At the early age of 20, Ulrich Felzmann (born in 1948) decided to follow the family tradition and pursue a career in his hobby: philately. His enthusiasm for stamps and letters was in his blood, his great-grandfather having organised the first international stamp exhibition in the Bavarian town of Regensburg back in 1899. His grandfather Paul Hartmann (1888-1973) dealt with prominent dealers and collectors in Berlin during the First World War. In the 1960s, Ulrich Felzmann’s uncle, Adolf Schaub (1923-2007), set up an auction house in Düsseldorf in which Ulrich Felzmann also learnt his trade.

In 1976, Ulrich Felzmann founded his own auction house on Düsseldorf’s Stresemannstrasse, holding his first auction on 30 June 1976. His wife, Christa Felzmann, was on board from the start, helping her husband to build up the company. Right from the earliest days, the Felzmanns succeeded in forging important contacts in Düsseldorf and obtaining a constant supply of high-quality private and inherited stamp collections.

A number of outstanding consignments helped to raise the company’s profile significantly in the scene. Chief among these was the sale of selected German Empire material formerly belonging to legendary Berlin-based stamp dealer Philipp Kosack, which had remained untouched since the 1930s. Auctioning these outstanding lots finally enabled the company to enter the top league of philatelic auction houses in 1993.

Ulrich Felzmann continually strives to keep his company at the cutting edge and to allow plenty of scope for innovation. This gave rise to a new catalogue design aiming to present single lots from the areas of philately, postal history and numismatics “at a glance” – complete with photos, descriptions and starting bids.

Given the company’s resounding success, it was only a matter of time before it was necessary to move to larger premises. In 2004, the company relocated to expansive offices (700 m²) on Düsseldorf’s Immermannstrasse, adding a further floor in 2010. As there is now also room for an auction hall, major international auctions can be held in-house.

One further important innovation was the arrival of the online catalogue in 2006. Ulrich Felzmann has maintained a high online profile since back in the mid-1990s. The development of the online catalogue made it possible to target new customer groups and to raise the company’s international profile even further. In spite of a slowdown on the collector market, the company continues to expand every year. Also in 2006, savings bank Stadtsparkasse Düsseldorf presented auctioneer Ulrich Felzmann with the Entrepreneur of the Year Award for SMEs. The award speech laid particular emphasis on the “exceptional commercial success in the specialist field of philately, founded on modern marketing strategies”.

The field of numismatics has grown in importance for the company over the years. The positive demand and momentum on the coin market attracts new customers and ensures a constant stream of interesting material for our auctions. In 2008, the company’s first independent coin auction was also accompanied by its first coin catalogues – resulting in a substantial success for the coin business. On average, the prices attained at the first coin auction represented a 35% increase on the starting bids.

In 2009, Ulrich Felzmann was given the distinction of being invited to present a rarities auction at the International Philatelic Exhibition (IBRA) in Essen, Germany. In its capacity as official IBRA auction house, Felzmann Auction House auctioned numerous philatelic gems, including the fourth specimen of the world-famous Audrey Hepburn stamp, which went under the hammer for €60,000. Find out more about the famous Hepburn brands at Felzmann here.

This extremely valuable collection was auctioned in 2011 at the Stadtsparkasse Düsseldorf forum. For 40 years, it had been compiled by an expert collector and, for the most part, left untouched in a safe for the last 20 years until being entrusted to us for auction. A coin collection had hardly ever been brought to the market in such a compact form before.

Since auction 150 you can take part in any auction in real time, regardless of where you are located. If you are interested in a lot, you can join in the bidding with a simple click.

Our first online auction for coins and stamps was held on 8 and 15 January 2015. At this auction, attractive collectors’ items can be acquired in the pocket money range.

The latest “non-issued” Deutsche Post special issue for Christmas 2016 with the misprint “Kerstfest” and “Jul” caused quite a stir when they went under the hammer live at the International Stamp Fair in Essen and online in May 2017. The acquisition price of €1,500 for the cancelled single stamp on cut square was greatly overshadowed by the self-adhesive panes in MNH condition, which fetched a sensational €27,500.

45 Years of Felzmann Auctions 1976 - 2021 - Düsseldorf Auction House Celebrates Anniversary

In 2021, the auction house Ulrich Felzmann celebrates the 45th anniversary of its company in Düsseldorf in 1976. Company founder Ulrich Felzmann conducts auctions for stamps and coins as one of a total of five in-house auctioneers and is happy to advise customers personally on consignments. Three times a year, large floor auctions for stamps and coins take place. This offer is supplemented by three e@uctions, which are purely online auctions offering a very wide range of individual lots in the medium price segment.