The Meteoric Rise of Investing in Trading Cards
Personal_Finance / Investing 2022 Jan 10, 2022 - 10:16 PM GMTThe first thing that always comes to mind when people mention trading cards is the fun and wonder, and curiosity associated with them. Most of us have had a trading card collection at some point during our childhood, and some of us might have been still interested far into our teenage years; there’s no shame in that! However, the majority of people wouldn’t even know where their cards are now. Very few people actually held on to their collections and those who didn’t would have never imagined the value that these cards would assume. Had people known about the money that these trading cards can fetch, all of their cards would’ve been locked up in a high-security vault. There are many reasons behind the rise of trading cards, but the exact ones still remain unclear and ambiguous.
The recent pandemic played a role in the rise of trading cards as an investment avenue, whereas many other factors affected it as well. In this article, we’re going to look at exactly why trading cards are in extremely high demand and how you can take advantage of the current scenario. We’ll explore the underlying causes behind this strange phenomenon so that you can properly understand how investing in trading cards can be your next big move. So without further ado, let’s get to it and find out all about trading cards and how they reached where they are today.
1. The Novelty
The trading cards are much like any other investment that’s been getting popular recently- NFTs. The non-fungible tokens have taken the world by storm, partly because of their close connection to blockchain technology. However, the other reason behind their success is their novelty, you’ll discover that NFTs are digital art pieces that can easily be copied. They’re in demand because only the actual owner will have digital rights over their NFT. The trading cards, much like NFTs, can’t be duplicated and acquired by anyone. Both of these items are very limited in production, and more often than not, the number of copies is very limited. This makes these cards quite similar to limited edition sports cars in the sense that only a select few enthusiasts will be able to get their hands on one.
2. The Pandemic
The Covid-19 pandemic has had far-reaching consequences on the financial markets of the world and it’s a part of the reason why people started looking for new avenues to put their money in. When the traditional constructs of society started falling to pieces during the lockdowns, people began searching for alternatives to everything around them, including investments. People also had more time during the lockdowns, and this led them to connect back to their hobby of collecting trading cards which slowly inflated into a worldwide phenomenon. Only a true enthusiast will appreciate the value of trading cards; some of the first edition Pokemon cards out there are selling at more than a hundred thousand dollars. This also attracted the attention of investors looking for opportunities to make a quick buck, much like the cryptocurrency craze that the world is witnessing.
3. Existing Customer Base
No product or commodity can just take the market by storm without having some sort of marketability first. This is nowhere more true than in the case of trading cards as almost every kid who grew up in the 80s, 90s, and the 2000s knows about trading cards. Not only do people know about these cards, but many of them even have their own collections. These are the perfect circumstances for any product to instantly take over the market, and that’s exactly what the trading cards did. Even though trading card investing wasn’t mainstream until a while ago, collecting them and curating them has been the favorite hobby of enthusiasts for a long time. This pre-existing customer base was more than happy to monetize their collections when they saw the demand and trading cards became the next gold rush.
So these are some of the reasons why trading cards are rising in value so rapidly. There are many other factors that have affected and boosted the popularity of trading cards. However, the ones we’ve discussed are the most impactful. Trading cards have been and will always be something that people collect regardless of their monetary value. However, seeing the amount of work that’s done to keep these cards in mint condition, it’s understandable why people are paying so much for them. For those who’re constantly searching for new investment opportunities, trading cards have opened up an entirely new front. You should consider investing in them rather than traditional assets like real estate and gold because the value of trading cards is only going to improve. After all, trading cards are just another form of art, and you can’t slap a price tag on something that holds such an essential place in the heart of collectors.
By Steve Barker
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