Nonsense Newsletter No. 85: Topps Bunt, what moves the market, CSG merges, a PSA 10 Pistol Pete and more!
Sponsored by SGC Cards gosgc.com
In this week’s edition of the Nonsense Newsletter, John Dudley squares up and talks Topps Bunt. I get all self-reflective and talk about what really moves the market. And, the Quick Hits section will likely cause you to have to take a deep breath just to be able to handle all the amazing information. So, let’s get all into summer here and kick back in the lounge chair by the pool (or no pool if you’re like me and don’t have a pool) and enjoy this week’s edition of the Nonsense Newsletter.
Contributor: John Dudley
NFTs were the wave of the future. The initial wave was short-lived, but while there may still be a future for NFTs in the hobby, there is a digital product that is still going strong that doesn’t even rely on blockchain technology. I’m talking about Topps Bunt. Topps Bunt is over ten years old at this point and survived the rumored shutdown with the rise of NFTs. Any future NFT endeavor would do well to mine the Topps Bunt experience for info on what works and what doesn’t.
I ignored Topps Bunt for years. I was aware of it, like most others in the hobby, as the goofy digital cards that invaded my eBay searches (tip: add -digital to your searches to get rid of them). Fortuitously, I screwed up and bid on a Topps Bunt card by mistake. I won it and to claim it had to set up a Topps Bunt account. Little did I know, I’d been hooked. I’ve been enjoying the game/app for a couple of months now and thought it worth highlighting.
Contributor: John McTaggart
Someone came up to me the other day and told me the market was down, and the trend does not look good for the future.
To which, I told him that I didn’t really care that much any of that since the market sets both the buy and sell pricing for someone like myself.
This concept did not seem to sink in well.
He went on to rattle of stat after stat about the downward-trending market, the falling prices, and the dismal outlook for cards.
Truth is, he’s right to a degree, the market is lower and prices are down compared to what they were before, particularly during the boom of the lockdown years.
However, what I am noticing is that there are more people in the hobby than ever before, and this, to me, is the key indicator of the health of the hobby as a whole.
Quick Hits
Grading News- CSG did what they should have done from the start and merged with sister-division CGC. It made no sense why they did not start off using the well-respected brand when they entered the market. While it is a logical move, it smacks of desperation after months of hiding CSG’s grading volume figures and after a heralded switch to a new label. Expecting customers to be happy about another new slab after many ponied up to swap to the new holders is folly. The move makes sense but ultimately seems like a gambit to salvage a floundering sports card division. More here.
Vintage- Okay, I write this section every week and although I enjoy the content, this week has me really geeked. Pete Marovich is one of my all-time favorite players regardless of sport. Chasing his rookie card has been a passion of both mine and my brother’s since we were teenagers. Well, now I have a new obsession — a PSA 10 1970 Topps rookie card. I actually never thought I would see it, yet, there it is, up for auction. Read more about it, but please don’t outbid me on it (just kidding, I’m broke), here.
Hobby News- A new Topps policy for dealers is circulating widely on social media. The provision that is making news is that dealers can no longer host breaks online or even sell products that they get directly from Topps online. There is also a provision that online sales cannot make up 50% of a store’s sales. It’s early days for this story with social media predictability offering wild speculation. It’s worth paying attention to, but it’s not time to get the pitchforks out.
Pop Culture News- Leaf’s direct-to-market autograph program got a cool addition with Michael Buffer on-card autos with his “let’s get ready to rumble” phrase as an inscription. If that’s not enough to tempt you, they’ve also got a Manchester City eight-player autograph card currently available too. Their autograph program is quietly becoming one of the more creative spaces in the hobby. Check it out here.
The Sports Card Nonsense newsletters reflect the opinions of only the authors and contributors. They are for informational purposes only and are not a recommendation for purchases or of an investment strategy or to buy or sell any assets.