If you’re holding mulitple Panini redemption cards that are at least four months old and are tired of waiting, you can once again trade them in for something else at this year’s National Sports Collectors Convention. The company says its “Trade Up” program will return for the seventh straight year.
The IOUs usually happen when players don’t return their signed cards to trading card companies in time for inclusion into products. The redemption cards are put in their place. Once pulled by collectors, a code from the redemption card can be placed into the company’s system and once the cards are signed and returned to the company, they’re sent to collectors who pulled the redemption cards. Those autographs are usually filled within a reasonable amount of time but sometimes players simply don’t sign and collectors are left with waits that can last years.
Under the “Trade Up” program at the National, collectors who have submitted their redemption cards into Panini’s database can come to the company’s booth in the corporate area and trade their unfulfilled autograph or memorabilia cards for a grab bag of cards Panini promises will be worth as much or more than the combined total.
For example, a collector holding four outstanding redemption cards with a combined Beckett value of $80 will have the chance to trade-up those four cards for one $100 card via what Panini calls a “carefully constructed” grab-bag system. Panini assigns values to replacement stock and those grab bags containing one autograph, a prime memorabilia card or a box of product at the $50, $100, $150 and $200 levels serve as the redemption replacement.
For the third straight year, a few of those grab bags will include a small number of Panini Black Boxes.
Bags will be separated by sport, and collectors will get to choose what sport they select as a replacement (baseball, basketball or football).
Collectors and dealers participating in the program in Cleveland are asked to print their list of outstanding redemptions and bring it to the show. Redemptions and values will then be verified.
Panini says collectors may swap out up to $400 in value at the show while supplies last. Outstanding redemption cards must total a minimum of $35 in value in order to be eligible for the program. Collectors also will be required to sign a waiver that states they agree to the random pulled replacement.
The Trade-Up program will be available Wednesday, August 1 from 5 PM – 7 PM; Thursday, August 2 and Friday, August 3 from 11 AM- 4 PM; Saturday, August 4 from 10 AM – 3 PM and Sunday, August 5 from 11 AM- 2 PM.
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