Mowbray buys huge stock of stamps

Mowbray Collectables has bought one of the largest stocks of stamps in Australasia for an undisclosed sum.

The stock previously belonged to Stirling & Co, a 75-year-old company based in Christchurch.

"It is a vast quantity that fills two floors of a big building - it's so big we have had to take an option out on the building itself," said managing director John Mowbray.

The Otaki company expects the purchase to result in a significant increase in profit margins over the next few years. Mowbray yesterday indicated pre-tax profits of $500,000 for the first three months of the financial year. The company made a net loss of $170,000 in the year ended March 31.