Reminder..Sat. April 3 is
habs71
Posts: 321
National Trading Card Day. So stop by your local participating dealer and pick up your free cards!
INFO
<< <i>Saturday is National Trading Card Day
Dwight Chapin
Tuesday, March 30, 2004
San Francisco Chronicle
A coalition of the country's top card-makers, licensing bodies and memorabilia publications is joining forces to try to pump some life back into a flagging industry with the first National Trading Card Day.
More than five million sports cards will be given away Saturday at stores and shops all over the United States, including at least a dozen in the Bay Area.
A complete list of participating dealers is available online at nationaltradingcardday.com.
Consumers who visit outlets taking part in the promotion will receive (while supplies last) a set of 53 cards from Donruss Playoff, Fleer, Press Pass, Topps and Upper Deck. Included will be stars from across the sports spectrum, such as Alex Rodriguez, Roger Clemens, Brett Favre, Michael Vick, LeBron James, Shaquille O'Neal, Tiger Woods, Joe Thornton and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Each of the cards, which will come in a block of five packs, will have a National Trading Card Day insignia.
The most relevant question about any cards these days -- including brand-new ones -- seems to be, "What are they worth?"
That's hard to tell here, because between 60,000 and 100,000 of each card was made, and it's expected about three million will be given out.
"It's really just about having the cards and enjoying them, but it's a good set to stash away for years down the road, and I'm sure some people will get them graded," said Mark Barwell, president of publishing giant Beckett.com. "But the point is for collectors to appreciate this as a unique set and for it to be a plus for the hobby."
The larger point of the "day" is to give a boost to retail card outlets that have been hurt severely in recent years by Internet sales and competition from things such as video games.
Dean Listle, publisher of the sports collectibles division of Krause Publications, the hobby's other major magazine and price guide outlet, said, "The goal of this promotion is twofold. The cards are a great addition to any hobbyist's collection, and this is a great way to showcase the nation's top sports-card stores and introduce customers to what they have to offer."
In addition to the free card sets, many of the participating dealers are expected to offer various in-store events Saturday, such as contests, card trading and door prizes.
The best follow-up, in our opinion, would be if the same people who have joined forces to put this day together would unite to curb the greed that has produced a glut of cards in every sport, every year and has confused and turned away so many old and new collectors.
New stuff: It's very difficult to pick standouts among the current releases because there are just so many of them out there.
But the Topps "retro" sets in all sports are outstanding products, right down to the boxes in which the card packs come.
And Upper Deck has a particularly worthy new release in Bee Hive hockey.
The cards, patterned loosely after Bee Hive Starch cards that were made in Canada in the 1950s and '60s, feature attractive wood grain borders. The packs feature a nice shot of Red Wings great Gordie Howe, as does the box cover.
And each box offers two stunning over-sized cards -- one a game-used jersey card -- with terra cotta-colored borders.
E-mail Dwight Chapin at dchapin@sfchronicle.com. >>
INFO
<< <i>Saturday is National Trading Card Day
Dwight Chapin
Tuesday, March 30, 2004
San Francisco Chronicle
A coalition of the country's top card-makers, licensing bodies and memorabilia publications is joining forces to try to pump some life back into a flagging industry with the first National Trading Card Day.
More than five million sports cards will be given away Saturday at stores and shops all over the United States, including at least a dozen in the Bay Area.
A complete list of participating dealers is available online at nationaltradingcardday.com.
Consumers who visit outlets taking part in the promotion will receive (while supplies last) a set of 53 cards from Donruss Playoff, Fleer, Press Pass, Topps and Upper Deck. Included will be stars from across the sports spectrum, such as Alex Rodriguez, Roger Clemens, Brett Favre, Michael Vick, LeBron James, Shaquille O'Neal, Tiger Woods, Joe Thornton and Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Each of the cards, which will come in a block of five packs, will have a National Trading Card Day insignia.
The most relevant question about any cards these days -- including brand-new ones -- seems to be, "What are they worth?"
That's hard to tell here, because between 60,000 and 100,000 of each card was made, and it's expected about three million will be given out.
"It's really just about having the cards and enjoying them, but it's a good set to stash away for years down the road, and I'm sure some people will get them graded," said Mark Barwell, president of publishing giant Beckett.com. "But the point is for collectors to appreciate this as a unique set and for it to be a plus for the hobby."
The larger point of the "day" is to give a boost to retail card outlets that have been hurt severely in recent years by Internet sales and competition from things such as video games.
Dean Listle, publisher of the sports collectibles division of Krause Publications, the hobby's other major magazine and price guide outlet, said, "The goal of this promotion is twofold. The cards are a great addition to any hobbyist's collection, and this is a great way to showcase the nation's top sports-card stores and introduce customers to what they have to offer."
In addition to the free card sets, many of the participating dealers are expected to offer various in-store events Saturday, such as contests, card trading and door prizes.
The best follow-up, in our opinion, would be if the same people who have joined forces to put this day together would unite to curb the greed that has produced a glut of cards in every sport, every year and has confused and turned away so many old and new collectors.
New stuff: It's very difficult to pick standouts among the current releases because there are just so many of them out there.
But the Topps "retro" sets in all sports are outstanding products, right down to the boxes in which the card packs come.
And Upper Deck has a particularly worthy new release in Bee Hive hockey.
The cards, patterned loosely after Bee Hive Starch cards that were made in Canada in the 1950s and '60s, feature attractive wood grain borders. The packs feature a nice shot of Red Wings great Gordie Howe, as does the box cover.
And each box offers two stunning over-sized cards -- one a game-used jersey card -- with terra cotta-colored borders.
E-mail Dwight Chapin at dchapin@sfchronicle.com. >>
0
Comments
Yeah...
About that...
I kinda tried to order the sets in early March, but nobody told me the deadline to order had already passed.
My bad,
Jason
Our current ebay auctions, and of course BaseBallCardHeaven.com