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Selling is never an easy decision.
Selling is never an easy decision.
We're here to help.
We're here to help.
We regularly buy collections of Folio Society books. If you have a collection of Folio Society books, please read the below guidance and get in touch with us for a quote.
Pictures
Pictures
Please arrange the books on a shelf or flat surface and take a picture of the spines with the titles clearly readable. If it is a large collection, take pictures of them in groups of about 10/15. Once we have identified all the books, we will send a full quote—usually within 24 hours.
Collecting the books you are selling together on a shelf is a quick and convenient way to take photos for a quote.
Quotes
Quotes
While we try to uphold our quotes for as long as possible, please note that there may be instances where delays can require a new up-to-date quote.
We aim to accomodate the needs of our sellers wherever possible. If for whatever reason you expect to need extra time to make your decision, please let us know and our team will do their best to help.
Condition
Condition
We need to know the condition of the books you are selling in order to provide an accurate quote. How much condition affects a book's price varies from title-to-title, and we consider each book individually.
Please note that if we receive the books with major defects that were not previously highlighted, this can result in a reduction to the quote—or rarely, a return of the books.
Defects
Defects
Please identify and highlight any major defects to the books, especially to the slipcases, spines or page. By defects we mean:
Smell - Any musty smell caused by humidity or smell of smoke
Foxing - Yellow or brown spots caused by storage in a humid environment. This can manifest on the page edges or inside the slipcase
Inscriptions - Any written notes inside the pages of the book
Ex-Library Book Plates - Stickers or stamps or marks indicating the book as part of an old library collection
Sun Damage - Usually manifests as fading to the slipcase or book spines
Stains or Tears - Marks, tears, dents or scratches to the slipcase, book covers or the pages themselves
Additional information
Additional information
The more we know about your collection, the more accurate our quote will be to your final payment. A rough idea as to the general condition of your books should be enough, e.g. 'like new' or 'a bit worn'.
Getting your books to us
Getting your books to us
Sending your collection to us depends on your location, whether in the UK or the US.
Local
Local
If the books are not too far from one of our offices (Surbiton, UK or Cullman, Alabama) we might be able to arrange a time to come and pick up the books.
We have previously picked up collections across London, and as far out as Kent. However, this depends on the size of the collection and is done on a case-by-case basis—so please get in touch.
Alternatively, we can arrange a timeslot for you to deliver the books to us yourself, and to take a look around our collection at The Vault while you're here.
(Warning: you may end up with more books than you arrived with!)
Delivery by courier
Delivery by courier
Most of our customers are not local, with some being based internationally.
For customers not used to posting parcels with couriers, we can help guide you every step of the way. Common questions include:
Which courier do I use?
How should I package my books properly?
How many parcels do I need for my collection?
When reaching out for a quote, let us know of any concerns and we can offer advice when we get back to you.
FAQ
FAQ
- What is Folio Society?
The Folio Society is a London-based publisher which produces luxury, collectible versions of previously published books. Most titles will have some cultural significance, be it overall popularity, a cult following, or represent some sort of landmark for a given genre. Iconic writers of literature, novels, poetry, plays, and history represent a large proportion of the society's offerings.
Folio Society books are always hardback books, often bound in real or artificial leather or silk, cloth, or buckram (a stiff woven material usually made with cotton). As reissues of pre-existing works, Folio Society books often feature additional content which enchance the reader's experience. This often means new illustrations, introductions from relevant subject matter experts, or further amendments or commentary to the original text.
Most, but not all, are sold with a slipcase: a box with one open side which protects the books from bumps, drops, and fading from sunlight. There are typically made with a thick paper-based material, and feel like a thick cardboard. Many feature colourful designs and printed or illustrated sides, while more expensive or limited edition titles may feature higher-end materials, or come in a larger solander box. Older titles published earlier than the 1970s may be issued with dust jackets instead.
- How can I identify a Folio Society book?
Unlike many other collectible publishers, Folio Society does not have much of a consistent design language or colour palette, instead taking inspiration from each title to create unique designs for each of its books. However, there are a few common features you can look for:
Publisher marks — the spine of the book will often include some form of logo indicating its publisher, such as 'Folio', 'Folio Society', or its initials 'FS'.
Slipcases — a standout feature of most recent editions, these protective slipcases are something of a calling card for the publisher: but not all books with slipcases are Folio Society ones, and not all Folio Society books are issued with slipcases.
Copyright information — almost all Folio Society books include a copyright page overleaf of the main title page. This can provide information about the book, the version of the original text being used, various permissions and sources used in its creation, and which print run/year it is part of. If no print year is given, then you have found a first edition which was printed the same year as it was published. The publishing year can be found on the title page, sometimes written as Roman numerals. Some limited edition titles, especially manuscripts, do not feature copyright information in them, instead including any details in a smaller companion book included in the original sale — and confusingly, the opposite is true for some other titles!
- Do you buy other collectible & antiquarian books?
While we specialise in Folio Society books, we do buy stock from other publishers from time to time. Most of the time, we only buy other books on an ad-hoc basis, usually alongside large collections predominately consisting of Folio Society titles. We do this to keep the selling process as convenient as possible for customers who have picked up a few titles from other publishers here and there.
We may expand our store to stock other collectible publishers in the future, but between our current Folio-centric systems and a small, four-person team, we are generally unable to offer quotes for non-Folio Society titles.
That said, there are some exceptions for especially remarkable, rare, or valuable books. From time-to-time, we also offer quotes for complete sets of books from the following publishers:
Heron Books
Franklin Library
Easton Press
If in doubt, get in touch with our team and we will let you know if we are able to make an offer as soon as possible. Such quotes may take longer than our usual 48-hour turnaround for Folio Society collections.
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