Before the economic downturn, collectors would easily branch out if they found something interesting. Then, people started downsizing their collections even if they were not leaving the hobby. When common chips flooded the markets from people leaving the hobby, collectors were concerned that they may not be able to unload chips that did not fit into their core collecting areas, or from new areas that no longer interested them. So, more and more people concentrated solely on their core area or areas. More and more, collectors were only looking for hard to find chips to fill holes in their main collections, and nothing else. I believe this was a significant cause of the reduction in trading. The increased postage combined with this reluctance and trades became harder and harder except between those who share the same focus areas.

I could be wrong, but I think this has been a big factor based upon the timing of the shift in trading attitudes. I have noticed it in myself. I no longer want to trade for a chip I don't need. I am not looking to expand into new areas of collecting. If we ever get a large influx of new collectors, it would probably change back again.

JMHO

Michael Siskin