This Leaf Pujols Jersey sold WAY too cheap.

[allstars]

"making a card a hologram "destroys the integrity" of the trading CARD, as I stated before..

Really? Do go on. Does adding cloth to a card, or an autograph wreck the integrity too? Do you collect cards made after the 80's? Because there really hasn't been alot of real cardboard used since then.

The hobby must've been doomed the day the first glossy coating came out...lol

 

[TBTwinsFan]

Liquid cards are going to be the new trend.

 

[sportscardtheory]

Really? Do go on. Does adding cloth to a card, or an autograph wreck the integrity too? Do you collect cards made after the 80's? Because there really hasn't been alot of real cardboard used since then.

The hobby must've been doomed the day the first glossy coating came out...lol

A HOLOGRAM isn't a CARD. The CARDS you mentioned are still CARDS. CARDS can have gloss. CARDS can have cloth attached to them. CARDS can be autographed. CARDS can be made of materials other than cardboard. CARDS can be die-cut. CARDS can have stickers attached to them. This innovation you think will open our eyes isn't gonna happen. Other than tweaks to ideas that have already been done, there won't be any more innovation to the trading card. Sorry to burst your bubble.

 

[Mario1975]

Just out of curiosity allstars, why are you so against unlicensed products? You would think a hobby shop owner would want to provide their customers with a wide range of products and would welcome competition and diversity of products.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Sports Cards by Freedom Card Board.com

 

[allstars]

I'm calling you out as a liar. There is absolutely no possible way that since 1993 not one person has ever asked if you had a product available that wasn't licensed. Just because you don't personally like something doesn't make it irrelevant. I don't believe you for a second.

Ouch. That hurts.

If you call me out as a liar at least don't put words in my mouth that I never said, it makes you look bad. i never said "nobody has ever asked about unlicensed cards in my store", did I?

I'm gonna move on from your shallowness now, your outlook on the hobby sucks.

 

[sportscardtheory]

Ouch. That hurts.

If you call me out as a liar at least don't put words in my mouth that I never said, it makes you look bad. i never said "nobody has ever asked about unlicensed cards in my store", did I?

I'm gonna move on from your shallowness now, your outlook on the hobby sucks.

"...my customers aren't asking for unlicensed products..." - you

 

[matfanofold]

Limiting ones store, and thus ones customer base, to product is at best fruitless and at worst detrimental towards success. The fact weather one can stay in business doing so is not the question, the real question is one limiting their potential profits? Is one limiting the hobby to their customers? The answer to both of these questions is obviously, and undeniable yes.

 

[allstars]

Just out of curiosity allstars, why are you so against unlicensed products? You would think a hobby shop owner would want to provide their customers with a wide range of products and would welcome competition and diversity of products.

A very legit question Mario.

I just never saw lasting value for the consumer in them, or the long-lasting mystique associated with them. The only unlicensed card that even comes close to "iconic" is a...never mind, I can't think of one.

There have been millions of unlicensed cards made in the past 30 years. You can make some in your garage tomorrow, pay a guy some cash to sign it & try to market it. If enough people buy it for you to make a living, great! Congrats! Good luck.

 

[sportscardtheory]

A very legit question Mario.

I just never saw lasting value for the consumer in them, or the long-lasting mystique associated with them. The only unlicensed card that even comes close to "iconic" is a...never mind, I can't think of one.

There have been millions of unlicensed cards made in the past 30 years. You can make some in your garage tomorrow, pay a guy some cash to sign it & try to market it. If enough people buy it for you to make a living, great! Congrats! Good luck.

Talk about shallow. Talk about a XXXXty outlook on the hobby. lol "Wahhh, I don't like these so no one else should either, wahhh!"

 

[trauty]

Ah but that's the thing BG - my customers aren't asking for unlicensed products and most are well-versed on my views on them. I tell them I'd never sell them something I wouldn't buy myself. I don't tell them not to collect products such as yours, only that I don't sell things that I see no value in for them. You can't dispute the fact that unlicensed cards sell for a fraction of what their licensed counterparts do, right?

I really don't get this argument. Yeah, it may be true that unlicensed cards sell for less than licensed cards but the cost to the consumer is way less to acquire them in the first place. One of your customers spends around $75-80 for a box of Bowman and he'll get 1 autograph that in almost every case won't sell for more than $10 (and most sell for $3-5 or less). For his same $75-80, he could have bought a box of Leaf Metal Draft. In this box, he would have received 8 autographs. It's true that most of them won't sell for more than $10 either (and most will sell for around $2-3). So with the Topps product, he's guaranteed a box full of base (mainly worthless in this era of card collecting) and 1 autograph that is likely to be worth $5-10 (there are some exceptions but then there are exceptions for Leaf as well). With Leaf he's guaranteed 8 autos, and even if we are assuming all 8 autos are of crappy guys, that is around $20-25 of minimum value). So minimum value for the $75-80 your customers will have to spend is around $10-15 for Topps (if we give the base cards credit for being worth around $5) OR $20-25 for Leaf. It seems like your first loyalty should be to your customers and not to Topps or the MLB. You are doing your customers a disservice by not providing them with a product that has less risk financially to them. (The $75-80 price I'm using is the going price on Blowout, DACW, and AtlantaSC since I have no clue what price you'd charge in your store for a box of Bowman).

