New CSG label. Pretty slick...

[BobC]

This could be a game changer for CSG. When they first launched, remember all the negative comments and opinions of their design and labels? Well, they apparently are anything but dumb, and by going through such a process to review, test, and really find out what their customer base wants, they are demonstrating a truly business oriented, give the customer what they want, mentality and way of operating. They appear to have started out using their techniques and procedures from their other collectible grading services, and then have no problem in taking the initiative and feedback gathered since they started this new grading venture and making significant changes in answer to market demand and needs.

Bottom line is, these CSG people are smart, extremely knowledgeable about collectible grading services, willing and able to make changes their customer base wants, and forward thinking. They appear to be taking and combining the best attributes of their competition, such as using similar grading scales and terms, creating their own registry, and now designing a holder and flip to better accentuate the items they are grading. They've already pulled off a major coup on their competitors by aligning with Ebay in partnering with them in their new authentication protocol, which for now seems to be going well. This can set them up to potentially offer their full grading services through or in conjunction with Ebay, and basically cut off a possible large part of the original "big three" TPG's market. They also seem to currently be delivering services at timing turnaround levels and pricing that their competition cannot.

These people at CSG are not playing around, and you apparently don't have to always be waiting till next Monday for them to actually do something. If I were the competition at PSA, SGC, or Beckett, I'd be having meetings galore to try and brainstorm ways to counter, mitigate, and somehow try to stop, or at least slow down, the momentum and favor CSG is building with moves like this.

The major things still in CSG's way, as I see it, are the ingrained and long-term use and familiarity collectors have with the original "big three" TPGs, especially one particular TPG's registry, and the biggest of all, the 800 lb. gorilla in the room if you will, is the perceived pricing differential that one of those "big three" TPGs has over the others. I'm guessing that the CSG people already have plans to eventually supplant PSA as the perceived most valuable TPG service out there, in terms of what prices cards graded by them will bring versus those graded by other TPGs, and will very soon, if they haven't already, put such plans in motion.

And before anyone makes a smart-a$$ comment, no, I don't own, work for, or have anything to do with CSG. I don't even own a single card graded by them........yet! It seems inevitable I eventually will though.