You have been bitten by the ol' stamp collecting bug. You have been religiously visiting your local post office for newly issued postage stamps. You have scoured your attic, your mother's house's attic, and your grandmother's house's basement, looking for old letters and their envelopes, as well as postcards and packages, in the hope that one of these days you'll get lucky and find a completely rare stamp.

The problem is, all these activities don't seem to be enough to satisfy your desire to obtain all the rare and special stamps you want to put in your collection.

Another problem, and a slightly more serious one, is that you're not exactly sure how to tell if a stamp is precious or not.

What are you to do?

Enter the stamp collecting company.

Because of the great popularity of stamp collecting, spawning hundreds and thousands, perhaps even millions, of devoted and passionate stamp collectors around the world, quite a number of individuals with a knack for entrepreneurship have gone into the business of serving and satisfying the stamp collecting needs of these collectors. Hence the birth of stamp companies, that is, the company of stamp dealers.

What is a stamp dealer?

Basically, a stamp dealer is an individual who sells collectible postage stamps to serious stamp collectors. Often they also provide catalogues that stamp collectors use to determine the vastness and rarity of their collections.

What other services do stamp collecting companies offer?

Besides selling stamps, stamp collecting companies also perform a variety of services:

1. Organize auctions for collectible stamps. Auctions are a great opportunity for stamp collectors to obtain those rare and utterly valuable stamps that will complete their collections.

2. Prompt appraisals. Stamp dealers are usually experts in determining the value and rarity of stamps. They can provide you a fairly accurate estimate of the worth or your collection

3. Sell your stamp collection at commission, should you decide to part with it.

4. Buy your stamp collection for themselves or the company.

5. Find specific kinds and varieties of stamps upon your request.

6. Provide stamp collectors with new and updates on postage stamp collectibles.

How do I get hold of a stamp collecting company?

These days, stamp collecting companies have their own websites, and it would only take a click of the mouse and an email for you to get in touch with them. You can also visit the local stamp store, if there's one in your community.

As a reminder, be sure that the stamp collecting company you deal with is one that's trustworthy and credible. It's best to work with dealers that are affiliated with trusted stamp collecting clubs and organizations.