About Us

The Westminster Collection is a leading distributor of collectable stamps and coins, acting on behalf of Postal Administrations, Mints and Ministries of Finance across the globe.  However, the roots of our family business go right back to 1945.

From a playground business to leading distributors

The original Harry Allen business was established after the war by Mr Allen who transformed his childhood “business” trading stamps at school into a “proper” business wholesaling new issue stamps.  At the vanguard of the philatelic boom of the late 1960 and 1970s, Harry Allen was one of the very first companies to sign an international stamp agency agreement, allowing face value wholesale sales of stamps outside the issuing country.

The Harry Allen name remains at the forefront of today’s new issue philatelic trade, holding philatelic agencies for around 75 countries, including, USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Eire.

Making collecting more accessible

In 1987 his son, Stephen Allen, formed The Westminster Collection to make stamp collecting more interesting and accessible to general public.  Within a few years coins were also featuring alongside thematic stamp collections for events such as the Queen Mother’s 90th Birthday, the 40th Anniversary of the Accession and the 50th Anniversary of D-Day.

By bringing together some of the key issues for events of importance for the British collector and creating exclusive and limited edition pieces, The Westminster Collection has provided a way for many hundreds of thousands of collectors to own a piece of British history and heritage – perfect to pass down to children and grandchildren.

The Westminster Collection remains a family business, with Stephen as Chairman.  We hope that our many years experience servicing the needs of collectors helps set The Westminster Collection apart from other foreign-owned businesses and the more impersonal world of national mints and postal authorities.