Latest / The Sports Card CEO Podcast / Episode 38, S2: Brandon Steiner Exclusive Interview | CEO Mentality & Entrepreneur Tips

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Episode 38, S2: Brandon Steiner Exclusive Interview | CEO Mentality & Entrepreneur Tips · The Sports Card CEO Podcast

0:00
[SPEAKER_04]: What has happened to everybody?
0:01
[SPEAKER_04]: Welcome back to the sports card C-E-O.
0:04
[SPEAKER_04]: We got a couple special guests in the house today, but none other than our friend, Brandon Steiner.
0:26
[SPEAKER_02]: a 47-D season and a season of life in the other and naturely baseball history from one of the Koenia Junior.
0:36
[SPEAKER_03]: There's a strike right on the Man of Heaven, the Man of Heaven, the amazing, the amazing.
0:42
[SPEAKER_03]: They hit the strong hard, he hits the lion, the last, my truck, that's right to go on.
0:49
[SPEAKER_01]: What's up guys, Mike Trot?
0:50
[SPEAKER_01]: And you're listening to Sports Park CEO, Chris Carrant, Buffland Hand.
0:57
[SPEAKER_05]: Hello, good to be with you today.
0:59
[SPEAKER_05]: Have you back with my friend?
1:00
[SPEAKER_05]: Got a little mat here.
1:02
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm feeling like it's a family affair right now.
1:04
[SPEAKER_05]: So it's all good.
1:05
[SPEAKER_04]: It is, man.
1:05
[SPEAKER_04]: You got a little bit of the deep South coming on with kind of your New York roots.
1:08
[SPEAKER_04]: So we're going to have a fun time today and appreciate you making time to be on with us again.
1:12
[SPEAKER_04]: We're actually coming up to your neck of the woods later in the week.
1:15
[SPEAKER_04]: Man, we're flying into La Guardia on Thursday.
1:17
[SPEAKER_04]: Probably going for an axe fast.
1:19
[SPEAKER_04]: You've got it.
1:21
[SPEAKER_04]: You've got it and we're gonna we're gonna check out a we actually you're the got to talk to we plan to go to the Yankees game on Friday night and so you know You know, we you're probably not at the games anymore or are you gonna be there?
1:33
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm at the games, you know, okay, I mean I'm not I'm the I'll be there Saturday night I've got a couple appearances and stuff, but I've got different things going on and I'm not like I'd every game like I used to be But I'm at a decent amount
1:45
[SPEAKER_04]: You know, it's a big weekend.
1:46
[SPEAKER_05]: The Dodgers.
1:47
[SPEAKER_05]: I take it, you know, Paul.
1:49
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah, we're coming up.
1:50
[SPEAKER_04]: We're coming up Friday.
1:51
[SPEAKER_04]: I've got two other sons who are twins and they're going to be coming.
1:54
[SPEAKER_04]: So we're doing fanatics fest all day Thursday, all day Friday, all day Saturday, but Friday night.
1:58
[SPEAKER_04]: We're going to catch a train up to the stadium man and take the boys to Yankee Stadium.
2:03
[SPEAKER_04]: We'll Friday night baseball don't get better, huh?
2:05
[SPEAKER_05]: It's going to be great.
2:06
[SPEAKER_05]: The Yankees are heating up, they're getting a little better, you know, the Dodgers coming and it's always a whole thing.
2:10
[SPEAKER_05]: And it's going to be fun.
2:11
[SPEAKER_05]: Be a big weekend in town.
2:12
[SPEAKER_05]: The Dodgers for an X-Fest, you got the final of the World Cup on Sunday.
2:17
[SPEAKER_05]: There's a bunch of stuff going on this weekend.
2:19
[SPEAKER_05]: It's going to be a very active weekend to get around.
2:22
[SPEAKER_04]: should be interesting yeah it is i'm kind of hunker and down you know we're not used to city life so we're gonna kind of lay low near the hotel and kind of keep it fresh when we've got a little man on today and and Brandon for our listeners you know we've we've had you on before such a great episode our listeners loved it and today we're gonna dive in again thank you by the way for the books I appreciate that and i've got him here on my my shelf behind me and look forward to diving into him but that's all about email me and you're
2:50
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah, it's well, we appreciate that.
2:52
[SPEAKER_04]: I know our folks really really enjoyed it.
2:54
[SPEAKER_04]: So one of the things we do here on the CEO man is we kick off the week We kind of get a little background of the week.
2:59
[SPEAKER_04]: What's been going on kind of like a real dive into real life CEO type stuff We talk a little bit about personal things.
3:06
[SPEAKER_04]: We talk about business related things So we're gonna do a little roundtable and as our guests will let you go last so I'm gonna let little Matt lead off Then I'll go then you can go and then we'll dive into today's topics, but a little Matt what's been happening brother
3:18
[SPEAKER_00]: It's been a, it's been a pretty busy week, you know, had, I've had plain baseball in basketball at the same time as always busy.
3:25
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm a played basketball tournament this week, so it was out of town.
3:28
[SPEAKER_00]: My grandparents took me to that, but still been super busy on the card front, you know, preparing for fanatics fest.
3:34
[SPEAKER_00]: I've been buying so much.
3:35
[SPEAKER_00]: And this past few weeks, I've just picked up so much Jordan LeBron Kobe picked up a nasty Kobe 2002 top chrome blacker fractured.
3:44
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm that was pretty nice one.
3:45
[SPEAKER_00]: And I've just been picking up, you know,
3:46
[SPEAKER_00]: Great, great cards.
3:47
[SPEAKER_00]: The best of the best.
3:48
[SPEAKER_00]: I've been paying super strong.
3:49
[SPEAKER_00]: So, but yeah, gearing up for fanatics fest and hopefully going to sell sell a lot of fanatics fest.
3:54
[SPEAKER_00]: That's kind of the goal.
3:55
[SPEAKER_04]: What are you most looking forward to with fanatics fest?
3:57
[SPEAKER_04]: I know it's kind of a hodgepodge of, you know, industry cards, entertainment sports.
4:03
[SPEAKER_04]: What do you look forward to?
4:04
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, I really want to interview some big athletes and have like conversations with them.
4:08
[SPEAKER_00]: And even if I don't get like interview them, they say, you know, of time, I just want to meet them, at least talk to, and then seeing everybody, I love to just see everyone.
4:16
[SPEAKER_00]: And then negotiating big deals.
4:18
[SPEAKER_00]: This is kind of the first time I've been to a big show since Dallas, and there's gonna be some pretty high in collectors in the room.
4:24
[SPEAKER_00]: So I'm negotiating some big deals on some big cards.
4:27
[SPEAKER_00]: It's gonna be super fun.
4:28
[SPEAKER_04]: cool, man.
4:29
[SPEAKER_04]: Well, I'm looking forward to it as well.
4:30
[SPEAKER_04]: So, you know, my world, your world's intersect quite a bit.
4:33
[SPEAKER_04]: We've been super busy at the agency.
4:36
[SPEAKER_04]: Still getting a couple of new hires up and running at early out insurance.
4:40
[SPEAKER_04]: And that said, time for a little bit of a breather.
4:43
[SPEAKER_04]: So, not that fanatics fest in the national are a breather for us because I'm taking you and your brothers.
4:47
[SPEAKER_04]: So, it'll be busy, but we're heading up there.
4:50
[SPEAKER_04]: feeling really good about the position we're in right now from a card standpoint the market has just been you know phenomenal but the summer season and the sports card hobby is always the fun season so we got all star game tonight as Brandon said you know world cup final you got Dodgers Yankees kicking off the second half of the baseball years there's just a lot of cool things going on right now just keeps the energy high and you know looking forward to continuing to ride that way so mr. Stein or what's
5:15
[SPEAKER_05]: Oh, lots of good stuff, but you know, we did, we're bringing Ben Rice and Ewing to the X-Fest.
