When was the end of Junk era?

[seanofjapan]

I live in Japan and collect (mainly) Japanese cards. The development of the card market here provides an interesting comparison with that in the US. Some of the comments in this thread got me thinking of these so I thought I would put them out there just for thoughts.

There have been a lot of companies over the decades that have produced cards in Japan but only two of them have done so for an extended period of time: BBM and Calbee. BBM started making cards in 1991 and modeled its cards and business on what American producers were making at the time, which was the high water mark of the junk wax overproduction era. They made a big set and sold it in foil packs like American sets were. Over the years it has basically followed American trends by introducing insert cards, autograph cards and other things for people to chase. It is basically a Japanese clone of an American card company.

Calbee is a bit more interesting though since it has no parallel in the US market. It started issuing cards in 1973, selling them as a promotional item aimed at children that came attached to its bags of potato chips (which is Calbee`s main business).

The interesting thing is that, from that humble beginning in 1973 to becoming probably the most well-known maker of Japanese baseball cards in Japan, do you know how Calbee distributes its baseball cards in 2016?

As a promotional item aimed at children that comes attached to its bags of potato chips.

Calbee has been remarkably consistent throughout the years in keeping its cards and overall business model simple. You buy a bag of chips (which even today cost less than $1) and you get two baseball cards with it (previous years they only included one card, but since 2009 its been 2). There are usually a couple insert sets that might be considered "chase" cards, but they don`t do the expensive memorobelia or other US style rare premium ones. Its a set meant for set-builders rather than for chasing some stuff and throwing the rest out. Set sizes have varied drastically over the years - the 75-76 set boasting almost 1500 cards, while most others generally fall in the 300-400 range.

The designs of the cards are extremely simple (and beautiful): a full bleed photo of the player on the front with almost no other design elements other than the player`s name and team. Calbee sets, particularly from the 1970s which had amazing photography, are among the most attractive ever produced. While they have made adjustments to the design throughout the years, with today`s sets a bit more glossy and printed on a different type of cardboard and in cards of slightly different dimensions, this year`s Calbee set is actually extremely similar to the original 1973 set in its basic design.

One of the things that (to me at least) really defines the junk wax era is that it marked the transition of the US card market from one in which cards were mainly targeted at children in the 1970s (with of course adults also collecting, but not dominating the market for new cards) to one in which adults became the main market that producers targeted. All the producers who entered the market in the 1980s and 1990s were basically aiming their products at a collector`s market whose logic was largely defined by adult collectors, rather than viewing cards as more or less a toy for kids to collect.

So Calbee is kind of the last survivor in the world of a baseball card maker which has kept its core business model - selling cards to kids as a promotional item - the same as it was in the pre-junk wax era. Its almost like an archeological relic from a time long past.

For that reason, as a set collector with fond memories of putting sets together as a kid, I love collecting cards over here because it offers an experience that is more or less extinct in North America now (at least in terms of new sets). The junk wax era never fully wiped out the old way of collecting in Japan like it did in the US.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by seanofjapan

I live in Japan and collect (mainly) Japanese cards. The development of the card market here provides an interesting comparison with that in the US. Some of the comments in this thread got me thinking of these so I thought I would put them out there just for thoughts.

There have been a lot of companies over the decades that have produced cards in Japan but only two of them have done so for an extended period of time: BBM and Calbee. BBM started making cards in 1991 and modeled its cards and business on what American producers were making at the time, which was the high water mark of the junk wax overproduction era. They made a big set and sold it in foil packs like American sets were. Over the years it has basically followed American trends by introducing insert cards, autograph cards and other things for people to chase. It is basically a Japanese clone of an American card company.

Calbee is a bit more interesting though since it has no parallel in the US market. It started issuing cards in 1973, selling them as a promotional item aimed at children that came attached to its bags of potato chips (which is Calbee`s main business).

The interesting thing is that, from that humble beginning in 1973 to becoming probably the most well-known maker of Japanese baseball cards in Japan, do you know how Calbee distributes its baseball cards in 2016?

As a promotional item aimed at children that comes attached to its bags of potato chips.

