Latest news with #tradingcards
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
A new era for Bleecker Trading: NYC's home for cards, culture, and community
Big news in the hobby world: Bleecker Trading, the renowned New York collector shop, has been acquired by longtime collector Matt Winkelried. Founded in 2020 by Mark Zablow of Cogent World, Bleecker Trading quickly became one of the most celebrated hobby shops in the country. But Bleecker was never just a shop. From day one, it's been about building a cultural destination: a high-energy space where commerce meets community, and nostalgia blends with next-gen energy. The Bleecker name became synonymous with hospitality, creativity, and connection. Now, as the torch passes from Mark to Matt, we sat down with both of them for an exclusive conversation about how Bleecker was built - and where it's headed next. Q&A with Matt Winkelried and Mark Zablow You've officially taken over Bleecker Trading—how does that feel?Matt: I'm incredibly excited to officially embark on this next chapter. I've been a lifelong collector and my first experience at Bleecker was as a customer, so it feels pretty special to have come full circle. Working closely with Mark to really hone in on what makes this business so special has been amazing, so I can't wait to dive in even deeper. Why was now the right time to sell Bleecker Trading?Mark: Bleecker was always about creating a cultural movement around collecting, and I think we accomplished that. We built a brand that redefined what a trading card shop could be. It felt right to step away when the foundation was strong and the momentum was real — and with Matt's vision, energy, and love for the space, I knew the business could grow even more with him leading it. It just felt like the right moment to let Bleecker evolve — plus, we always say: it's Bleecker Trading, not Bleecker Storage… so everything is for sale. What initially attracted you to Bleecker Trading, and how do you plan to honor the name while building on its legacy?Matt: I was a customer and long-time collector. The first time I walked into Bleecker Trading it unlocked this fire in me—I didn't just want to collect, I wanted to help build something that brings my passion to more people and communities. What separates Bleecker from the rest of the industry is that we really are a hospitality-first business, and I vibed with that. We always want to make everyone feel welcome and part of our community through in-store experience and events, so even as we continue to grow, that will always be core to our brand's identity. What are you most proud of when you look back on what Bleecker became?Mark: I'm most proud that we made Bleecker feel like home — not just a store. We gave kids, parents, collectors, and even first-timers a space where they could connect, trade, laugh, and belong. We took something traditionally niche and made it mainstream and cool, without losing the heart of it. What excites you most about this new chapter for the shop?Matt: Since the beginning, Bleecker has reimagined what collecting can look and feel like: creating welcoming, high-energy spaces that merge culture, nostalgia and shared interests. We've always been more than just a card shop, and we're excited to double down and provide as many opportunities for our community to connect and invest in our growing team. How do you think Bleecker influenced the local community and shaped collecting culture in NYC?Mark: We flipped the script. Bleecker brought collecting out of the shadows and into culture. We turned trading cards into an experience — events, live trades, content, community. The hat became a symbol of the movement, something people wore with pride because it represented more than just cards — it represented belonging. You'd see it on kids after school, collectors, celebrities, bartenders, delivery guys — everywhere. It helped make the hobby feel visible, proud, and undeniably New York. NYC could finally say it had a hub that respected the hobby. That ripple effect went way beyond Christopher Street. How do you plan to build on the foundation Mark and the team created?Matt: Build is the key word here—what Mark and the team have created with Bleecker is so unique to the industry that we want to build on this foundation by expanding access for more people to learn about what Bleecker Trading has to offer. What's the memory you're most fond of in the past few years growing Bleecker?Mark: Frankly, just hanging on the block on event nights — the energy, the people, the flow between the shop, the pizza spot, the bodega. Collectors, kids, parents, local businesses, and my