Fanatics is using its long reach to put Topps trading cards in another nationwide retail outlet.
The company announced Wednesday that it had entered a distribution partnership with Lids, a sports apparel company with several hundred stores. Fanatics has owned a minority stake in FanzzLids, the holding company behind Lids, since 2018.
Topps products are now available in over 300 Lids stores across the U.S., with plans to expand that to more than 500 by this fall. The stores are selling MLB, UEFA Champions League, Formula 1 and non-sports cards produced by Topps, which was purchased by Fanatics earlier this year.
While the selection will vary from store to store, Lids says it is currently stocking stores with both boxes and packs including:
- MLB 2022 Topps Baseball Series 1 – Packs, display box, value box, and hobby box
- MLB 2022 Topps Baseball Series 2 – Packs, display box, value box, and hobby box
- MLB 2022 Topps Heritage Baseball – Packs, display box, value box, and hobby box
- MLB 2022 Topps Bowman Baseball – Packs, value box, display box, and hobby box
- MLB 2022 Topps Opening Day Baseball – Value box
- MLB 2022 Topps Gypsy Queen Baseball – Hobby box
- MLB 2022 Topps Inception Baseball – Hobby box
- Formula One 2021 Formula 1 Racing Chrome – Hobby box
- Soccer 2022 Topps UEFA Champions League – Value box and hobby box
- Soccer Topps Match Attax – Display box and mini tin
Lids stores have a standalone Topps branded trading card display containing packs of cards.
“Lids is known as the preeminent sports retailer, and we’re consistently focused on providing an exciting and diverse assortment of products and apparel,” Lids President Britten Maughan remarked. “This partnership allows us to do just that while also catering to a new audience of card collectors.”
The announcement arrives just ahead of Topps’ International Trading Card Day this Saturday.
A list of Lids stores can be found here.
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