Revival Brainstorming

veloce · #1 02-21-2012, 04:15 PM

I think cereal boxes are a natural fit. I know this has been tried in recent years, but mostly with small sets. The 200 card Post sets of the '60s appeal more to the right personality type to become serious collectors, in part because they would be more difficult to complete. I also think of breakfast as a perfect time to capture a kid's attention... you sit there for 10 minutes eating your cereal and admiring the cards.

Other than that, why not make them secondary to the gum again? Take a package of extra, and throw in a couple baseball cards. Kids will always love candy.

I wish MLB and the player's association would give Topps a cheap or free license to distribute kid friendly sets. No inserts, errors, short prints. It would probably be worth something to Topps and MLB in terms of promoting love of the sport and the hobby. Unfortunately, I don't think of MLB or card companies as thinking long term.

barrysloate · #2 02-21-2012, 06:25 PM

How many kids today, say under the age of 12, try to piece together complete Topps sets by opening packs? Does anybody do that anymore?

abothebear · #3 02-21-2012, 06:37 PM

Barry, I would doubt any kid would. It would cost a fortune, and you can go to Target and buy a factory set for $50. Or wait a year and get one cheaper from ebay. or you can buy base card lots of already opened packs for much cheaper. But I can't imagine anyone trying to do it the old fashion way.

The whole system discourages set collecting and thereby discourages any real demand for base cards. commons used to be have a minimal value because of set collecting. Not anymore. Any attempts at reintroducing the set collecting element to the hobby needs to begin with creating a demand for the common card. No facgtory sets. No inserts. Affordable access to the cards' entry point.

mawitzi · #4 02-21-2012, 09:11 PM

I don't think that there would be that much interest in these cards. I might like them, but I don't think many other people would. Modern card collectors would not want them. Anything that it does not have large memorabilia pieces or autos is considered junk. I also don't think that vintage collectors would buy them. We complain about new cards because we simply don't like new cards. Vintage collectors buy old cards because they like old cards. It doesn't matter what the new cards look like or how they are distributed, they will still be new. Vintage collectors will not buy new cards.

Don't let me stop you. I am wrong a lot.

Runscott · #5 02-21-2012, 10:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mawitzi

I don't think that there would be that much interest in these cards. I might like them, but I don't think many other people would. Modern card collectors would not want them. Anything that it does not have large memorabilia pieces or autos is considered junk. I also don't think that vintage collectors would buy them. We complain about new cards because we simply don't like new cards. Vintage collectors buy old cards because they like old cards. It doesn't matter what the new cards look like or how they are distributed, they will still be new. Vintage collectors will not buy new cards.

Don't let me stop you. I am wrong a lot.

If it's a piece of art, some vintage collectors might want it - look at the paintings shown on the memorabilia sub-forum. Also, some of the Perez-Steele issues were/are collected by vintage collectors.

If I had the means to duplicate the process used to create the late 1800's lithos, or even T206's, the first art might be a bit larger - maybe postcard or cabinet-size color recreations of famous Conlon, Van Oeyen and Frances Burke action photos. You could include an ordering list in a product, perhaps a Sports publication.

ullmandds · #6 02-22-2012, 08:52 AM

The more I think about this topic...the more pessimistic I become about the hobby of collecting sports cards...or really any other cards ever becoming popular again with kids today...and tomorrow.

The tobacco industry was a relatively new industry in the late 19th c...and the card inserts were enticements to buy a particular brand. These days...most products are sold online...most kids are living in a digital/virtual world...an altered reality if you will.

I believe the hobby will be around in the future...but it is dying a slow death!

barrysloate · #7 02-22-2012, 09:56 AM

There will always be people collecting baseball cards, they will just come into them differently than my generation did. Baby boomers bought packs and built sets when the were 7,8,9 years old, then worked their way back to older cards as they became adults. Future generations will likely start in their 20's and 30's when they are earning enough money to be able to afford them.

steve B · #8 02-22-2012, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by abothebear

Barry, I would doubt any kid would. It would cost a fortune, and you can go to Target and buy a factory set for $50. Or wait a year and get one cheaper from ebay. or you can buy base card lots of already opened packs for much cheaper. But I can't imagine anyone trying to do it the old fashion way.

The whole system discourages set collecting and thereby discourages any real demand for base cards. commons used to be have a minimal value because of set collecting. Not anymore. Any attempts at reintroducing the set collecting element to the hobby needs to begin with creating a demand for the common card. No facgtory sets. No inserts. Affordable access to the cards' entry point.

And for an insane idea, maybe make the set with "common" stars and rookies, and make the commons the tough cards. Maybe hand numbered to the players homerun total or something silly like that. So print a million Pujols cards and only 4 J.D. Drew.

There's a blog with a lot of great direct info about the licensing.
http://blog.heritagesportsart.com/20...-to-world.html

For an inexpensive pack/box you'd need to sell around 500 thousand packs just to cover licensing fees, AND apparently most licensors want you to be the manufacturer. Which means the expense of equipment and people to run it.

Steve B

abothebear · #9 02-23-2012, 07:39 PM

Thanks for the info, Steve. Interesting stuff.

Anyone know where the line in the sand is for what constitutes using MLB club marks and logos? I wonder if a card with the kind of lack of team detail like a T206 could get away with only a mlbpa license.

steve B · #10 02-23-2012, 09:23 PM

One of the posts describes making prints showing team uniforms over time, using just the uniforms, no names, but actual numbers.

The NHL licensed the uniform images, but the players assn questioned wether the players were being paid. short story. NHL says fine. NHLPA says no. NHL says tough it's fine. NHLPA says see you in court. NHL tells him to recall the posters and redo with unused numbers or ones used by many players.

And the league and usually the players assn have a lot of control over the art. I read through the whole thing, and Basically you've got to go along with whatever plan they cook up including sudden logo changes.

It looks like if someone wanted to do a very retro set they might go through Topps assuming Topps would even consider it. I'd think of that as a maybe, they do special stuff for major retailers, but I'm sure there's a lot of money involved. Maybe they'd so a sublicense for a high end very traditional set. It would still take a load of money up front.

Steve B