friends all mixing together. It wasn't just about cards — it was about community. Meeting so many great people and hearing their stories. That's the part I'll always remember. In fact, it's the business cards. I collected much more than the trading cards that mean everything to me. Can loyal customers expect any changes to the Bleecker experience, in-store or online?Matt: Initially, we're prioritizing in-store experience for our customers. That's what has made Bleecker Trading so special: our experience in our shop. Looking forward, we are thinking about how digital can extend the in-store experience and bring more people in without losing the magic of Bleecker's spaces. How did you know Matt was the right person to carry the Bleecker legacy forward?Mark: Matt came in as a customer and quickly became part of the heartbeat of Bleecker. He didn't just get the business — he understood the culture, the energy, the relationships that made it special. He brings passion, vision, and the ability to grow the brand in new ways. He was living the mission before ever having a formal role — that's how I knew. What's your vision for the future of Bleecker over the next 12 months?Matt: We're just getting started so I can't share too many specifics at this time, but we are evaluating and considering everything. What I can say is that we're going to double down on community and grow the business in a way that stays true to our DNA. That starts with learning more about our customers and focusing on growing our existing community, while also inviting new customers into our world. What advice are you passing on to Matt as he takes the reins?Mark: Lead with hospitality. Keep adding value — to the hobby, to the community, to every person who walks through the door or connects with the brand. Don't be afraid to take risks. Bleecker was built by pushing boundaries and trying new things — and never settling for the norm is what will keep it special. Will you still be involved in the hobby or connected to Bleecker in any way?Mark: Definitely. The hobby is part of who I am — I'll always be collecting, trading, and supporting the culture. And I'll always be rooting for Bleecker. I may not be running the business day-to-day, but I'll be in the mix however I can — just in a different role now. If you're passionate about collecting, make sure to check out Mantel, the social network built for collectors.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Milwaukee Brewers' Jacob Misiorowski pulls his own rare baseball card from pack in Greenfield shop
You'd be forgiven for thinking Jacob Misiorowski was celebrating the strikeout of another poor soul with his 102-mph fastball or 97-mph slider. After all, he hopped back, threw his right arm in the air and cheered, just like he's done after some of the bigger strikeouts in his young career. But the Milwaukee Brewers phenom pitcher wasn't on the mound. He was in a card shop — Brew Town Trading Co. at 4285 S. 76th St. in Greenfield, on July 25. Instead of a glove in his left hand, he had a pack of 2022 Bowman Draft cards. And why the reaction? He had just pulled his very own "orange parallel" limited-edition card from the year he got drafted, one of only 25 such cards in the world. You'd also be forgiven for not totally appreciating the infinitesimally small chances of that happening. As Brewtown Trading assistant manager Tommy Rhyner — who was with Misiorowski to witness it — explained, it was exceptional. Like seeing a triple rainbow. Or finding an entire beach of whole sand dollars. Forget a four-leaf clover, even a five-leaf clover — it was far closer to a six-leaf clover. "I think he has a better chance of getting struck by lightning than doing that again, and not only getting struck by lightning, (but) while holding the winning lottery ticket in the ocean with sharks around him and about to attack," Rhyner said. "You know all those things where you hear millions to one, right? Put all four or five together and that's right around there." Is Misiorowski's reaction starting to make more sense? "He had a true, genuine reaction," Rhyner said. "That's the card that he was looking for, and then to have it serial numbered?" Misiorowksi had been invited to the store to open Pokémon packs — his interest in Pokémon should be evident after he wore a custom suit jacket during All-Star weekend, with the "Lugia" Pokémon embroidered inside. After a few of those, he found the Bowman box from his draft class and wanted to open some of those, as well. Misiorowski got the card at the end of his third Bowman pack. Coincidentally, Rhyner and a couple of other employees mentioned to