I've been writing my favorite piece of the year for the past two nights/mornings and it has made me reflect on perhaps the most interesting year I've ever had in my 29 years of owning my shop, Mike's Stadium Sportscards. It was perhaps the best of times and now it's time to hope that it doesn't quickly turn into the worst of times. I can't really control the entire … [Read more...] about 2021 Mikey Awards: The Hobby’s Best, Worst, Strangest
What’s Hot: Wading Through the Waiting; Top 5 Selling Boxes
I hope you all enjoyed a tremendous Thanksgiving and that it helped you forget about the one you might not have fully enjoyed in 2020. I hosted my wife's family during the inevitable Lions loss and then went over to my brother's house for Thanksgiving part deux. Suffice to say, I wish typing burned more calories than it does. It has been an interesting time at … [Read more...] about What’s Hot: Wading Through the Waiting; Top 5 Selling Boxes
What’s Hot: Appetite for Boxes, Hot Players Still Hearty
As always it is an interesting time to own a card shop. In between either answering questions from collectors who are wondering what will eventually happen when Fanatics becomes more involved with the sports card community OR being “told” what will happen, it is still pretty insane at my shop these days. Pretty much from when the door pops to when things shut down for … [Read more...] about What’s Hot: Appetite for Boxes, Hot Players Still Hearty
What’s Hot: Everything Old is New Again
Before I get to my usual current event chatter, I wanted to share some thoughts about the unfortunate passing of hobby veterans Rich Altman and Ben Ecklar. Rich owned Hollywood Collectibles in my old stomping ground of South Florida. I only briefly met him at the 2019 Industry Summit. I had always been impressed with his exclusive autograph relationship with Bill … [Read more...] about What’s Hot: Everything Old is New Again
What’s Hot: Denver Show, Topps Visit, Top 5 Sellers
It’s hot outside (yes, even at 5,400 feet above sea level) and it’s still crazy hot inside the shop as well. It seemed like some of the sports card world took a few weeks off, but collectors are back almost as strong as they were back in February and March. I just tried to restock some 2020 NFL and found that one distributor was above every sell price on Dealernet … [Read more...] about What’s Hot: Denver Show, Topps Visit, Top 5 Sellers
Mike’s Hot List: Not Just a Baseball, Football, Basketball Card World
It's been an interesting month and specifically the last few days around the shop and within the hobby (but when is it not?). The good news - My shop has partnered with Denver Card Shows for the first large show to hit the Mile High City in well over a decade. As you may have read on SC Daily, we are hosting a 200+ table gathering at the National Western Complex in … [Read more...] about Mike’s Hot List: Not Just a Baseball, Football, Basketball Card World
What’s Hot: The Shop Sets a Monthly Mark (Again); Top 5 Sellers
Once again I find myself at the keyboard after a Nuggets win. Aaron Gordon played his first game for Denver and we looked pretty solid. Even Bol Bol got some run time after not seeing the court for some time. I'm probably getting ahead of myself here, but this team might be close to as good as it was last year and this year there are real home court advantages … [Read more...] about What’s Hot: The Shop Sets a Monthly Mark (Again); Top 5 Sellers
What’s Hot: Traditional, Non-Traditional and To-Do Lists
I'm coming to you live from Ball Arena where the Nuggets just dispatched the Portland Trail Blazers and I'm waiting for my son Sam, who is a locker room attendant (formerly known as a ball kid) to get off work. I'm taking advantage of this available time since it is about all the time a shop owner has these days. Granted, I could be complaining about things having gone … [Read more...] about What’s Hot: Traditional, Non-Traditional and To-Do Lists
2020 Mikey Awards: Sports Card Hobby Rolls with the Punches
Before I get to some of the follies the sports card and collectible industry enjoyed in 2020, I want to share my hopes that you, your families and your friends all did as well as possible in all ways in the past year. It is rare to find someone who wasn't directly affected either by COVID-19 or by the many implications from it. Sadly a few times this year, I heard … [Read more...] about 2020 Mikey Awards: Sports Card Hobby Rolls with the Punches
What’s Hot: Keeping it Affordable in a Hot Market Ain’t Easy
Hello fellow card peeps, I hope that you enjoyed your Thanksgiving and that it was all it could have been. Since we all got through 2/3 of the football games we hoped for, we can now get to our regularly scheduled Black Friday sales. Looking back at the last month, it has been more cardboard insanity at my shop. Just about every new release has been well … [Read more...] about What’s Hot: Keeping it Affordable in a Hot Market Ain’t Easy