5:21
[SPEAKER_05]: So those two are doing very well and then Mariano and a couple of the places that are national.
5:27
[SPEAKER_05]: I have more presence if you want to see me, I'll be at the national.
5:30
[SPEAKER_05]: We're putting up about, I mean, I'm hoping we're putting up literally thousands of cards in our eBay store.
5:36
[SPEAKER_05]: So if you're, if you love vintage cards, or even some incredible cards too, our eBay stores are sleeper, but I think we have over about three or four thousand cards in there and growing like crazy.
5:47
[SPEAKER_05]: So you may want to give that a look on my think, where somewhere around 30,000 items up on our eBay store, and I think about 15,000 more cards.
5:56
[SPEAKER_04]: So that's kind of cool.
5:57
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, to me, like, I've been through these highs and lows, I'm really trying to figure out like, what the hell is going on now?
6:05
[SPEAKER_05]: The next thing really took all the air out of the room, and a lot of ways, you know, the NBA files have never been bigger.
6:13
[SPEAKER_05]: And, you know, this is the latest I've seen football kick off.
6:16
[SPEAKER_05]: Like usually football is already in swing.
6:18
[SPEAKER_05]: Not a lot talked about football yet.
6:20
[SPEAKER_04]: Weird.
6:21
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, is the WMBA this struggling like to me.
6:24
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, the games are as good.
6:27
[SPEAKER_05]: There's a lot of it on TV.
6:29
[SPEAKER_05]: And this seems to be some struggle internally there with that league.
6:33
[SPEAKER_05]: And I'm wondering about, you know, where I lead that was almost like a locomotive without an emergency break.
6:39
[SPEAKER_05]: Now all of a sudden it's now starting to sputter a little bit.
6:42
[SPEAKER_05]: So, you know, where about the baseball strike, everything seems very even to make stuff for the dodges and baseball.
6:47
[SPEAKER_05]: So, I'm trying to figure out kind of where that's going because everybody seems to be playing 500 baseball.
6:52
[SPEAKER_05]: It's weird.
6:53
[SPEAKER_05]: Nobody seems to be really playing really, really well.
6:55
[SPEAKER_05]: Except for Atlanta, maybe, and maybe the dodges, which is weird.
6:58
[SPEAKER_05]: It's like not a lot of teams playing well.
7:03
[SPEAKER_05]: It's an interesting time because the world cup also took a lot of air out of the room more than normal.
7:08
[SPEAKER_05]: That's not normal at this time of year, but it took a lot of air in the room.
7:12
[SPEAKER_05]: So now people have focused so mad like, you know, you've got to now think about what you have soccer wise.
7:18
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, there's goby, there's Jordan and all the, but now if it's then you've got to have some soccer cards, you know, that's where kids.
7:23
[SPEAKER_05]: A lot of people have focused in on.
7:25
[SPEAKER_05]: So a lot of stuff going on, we just moved by the way to a warehouse about five times the size because people have been bringing us their collections.
7:32
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, we have that marketplace and it's never been easier.
7:35
[SPEAKER_05]: So it's just incredible the amount of collections that people are coming us with and we're helping them liquidate.
7:41
[SPEAKER_04]: So Brandon, one of the things I'm really interested to talk with you about is, you know, you've been in this industry for gosh, the better part of going on 50 years almost, you know, 40 plus years.
7:50
[SPEAKER_04]: It's at the 40s.
7:52
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah, so I don't want to put too much right away.
7:54
[SPEAKER_05]: It makes me old.
7:55
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, I'm just a little bit.
7:56
[SPEAKER_04]: Well, you've been around the block so many times now.
8:00
[SPEAKER_04]: And like you said, I'm curious, you're perspective.
8:03
[SPEAKER_04]: So from my understanding of your side of the industry, doing marketing for athletes and getting partnerships and so forth in a lot of memorabilia, what is your kind of thought process on memorabilia as it relates specifically to cards and kind of the dynamic between the two from not only utilization and people collecting it,
8:25
[SPEAKER_04]: the value of it, the investment strategies or whatever, like I'd love for you to talk on that a little bit.
8:29
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, this is a different twist in terms on the collectible area, but you know, I think the big difference is just a lot more people collecting.
8:37
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, the audience is expanded in general, partly because of women getting into the game, probably because of
8:45
[SPEAKER_05]: The card market is definitely help given a strong push.
8:49
[SPEAKER_05]: And there are a couple of sports that we haven't seen jump in.
8:53
[SPEAKER_05]: I think some of the vintage stuff has really been exciting.
8:56
[SPEAKER_05]: And then some of the vintage stuff, I look at things like mantle, Oli, and stuff is kind of faulted off a little bit.
9:01
[SPEAKER_05]: But at this point, when you have the cards, it's hard to showcase.
9:05
[SPEAKER_05]: When you have a sports room, it's hard to showcase your cards to a point.
9:09
[SPEAKER_05]: So you almost need the meribilly to compliment it, you know, everybody's man and woman caves.
9:14
[SPEAKER_05]: You want to have the sports, the compliment, the sports collectibles.
9:16
[SPEAKER_05]: So the market is strong.
9:18
[SPEAKER_05]: It's definitely not where it was during COVID, but it's still strong.
9:22
[SPEAKER_05]: There's a lot of people buying.
9:23
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think the card market we're going to really see where it's going.
9:27
[SPEAKER_05]: As we move into 27, when you have a potential baseball strike.
9:30
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, hold up.
9:31
[SPEAKER_05]: This is a lot of product out there, scares me.
9:34
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
9:34
[SPEAKER_04]: Do you traditionally do you kind of, I mean, again, I feel like you would lean more memorabilia and maybe less interested in kind of the card dynamic, especially with the modern thing.
9:43
[SPEAKER_04]: Is it all relevant to you or is it more memorabilia focused?
9:46
[SPEAKER_05]: No, it's all relevant at this point.
9:48
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, if you go to my A-base track, probably I want cards and collectables up and right, Mark Thoman.
9:52
[SPEAKER_05]: And we move to, you know, we fish with a fish or.
9:55
[SPEAKER_05]: And, you know, people are interested in cards and we're getting all kinds of calls for different cards and we're buying or we're designing when we're rocking a roll with it, but, you know, the collectibles is my game and it's something that a big part of that business that created and started so it's on a kind of move away from what you're really good at, I mean, I really feel like when you look at a collectible exchange.
10:14
[SPEAKER_05]: As opposed to let's say eBay, even though a lot of our stuff is on eBay too, but, you know, it's clean, you know, like one of the asses about figuring out where to go buy your collectibles is that A is it real, and then B, sifting through all the crap, and what I think we manage to keep our site very clean.
10:29
[SPEAKER_05]: So when you go and you look up at things, you don't have to go to 50 things to find one.
10:34
[SPEAKER_05]: and you don't have to worry about it being real.
10:36
[SPEAKER_05]: So, I like both markets right now, like I just feel like with the cards, I worry because when I go into a K-mart, I go into a gas station, I go into a supermarket, it's cards to say, like, it's too many cards being produced.
10:50
[SPEAKER_05]: And at some point, that means that's a bubble.
10:53
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't worry about collectibles because players have to sit there and sign it and you still gotta get the products.
10:58
[SPEAKER_05]: So, I don't feel like this is an over surplus of collectibles out there, frankly.
11:02
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
11:03
[SPEAKER_00]: That work.
11:03
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, something granted.
11:04
[SPEAKER_00]: I think you said that I mean, it's like what I've been doing recently is you said you have to fish where the fish are.
11:09
[SPEAKER_00]: You know, you got to hit what's hot.
11:11
[SPEAKER_00]: And I've done Bowman for a while.
11:14
[SPEAKER_00]: And I haven't bought a Bowman card in two months because Bowman is at the hottest market right now.
11:19
[SPEAKER_00]: So I've transitioned more into the goat market because it's what's hot right now.
