Recently I’ve been buying coins from a wonderful coin dealer online. I like his services so much, I wanted to share it with you. Originally he was recommended by my collector friend, Ole Sjoelund. His name is Gundars Sokolovskis, and he is from Latvia.
Gundars sells mostly 20th and 21st century circulation coins, though he also has some commemoratives. At the time of this writing he has about 8000 different kinds of coins, and all are displayed on his web site.
You can either browse his collection online, or download an Excel file. He also sends out a quarterly email with his list. I like to get it, just for a reminder that it is time to get something new. On the web site, you can browse coins by continent, and you can buy it right there, or you can send him an Excel file with your selection. He accepts PayPal, and also sends shipments with a tracking number. If you buy more coins, you can even get a discount, it is all listed on the web site and the Excel sheet.
Given the amount of coins he has, it is very convenient to browse his catalogue for things I’m missing from a country or from a series. I have to admit, I find other great things along the way. He has more coins than what I have in my entire collection, so it is never hard to find something new.
Now, why I like him compared to other online coin dealers? There are so many out there, or I could just get my stuff from eBay.
He is extremely blind friendly above the services he provides. Of course, I don’t think it is intentional, but it works out that way.
His catalog contains links to each coin he sells, mostly referencing Numista, which I can immediately use to get the information about the coins I buy into my catalogue, using my Harvester macro.
But more importantly, I really like how he packages the coins. The packaging is light and professional, coins from each country are packaged into a separate bag, and each coin is also in a separate bag. So, while the coins don’t get damaged on the way, it is very easy for me to sort through what I bought. I know how many countries I got coins from, how many from each country. I pull the data into my catalog in about two minutes, and when I open a bag, I know exactly what I’m holding in my hand. For example, if I order coins from two countries, three from each, one set is all reeded, one has two reeded and one smooth coin according to the catalog, I know exactly what’s what, and I don’t need sighted help, I don’t need a way to read the coins. It is so much faster to put my coins away than when I’m getting a larger shipment from eBay.
I can only recommend his services, Gundars is a polite oline coin dealer, fast to respond to emails, sends great coins, and just a pleasure to work with. He speaks English, Latvian and Russian.
His web site is http://www.e-coins.lv/en. You can also find him on Numista. He doesn’t have most of the coins listed on Numista, but you will see the great feedback he is getting for his trades.
And as a final remark, though this post looks like a sales pitch, it isn’t. I’m not getting or accepting anything for it, I like to review good products and services on this blog, and I offered to write about him, because I want him to grow his business. Please consider checking out his services, you won’t be disappointed.