Calbee has been remarkably consistent throughout the years in keeping its cards and overall business model simple. You buy a bag of chips (which even today cost less than $1) and you get two baseball cards with it (previous years they only included one card, but since 2009 its been 2). There are usually a couple insert sets that might be considered "chase" cards, but they don`t do the expensive memorobelia or other US style rare premium ones. Its a set meant for set-builders rather than for chasing some stuff and throwing the rest out. Set sizes have varied drastically over the years - the 75-76 set boasting almost 1500 cards, while most others generally fall in the 300-400 range.

The designs of the cards are extremely simple (and beautiful): a full bleed photo of the player on the front with almost no other design elements other than the player`s name and team. Calbee sets, particularly from the 1970s which had amazing photography, are among the most attractive ever produced. While they have made adjustments to the design throughout the years, with today`s sets a bit more glossy and printed on a different type of cardboard and in cards of slightly different dimensions, this year`s Calbee set is actually extremely similar to the original 1973 set in its basic design.

One of the things that (to me at least) really defines the junk wax era is that it marked the transition of the US card market from one in which cards were mainly targeted at children in the 1970s (with of course adults also collecting, but not dominating the market for new cards) to one in which adults became the main market that producers targeted. All the producers who entered the market in the 1980s and 1990s were basically aiming their products at a collector`s market whose logic was largely defined by adult collectors, rather than viewing cards as more or less a toy for kids to collect.

So Calbee is kind of the last survivor in the world of a baseball card maker which has kept its core business model - selling cards to kids as a promotional item - the same as it was in the pre-junk wax era. Its almost like an archeological relic from a time long past.

For that reason, as a set collector with fond memories of putting sets together as a kid, I love collecting cards over here because it offers an experience that is more or less extinct in North America now (at least in terms of new sets). The junk wax era never fully wiped out the old way of collecting in Japan like it did in the US.

Great post Sean, thank you for sharing that info. Been too lazy to get it accomplished but I have wanted to pick up some Japanese Hideki Irabu and Matsui cards for a long time.

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

Originally Posted by seanofjapan

I live in Japan and collect (mainly) Japanese cards. The development of the card market here provides an interesting comparison with that in the US. Some of the comments in this thread got me thinking of these so I thought I would put them out there just for thoughts.

There have been a lot of companies over the decades that have produced cards in Japan but only two of them have done so for an extended period of time: BBM and Calbee. BBM started making cards in 1991 and modeled its cards and business on what American producers were making at the time, which was the high water mark of the junk wax overproduction era. They made a big set and sold it in foil packs like American sets were. Over the years it has basically followed American trends by introducing insert cards, autograph cards and other things for people to chase. It is basically a Japanese clone of an American card company.

Calbee is a bit more interesting though since it has no parallel in the US market. It started issuing cards in 1973, selling them as a promotional item aimed at children that came attached to its bags of potato chips (which is Calbee`s main business).

The interesting thing is that, from that humble beginning in 1973 to becoming probably the most well-known maker of Japanese baseball cards in Japan, do you know how Calbee distributes its baseball cards in 2016?

As a promotional item aimed at children that comes attached to its bags of potato chips.

Calbee has been remarkably consistent throughout the years in keeping its cards and overall business model simple. You buy a bag of chips (which even today cost less than $1) and you get two baseball cards with it (previous years they only included one card, but since 2009 its been 2). There are usually a couple insert sets that might be considered "chase" cards, but they don`t do the expensive memorobelia or other US style rare premium ones. Its a set meant for set-builders rather than for chasing some stuff and throwing the rest out. Set sizes have varied drastically over the years - the 75-76 set boasting almost 1500 cards, while most others generally fall in the 300-400 range.

The designs of the cards are extremely simple (and beautiful): a full bleed photo of the player on the front with almost no other design elements other than the player`s name and team. Calbee sets, particularly from the 1970s which had amazing photography, are among the most attractive ever produced. While they have made adjustments to the design throughout the years, with today`s sets a bit more glossy and printed on a different type of cardboard and in cards of slightly different dimensions, this year`s Calbee set is actually extremely similar to the original 1973 set in its basic design.

One of the things that (to me at least) really defines the junk wax era is that it marked the transition of the US card market from one in which cards were mainly targeted at children in the 1970s (with of course adults also collecting, but not dominating the market for new cards) to one in which adults became the main market that producers targeted. All the producers who entered the market in the 1980s and 1990s were basically aiming their products at a collector`s market whose logic was largely defined by adult collectors, rather than viewing cards as more or less a toy for kids to collect.

