If there’s an industry with more passion than the Collectibles Industry let me know.
The National Sports Collectors Convention recently convened at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Chicago. It took place from July 29th to August 2nd.
Hall of Famers and super stars were everywhere. The Tri Star Autograph Pavilion saw plenty of action the entire show. There were appearances by several Super Bowl MVPs including: Joe Namath, Bart Starr, Randy White, John Riggins, Franco Harris, and Terry Bradshaw. Baseball Hall of Famers included: Rod Carew, Whitey Ford, Lou Brock, Bruce Sutter, Ralph Kiner, Bob Gibson, Stan Musial, and Red Schoendienst. Other guests included hockey greats: Gordie Howe, Phil and Tony Esposito, and Chriss Chelios. And that’s just a sampling of great athletes in attendance.
With hundreds of booths on display, it was a collector’s heaven. From signed balls, bats, gloves, photos, and paintings – there was everything there a collector would enjoy perusing or buying. There were small, one-man/women booths to large dealers and auction houses such as: Upper Deck, Tri Star Productions, eTopps, Heritage Auction Galleries, and Sportsbuy.com, just to name a few. One of my favorite booths was Art of the Stars, a leader in sports artwork with some truly unique pieces.
I attended the convention to introduce HOFN.com’s new social-networking community, www.HOFcommunity.com. HOFcommunity will be dedicated to building a vibrant community of dealers, collectors, memorabilia aficionados, and those interested in the Hall of Fame Industry. It was well-received.
And, after attending The National Sports Collectors Convention, I’m convinced that we couldn’t have picked a more passionate industry to build an online community. Come join us!
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Gil-
Sounded like a great convention. Rod Carew, Whitey Ford, Gordie Howe & the Esposito brothers, lots of good memories from my years as a kid watching my old baseball & hockey heroes. I was a Twins & Northstars fan growing up in Mpls. Harmon Killibrew & Tony Oliva of the Twins, Lou Nanne, Gump Worsley & Pete Goldsworthy of the Stars also come to mind. Chicago is a fantastic sports town. Excellent venue to introduce HOF at. Best of luck!
rg
Comment by rsg in SD — August 13, 2008 @ 8:04 pm
I heard a Wagner Card sold for more than a million dollars at that show. It was nice having read your piece by Jeff Figler on the Wagner Card only a month or so prior. You guys are obviously riding the curve…..congratulationsons…….ETE
Comment by eddie the eagle — August 14, 2008 @ 12:15 am
Actually, the Wagner card sold for $1.62 million at a live auction in Chicago which was not associated with the show, but it was during that time frame.
Comment by Rich Mueller — August 14, 2008 @ 12:53 am
ETE … thanks for your comments. I recommend all collectors, or sports fans in general, check on the piece on Honus Wagner by Figler in HOFN - and his subsequent collecting articles. Good stuff.
Comment by GDV — August 14, 2008 @ 2:52 am