Misiorowski how cool it is when athletes pull their own cards. A couple minutes later, the Brewers starter got to experience that feeling for himself. It was reciprocated by Rhyner, who called it "probably my best hobby moment in and of itself." While he's seen other athletes come to the store, including four Miami Marlins pitchers who came by only minutes before Misiorowski showed up, no one has been as lucky as Milwaukee's newest sports hero. Before Rhyner started at the store, he said other athletes had pulled their own cards, but the rarity of the one Misiorowski received puts it in a different league entirely. "Just happened that Miz had to hit that big of a card is what made this so big," he said. "We've had athletes pull their own cards. But when it's just a base card, it's not quite as exciting, but still memorable." No one would have blamed Misiorowski for wanting to keep the card for himself. Instead, he signed it and donated it to the shop, a decision that has led to an increase in customers. "This Saturday (one day after the card was pulled)," Rhyner said, "I probably had 12 to 15 people stop in just to see the card." Rather than sell it, with the likely opportunity to make thousands of dollars, Brew Town Trading is building a special shadow box with custom framing for display. As Misiorowski left the store, Rhyner — a big Brewers fan who will be in attendance for the all-star's biggest start to date on July 28 against the Chicago Cubs — gave him a parting message: "Make sure you shove the ball down their throat." This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Brewers' Jacob Misiorowski pulls his own rare baseball card from pack
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Exclusive: Forerunner leads $30 million round in collectibles marketplace Courtyard
I admit it, I have a soft spot for sports cards. Over the past year, an embarrassingly steady stream of small eBay packages have been arriving on my family's doorstep in New Jersey thanks to my 12-year-old's newfound love for basketball cards. As I think has become plainly apparent to my wife by now, I'm complicit in encouraging this passion—with more than a tinge of nostalgia driving my mind and heart back to my own baseball card obsession in the late '80s and early '90s. And I'm not alone. Trading cards like Pokémon and sports cards have exploded in popularity in recent years, fueled in part by nostalgic yearning during the early days of the pandemic and new digital gamification elements of the hobby that have turned collecting for some into an FOMO-induced, impulse-buying sport. Now, one of the fastest-growing startups in the space—New York City-based Courtyard—has raised a $30 million Series A to double down on growth. Forerunner Ventures is leading the round, joined by the company's existing investors NEA and Y Combinator. Founded in 2021 by Nicolas le Jeune, who previously worked at YouTube, and Paulin Andurand, a former Apple software engineer, Courtyard markets itself through its website as selling 'mystery packs' of cards and comic books via a digital vending machine. What that means in practice is that customers agree to pay either $25, $50, or even $100 for an unknown Pokemon or sports card—or $200 in the case of a comic book—and then an algorithm randomly assigns them a card or comic from the startup's massive inventory of collectibles stored in the company's secure vault. Before purchasing, customers can view the probability that they will 'pull,' in industry speak, a card of certain value. If you're disappointed by the card you receive, you have a few options. Courtyard will immediately purchase the card back for 90% of its fair market value. Customers can also choose to list the item for sale on Courtyard's marketplace, which doesn't charge any fees to sellers. That ability to quickly sell out of a purchase you aren't interested in, or disappointed by, is at the heart of Forerunner's attraction to the startup. 'Courtyard stands out as the first collectibles marketplace that's actually designed to be liquid,' Forerunner partner Nicole Johnson wrote in an email to Fortune. 