11:23
[SPEAKER_00]: And what you just said is a perfect example of what I've been doing, you know, kind of transitioning to what's been selling.
11:29
[SPEAKER_00]: And the Jordan Kobe LeBron stuff is everyone's buying it right now.
11:32
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, the COVID will bring, you know, those are road noises that they're never going to go out of style.
11:36
[SPEAKER_05]: Those are the Rolexes and that's, you know, that's something you always have to have it.
11:39
[SPEAKER_05]: Those are your apple stock.
11:41
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, those are just solid as gold, but you know, two and three.
11:44
[SPEAKER_05]: Those guys just mentioned are living anymore.
11:46
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, so there's a limit to what.
11:48
[SPEAKER_05]: you can get there, but that market's still strong, people keep flipping, moving around, and you see more mantle, Kobe, Jordan, you see more of those cards popping up with value, other than just a rookie card, which I like.
12:00
[SPEAKER_05]: It's fun, keeping those, keeping those legacies alive.
12:03
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm just worrying about like, what's hot?
12:06
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, if you buy a card from 26 this season, what's hot?
12:10
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, what are we looking for?
12:12
[SPEAKER_05]: Like,
12:13
[SPEAKER_04]: I'm confused and there's so much of it out there like I'm worried that there's a lot of people buying that and I'm not sure where any of that's going yeah yeah it's definitely a fair fair concern there you know one of the things I wanted to ask you I mean you were a friend personal friend with Mickey Manel and you have such a unique
12:28
[SPEAKER_04]: Experience because you've been connected to so many of these different athletes and a lot of people in the hobby per se They don't have that connectivity, right?
12:37
[SPEAKER_04]: Like they want to own a card because they've never met the guy or he was always an icon of theirs, etc And so you've had meals with this this guy for years in years of your life So my question to you is is when you look at Mickey Manel and you look specifically at the 52 tops his iconic rookie card
12:54
[SPEAKER_04]: You know, is that an asset that you feel like has just long term sustainability as far as a store of value in your mind?
13:02
[SPEAKER_05]: Well, it's in two parts.
13:03
[SPEAKER_05]: Yes, sustainability, you know, why I have no idea.
13:07
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, not that it shouldn't be really valued, but, you know, there's, you know, there are a lot of players that were on Mickey Manel's level that could easily make an argument.
13:15
[SPEAKER_05]: with their stats and what they have accomplished.
13:17
[SPEAKER_05]: But Mickey just had something about him and his stock, you know, it's just like there's just some things that just stick and then not going away.
13:25
[SPEAKER_05]: Like the Jordan rookie is never going away.
13:27
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, he's, and now even a little bra and getting ready to retire.
13:31
[SPEAKER_05]: Maybe he's going to play another year.
13:32
[SPEAKER_05]: But, you know, some of this, this is never going to be another Jordan.
13:35
[SPEAKER_05]: And what he represented the way he handled his business.
13:37
[SPEAKER_05]: So, I don't know if that card's going away either.
13:39
[SPEAKER_05]: But you know, ready, the mantle rookie has gone down a little bit.
13:43
[SPEAKER_05]: Like some of the mantle hot cards in the 50s have gone down.
13:48
[SPEAKER_05]: They've definitely moved off of unless you have a perfect 10.
13:51
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, they have become a lot more affordable.
13:53
[SPEAKER_05]: And that's mainly because you got to be like almost 65, 70, even, you know, with like the scene mantle play, then you got to be at least 65.
14:02
[SPEAKER_05]: right if you're not 65 you didn't see mental play like that's you know you got to think it like one of those lives it's one of my problems with the at least stuff I ain't to see it going down but you know you got to be well over 50 because maybe seem out at least fight you know like all the shenanigans and everything around him so you know some of that plays its toll and I always say there's two things I look at when I when I'm thinking about collecting these players you like and love and there's a player that's beloved
14:27
[SPEAKER_05]: When you're a beloved player, which it takes a lot of work on the players end, besides playing well, that's when you legacy will last the lifetime.
14:35
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, another guy who's beloved, whoever you want to championship thematically, who's beloved, he rose as a beloved guy.
14:42
[SPEAKER_05]: these people that just love, love, love them, regardless of anything and everything.
14:47
[SPEAKER_05]: So, there are players that people, you know, Michael Jordan's a beloved player.
14:50
[SPEAKER_05]: I still wear my Jordan's.
14:52
[SPEAKER_05]: I still wear my cobees because what they represented and the connection you have with that player.
14:57
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think players don't realize that it's more than just playing well and winning to become a beloved player.
15:03
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
15:04
[SPEAKER_05]: Great, great point.
15:05
[SPEAKER_05]: Go ahead, Matthew.
15:06
[SPEAKER_00]: So, me and you had this conversation with Karius today.
15:09
[SPEAKER_00]: And we were talking to you.
15:09
[SPEAKER_00]: You asked me this question.
15:10
[SPEAKER_00]: You said, everything else in the whole sports car market is going up.
15:15
[SPEAKER_00]: Jordan, Kobe, Griffie, Bonz, but my cow rippkins aren't going up.
15:19
[SPEAKER_00]: A cent.
15:20
[SPEAKER_00]: And I hate to say it.
15:21
[SPEAKER_00]: It's because these guys are beloved players, like he said, is your cow rippkin and beloved player in your opinion.
15:27
[SPEAKER_05]: I think Cal Ripkin when he represented and probably really took them will be on his back after the strike.
15:32
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, he was like a very big part of what was going on in the 90s.
15:37
[SPEAKER_05]: But he has been out of sight.
15:39
[SPEAKER_05]: He's been a little bit out of mind and played in a really small market.
15:43
[SPEAKER_05]: He's still a factor, but he kind of falls in with the Frank Robinson's falls in with some of those kinds of Tom Severs and another guy that was incredible.
15:55
[SPEAKER_05]: And he falls into that category, yeah, I mean, so that and that's why you're not seeing the growth of his market, which you can make an argument he should have, but yeah, and another thing like you said about Don Maddingly, he didn't never want to championship, but he was beloved.
16:09
[SPEAKER_00]: I compare him to a guy like Mike trout.
16:11
[SPEAKER_00]: I've never went to someone and said, hey, like my trail is liked by every single person.
16:17
[SPEAKER_00]: He's so likable and I think that's why his market is going to do a lot.
16:21
[SPEAKER_00]: Come on.
16:22
[SPEAKER_00]: When people my age who looked up the trail are starting to become older and they want to buy his cars, I think the trail's going to be really good in that's meant.
16:28
[SPEAKER_05]: I agree with you.
16:29
[SPEAKER_05]: I've had some good point.
16:30
[SPEAKER_05]: I like that.
16:30
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, that's a good analogy.
16:31
[SPEAKER_05]: And I agree with you on your percent.
16:32
[SPEAKER_05]: Like it's unfortunate where he's playing, you know, the winning losing, but he's still a very domatically like he's just playing at the wrong team for a long time, but he's a great player.
16:41
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, so you know,
16:43
[SPEAKER_04]: This is a fascinating conversation because we talked about this the other day Brandon Matthew and I With the World Cup being on right, and there's a lot of chatter like you said in the soccer world about You know, you've got in Bapay, you've got messy, you know, you've got these guys that are kind of like in this conversation And it brought up the name Paley and it was so funny because like so many people have surpassed Paley from from a statistical standpoint
17:06
[SPEAKER_04]: But we were like, why is Payla so collectible?
17:08
[SPEAKER_04]: Like, and you mentioned Ali.
17:10
[SPEAKER_04]: And so when I look at this, I would ask you specifically, a guy who's been around this industry for a long long time.
17:17
[SPEAKER_04]: Who would you put in as the top five?
17:20
[SPEAKER_04]: Most beloved or most sustainable iconic sports figures?
17:24
[SPEAKER_04]: Who would your five be?
17:26
[SPEAKER_05]: It seems to you know, I did a couple of things with Payla and to me, he's fallen off a little bit frankly.
