[conor912]

Originally Posted by 36GoudeyMan

This is an interesting approach, and maybe it will work, but I think the skyrocketing demand for SGC grading should have been foreseen, and the fact that it wasn't is a concern.

First, the time frame of "months ago" coincides, maybe more or less, with the start of the serous fallout against PSA from the PWCC/Moser trimming scandal, which largely, not totally, excluded SGC (with certain glaring inclusions). I think SGC should have seen the obvious potential for a shift away from PSA, and towards SGC and Beckett. Ramping up as that scandal unfolded should have been started much, much sooner.

Second, and this is more subtle, there is a growing consensus that the new basketball card market explosion is due in large part to new players with free time and money speculating on cards of players with a much higher international profile than the other 3 major sports (you could argue about hockey, but they don't generally play hockey as broadly as they do basketball internationally). The first glimmers of the market speculation on a bulk level was also months ago, when the auction prices of Prizm (?) and other similar limited edition cards started going insane, an observable phenomenon. With that kind of sea change in card money movement, SGC should have also foreseen the immediate demand for new card grading.

SGC missed both of these in a more timely manner,and the result is playing huge catch up and defending huge delays. That is disappointing, but I do applaud their candor.

Also,let me be clear: I am one of those who have largely, not entirely, switched to SGC, for many reasons unaffected by these market-responsive changes. I prefer SGC grading, and appearance, and am slowly converting and submitting (I Can Wait) away from PSA until I see some sea changes at PSA as well (if ever). This is not SGC bashing - I like and prefer SGC, especially for my pre-war cards, but also overall. I am just disappointed that it has fallen so far behind a foreseeable shift in market dynamics, and now we all pay the price, literally and figuratively.

As Dennis Miller used to say, that's just my opinion, I could be wrong.

I believe “months ago” is more referring to March when the hobby took off like a rocket. PSA got/is so slammed that newbies decided they’d rather have SGC slabs quickly than PSA slabs in 6 months. Given the market’s historically overwhelming preference for PSA, i thinks it’s fair that they caught a little off guard by that.

I don't collect graded cards at all, but I think the simplified tiers are great. This is capitalist America and the “if you want to cut the line, it’s gonna cost you” way of doing business is alive and well.