Meet the UVA Student Building a Rare Coin Empire

From Childhood Hobby to Six-Figure Business

While most preteens were playing soccer, Hunter Hicks was hanging out at convention centers with coin collectors decades his senior. His parents were puzzled, but Hicks knew he was onto something.

Now a fourth-year student at UVA's Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy, Hicks runs Hicks Coins—a rare coin collecting business that generated more than $960,000 in revenue in 2024.

The Spark

It all started with a 1943 Lincoln steel cent discovered at an antique store in Northern Virginia when Hicks was just 10 years old.

"What other things do we have now from 1943 that are preserved like this?" he recalled thinking.

That curiosity evolved into expertise. Hicks immersed himself in local coin clubs in Alexandria and Fairfax, attended summer seminars in Colorado and California, and worked for coin wholesalers during high school before launching Hicks Coins in February of his senior year.

A Lean, Smart Operation

Hicks built his business model around efficiency:

Low overhead: A small office space with no full-time employeesMulti-channel sales: Active on eBay with 720+ items and regular appearances at coin showsStrategic location: Transferred from Stanford to UVA to tap into the East Coast's "old money" and family collections

"In Palo Alto, there's just not the same frequency of old family collections," he explained about his decision to come to Virginia.

Balancing Coins and College

Unlike many successful young collectors who skip higher education, Hicks was determined to get his degree. He credits several UVA courses with sharpening his business acumen:

Financial accounting with Jill MitchellSocial entrepreneurship at Batten School with Bala MullothHistory and economics with Mark ThomasConsumer behavior and marketing strategy at McIntire with Amar Cheema

"It's very uncommon for young coin collectors to go to college," Hicks noted. "Most of these people are like, 'I'm making enough money. Why would I go get a degree I don't need?' And I was never going to be that way."

The Dream Find

Hicks' white whale? A 1792 U.S. half-"disme" with roots to Thomas Jefferson. Until then, he'll keep treasure hunting—traveling to coin shows in Chicago, Orlando, San Francisco, Baltimore, Charleston, and beyond.

"I just can't imagine another industry where I'm going to have this much fun," he said after a late-night drive back from the Eastern Shore of Maryland. "This is what I should be doing for the rest of my life."

Read the full story on UVA Today.

Visit Hicks Coins or follow @hunterthecoincollector on Instagram.