Interesting WSJ article on Fanatics and the future of Sports Cards

[Pierce09]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/fanatic...hare_permalink

Here's the part I found interesting:

People familiar with Fanatics Trading Cards say the new venture will angle to become the one-stop shop for all things in the trading card industry—including primary sales, secondary-marketplace deals, grading of cards and even storage.

In the industry’s traditional model, distributors would sell cards to retailers, and then remain on the sidelines as prices for its product rose, sometimes astronomically, in the secondary market via eBay and other trading platforms. Fanatics Trading Cards wants to capture that value and believes that customers can benefit from a modernized business without the numerous middlemen bloating the prices on cards.

“We see a market that has the potential to be disrupted in a way that improves consumer choice, improves consumer experience and also expands the opportunity for the rights holders,” said Deven Parekh, a managing director at Insight Partners.

It sounds like they (the players Unions are part owners as well as Private Equity, for now) are declaring all out war on the traditional mainstays of the hobby now that the money on the table has grown exponentially. If I were a breaker, grader, vault, or ebay I'd be paying close attention.