Profile We have found through our 30 years collections. What’s your take on what you plus in the business, where gold has want to offer the British public? How do appreciated seven times, that collectors We want to make collecting coins you market who take a long view, and people accessible to the man in the street. The Scoin Shop? who build interesting collections, Since we have rolled out our stores are the ones who do best. in malls that are open seven days Advertising is extremely important People who build collections a week for extended hours and in to us. My first advert was thirty years ago, also get the most enjoyment . . . a secure environment, we have when I was a one-man dealer. It was a two-line and according to the medical created a lot of interest. promotion in the smalls of the classified section. records . . . hobbyists have lower Our stores have a friendly This grew into block adverts in classifieds, then blood pressure!!! environment with a limited a little block advert in the weekday newspapers, With low interest rates, bank selection of gold and platinum followed by the Sunday papers and now radio failures, currency devaluation— coins and medallions which and TV. I believe that original little advert got what better way to protect your are relevant—and have struck a us business. When I started, my advertising future and have fun at the same chord with our clients. budget was £10 a month, now it’s over £3 time than with the thrill of building We approach the market in a million a year. To build a brand and a a fabulous coin collection for you or way that attracts first time buyers business, takes a lot of marketing your children or your grandchildren. who we eventually want to turn into over a long period of time. As our pay-off line states . . . 1 man, collectors. 1 ounce. Biography Alan Demby was born in the United Kingdom and joined his family when they emigrated to South Africa. In 1977, he was conscripted to the army and became a Lieutenant. He started learning about and dealing in coins whilst in the army, with the princely sum of £150. In 1980 he rented his first offices and started dealing on a full time basis under the name of “The Gold Club”. By 1989 he had bought the Gold Investment Corporation from SAGE Holdings, a South African PLC. In 1992, he bought The South African Gold Coin Exchange from the original owner and continued to successfully develop the business. In 1999, he had spotted an opportunity in the market to move into retail and opened the first Scoin Shop in Sandton City, a mixed shopping mall and office development created by Sir Donald Gordon of Capital and Counties. To date, there are 30 Scoin Shops, the only retail chain of coin shops in the world, in the UK and South Africa. Alan has appeared on numerous radio and TV shows, including CNN and CNBC and has contributed numerous articles to the press. He was a South African finalist of the World Entrepreneur awards competition, organized by Ernst & Young in 2008. Recently, Scoin was a finalist in the World Retailer of the Year award alongside household names such as Lego, Jack Wolfskin and Desigual. Today, the Gold Group employs approximately 500 members of staff and is one of the biggest coin companies in the world in terms of staff and with a turnover of approximately £70 million per annum. Alan is a family man with two daughters, one of whom recently married, and a son. He splits his time between the UK and South Africa with business and family in both countries. Scoin Shop facts at a glance • The Scoin Shop is the UK and the world’s only gold coin retail chain. • The Scoin Shop has 30 retail outlets between South Africa and the UK • The Scoin Shop offers coin collectors and bullion investors the opportunity to buy bullion, collectable silver and gold coins securely from either its online shop, its brokers or its retail outlets in Westfield Shepherd’s Bush, Bluewater, Kent and the newly opened Westfield Stratford City branch. • The Scoin Shop has successfully marketed a wide range of gold and precious metal coins minted from the world’s leading mints including the British Royal Mint, the South
December 2011
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African Mint, the US Mint, Mint of Norway and Monnaie de Paris, to name a few. The world’s first Scoin Shop opened in Johannesburg’s Sandton City Mall in 1999. Since then, there are 30 Scoin Shop outlets between South Africa and the UK. The Nobel Institute, the Nelson Mandela Foundations as well as the FW de Klerk Foundation have been direct beneficiaries of the royalties from the Nobel Laureate medallions which Scoin Shop retails. The Scoin Shop is currently planning a significant joint venture with the British Royal Mint. They can be found at www. scoinshop.co.uk.
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