Bridging the Gap: Modern and Vintage Collectors
TCC
Posts: 162
I wanted to share a recent TCC article that seemed fitting since this has become "Heritage Central"... 
Couple of things that I'm wondering...
1. Do you agree that the "availability" gap is much smaller thanks to the Internet?
2. Do you think vintage collectors are generally more focused with their collecting (read an interesting thread on that here as well)?
3. Do you agree that Topps is the leader in the area of "throwback" products?
4. Were there any products listed that you disagree with being categorized as for both modern and vintage collectors or any obviously missing?
By the way, I imagine the percentage of modern vs. vintage collectors here might be reversed.
-Bob
Start of article-
How many of you consider yourself to be collectors of only new sports cards? On the other hand, how many of you only collect vintage cards? Odds are, 60%-75% of you can be categorized as "modern" collectors and the rest of you focus on collecting cards of decades past and are known as "vintage" collectors. Then again, how many of you now find yourself collecting both modern and vintage cards?
The main difference between modern and vintage collectors is actually very simple to understand. Most vintage collectors grew up with the cards they now collect. Since vintage cards are what they grew up with, it is often hard for them to appreciate the value of newer cards. Often, modern cards are viewed as a "flash in the pan" since their cards have been popular for longer than the newer cards have been in existence. Meanwhile, the modern collector is just collecting what he or she has grown up with. Many modern collectors are younger in age and just don't have the financial means to chase down a high-grade copy of a Wilt Chamberlain rookie card.
With this basic understanding, let's learn a little more about each group and then take a closer look at what the hobby is doing to bridge the gap between modern and vintage collectors.
Click here to read the full article.
Couple of things that I'm wondering...
1. Do you agree that the "availability" gap is much smaller thanks to the Internet?
2. Do you think vintage collectors are generally more focused with their collecting (read an interesting thread on that here as well)?
3. Do you agree that Topps is the leader in the area of "throwback" products?
4. Were there any products listed that you disagree with being categorized as for both modern and vintage collectors or any obviously missing?
By the way, I imagine the percentage of modern vs. vintage collectors here might be reversed.
-Bob
Start of article-
How many of you consider yourself to be collectors of only new sports cards? On the other hand, how many of you only collect vintage cards? Odds are, 60%-75% of you can be categorized as "modern" collectors and the rest of you focus on collecting cards of decades past and are known as "vintage" collectors. Then again, how many of you now find yourself collecting both modern and vintage cards?
The main difference between modern and vintage collectors is actually very simple to understand. Most vintage collectors grew up with the cards they now collect. Since vintage cards are what they grew up with, it is often hard for them to appreciate the value of newer cards. Often, modern cards are viewed as a "flash in the pan" since their cards have been popular for longer than the newer cards have been in existence. Meanwhile, the modern collector is just collecting what he or she has grown up with. Many modern collectors are younger in age and just don't have the financial means to chase down a high-grade copy of a Wilt Chamberlain rookie card.
With this basic understanding, let's learn a little more about each group and then take a closer look at what the hobby is doing to bridge the gap between modern and vintage collectors.
Click here to read the full article.
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Comments
Oh yeah, and the increased demand would make vintage cards more valuable. Just thought of that.
<< <i>Interesting article. I'm all for retro cards and reprints, because they do bridge the gap. It gives vintage collectors something of interest on the modern side, and may get young collectors interested in genuine vintage as they emerge from the pack-busting stage of their collecting careers. Many will just drop out of the hobby, as they do now, and some will continue on as pack-busting adults, but I hope sets like Heritage will result in a few more young people developing an interest in the history of the sport and our hobby.
Oh yeah, and the increased demand would make vintage cards more valuable. Just thought of that.
I think you hit the nail on the head with bringing up "pack busting". There are a number of collectors, me included, who just simply enjoy opening up packs. That's a big part of the enjoyment for us. With some of these products, we get to rip open packs (carefully of course) but still have an opportunity to get some nice cards of players from the past. A Clemente is still a Clemente. When I pull one, it just sticks out more to me than the other cards.
There's some that think many vintage collectors would just assume the number of collectors interested in their items stay lower so they have less competition (lower price) for the items.
-Bob
TradingCardCentral.com - THE resource for trading card collectors.
TradingCardCentral.com covers sports cards, non-sports cards and collectibles and features the latest industry news, articles, product reviews, forums, giveaways and a growing number of collector resources.
<< <i>There's some that think many vintage collectors would just assume the number of collectors interested in their items stay lower so they have less competition (lower price) for the items. >>
Well, sure. I don't want there to be a lot of new competition until I'm finished with my sets and in selling mode.