So Calbee is kind of the last survivor in the world of a baseball card maker which has kept its core business model - selling cards to kids as a promotional item - the same as it was in the pre-junk wax era. Its almost like an archeological relic from a time long past.

For that reason, as a set collector with fond memories of putting sets together as a kid, I love collecting cards over here because it offers an experience that is more or less extinct in North America now (at least in terms of new sets). The junk wax era never fully wiped out the old way of collecting in Japan like it did in the US.

Always daydreamed of starting a company called JPC - Just Plain Cards. released in several series with the high numbers maybe being a little shorter printed. Maybe some weird insert set that you can use to play a game or something. Basically I want to start Topps circa 1966 - 1972.

I think the demand would be huge, price would be reasonable because we ain't doing no UV coatings, gold foil, or whatever other crap passes for a baseball card these days. We're using cardboard. Maybe as a nod to the past we'll use two different types of cardboard to mess with people.

If someone were to actually do this I might actually buy a box of cards again.

[Tradegeek]

I think the element that is being missed here is the makeup of the hobby in the past versus today. By the early 1990s the hobby had grown exponentially. Kids were a huge part of the customer base. Flash forward 20+ years and kids are a tiny fraction of a hobby that may be 10% or 20% of it's size at the peak.

I can remember trying to get my hands on a 1993 Fleer Rookie Sensation Frank Thomas. It was an insert only available in jumbo packs. I couldn't find one anywhere. It was selling for $50 and card shows with 50+ dealers didn't have a single copy. There was just huge demand back then. I could have traded it to my friends for anything in their collection (like a 86 Donruss Jose Canseco!, for instance). Now you can pick one up for $5 on eBay all day long. Looking back it seems like they printed a million of that card. At the time, it sure didn't seem that way.

Sure, regular Topps is still pretty worthless. But my son still likes opening the packs. We focus on individual autographs now. They are available and relatively inexpensive for most players not named Kris Bryant. It's still fun. Even if he is the only kid in his elementary school who collects. We may still be in the junk wax era to some degree. But there is still plenty of cool things to collect.

[AGuinness]

Originally Posted by seanofjapan

The designs of the cards are extremely simple (and beautiful): a full bleed photo of the player on the front with almost no other design elements other than the player`s name and team. Calbee sets, particularly from the 1970s which had amazing photography, are among the most attractive ever produced. While they have made adjustments to the design throughout the years, with today`s sets a bit more glossy and printed on a different type of cardboard and in cards of slightly different dimensions, this year`s Calbee set is actually extremely similar to the original 1973 set in its basic design.

This reminds me of seeing the evolution of Sports Illustrated covers, which went from amazing photography and very little text on the cover to lesser photographs with six stories teased, which makes for cluttered, confusing and much less appeal to the eye.

On a side note, hasn't the concept of "chase cards" been around for quite some time? I think the concept, at least, was in play as early as the 1933 Goudey Nap Lajoie.

[Bob Moose's Corvette]

I define the 'junk' era, as the time when cards were ridiculously plentiful. To a fault.

I was a 10-box-per week buyer from 1984 to the end of the decade.

The first junk wax box for me: 1985 Topps. Then 1986 Topps, then 87 Topps and Donruss. 88-92 everything.

1993 marks the end of the junk era, again from my observation. 1993 Score is the first set in many years that I wanted to purchase. Are there any 1993 or newer boxes that went/still go for $5?

1990 was the absolute worst year, all-time, for junk cards. All crap. Maybe that's why we all long for the Frank Thomas NNOF. It's the only card from that year that is any fun. Have you looked at the photo of him up close? Very low quality.

[Cliff Bowman]

Originally Posted by Bob Moose's Corvette

I define the 'junk' era, as the time when cards were ridiculously plentiful. To a fault.

I guess it could be worse, you could've named yourself Danny Frisella's dune buggy or Lyman Bostock's uncles car.

[profholt82]

Originally Posted by Cliff Bowman

I guess it could be worse, you could've named yourself Danny Frisella's dune buggy or Lyman Bostock's uncles car.

Or Moose Haas's magic kit?