Hello there, Collectors,

This week Geoff Wilson announced the opening date for his second Cards HQ, with the ribbon cutting coming November 14th for the 13,000 sq ft Detroit shop. While we at Mantel HQ have never (seriously) considered opening our own card shop, we loved this candid view from Geoff on everything goes into it. Spoiler alert: a lot of work, plenty of money, and assuming you want to actually make money, solid connections and a great deal of luck. His advice? Build a singles business, customer base and dealer network before ever signing a lease.

I’d also suggest copying CardsHQ’s lead in carrying ONIT’s college football cards, but I’m biased.

Pokémon prices have officially entered “what in the money laundering?” territory, with one Pikachu reportedly jumping from $150K to more than $8M in under 90 days. It’s a remarkable value rise for a card, and yet another example from the hobby that defies logic. Since we aren’t buying $8M cards (or even $150K cards, for that matter), we’re paying special attention to this “alpha” from writer J.R. Fickle: vintage Jai-Alai cards (~$24 for a complete set).

Nebraska is selling pieces of Memorial Stadium ahead of its renovation, including perhaps the ultimate piece of game-used memorabilia: 300-pound urinal troughs for $3,000 each. Seven of 30 had already sold as of Monday. Fans can also buy stadium seats for $25, reclaimed-wood benches for $429 and water fountains for $2,500, with each item receiving a university certificate of authenticity detailing where it lived inside the 103-year-old stadium. Is $3,000 a good price for a urinal trough? I suppose given these are “game-used”.

A former Upper Deck employee accused of stealing more than $500,000 worth of cards from the company’s North Carolina redemption facility has avoided jail time. Adrian Fronczak pleaded guilty to felony larceny and received 18 months of supervised probation and 100 hours of community service. Upper Deck documented at least 319 stolen cards worth roughly $189,000 but alleged Fronczak took hundreds more while working as an associate redemptions manager.

I sat down with Nick Jarman and Alladan Flinn for an episode of Voice of the Hobby (which has a great intro song, TBH). These guys are both hugely passionate and respected collectibles industry figures, and it was fun getting a chance to talk ONIT, Mantel and the hobby. Take a gander:

We often talk about nostalgia or investment as good reasons to collect, but it’s time we add another: pranking friends. For example, this collector who took completionism to its logical extreme: amassing 1,200 copies of “Wedding Crashers” on DVD over four years, despite not actually watching the movie until copy No. 1,000, in an effort to amuse guests. We applaud the commitment to the ruse.

Paul Reubens’ famously eclectic personal collection is heading to auction, with Julien’s offering 439 pieces spanning his career and decades of collecting. The Oct. 28 sale includes Pee-wee’s suit, production-used props, toys, artwork, bow ties, vintage merchandise and a replica of the “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” bicycle. Fittingly, the live auction will take place at L.A.’s Groundlings Theatre, where Reubens originally created Pee-wee Herman. I’m working to convince my wife this large Chairry replica would fit in with our living room decor…

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