17:31
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, not a lot of talk about with him, but I'm sure he's still incredibly huge and Brazil and South America.
17:37
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, you start off with Ruth and Jordan, no question.
17:39
[SPEAKER_05]: Reason is, no matter where in the world you talk about Ruth and Jordan, you know, you know, they, everybody knows what you're talking about.
17:46
[SPEAKER_05]: And that's why I put Kobe in as well, because if you say Kobe in Japan or in Asia, you would know who I'm talking about.
17:56
[SPEAKER_05]: And then, you know, then now of a sudden, you got to start looking at it.
17:59
[SPEAKER_05]: Here's my home at least still in that conversation.
18:02
[SPEAKER_05]: It's icing has creeped up on them from a boxing standpoint.
18:05
[SPEAKER_05]: But I put it in number four, I probably regret ski just because there are two countries that he's dominant in.
18:10
[SPEAKER_05]: And if you're a hockey fan, it all starts and begins with him.
18:13
[SPEAKER_05]: So he'd be my number four.
18:15
[SPEAKER_05]: And then the soccer thing is kind of up for grabs.
18:17
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, you know, you talk about it today.
18:19
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, it's messy like it's going to be the same as a pay lay.
18:23
[SPEAKER_05]: Ronaldo, I mean, there's a couple of different ways to go.
18:26
[SPEAKER_05]: But if you have to be ten years ago, the soccer thing would be part of this conversation.
18:31
[SPEAKER_05]: But it really has to be now, right?
18:33
[SPEAKER_05]: It has to be.
18:34
[SPEAKER_05]: I know that people love Tom Brady.
18:36
[SPEAKER_05]: He's a goat, but if you mention Tom and China, then I can know you're talking about.
18:41
[SPEAKER_05]: If you mention an India, I don't know if you talk about it.
18:43
[SPEAKER_05]: If you mention it, it's not back in the evening, it's all.
18:45
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, I love Brady.
18:45
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, he's obviously one of the greatest quarterback.
18:48
[SPEAKER_05]: I still love my son, I'm more than Brady, but that's my own personal preference.
18:51
[SPEAKER_05]: But I don't put him in that amount of rush more.
18:53
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't.
18:54
[SPEAKER_04]: Interesting.
18:55
[SPEAKER_05]: If anything, you may want to put a hang out and as a one A, also just because of what he accomplished and what he's done, but still not as we talked about the love as popular.
19:07
[SPEAKER_05]: I wish he should be because he was a great guy out of for like 10 years.
19:11
[SPEAKER_05]: I love Hank, one of my favorites of all time, but when you look at worldwide popularity to Mount Rushmoreville.
19:19
[SPEAKER_05]: It doesn't make that last, which is a shame.
19:22
[SPEAKER_04]: It's just, yeah.
19:23
[SPEAKER_04]: So where does a guy like Tiger Woods fall for you within that conversation?
19:27
[SPEAKER_00]: I was going to ask that to say that.
19:28
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, he deserves to be in it.
19:29
[SPEAKER_05]: But, you know, he's just, he's off the field and then the menace of his, of his, of his brand and his legacy is so wobbly.
19:38
[SPEAKER_05]: But yeah, you certainly have to put them in the conversation because when you talk about golf, if you want to get old school, you know, like a palm or a nickels, but nickels in it, I mean, you got to make you tiger.
19:47
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, you got to put tiger maybe on there.
19:49
[SPEAKER_05]: You may be maybe my number five.
19:52
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
19:52
[SPEAKER_05]: So, you know, yeah, yeah, yeah.
19:55
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, what's your list?
19:56
[SPEAKER_00]: What's your five most iconic?
19:58
[SPEAKER_00]: What's your Mount Rushmore of athletes?
19:59
[SPEAKER_04]: My personal listed athletes?
20:01
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
20:02
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, again, if we're talking like collectability and like worldwide recognition, I think that was the context of what, you know, Brandon was sharing for me personally, like this isn't related to the hobby.
20:13
[SPEAKER_04]: It's like my personal Mount Rushmore.
20:15
[SPEAKER_04]: It would be Jordan absolutely.
20:17
[SPEAKER_04]: It would be Mickey Manel because I always heard my dad talk about Mickey Manel.
20:21
[SPEAKER_04]: You know, my dad was born in 55 and so when he was a kid, Manel was basically playing in the
20:30
[SPEAKER_05]: and the best photograph of all time.
20:32
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
20:32
[SPEAKER_04]: Yep.
20:33
[SPEAKER_04]: And so I heard her dead talk about mantle.
20:35
[SPEAKER_04]: Personally for me, I would put Tiger on there because he was so dominant at a sport that just made me want to watch.
20:41
[SPEAKER_04]: And so I gravitated towards that.
20:43
[SPEAKER_04]: And then I probably would say Bo Jackson.
20:46
[SPEAKER_04]: Personally, just because when I was a kid, Bo Jackson was just the guy.
20:50
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, two sport all started doing his thing like he was just iconic.
20:54
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, it was funny.
20:55
[SPEAKER_04]: There was a cartoon, Matthew, like in the early 90s.
20:58
[SPEAKER_04]: It was called like pro stars or something like this.
21:01
[SPEAKER_04]: It was Gretzky, Jordan, and Bo Jackson.
21:04
[SPEAKER_04]: And they were like super hero, like crime fighter sports stars.
21:08
[SPEAKER_04]: It was like wild at how iconic they were.
21:10
[SPEAKER_04]: And then I have to put Ripkin on there just because
21:13
[SPEAKER_04]: You know, I watched him in 91 at the All-Star Game as a 10-year-old when the Derby win the MVP.
21:20
[SPEAKER_04]: And so he's just kind of my beloved guy.
21:22
[SPEAKER_04]: So that would be my list of like my five, you know?
21:24
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, I'll give you, I mean, I think Brandon hit it right on the nose of the five.
21:29
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, Babe Ruth and Michael Jordan said those two.
21:31
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, they have movies.
21:33
[SPEAKER_00]: Space Jam and Sandlot are literally about those two right two people.
21:36
[SPEAKER_00]: So I think that knocks it out.
21:38
[SPEAKER_00]: But from my five coming from a 15 year old have to put LeBron James on the list.
21:42
[SPEAKER_00]: Steph Curry is the most influential basketball player of all time.
21:46
[SPEAKER_00]: What he did with the three pointer have to put Tom Brady on the list somewhere.
21:49
[SPEAKER_00]: Brady, absolutely.
21:51
[SPEAKER_00]: I think Showhail, Tony deserves to be on that list.
21:54
[SPEAKER_00]: Showhail is probably one of the greatest bass, so he is in my opinion he's the greatest bass
22:00
[SPEAKER_00]: Round and off, it's a tough one, but I probably have to say, like, Kobe Bryant just because of how into influential he was, like, not even when he was pulled like after he was playing.
22:10
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, so you've been short and off the list and you've printed Kobe on.
22:14
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, I'm I'm taking it from a 15 year old perspective that I that I play, like Kobe was still playing when I was alive.
22:21
[SPEAKER_00]: So Jordan had Jordan, like retired 10 years before I was born.
22:26
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
22:26
[SPEAKER_04]: It's really interesting conversation because you've got three generations, basically, and how different people perceive the hobby, which is what keeps the hobby alive, right?
22:34
[SPEAKER_04]: It's amazing because you have these different demographics that are into the collectible piece.
22:39
[SPEAKER_04]: And that's super, super fascinating.
22:40
[SPEAKER_05]: I think I agree.
22:41
[SPEAKER_05]: I love Matt's list, but I think one of the biggest disappointments, and I was very down on LeBron for a while when he did that whole Miami thing.
22:50
[SPEAKER_05]: And then I got really big on him again and now I'm back down on him again.
22:53
[SPEAKER_05]: I feel like I'm just not sure where that guy's coming from like I just don't understand the brand.