'That might sound like a small thing, but it's a big unlock: it lowers the barrier to entry [for consumers] in a category that's historically been tough to navigate.' If the card's a keeper, customers can keep it secured for free in Courtyard's storage facility, and have it shipped to them. (Many customers don't realize, and don't really need to, that they are in reality purchasing an NFT, or digital token, that represents a specific physical card—or piece of merchandise.) The mystery packs have been a hit. In January of 2024, Courtyard was selling about $50,000 of merchandise a month. Today—just a year and a half later—le Jeune says the company is selling $50 million a month. And that's with the comic book category just recently launching and with all sales happening via a website; the startup is expected to release its first mobile app in the coming days. The startup makes money when it buys cards back from customers for 90% of its value and resells it to customers in a new mystery pack. The same card is sold an average of eight times a month on the platform, the company said. Courtyard also relies on a large network of collectibles dealers who source merchandise for the startup, helping make the startup the largest buyer of trading cards in the world right now, according to le Jeune. But clones are popping up and the CEO said he is willing to go into the red to step on the gas and expand the startup's lead, through a mix of hiring, paid marketing, and product category expansion. 'We want to make sure we double down on the growth and capture the market as fast as possible,' the CEO said. When I tried out the service recently, I purchased a $25 mystery basketball card. It turned out to be a rookie card for Jalen Green, a young NBA player drafted as the 2nd pick in the 2021 NBA draft by the Houston Rockets. Green was recently traded by the Houston Rockets to the Phoenix Suns and has not lived up to his initial promise. Courtyard offered me $9 for a card valued in the broader basketball card market at $10. I didn't accept, and have chosen to store the card with Courtyard for now, hoping that Green might play better this year and the value of the card might increase, making it worth it to keep or to add to my son's collection. For a first experience, though, it was a bit disappointing even if I knew logically that pulling a card of greater value was not at all guaranteed. I asked le Jeune about the risk that a first-time buyer experience like mine might dissuade a customer from sticking around and making another purchase. 'We could fake it and make you feel at the beginning like you get a good card every single time,' he said, 'but we would not be okay with that.' As the company gets bigger, he added, Courtyard will be able to offer more value to its customers for each transaction. 'We grew so fast but it's still the early days,' le Jeune said, 'and there's so much room to make it a much better experience.' See you tomorrow, Jason Del ReyX: @delreyEmail: a deal for the Term Sheet newsletter here. Joey Abrams curated the deals section of today's newsletter. Subscribe here. This story was originally featured on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Pudgy Penguins drop first-ever exclusive VIBES packs at The National — with $1,000 bounties up for grabs
What do penguins, Steve Bartman and Michael Jordan have in common? Pudgy Penguins' exclusive packs at The National. Pudgy Penguins, the beloved web3 brand, has been making waves in the collectible space — both digitally and physically. Originally launched as an NFT series in 2021, the brand has steadily expanded into the physical world with toys, merchandise, and now trading cards. In 2024, they introduced VIBES — the official Pudgy Penguins trading card game — with its debut set, 'Enter the Huddle.' Now, for the first time ever, Pudgy Penguins and VIBES are releasing exclusive packs at The National Sports Collectors Convention. In partnership with Mantel and CGC, they're giving away two special edition packs: 'Be a Lil Evil' and 'Lil Who Hoops.' These sets build on their upcoming expansion, 'Legend of the Lils,' slated for release in Q3. The theme of the exclusive cards — Pudgy Metal Gems — pays homage to iconic moments in Chicago sports history and trading card culture. 'Be a Lil Evil,' Mantel's exclusive, is a nod to the infamous Steve Bartman play during the 2003 NLCS, while 'Lil Who Hoops,' CGC's exclusive, honors one of the most iconic visuals in sports: Michael Jordan's soaring All-Star Weekend dunk. Not only is this the brand's first exclusive pack drop - it also comes with some high-value bounties. Select cards in the set are eligible for $1,000 rewards. You might just pull a winner. Here's what you need to know about each exclusive pack. Vibes x Mantel 'Be a Lil Evil' Vibes x Mantel 'Be a Lil Evil' Checklist: Unnumbered Base (1000) Foil (400) Green Foil (numbered 1/99 through 10/99) Red Foil (numbered 11/99 through 99/99) How to Get Your Hands on the 'Be a Lil Evil' Packs at the National: Find Mojo Sports and take a photo with him and tag and follow Mantel, and Vibes on Instagram Story - he will have limited packs/day. Find a Mantel employee (will be wearing a Mantel hat on the show floor) and show that you downloaded the Mantel app and you will receive a pack. Come to the Mantel table at trade night and trade the Mantel team any of the following cards for a pack: PSA, Beckett, or CGC slab (any grade) 2003 Topps/Topps Chrome Basketball card 1999 or earlier Pokemon card Baseball card from 1964 Michael Jordan card Sammy Sosa Card 2003 Florida Marlins card Numbered card of a player in a Chicago team uniform. Any Mickey Mantle Card Bring and open a Vibes Enter the Huddle Series 1 Booster Box at the Mantel table at trade night and receive 5 packs. Win Big with $1,000 Bounties $1,000 offer to purchase the 'Be a Lil Evil' Card 6/99 - first person to post a selfie holding it on Mantel. $1,000 offer to purchase the 'Be a Lil Evil' Card 23/99 - first person to post a selfie holding it on Mantel. Vibes x CGC 'Lil Who Hoops' Vibes x CGC 'Lil Who Hoops' Checklist: Unnumbered Base (1000) Foil (400) Green Foil (numbered 1/99 through 10/99) Red Foil (numbered 11/99 through 99/99) How to Get Your Hands on the 'Lil Who Hoops' Packs at the National Submit any collectible item for grading at the CGC booth and receive one 'Lil Who Hoops' pack - while supplies last. Redeem $500 in Grading Credit with CGC Pull the 'Lil Who Hoops' card numbered 23/99 and receive $500 in CGC grading credit. To redeem, see a CGC representative at the show. Please note: grading credit cannot be used at the National Sports Collectors Convention. Chasing one of the Pudgy Penguins bounty packs at The National? Let us know what you're hunting for on Mantel.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The wild story of how Josh Luber acquired one of the rarest Ohtani cards
Yahoo Sports senior MLB analysts Jordan Shusterman and Jake Mintz are joined by StockX co-founder and MLB card collector Josh Luber, who discusses the crazy story of how he acquired one of the rarest Shohei Ohtani trading cards. Hear the full conversation on the 'Baseball Bar-B-Cast' podcast - and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen. View more Video Transcript I'm sure you have quite a crazy collection at this point of all of the baseball cards. That you have with you right now. Are there any that stand out as a favorite, sentimental, particularly notable? I was buying Otani at the very beginning of him starting to come back and starting to get hot and people started to look at it. I made a lot of money buying Otani early. I bought and sold and sold, but there's one card that I will probably hold on to forever, and the story about this is extraordinary, so, and I don't know how how well you guys know cards, but so this is the Bowman Chrome number two 5 autograph. So this is basically his second best card. The only card better is gonna be the one of one, the Super Fractor, and I mean, this is, this is I don't know what this would go for on the market. Maybe. Maybe a million plus, like, I don't know. I paid $30,000 for it. But the story is even better, which is that I was, I was buying up Otanis at the time. I was at a couple different car shows. I was buying all the biggest Otanis in the room and I was just trying to accumulate them, and I met a kid, typical hustler kid who was just sort of like trying to help me find him. He'd call me up and say, hey, this guy's got this guy. So he found the guy who owned this card, and the guy was in Hawaii, and I live in Austin, Texas, and the guy in Hawaii, we made a deal, but he refused to ship the card. He's like, you know, I was buying it for $30,000, which at the time was a fair market price, maybe a couple bucks high, and he says, Listen, this is the most money I've ever made in my entire life. I pulled it out of a pack. You know, he's like, I make $40,000 a year. He's like, I'm not sending this in the mail. There's this kid, this 23 year old, and I said, I'll pay you to fly to Hawaii. I'll pay you for your vacation, stay there as long as you want. He's like, I'm not sending this in the mail. There's this kid, this 23 year old in the, I said, I'll pay you to fly to Hawaii. I'll pay for your vacation, stay there as long as you want. I'll pay. You want to hang out there for a week, I'll pay for it. Get the card and fly it back to me. And he did. So, you know, he figured out how to make it work, and this kid got a free trip to Hawaii out of it. I'm laughing about that kid going through airport security in Honolulu and holding $50,000 in cash, too, right? Because I had to give him cash to be able to go and buy it. Can you imagine, man, you're like on the plane clutching, you're like holding to it like it's the nuclear football. Close
