In the late winter and early spring of 2020, as COVID began to spread across North America, sports card shop owners were rightfully concerned. In the Denver suburbs, Mike Fruitman looked as his checkbook, started doing some math and thought about the number of months he might be able to keep his head above water if things got really bad. "I didn't know if we were going to … [Read more...] about Hobby Shop Owners Discuss Booming Business, Finding Help, Advertising, More
sports card shop owners
Notes: More KY Shop Burglaries; Topps Earnings; Northeast Show on the Move
The wave of burglaries at card shops in SEC country continues. Sometime early Wednesday morning, someone climbed into Louisville Sports Cards—by cutting a hole through the roof, no less. The shop was closed on Wednesday to assess damage and take inventory. Over 100 sports card boxes including three full cases were stolen. No suspects have been identified yet according to … [Read more...] about Notes: More KY Shop Burglaries; Topps Earnings; Northeast Show on the Move
Notes: NSCC is On; eBay on Bid Retractions; COMC Shipping; Shop Stories
Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the National Sports Collectors Convention will go on as schedule July 28-August 1. On Tuesday, the NSCC confirmed their intentions to hold the show rather than push it back to the October backup dates it had been holding The show is scheduled for the Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, IL and with state government believed to … [Read more...] about Notes: NSCC is On; eBay on Bid Retractions; COMC Shipping; Shop Stories
Steelers’ Cassius Marsh Opens Southern California Card Shop
Westlake Village, California native Cassius Marsh was a high school star at Oaks Christian School. He was one of the top ranked defensive tackles in the entire country during his senior year of high school. The defensive force took his quarterback hunting talents to UCLA where he was a collegiate standout, as evidenced by his selection to the Pac-10 All-Freshman Team. The … [Read more...] about Steelers’ Cassius Marsh Opens Southern California Card Shop
Long-Time Dealer Joe Davis in eBay Spotlight
He started his brick-and-mortar business at the height of the sports card boom of the early 1990s, opening a 500-square-foot shop. Twenty-nine years later, Joe Davis is still at it. J&J Sports Cards, his Atlanta area hobby shop and Got Baseball Cards, his online business, are thriving, better now even than in those crazy days of the latter part of the junk wax … [Read more...] about Long-Time Dealer Joe Davis in eBay Spotlight
Shops Deal with COVID Closures
Mark Fugate, owner of a Cincinnati area card and memorabilia shop, didn’t wait to close his Sports Gallery. Days before the state of Ohio ordered the closure of all non-essential businesses, Fugate locked the doors on his store. “Nobody wants to close,” he said. “It’s very tough. But baseballs and bobbleheads are not essential at this point in time.” The Sports … [Read more...] about Shops Deal with COVID Closures
VIDEO: Loss of Spring Training Crowds, Virus Fears Make for Tough Times at Arizona Shop
These are challenging times for sports card and sports memorabilia shops. Some have closed for now. Others can only offer curbside service or delivery to stay within local guidelines. Those that have been able to stay open so far are seeing fewer customers. In Florida and Arizona, the early end to spring training was a double whammy. Jeff Thalblum owns Free … [Read more...] about VIDEO: Loss of Spring Training Crowds, Virus Fears Make for Tough Times at Arizona Shop
Notes: Chicago Area Shop Still Going; Six-Figure Bids; NE Ohio Show; Mahomes Rules Sales
Nearly 28 years ago, college student Jim Anderson and his father Vic opened a hobby shop in the Chicago suburb of Elgin, IL. His dad has passed on but Jim and the store are still going strong. Shoebox-Memorabilia relies on a network of regulars who have formed a community of collectors, some of whom come in to break boxes and wind up making a day of it. The … [Read more...] about Notes: Chicago Area Shop Still Going; Six-Figure Bids; NE Ohio Show; Mahomes Rules Sales
Notes: SoCal Store Featured; Card Donation Milestone; T206, Early Topps Auctions Coming; HFC Jersey Auction
Maybe you’ve participated in one of their breaks or seen the name online but Jaspy’s Hobby Land now has a brick-and-mortar location in Hermosa Beach, CA. The place is also home to those online breaks they’ve been doing for several years. It’s all run by long-time hobbyist Mike Jaspersen and his son, Nick, who were the subject of this feature story in a SoCal online … [Read more...] about Notes: SoCal Store Featured; Card Donation Milestone; T206, Early Topps Auctions Coming; HFC Jersey Auction
Hobby Shop Owner with MD in Running for eBay’s Small Business of the Year Award
A hobby shop owner from Blaine, MN is in the running for eBay's Small Business of the Year award. Todd Hallada owns 2Bros Sports, one of eBay's largest sports collectibles sellers and also owns a brick-and-mortar shop, located just north of Minneapolis. Hallada and his brother Tom were born with muscular dystrophy but that hasn't stopped either of them. At age 16, … [Read more...] about Hobby Shop Owner with MD in Running for eBay’s Small Business of the Year Award