Manneken-Pis will get a new “stampy” costume

Manneken-Pis will get a new “stampy” costume

Manneken-Pis will have a new stamp costume on Sunday the 9th of October. This was announced by the Amicale Philatélique de Bruxelles, in association with Delcampe. They are allowed to buy and sell collection pieces. The costume will be made only of stamps. Around 2,000 people in Belgium are interested in stamp-collecting.

“Belgium has around 275 stamp-collecting clubs”, says Eddy Van Vaeck, the President of the Royal Federation of Belgian Philatelic Circles. “The number of members has dropped over the years. However, former members, aged between 40 and 50, are joining again when they find time for themselves”, he added.

Not all stamp-collectors join a club, some collect on their own. “Meetings are held every weekend. We can meet with lots of people to talk and exchange. I don’t think stamp-collecting will die out in the next twenty years, as stamps are works of art”, he said.

Bpost pays particular attention to these fans. “Stamp-collectors are important customers, as we sell lots of individual stamps. They are especially popular when we launch limited edition stamps”, says Barbara Van Speybroeck, the Bpost spokesman. In 2015, for example, the company launched a line entirely dedicated to chocolate. The Bpost specialist’s magazine has over 40,000 subscribers.

“Because of digitalization, young people are less interested in stamps. They are more interested in going out or sports, and less so in starting a collection”, says Eddy Van Vaeck. “But it’s a passion like many others, which can be passed down from generation to generation”.

Manneken-Pis will get its stamp-collector costume on Sunday the 9th of October, for World Post Day.

(Source: Belga)


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