22:59
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't understand sneakers, then I create I don't understand how they couldn't get a sneaker right.
23:03
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, a guy who's that's 20 years of sneakers.
23:06
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't think there's one of them I would wear right and he's not been in a cooperative autograph guy and that's another thing that pisses me off like you're on that level come up with a story stick with it but don't ignore the fact that people really want your autograph and figure out a way to do it he's one championships not signed who does that like come on that's part of the deal you're doing it you're doing it for the hobby matters the licensing matters he's not a cooperative yeah warm fan
23:33
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
23:33
[SPEAKER_00]: And for years, he'd never signed with Penini.
23:36
[SPEAKER_00]: So the 10 years that Penini was making cards, he'd never signed with Penini because he had a steel upper deck.
23:42
[SPEAKER_00]: So he never had autograph cards.
23:44
[SPEAKER_00]: He never had autograph cards for years.
23:45
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, what's cheaper?
23:46
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, we're two or three hours a year.
23:48
[SPEAKER_05]: He was signing a couple thousand autographs.
23:50
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, what's, you know, they released something is out there.
23:52
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, it's real.
23:53
[SPEAKER_05]: He's just never been part of the conversation.
23:56
[SPEAKER_05]: And it kills me when a big name, hop, player, ops out of it at the lobby.
24:01
[SPEAKER_05]: There's why not, would you it for years?
24:02
[SPEAKER_05]: You wouldn't sign.
24:03
[SPEAKER_05]: He's not one of my guys.
24:04
[SPEAKER_05]: So I'm talking about both sides of my mouth, but he was always a big problem for me.
24:08
[SPEAKER_05]: He's just wouldn't sign.
24:09
[SPEAKER_05]: He's one of top players in the NBA for years.
24:12
[SPEAKER_05]: But I just hate when guys opt out and ignore the hobby when it for a few hours.
24:16
[SPEAKER_05]: They could take a million dollars literally.
24:19
[SPEAKER_05]: Give it the charity.
24:20
[SPEAKER_05]: and then give us what we need.
24:22
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
24:23
[SPEAKER_04]: Well, to your point, there is an element of the hobby where it's like, hey, man, like, this is what you signed up for, whether or not you like it or not, it's part of the, it's part of the routine of the enemy.
24:34
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
24:34
[SPEAKER_04]: It's like if an actor does a movie, you're going to go on the late show.
24:38
[SPEAKER_04]: You're going to have to go do a little bit of promo, like, you know what I mean?
24:42
[SPEAKER_04]: There's something to be said for like just saddening up and doing the work.
24:47
[SPEAKER_05]: Even stuff card, just one thing on the little mat, you know.
24:50
[SPEAKER_05]: I had stuff card for about four years and very busy guys.
24:53
[SPEAKER_05]: He's got a million things.
24:54
[SPEAKER_05]: And what he did is he gave us nine hours a year, three signings, or four signings at two hours each, something like that.
25:01
[SPEAKER_05]: Like, and you know, going to the dentist, you know, you didn't get too emotionally involved about the whole thing.
25:07
[SPEAKER_05]: Whatever we can get signed in those two hour intervals, he did it.
25:11
[SPEAKER_05]: And he made some money and he just put it in his cow and then he did it because you know people wanted it.
25:15
[SPEAKER_05]: Simple.
25:15
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, so don't think it.
25:17
[SPEAKER_05]: Well, I mean, go ahead, Matthew.
25:20
[SPEAKER_00]: I think Curry's market is going to sustain better.
25:23
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, not if good as Jordan could be LeBron, but versus guys like Yokech, Luka, Yannis.
25:28
[SPEAKER_00]: Curry's going to blow them out with water because Curry's so likable.
25:31
[SPEAKER_00]: Like Curry's my favorite player of all time.
25:33
[SPEAKER_00]: Like I have Curry's
25:37
[SPEAKER_00]: I think just because how likely is when people my age start getting jobs and becoming older and older and they have money to spend, they're not going to go back and they're not going to buy yannison luka cards, they're going to want to buy Steph Curry cards and that's why I think Curry's long-term stuff is an incredible play.
25:52
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
25:53
[SPEAKER_04]: There's rookie corn in some figures.
25:55
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
25:55
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, it's it's crazy.
25:57
[SPEAKER_04]: So, you know, one of the things that Brandon youth been as connected to athletes is probably anybody in the industry.
26:04
[SPEAKER_04]: And we don't have to call it names, but talk a bit about one of the things that really impressed me when I met you the first time we had our first conversation is, you know, there's there's very little pretense.
26:16
[SPEAKER_04]: You
26:16
[SPEAKER_04]: You know, you've been massively successful, but you were very available.
26:19
[SPEAKER_04]: You sent us some signed books, you were very encouraging.
26:22
[SPEAKER_04]: Just even a chat with a little Matt not today.
26:24
[SPEAKER_04]: It's like, you don't have to do this, but it's just something that you do, because you're pouring back in.
26:28
[SPEAKER_04]: When you look at athletes, like, what would you say to athletes, young and upcoming athletes, about maintaining that level of authenticity to want to like pull back into the community in and surrounding sports?
26:41
[SPEAKER_05]: The way I framed that question is, if I was watching a movie of a particular player, what would I be screaming at the screen to tell in that athlete to do?
26:50
[SPEAKER_05]: Right.
26:50
[SPEAKER_05]: What are they missing?
26:52
[SPEAKER_05]: What should they do more of?
26:53
[SPEAKER_05]: Right.
26:54
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think that one thing that I've noticed over the 40 years I've been in the business that the athletes understand the responsibility and accountability that comes with the money and we're all this hype and Google.
27:06
[SPEAKER_05]: So you've seen less than last players doing crazy stupid stuff.
27:10
[SPEAKER_05]: especially your bigger name, better name players.
27:12
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, they're taking their driver, they're taking their have their PR person.
27:16
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, they don't understand some of that, but what I tell it, what I would tell a lot of players is that it's critical that they pick two charities out.
27:25
[SPEAKER_05]: One very, very large one, where they can make an impact, make a difference, and let the charity do the work by using them.
27:31
[SPEAKER_05]: And then pick out a small pet charity that maybe something that someone in their family is connected to so that anything they do for them will make a difference and stick with that stick with those two charities and what a lot of athletes do is they just bounce around and they do a lot of good but the kind of all over the place with it.
27:48
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think it's important to kind of put your flag in the ground about what you want to get behind and where the impact and difference you want to make with your influence and money.
27:56
[SPEAKER_05]: I think that's really important for them.
27:58
[SPEAKER_05]: And then the second thing I thought would tell after you'd say, I know there's a lot more money when you move around, but try to avoid it.
28:04
[SPEAKER_05]: playing for the same team in the same market, that legacy is really, really valuable.
28:09
[SPEAKER_05]: And later on when you get older, you're sitting with a ton of money and nobody's even wondering where the hell you are, what you're doing.
28:15
[SPEAKER_05]: It's because you jumped around from four or five teams.
28:18
[SPEAKER_05]: So I agree with them that like I like Steph Curry.
28:21
[SPEAKER_05]: It's also extremely popular, but it's so relatable in size as well like we can't really relate to a bra because he's almost like a superhero.
28:28
[SPEAKER_05]: And a lot of these guys, but when you look at Curry's very normal looking.
28:32
[SPEAKER_05]: So a lot of kids can look and go, wait a minute, if he did it, I maybe I can do it.
28:35
[SPEAKER_05]: But I think it's really important that you try to, you can work with your team to stay on one team.
28:41
[SPEAKER_05]: Because it's a real value to that with your legacies, nothing like being in your monument park, being in your team's hall of fame, having a statue.
28:51
[SPEAKER_05]: And you look at a lot of the great ones, just coincidentally, but a lot of them that have been on one team.
28:58
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
28:59
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, I have a question for you, Brandon, about a player who's up coming Victor Wimbain Yalma.
