case prices are silly

[uniquebaseballcards]

+1 million

I like it that every week new crap isn't coming out flooding the market.

 

[All The Hype]

Yeah 09 draft is at an all time high. I was just quoted 85 for a box... ONLINE. These were 55 when released. Then again, its a great product.

Not that it's necessarily the standard, but I got absolutely killed on my 09 Draft case. Zero auto parallels better than refractor /500...which is something I have never seen before. It was the last wax I opened and will be for some time because it really turned me off to wax.

I can deal with getting good parallels and simply missing on the player, but it just sucks that I didn't really even stand a chance.

 

[Bob Loblaw]

Topps' sole license is doing quite a bit to drive people out of the hobby.

Nice planning, MLBP.

 

[starwarsfan2003]

Topps' sole license is doing quite a bit to drive people out of the hobby.

Nice planning, MLBP.

Well dont jump the gun just yet Jeff. I know we were supposed to see a few UD releases also, but they pretty much got shut down because of the judgment against them I assume. I see it as a great opportunity to stock up on PC cards and other singles I needed from sets that I haven't had a chance to catch up with.

And as some people have said before you, If they're selling out inventory and can't restock due to higher dealer prices, how exactly are they driving people out of the hobby? I think it's more of an issue that dealers are now cutting into people''s profit margins, hence the aggravation.....

 

[uniquebaseballcards]

Without a doubt, this is bound to happen in any industry that deals in non-essential products in the short-term.

To say fewer people will be in the hobby long-term as a result is pure conjecture.

Topps' sole license is doing quite a bit to drive people out of the hobby.

Nice planning, MLBP.

 

[mchenrycards]

I think this is all cyclical. I have been around this hobby for 35 years and I have seen the "shaking out" of investors on more than one occasion. This stuff happens and the guys looking to make the money off the hobby will follow the profit trail to another venture while the collectors stay put and add to their collections. The hobby will rebound as it always does and with it the investors will come back. I have seen this cycle too many times and I am positive it will happen again, although it may take more time to bounce back than before.

 

[rymflaherty]

In some ways can't this be perceived as a positive thing?

It's always a bad thing for the consumer to see prices go up, especially when the market turns a good valued product into another gamble, but it also seems like a rise in "value" could be spun into a positive for the hobby.

After being back in the hobby for a few years now it does seem kind of disheartening to go on these sites and see just about every product released over that time selling well under the initial price. Part of me is happy to purchase older boxes at a fraction of the cost, but then seeing those prices also makes me not want to bother buying any new product because the majority can be purchased later for cheaper and those dips in prices also seem to indicate a poor market in general for the hobby.

Just throwing that out there - if older products continue to gain in value I think there's at least a chance that can drive sales for current products and potentially even bring more people into the hobby.

 

[ChasHawk]

Why would higher box prices encourage new people to join the hobby?

 

[jbhofmann]

Why would higher box prices encourage new people to join the hobby?

People do stupid things like collect cardboard pictures of grown men. This hobby has no logic.

 

[rymflaherty]

Why would higher box prices encourage new people to join the hobby?

My comment was referring to past products.

Thinking of a casual collector or someone who may want to get in the hobby - what do you think would be more likely to bring them in? Researching and finding out that the $100 box they are thinking of buying is probably going to sell for $60 a couple years from now, or seeing that that same box has a good chance of selling at that price or higher soon after.

It's just my opinion, but I believe the perception of value is key to those that re not embedded into the hobby.

 

[Bob Loblaw]

It's one thing for Bowman Chrome to sell for a higher amount after release and long after release. Until about 2007, the absolute BEST investment was to buy a case of Bowman Draft and sit it. No matter what, it went up.

However, with the situation we have now, this has nothing to do with Draft... it seems as though EVERY box is going up.

The best way to get people involved in the hobby? Lower barriers to entry -- cheap wax. A box of, say, 2007 or 2008 Finest. Nice cards, low price, chance for a few decent autos. But no current demand. Same thing with 2008-2009 base Topps. Even current year Topps.

However, a previous poster (Warren, I think) indicated he couldn't get Topps unless he wanted to charge $4 a pack.

High barriers to entry is not going to grow the hobby. It's going to shrink the hobby.

