Topps/Fanatics 2022 Topps Chrome Judge/Goldschmidt buyback program
 

In case you didn't see it, new Topps owner Fanatics is running some wild buyback program of $1 cards, paying $20 each for base chrome cards of the AL and NL MVPs. Much more for lower print run parallels.

https://www.blowoutforums.com/showthread.php?t=1539571

Program will expand with more cards and more sets included, but this is strange. Will drive a bunch of local card shops onto COMC, so that seems to be a good thing.

Also, maybe a smart PR move going forward. Another way to possibly entice collectors to have more interest in cards they otherwise may not have so much of for a particular set. Since no one really knows who the MVPs will be till after a season ends, collectors/dealers/flippers may pay more attention to the cards of certain players doing well during a season, and that added interest and potential monetary award could increase demand for those products involved. Will be interesting to see if they continue this program going forward then, at least for a few years, to see if it does help boost demand/interest in certain products.

Odd program, wondering what they plan on doing with these. Just hitting them with a buyback seal and tossing them in packs next season?

I guess Topps Chrome was a stinker overall, despite having some Jasson Dominguez autographs in it. So people think they're doing this to move stock and create a buzz around the set, so it will clear the shelves rather than just sitting there.
I think they'll get the cards autographed, then stamp them and insert them into packs next year.

Chrome definitely bombed, went to 50% of original pricing real quick. The print run appears to be absolutely astounding too.

This was my immediate thinking. Maybe not next season but at some point in the not too distant future. Maybe have them autographed and then stick them in those sealed plastic cases that you find in some sets.

As I occasionally like to pick up blasters or hangers once in awhile to scratch the itch of ripping packs, I found that I have one Judge and 2 Goldschmidts. I'll probably end up selling them and using that money to buy a vintage card of some sort.

Serious question. Do any of the new card collectors really collect or are they only flipping for dollars, which is what it seems like to me?
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Well, on Twitter, there are many modern collectors who continuously say "collector, investor, seller in that order." So I think there are a lot of new collectors who are willing to sell more often. It hurts when I try to sell something. I can't talk myself into letting go of something I only have a single copy of.

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It's an interesting approach to add some appeal to lower demand base cards, drive people to their LCS, and get people sorting through their cards.

With all the issues with Chrome this year, it's not surprising they picked that set to pilot this with.

If your local shops are not participating, BlowoutCards will allow you to send them in to their store for credit.

There are plenty who only collect. They just aren’t as vocal and visible online because they don’t have anything to sell and don’t need to try and pump. I rarely have a hard time finding people to swap penny commons with to complete modern sets that are worthless.

This program isn't for flippers though. You don't receive any money for your cards, you receive store credit with the hobby shop. I think it's meant to drive interest in other products since Topps Chrome was such a turd of a release.

It seems like the hobby shop makes out like a bandit, per usual. They'll sell inflated boxes on store credit and then cash in with Topps again on the backend with overpriced common cards.

Hobby shops have struggled to even remain in business the last couple decades. They don’t usually make out like a bandit.

Have you been on What Not? Hobby shops are going virtual and the break game is exploding. They make more money per box breaking all 30 teams than they ever did selling the product to one person.

Yes I am very well aware of breaking. Of course they break at a profit, filming a half hour video, shipping to 30 people, of course it costs more than selling the box to a single buyer. Shops are not making out like bandits, that’s why the vast majority of them fail and there’s not many left still standing. With distributor allocation, overhead, rent, operating a hobby shop is expensive and the profit margins not high enough for most to survive for more than a few years. It’s not a bandit operation.

I guess it depends on definition. When I said hobby shop I didn't necessarily think of hobby shop solely as a brick and mortar store with a lease. A lot of the hobby is online now. It's very difficult to order something like a case of 2022 Topps Chrome from Topps as a normal consumer. Those roads tend to be closed off to the everyman and always open to distributors who pay bulk rates.

That's where my bandit comment comes from.

Also, the product's retail price and resale prices are almost never equal and the distance between the two is almost always automatic. Take the Logofractor boxes as one small example. They cost $45 when they were released but almost immediately got dialed up to $125 per on the secondary market. There's a ton of money to be made in the hobby if you can get the cards in bulk. And you definitely don't need a lease or employees to capitalize. You can do it from your house and by yourself.

To get product direct, one has to have a brick and mortar store. It's a Topps requirement for product. I believe most of the distributors are using the same criteria, and even with one, it's difficult to get much of the good stuff and requires the shop to order quantity of the sets that don't sell too.

This is why the side hustle breakers charge so high - they aren't getting the product at distribution cost or direct. Many of them are scammy and scuzzy, and some are a straight rip off. But these breakers aren't the ones eligible for the $20 program under discussion? That's for hobby shops.

Online exclusives are usually a big win or a total bust. They get bought up by the bots if people think it will be a winner, and prices escalate until people stop paying them. But online exclusives like Logofractor that skip distribution channels entirely are separate. How Logofractor specifically is popular right now is beyond my comprehension...

Buying non-exclusive product, like base Chrome, off Topps' website is usually a rip-off and can be done much, much cheaper through other avenues.