for and will spend thirty to forty dollars each time they come in.” One stamp recently sold for $80.00: definitely worth all Paul’s hard work.
Paul is quick to acknowledge Chris McCulloch’s vison in turning Finally Books from a bookshop to a destination. “There’s a special feel to the shop,” he says.
Before becoming a stamp specialist, Paul had a four-year-long role organising Hospice book fairs. These raised around $5000 revenue each year for Hospice. The scale of these events is huge involving thousands of books, each personally sorted, valued and categorised for sale then displayed to maximise the sales potential.
Paul is also in charge of the DVDs, CDs and Blue Rays, estimating that the shop had around 300 DVDs in stock a few months ago. These items are very popular and sell quickly therefore donations of new stock are always welcome.
Paul emigrated from England in 1964 at the age of 17. He came out on the Comet, the first commercial jet in the world and landed at Whenuapai. It was a bit of a culture shock after London. Paul’s 91 year old mother, who still lives in England, has a stamp collection which her mother started as a young girl. Perhaps philately is in the blood! Paul is married with two sons and one grandson. He “retired early” from a 40 year career with Office Products before taking a part time role in a fashion warehouse for a further 10 years. Now fully retired he has the time to walk, enjoy a good book at a local café and do his volunteer work.
December 2015
For more information, please contact Volunteer Services by e-mail or on 09 485 3536.