Further, I would enjoy opening cheap wax with my 9 year old son if there was a chance he could pull something good out of the packs. Now, there appears to be very little to no cheap wax. Therefore, not going to do buy anything. One less hobbyist.

 

[Bill Menard]

Topps' sole license is doing quite a bit to drive people out of the hobby.

Nice planning, MLBP.

Cite your source please. Statement like this needs credibility. You are not credible.

 

[Bill Menard]

One less hobbyist.

Does this mean you're leaving the boards? Just asking.

 

[Bob Loblaw]

[quote="Jeff N.":1is7khz9]Topps' sole license is doing quite a bit to drive people out of the hobby.

Nice planning, MLBP.

Cite your source please. Statement like this needs credibility. You are not credible.[/quote:1is7khz9]

I didn't think a speculative opinion statement requires a source.

In that regard, who in the blue hell are you?

 

[Bob Loblaw]

[quote="Jeff N.":3dbpq37s]One less hobbyist.

Does this mean you're leaving the boards? Just asking.[/quote:3dbpq37s]

The aforementioned 9 year old son is.

 

[Bill Menard]

[quote="Bill Menard":qfok55wu][quote="Jeff N.":qfok55wu]Topps' sole license is doing quite a bit to drive people out of the hobby.

Nice planning, MLBP.

Cite your source please. Statement like this needs credibility. You are not credible.[/quote:qfok55wu]

I didn't think a speculative opinion statement requires a source.

In that regard, who in the blue hell are you?[/quote:qfok55wu]

I'm Bill Menard. I think you've seen me around here before. I've just grown very tired of your rants and ridiculous posts. I do my best to avoid them, but they are EVERYWHERE, so it's hard to do!

At the same time, I should have added something to the topic at hand and why I read through in the first place. If cases prices are too high, don't buy the product and they'll come down. Distributors need to make money. If no one is buying the product, then they will have to lower the price until they meet a price level that allows them to sell stuff. If you are buying from them and shrinking down their supply, then they should just continue to increase the prices. It makes sense.

 

[matchpenalty]

I think having less confusing worthless crap coming out every week will get more people back into the Hobby. I still see Topps 2010 packs for normal prices. Target and SKuzmart still have all kinds of blasters and packs waiting to be bought of current stuff. Even if stuff goes up in prices, people may even think cards might be worth collecting again.

 

[uniquebaseballcards]

I tend to think the uninitiated lumps cards with any other collectible in terms of it appreciating in value. Thus the average collector who lost a ton on beanie babies or pogs would be less likely to think cards would make a good investment. Still many other collectors won't care about the money aspect at all.

Of course some investors survey a bunch of different hobbies and figure out how to cash in on them based on their past experience selling to collectors in general, and have no personal interest in any particular hobby.

My comment was referring to past products.

Thinking of a casual collector or someone who may want to get in the hobby - what do you think would be more likely to bring them in? Researching and finding out that the $100 box they are thinking of buying is probably going to sell for $60 a couple years from now, or seeing that that same box has a good chance of selling at that price or higher soon after.

It's just my opinion, but I believe the perception of value is key to those that re not embedded into the hobby.

 

[Bill Menard]

I think having less confusing worthless crap coming out every week will get more people back into the Hobby. I still see Topps 2010 packs for normal prices. Target and SKuzmart still have all kinds of blasters and packs waiting to be bought of current stuff. Even if stuff goes up in prices, people may even think cards might be worth collecting again.

Topps Series I just had to go up in price. The MCG cards are selling very strong and pay back roughly $30 of the box. They were originally a buck or less at release. Given the product could be expected to increase in price by a bit even without them, the added value has led people to be willing to pay more. They also appear to have affected the price of series II case presales.

 

[uniquebaseballcards]

The confusing part that comes with having too many products sometimes helps drive sales because people -even experienced collectors- have difficulty keeping track of it all and wouldn't know if they're overpaying for something rare or unusual (damn BINs).

I think having less confusing worthless crap coming out every week will get more people back into the Hobby. I still see Topps 2010 packs for normal prices. Target and SKuzmart still have all kinds of blasters and packs waiting to be bought of current stuff. Even if stuff goes up in prices, people may even think cards might be worth collecting again.