 

[allstars]

Limiting ones store, and thus ones customer base, to product is at best fruitless and at worst detrimental towards success. The fact weather one can stay in business doing so is not the question, the real question is one limiting their potential profits? Is one limiting the hobby to their customers? The answer to both of these questions is obviously, and undeniable yes.

And yet dozens of card shops have and continue to close all around me. I've never sold a POG or Beanie Baby in my life. Like Gilmo says, mine must not be a "normal" situation. Is it beyond the realm of possibility that my customers might just believe in and appreciate my views on things like unlicensed cards & other things I don't feel belong in a good card shop? I don't have to sell everything to run a nice shop. In fact, I feel that the fact that I realized that decades ago might just be the reason I'm still here. Maybe, maybe not.

PS: Yes, I sell fishing tackle. Purely as a muse to my non-conflict-of-interest hobby, I assure you. You can't be a dealer and a collector in this business, not if you have mouths to feed.

 

[sportscardtheory]

LOL

"I turn my nose up at unlicensed product and would NEVER sell them in my store. P.S. I do sell fishing tackle."

 

[RiceLynnEvans75]

Didn't Leaf get their own sub forum b/c of threads like this?

Was thinking the same thing.

 

[allstars]

I really don't get this argument. Yeah, it may be true that unlicensed cards sell for less than licensed cards but the cost to the consumer is way less to acquire them in the first place. One of your customers spends around $75-80 for a box of Bowman and he'll get 1 autograph that in almost every case won't sell for more than $10 (and most sell for $3-5 or less). For his same $75-80, he could have bought a box of Leaf Metal Draft. In this box, he would have received 8 autographs. It's true that most of them won't sell for more than $10 either (and most will sell for around $2-3). So with the Topps product, he's guaranteed a box full of base (mainly worthless in this era of card collecting) and 1 autograph that is likely to be worth $5-10 (there are some exceptions but then there are exceptions for Leaf as well). With Leaf he's guaranteed 8 autos, and even if we are assuming all 8 autos are of crappy guys, that is around $20-25 of minimum value). So minimum value for the $75-80 your customers will have to spend is around $10-15 for Topps (if we give the base cards credit for being worth around $5) OR $20-25 for Leaf. It seems like your first loyalty should be to your customers and not to Topps or the MLB. You are doing your customers a disservice by not providing them with a product that has less risk financially to them. (The $75-80 price I'm using is the going price on Blowout, DACW, and AtlantaSC since I have no clue what price you'd charge in your store for a box of Bowman).

You make very valid points also trauty. I have no bearing on factory costs & such, I only know what I need to make on items to survive, feed my kid & stay in business. I'm sure I could do much better if I sold pot or booze to my customers, but I don't believe in that stuff just as I don't believe in unlicensed cards being "legit". I've been doing it for 22 years, loving every minute of it, and hope to continue to do it for 22 more (unless my Honus Wagner comes along, then I'm outta here). I've got a sweet selection of stuff I believe in on my shelves, and I feel guilty about selling nothing that I do. I do a disservice to nobody imho. Financial risk? When you plunk down money for enjoyment it should never be viewed as financial risk, just the price of having fun.

Hopefully you better understand where I'm coming from now. If not, I tried.

 

[ChasHawk]

Was thinking the same thing.

me too

 

[Mahoody]

Was thinking the same thing.

I guess the boards here were a bit slow
You know there's nothing like a Leaf thread to get the juices flowing
Just ask the OP

 

[sportscardtheory]

You make very valid points also trauty. I have no bearing on factory costs & such, I only know what I need to make on items to survive, feed my kid & stay in business. I'm sure I could do much better if I sold pot or booze to my customers, but I don't believe in that stuff just as I don't believe in unlicensed cards being "legit". I've been doing it for 22 years, loving every minute of it, and hope to continue to do it for 22 more (unless my Honus Wagner comes along, then I'm outta here). I've got a sweet selection of stuff I believe in on my shelves, and I feel guilty about selling nothing that I do. I do a disservice to nobody imho. Financial risk? When you plunk down money for enjoyment it should never be viewed as financial risk, just the price of having fun.

Hopefully you better understand where I'm coming from now. If not, I tried.

You are the trading card ****. lol "No unlicensed products for you!"

 

[RITM]

Not my site, not my right I guess. If my opinion counts, though, FCB looks a lot like what I would expect to find if the Leaf website had a forum. The topic is relevant to the hobby in that it is a current release. With that said, I clicked and contributed to the thread. Now that the thread has taken the same turn as the majority of previous Leaf related threads it is not as interesting.

 

[Mahoody]

You are the trading card ****. lol "No unlicensed products for you!"

this remark offends me -

not funny

 

[Mahoody]

Not my site, not my right I guess. If my opinion counts, though, FCB looks a lot like what I would expect to find if the Leaf website had a forum. The topic is relevant to the hobby in that it is a current release. With that said, I clicked and contributed to the thread. Now that the thread has taken the same turn as the majority of previous Leaf related threads it is not as interesting.

Well add to this thread with your opinion as to whether the card the OP brought up was sold too cheap or not & why