29:03
[SPEAKER_00]: He's one of the best talents I've ever seen play, but some of he did recently as he just signed a five-year contract for $250 million.
29:12
[SPEAKER_00]: The max he could have signed for was $313 million, but he took a $63 million pay cut.
29:17
[SPEAKER_00]: just so he could help build the spurs.
29:19
[SPEAKER_00]: I mean, you think that's something like he's so liked by the spurs fans and you think he stayed with the spurs that would like help his market and help his overall player appearance.
29:28
[SPEAKER_05]: I do.
29:29
[SPEAKER_05]: I think winning matters and he probably knows consistency of being on a team that has the money and has the availability to go get parts around him matter.
29:38
[SPEAKER_05]: He saw it happen with Bronson and he knows he's the money at this point, how much do you need?
29:43
[SPEAKER_05]: Now listen, that is a lot of money.
29:45
[SPEAKER_05]: So you need to say that when you walk away from 30 or 40 or 50 million, but when you look at it after taxes and everything else, it's not as much as you think.
29:53
[SPEAKER_05]: And by staying on the same team, you always make up that money easily.
29:56
[SPEAKER_05]: And legacy, comfortability, of where you live, develop an a family, develop and friendships in one area.
30:04
[SPEAKER_05]: I think matters, I think it counts for something, and by the way, we haven't even seen a assuming he gets to the healthy.
30:11
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, he could be another one on that right on that Mount Rushmore.
30:14
[SPEAKER_05]: Very quick.
30:14
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
30:15
[SPEAKER_05]: He's a very young kid who's, you know, you got a chance to go see him play.
30:20
[SPEAKER_05]: You're going to stop what you're doing and you get in your car.
30:23
[SPEAKER_05]: You're going to go see him play.
30:24
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, how many players would you do that for when he's on TV or if you have an opportunity to go to a game where he's playing?
30:29
[SPEAKER_05]: So now we already put someone on a level
30:32
[SPEAKER_05]: We don't only have small few, he's going to be special.
30:35
[SPEAKER_05]: I hope he can stay healthy.
30:36
[SPEAKER_04]: Guys, that big, always difficult, but he, if anybody could have sent, yeah, he was funny talking about watching players play, you know, grow, we live in Wilmington, North Carolina, Jordan's hometown.
30:46
[SPEAKER_04]: And, you know, my dad, my father, watched him play in high school.
30:50
[SPEAKER_04]: And, you know, that's something that can't be taken away from him.
30:53
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, just how iconic to be able to watch Jordan when he was in high school.
30:57
[SPEAKER_04]: And one of the things that happened,
30:58
[SPEAKER_04]: I, well, I know, it's, and I tell my dad all the time, I'm like, dad, like, I wish you would have taken me when they played the hornets or something, you know what I mean when I was a kid, because I never got the watch Jordan play in person.
31:09
[SPEAKER_04]: And then my dad did, so there's a connectivity to that, but that's another thing that goes back to that earlier conversation about why we gravitate to certain players is because if you got to watch them play, if you watched them play in person, and so a guy like Show Hey,
31:26
[SPEAKER_04]: Again, when we were at Yankee Stadium, somebody said he may or may not.
31:29
[SPEAKER_04]: I don't know that his protocol.
31:31
[SPEAKER_04]: But nonetheless, it's like we got to see Judge last year.
31:34
[SPEAKER_04]: Judge and Trout actually last year when we went to Fanatics Fest.
31:37
[SPEAKER_04]: We went to the Angels and the Yankees game.
31:40
[SPEAKER_04]: And Trout actually hit a home run in the game.
31:43
[SPEAKER_04]: And it was just, I told Matthew, I say, dude, we watched Mike Trout and Aaron Judge play in Yankee Stadium.
31:48
[SPEAKER_04]: Like, that's a forever kind of memory.
31:50
[SPEAKER_04]: Like, it's solidified.
31:52
[SPEAKER_05]: But let me throw a little water on that part of the conversation.
31:56
[SPEAKER_05]: And here's my problem as a CEO and a leader.
31:58
[SPEAKER_05]: First of all, the amount of different TV stations that one has to have just to watch these games isn't saying.
32:05
[SPEAKER_05]: So something has to be done.
32:07
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, for somebody who doesn't have a lot of money, you think about the amount of networks you have to go and buy.
32:11
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, watch these games like tonight, I mean, you can't watch the on run door, but that's on Netflix really was it that important that you you moved off ESPN to go to Netflix, but you know, there's the money grabbing going on and it's not cheap to go to these games anymore.
32:25
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, you looking at thousands of dollars to go to the World Cup.
32:28
[SPEAKER_05]: thousands of dollars to go to the NBA Playoff Games.
32:31
[SPEAKER_05]: Something's got to be done where the average fan can get a shot to get a ticket at normal price.
32:36
[SPEAKER_05]: We've completely lost my minds between.
32:38
[SPEAKER_05]: We're to cost the watch and we're to cost to go and watch.
32:41
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think at some point, the hype is good.
32:44
[SPEAKER_05]: I know it.
32:44
[SPEAKER_05]: That's what striving salaries, by the way, make no mistake.
32:47
[SPEAKER_05]: All these new TV deals are driving salaries.
32:51
[SPEAKER_05]: But at some point,
32:52
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't know about you guys, but I'm watching less games because I don't know where the other games are.
32:56
[SPEAKER_05]: Am I going to Apple Netflix Amazon, if they're all over the freaking place, it's just getting too complicated.
33:02
[SPEAKER_05]: So I just ended up watching something else.
33:03
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
33:04
[SPEAKER_00]: And what you said, um, yeah, I just thought about you said, like, how it's like, it's getting too pricey.
33:09
[SPEAKER_00]: I remember I had a conversation on the Dallas card show three years ago with Michael Rubin and he asked me one thing he said how would you improve how well if you were the CEO fanatics what would you do to improve the hobby and I said don't price people out and
33:25
[SPEAKER_00]: I just didn't take that advice and take that advice well, but at the, I remember having that conversation with them and I said you can't price people out you can't price kids out because in 20 years the kids are going to be the ones that are buying the expense of product and if they remember having a good experience with cards as a kid, they're going to want to be back into it.
33:51
[SPEAKER_05]: You're dad's right on the edge of it, you know, people that are 16 over are controlling 70% of the wealth in this country.
33:57
[SPEAKER_05]: So taking care of younger kids that are now in their 20s, that are in the teenage, they're the ones who are going to be getting all of our wealth transformation.
34:06
[SPEAKER_05]: So taking care of them and keeping them in the game, you get out of a 50-year customer.
34:10
[SPEAKER_04]: And if you screw them, you know, expensive customer acquisition is.
34:14
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think we're at a critical juncture where we're about to price people out.
34:18
[SPEAKER_05]: Which is games you're crazy.
34:19
[SPEAKER_05]: Now it's hard to say that when the market's so good right now, but it happens in a flip over switch.
34:24
[SPEAKER_04]: Well, you know, we mentioned it last time we were on brand and we talked a little bit about the grading dynamic and how PSA and even since we last met, you know, PSA's frozen all low value order on worse.
34:34
[SPEAKER_04]: And.
34:34
[SPEAKER_04]: I mean, it's gotten worse, like you said, and so there are some significant things in the hobby, like you said, that the relatability, you know, how connected people can feel, you know, the class war basically, like there's the super elite, you know, high-end, high-value stuff, and then the low-end's just a bunch of junk and nobody wants, and it's like, how do you kind of integrate all that?
34:55
[SPEAKER_04]: Like, that's something that's really interesting about the sustainability of the hobby long-term.
34:59
[SPEAKER_04]: You know, and again, we're going to fanatics Fest this week as as media personality.
35:03
[SPEAKER_04]: So we're going to like have media passes and I recognize how special and unique that is rather than just being a dad who's taking his sons and how much expense would have to be incurred, you know, to be able to do that.
35:16
[SPEAKER_04]: And so these are things I always try to teach the boys.
