How the pandemic is changing the trading card industry
With so many uncertainties happening around the country, one that hits a little closer to our home and hobby is what the future of trading cards will look like.
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With so many uncertainties happening around the country, one that hits a little closer to our home and hobby is what the future of trading cards will look like.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the release calendar was filled with dozens of new trading card products. However, once statewide shutdowns occurred, the calendar changed dramatically. Releases like Bowman were pushed back and instead ecommerce offerings became more important than ever for card companies to survive.
The biggest change came with the traditionally released items, the ones that show up in card stores and big box retailers. Until printing facilities and warehouses open (which are located in Texas), these cards won’t start moving yet.
Cards can’t be printed or shipped without a staff. It’s that simple.
However, once these locations do reopen, there is going to be backlog of products that need to be printed and shipped. These facilities were already running nearly 24 hours a day, so it’s not as though they are going to be able to catch up that quickly.
Schedules will have to get moved around and likely prioritize certain products. I don’t think this means products will get canceled (though it will be tough to keep schedules given many staffs across the country are dealing with layoffs and furloughs).
Card companies need to make a lot of money. Cards have become more expensive to make. Licenses are costlier and because products are filled with autographs, the need for more player deals is also impacting the bottom line.
To compensate for the increased costs, companies are going to want to put out as many products as they can.
However, the current delays will likely have a ripple effect for several months, if not the rest of the calendar year.
That’s where ecommerce comes into play and Topps is leading the charge in this space.
Topps is continually building its ecommerce portfolio. The turnaround started with TOPPS NOW in 2016 and then it continued, with mixed returns, for digital products like Throwback Thursday, Living Set and Topps On-Demand.
This year, it introduced Project 2020, an art-related set that features 20 artists depicting 20 different players renditions of their cards. This set has done very well – and selling for $20 a card on Topps.com. The secondary market has been even crazier.
Project 2020 has brought new people into the hobby as those people are looking at buying art as opposed to buying a baseball card.
Then with the delay of 2020 Bowman Baseball, Topps also took advantage of the situation by releasing Bowman “First Edition.” It’s similar to Panini’s 1st Off the Line offerings.
And, guess what?
It sold out.
Now, Topps is also creating Topps 206 for an online-only release. I wouldn’t be surprised to see more and more of these products the rest of the year because the digital printing business doesn’t need the Texas printing facilities to operate — they’re printed in Florida, which didn’t shut down with a stay-at-home order.
Many collectors are home and practicing social distancing. They’re ordering more items online as ecommerce companies have seen a surge in revenue.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see more offerings from Panini, though I do not know if anything is planned beyond the 1st Off the Line releases. Although Panini has done well with some of the Panini Instant products and getting players to activate on social media to bring attention to these cards.
Upper Deck still has its ecard app that is similar, but not carrying the secondary market value as many of the Project 2020, Bowman First Edition, and Panini 1st Off the Line cards.
I foresee ecommerce continuing to play a big role as the year progresses and the future of collecting may not come back from it (whether that’s good or bad is another story). Collectors are realizing how easy it is to get items delivered and there is not always that need for the immediate gratification of having to rip something right now.
It doesn’t hurt that these items are exclusive to these websites with a limited supply landing at card stores around the country.
You just need to wait a couple of days until the mail arrives.
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It will be interesting to see how this all plays out when things go back to normal, or as close as we’ll get to normal from here on out. I had no doubt that the big 3 would find ways to make money and get cards out to market, but my big fear is my LCS. We already were living in a marketplace that card shops could barely still exist, it’s my big fear that the pandemic might push them to full extinction.
It’s also interesting to note that with the void of new products, what collectors have been grabbing and doing with their time and money.