Experience: I own the world's largest Monopoly collection

"The first Monopoly set I ever owned was the one everyone had the classic edition with Mr Monopoly on the box. I bought it as a souvenir on holiday in my 30s. Twenty-five years later, I've got thousands of boxes stacked away in a warehouse, four Guinness World Records and have made several TV appearances. When Guinness visited my warehouse last year, they spent a whole day counting my collection. By the end, they confirmed I had 4,379 different sets."

"There are many variants of Monopoly, and countries and businesses are constantly releasing their own versions. For me, it's about the chase, finding the rare ones: a special anniversary edition, a limited production run, or just something incredibly hard to find. I've even got the Park Hyatt Sydney hotel edition, which you can usually get only if you stay the night there. I managed to track down a guest online, who bought it for me."

"I've probably spent about 400,000 on my collection over the years. I've been lucky to have a job at DHL for more than three decades, which has helped me keep up with my hobby. The most expensive set I own is a silver edition from London, which would have been worth 2,500 brand new it was limited edition and used real silver. Luckily, I found mine much cheaper on eBay."

The first Monopoly set owned was the classic edition with Mr Monopoly, bought as a souvenir in the collector's 30s. Twenty-five years later thousands of sealed boxes are stacked in a warehouse, earning four Guinness World Records and multiple TV appearances. Guinness counted 4,379 different sets during a whole-day inventory. The collection emphasizes rare country- and company-specific variants, limited editions and hard-to-find releases. Examples include a Park Hyatt Sydney hotel edition obtained by contacting a guest and a London silver limited edition originally worth 2,500. About 400,000 has been spent on the collection, supported by a three-decade DHL career. Nearly all sets remain sealed because opening them reduces value by roughly 90%.

Read at www.theguardian.com