35:18
[SPEAKER_04]: I'm like, hey, guys, like, yes, we are going to fanatics Fest.
35:20
[SPEAKER_04]: Yes, we are going to the national.
35:22
[SPEAKER_04]: And we have a business, it's basically allowing us to go there.
35:25
[SPEAKER_04]: But like this is a three
35:28
[SPEAKER_04]: you know, and that's not something that everybody can participate in.
35:32
[SPEAKER_05]: I'll say this and I never said this on the record, but you know, I thought about fanatics fest when I had a stiner, you know, I thought about doing like what Michael's doing, and it'd be honest, I don't have the ball to do it, because you know, a lot of, I mean, it does a huge amount of money that he's outlaying to put on a production like this, and I'm sure at this point, not positive, but pretty sure.
35:53
[SPEAKER_05]: that it's probably not, and that making money call, like he's, it's an enormous venture.
35:59
[SPEAKER_05]: And I like it because, and I give, I give credit for doing it because you have to do things for the common good.
36:05
[SPEAKER_05]: Not only what's good for your company, and believe it or not, for nice what they're doing.
36:09
[SPEAKER_05]: is what the national should have been doing for years.
36:13
[SPEAKER_05]: And somebody should have been doing it, which is having a huge PR play or not collecting.
36:17
[SPEAKER_05]: So I give him credit for that, and he's got the ball to do it, and lose a good amount of money doing it.
36:21
[SPEAKER_05]: This is not been a break even, or making some money, thank friend.
36:25
[SPEAKER_05]: Even though everything's incredibly expensive, and that's what I worry about, like, can you maintain this kind of event in Manhattan?
36:31
[SPEAKER_05]: with the hotel rooms being so expensive, traveling, you know, how far can you take this, can this be every year of thing in New Yorkers it can only be for the rich, but it's still a lot of balls to put collecting right out for you know, right front of the center and make it such a newsworthy PR play.
36:48
[SPEAKER_05]: It's good for my business.
36:50
[SPEAKER_05]: I know we say like as much as I've had my issues with FNAX, whatever.
36:53
[SPEAKER_05]: It's good for my business.
36:54
[SPEAKER_05]: My business grows when finance Fest happens.
36:57
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, more actually people buy more stuff that kind of thinks.
37:00
[SPEAKER_05]: So, you know, when you're thinking about growing your business little mat, there's what you do for your business, but if you want to be a leader, you have to do what's good for the common good too.
37:07
[SPEAKER_05]: And it's very painful.
37:09
[SPEAKER_05]: And that's why most businesses.
37:10
[SPEAKER_05]: only grow in a limited way because they are going to go, what am I getting out of it?
37:14
[SPEAKER_05]: And if you're thinking like that then and that's the common good and that's what if an axe would go give away 10,000 tickets to people that maybe can't afford it, which I think they have the tickets to do, that would be a pretty cool thing.
37:27
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, so Brandon let me ask you this as a 15 year old entrepreneur who I mean I like probably sold over We've sold a million dollars in collectibles over the past year.
37:37
[SPEAKER_00]: What would you tell me as a like if you had to tell give me a advice on how to keep going and not get burned out number one and also how to maintain this because
37:47
[SPEAKER_00]: I started at an early age, you know, selling a million dollars for the stuff like that's going to be a lot of pressure.
37:52
[SPEAKER_00]: That's a lot of pressure on me.
37:53
[SPEAKER_00]: So what advice would you give me to not get burnout early and to keep maintaining my success?
37:59
[SPEAKER_05]: Well, I would give you two things of advice.
38:01
[SPEAKER_05]: It's a good question.
38:02
[SPEAKER_05]: First of all, my hats off to you.
38:03
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, you're aware of the curve.
38:06
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, first thing is dream big, sample small and felt quick.
38:09
[SPEAKER_05]: Just because you have a really dream and a big idea, doesn't mean everything's going to work out.
38:14
[SPEAKER_05]: So you know, don't be afraid to keep sampling, trying things, you have to get it to keep ended up pool with 15 years old.
38:20
[SPEAKER_05]: You know what you want to do is happy consistent and figure out how to post two equals four.
38:24
[SPEAKER_05]: Nobody wants to get rid of just a little my friend.
38:26
[SPEAKER_05]: Nobody.
38:27
[SPEAKER_05]: It takes time.
38:28
[SPEAKER_05]: It takes a while to get yourself there.
38:29
[SPEAKER_05]: So you're way ahead of the curve at 15.
38:32
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think it's just important that you remember also that your first idea is not your best idea.
38:37
[SPEAKER_05]: So as much as you may have a couple of different things that have worked, it doesn't mean that that's what's going to take you to a promised land.
38:43
[SPEAKER_05]: So you've got to look behind some of the ideas that are working and think about what can I do even better, even if the stuff that worked.
38:50
[SPEAKER_05]: What did I do that work, and what could I have done that even expand that to make it even better?
38:55
[SPEAKER_05]: And then the stuff you've lost on those are the great learning lessons, you know, I always say don't be afraid to look back at your mistakes, just don't stare.
39:03
[SPEAKER_05]: Don't get caught by all my guy because you made one mistake now.
39:06
[SPEAKER_05]: You're never going to do that again.
39:07
[SPEAKER_05]: Learn from it.
39:08
[SPEAKER_05]: Move on.
39:08
[SPEAKER_05]: Don't stare.
39:09
[SPEAKER_05]: Don't get caught up with what you're making your past.
39:12
[SPEAKER_05]: They take your future.
39:13
[SPEAKER_05]: Think about what you're doing and learn from it.
39:15
[SPEAKER_05]: And remember, most of the time when you've done something really good in a million dollars worth of sales, I guarantee there's even a better idea right behind it.
39:23
[SPEAKER_05]: And that's what a lot of people they so busy celebrating.
39:26
[SPEAKER_05]: Your first idea is not your best idea.
39:28
[SPEAKER_05]: Dream big, sample small,
39:32
[SPEAKER_00]: That's great stuff.
39:33
[SPEAKER_00]: I have one more.
39:33
[SPEAKER_00]: I have one more question for you.
39:35
[SPEAKER_00]: Dad, you can go ahead, bye.
39:35
[SPEAKER_04]: No, no, go ahead, you're fine.
39:37
[SPEAKER_00]: What percent of business is hard work versus luck?
39:40
[SPEAKER_00]: Like for me, my grandpa, every baseball game that I play, he would say hard work creates good luck.
39:46
[SPEAKER_00]: And
39:47
[SPEAKER_00]: I will say a lot of my success at first it was probably luck me getting lucky on cards I bought but now I feel like it's all hard work because of me doing my own market research and me finding like I found an example of a card.
40:00
[SPEAKER_00]: I'm going to share it here the Cooper Flag Blue X-Fractor.
40:04
[SPEAKER_00]: I did research on the market and found out that that card had over a 50% gem rate.
40:09
[SPEAKER_00]: So over 50% got PSA 10s.
40:11
[SPEAKER_00]: And there was a four times difference between a PSA 10 and a roll.
40:15
[SPEAKER_00]: So I could buy the roll for $400 and 10s were doing 1600 and over 50% get gem.
40:22
[SPEAKER_00]: And doing the research, I did that hard work to put it in.
40:25
[SPEAKER_00]: So what percent of business like for me, how much of it is hard work?
40:28
[SPEAKER_00]: Like Kobe always tells us,
40:31
[SPEAKER_00]: Kobe always said that hard works beats talent when talent fails to work hard.
40:35
[SPEAKER_00]: So what do you think percentage percentage of that?
40:37
[SPEAKER_05]: It's like I'd say, you know, the number one business book of all time.
40:41
[SPEAKER_05]: Do you know what that book is?
40:42
[SPEAKER_05]: No clue.
40:43
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't feel it's think and grow rich.
40:46
[SPEAKER_05]: It's not grow rich and think.
40:48
[SPEAKER_05]: It's not work as hard as your possibly can.
40:50
[SPEAKER_05]: It's think and grow rich.
40:52
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think that where people mistake is listen, I believe that hard work is really important and stuff like a huge part of the equation, but I also think, you know, you want to have what I call smartsmanship.
41:02
[SPEAKER_05]: It's a combination of being smart and hard working.
41:04
[SPEAKER_05]: Being the hardest working guy in the room will not always get you to the promised land.
41:08
[SPEAKER_05]: It's not only working hard, but it's also working smart.
41:11
[SPEAKER_05]: So let's see you on the basketball court and you're in the gym eight hours a day.
41:14
[SPEAKER_05]: But if you're not getting the right training or the right somebody's showing you maybe with some of your footworks off or maybe something, your elbows off a little bit, that kind of thing.
41:23
[SPEAKER_05]: Then what could it work in eight hours a day?
41:25
[SPEAKER_05]: Like, the smartsmanship is getting somebody constantly that can pinpoint some of the things you gain that you can prove on.
41:33
[SPEAKER_05]: not only being in the gym for eight hours so you know it's really important that you again nobody wants to give it slow smartsmanship you know are you being smart like looking at the analytics looking at the market not not you know not not not not being a free-tickle risk
41:48
[SPEAKER_05]: but also not getting crazy just because you had a little luck on one thing.
41:52
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think it's, I think those are the key things like for me, I've always been one of the hardworking people you're going to meet, but I'm thinking when you're sleeping, I'm thinking, when you're hanging out having a beer, I'm thinking.
42:03
[SPEAKER_05]: So, and I think that's what will make the difference sometimes.
42:06
[SPEAKER_05]: It's not only put in the extra time, but it's pretty hard work.
42:10
[SPEAKER_05]: Because you really self-analyze and you're thinking about what you did wrong, what you did right, what you missed.
42:15
[SPEAKER_05]: And if you're thinking about all those things, that's what the things you missed, who wants to thrive on that, but you got to think about at least a little bit, but that's where the learning comes in.
42:23
[SPEAKER_04]: You know, Brandon is funny.
42:24
[SPEAKER_04]: You mentioned this.
42:24
[SPEAKER_04]: I have a client here and I'm going to kind of protect him, you know, just from a respect standpoint.
42:29
[SPEAKER_04]: But he is behind one of the major clothing brands, the modern clothing brands in the country.
42:34
[SPEAKER_04]: And we had breakfast the other day, and I sat down with him, and I was just talking to him, and I asked him, I said, what's made you, you?
42:39
[SPEAKER_04]: Like what's made you unique, and what's made you win?
42:42
[SPEAKER_04]: And it's what you just said, he said, man, I walk into a room, and I pay attention to what people were wearing.
42:48
[SPEAKER_04]: And I think about the trends.
42:50
[SPEAKER_04]: And he was in kind of the golf apparel industry, and he connected kind of designer clothing to golf brands.
42:57
[SPEAKER_04]: And then started kind of networking that through these pro shops and stuff.
43:00
[SPEAKER_04]: And I mean, it's just a multi-multi-multi-million-dollar thing that he built and sold or whatever.
43:04
[SPEAKER_04]: So it's interesting to talk about here, here you talk a little Matt too about being intuitive and thinking through it, don't just like pound your head into the wall, work and hard, like be smart about it as well.
43:14
[SPEAKER_04]: I think that's huge.
43:15
[SPEAKER_04]: And I think that relates so much to the card hobby.
43:18
[SPEAKER_04]: You know, very relative to our listeners is don't just keep going and hustling on two dollar cards.
43:23
[SPEAKER_04]: You know what I mean?
43:24
[SPEAKER_04]: Think about how you can expand and grow and fund certain niches within the market to capitalize on.
43:30
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
43:31
[SPEAKER_00]: And another question I have for you is, when you're hiring an employee or when you're looking for, you know, when you're looking at someone who's doing a business, what are things that you value and a business person?
43:44
[SPEAKER_00]: My dad asked me this question the other day, so I wanted to...
43:47
[SPEAKER_05]: First of all, a little math.
43:48
[SPEAKER_05]: I need to go on my e-based store, right?
43:50
[SPEAKER_05]: On Styron CX, I need to go look at and tell me what you think of it and what you think of the cards.
43:53
[SPEAKER_05]: It's an textbook, what you think of it.
43:55
[SPEAKER_05]: It's a value of your opinion.
43:56
[SPEAKER_05]: Tell me what you think of the mixture of cards.
43:58
[SPEAKER_05]: I, very simple one.
43:59
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm looking at hire somebody as two things.
44:00
[SPEAKER_05]: One, if I got stuck in the airport with this person, whatever wanted to shoot myself, it focused on a stuck in the airport and a plane was delayed.
44:06
[SPEAKER_05]: That's one of the first things.
44:08
[SPEAKER_05]: The second thing I think about is what that kid was doing when he was 11 years old, it was a snowstorm.
44:13
[SPEAKER_05]: And his school got canceled that day.
44:15
[SPEAKER_05]: What was he doing?
44:16
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm hoping that he tells me he's out there shoveling stuff for the neighbors, making some money.
44:19
[SPEAKER_05]: And then the third thing is that's what somebody who's fat, faithful, available, and most importantly, teachable.
44:25
[SPEAKER_05]: Because, you know, I see with a lot of young ones, because you can get information so fast, so quick.
44:30
[SPEAKER_05]: There's a tendency to think you're a lot smarter than you are.
44:32
[SPEAKER_05]: You have the availability to be smarter than what you really are, very quickly than I did when I was a kid, but you've got to be teachable, you've got to be coachable, like,
44:40
[SPEAKER_05]: And you've got to realize that I've got to make me dangerous still at 67.
44:43
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm still learning.
44:45
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm still teachable.
44:45
[SPEAKER_05]: People call me up all the time and go, I know this or how do I do that?
44:49
[SPEAKER_05]: Like, me going doing live shows on what not.
44:52
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't know any other 67 rules on what not.
44:54
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't know any other 67 rules that are posting twice a day.
44:57
[SPEAKER_05]: Like, I'm still learning how to post better, do better videos, better content.
45:01
[SPEAKER_05]: And I think that as long as you're willing to grow,
45:05
[SPEAKER_05]: So I'm really, when I say faithful, they're able to teach it, I'm looking for somebody who's really interesting growing.
45:11
[SPEAKER_05]: Somebody who I could teach, show the way, and really roll with our growth, and they excited about their growth as much as anything.
45:18
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
45:18
[SPEAKER_04]: Well, this is, this is pure gold brand, and as always, man, appreciate you so much.
45:22
[SPEAKER_04]: You know, I hate we won't connect with you.
45:23
[SPEAKER_04]: We're in, in, while I see this week, but we'd love to get connected with you.
45:27
[SPEAKER_04]: At least say hello face to face when you're in Chicago for the national.
45:32
[SPEAKER_05]: We'll shoot you a text or whatever, and we'd just love to get me you a little Matt get a little picture together and you know, we're going to be on eBay live with Marianna when his hot sauce and looking forward to it, you know, he's coming out with new hot sauce when he's done right on eBay around on what not live, we know what not live son is hot sauce and got a couple of other shenanigans are going to be up to on that Friday at Saturday.
45:52
[SPEAKER_04]: Awesome.
45:52
[SPEAKER_04]: Well, if you have a minute, we would love to say hello and appreciate you so much taking time for our listeners here on the sportscar.
45:59
[SPEAKER_04]: CEO.
46:00
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
46:00
[SPEAKER_04]: And guys Brandon Steiner as always is a legend in the industry and for for given his time here.
46:06
[SPEAKER_04]: So appreciate you guys listen little math.
46:08
[SPEAKER_04]: Thanks for the insight, bro, the questions gentlemen.
46:10
[SPEAKER_04]: Back here until next time.
46:12
[SPEAKER_04]: Y'all be well.