Stacking Slabs

After my first 24 hours at The National, I returned to my hotel with more energy than I had when the day began. It wasn’t because of a card, a sale, or a booth. It came from the conversations.
In this episode, I explore how conversations give collectors context that sales data cannot provide. They test our thinking, strengthen our conviction, build trust, and remind us that people exist on both sides of every card.
We also examine the difference between attention and connection, why networking can turn into extraction, and how better questions can change the way you collect.

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Passion gets you into sports cards. It does not build a product people trust.
Brett sits down with Card Ladder co-founder Chris McGill at The National to discuss the work behind one of the hobby’s most used tools.
Chris explains why seeing collectors rely on Card Ladder creates pressure, why customer service takes up much of the team’s time, and why standards matter when money is involved.
They also discuss the start of Card Ladder, the value of bringing experience from outside the hobby, and what people should consider before pursuing a career in sports cards.
Loving cards can open the door.
Staying requires skills, service, and a problem worth solving.

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Gabe did not follow a career path into sports cards.
He created one.
His interest in college football led him to Bowman University, player research, value boxes, and content built around a part of the hobby few people were covering.
Consistency helped Gabe become a trusted voice in college football cards. It also started a relationship with Ryan Johnson of Card Collector 2.
That relationship grew through shared interests, phone calls, podcast episodes, and work behind the scenes. It led to a job offer and Gabe moving his family from Arizona to Ohio to join the Card Collector 2 team.
In this episode of Passion to Profession, Brett talks with Gabe about identifying an underserved category, building expertise, earning trust, and turning the work he enjoyed into a career.
Gabe also explains how he evaluates college football prospects, compares Bowman First cards with later college and NFL releases, and uses player talent, price, program demand, and timing to make buying decisions.

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What happens when a collector starts looking at cards as a source of funding for a business?
Brett examines the tension between the collector who wants to keep the card and the operator who sees what selling it can fund. He shares four questions every founder should answer before turning a collection into capital.
Recorded at The National in the Card Ladder booth, Brett also sits down with Steve Sloan, CEO of Heystack and former president of PSA. They discuss building technology for the card industry, earning business partnerships, hiring for a startup, and why every operating decision reaches the collector.
The collector may never see the systems behind a card business. They will feel the results.
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Adam is joined by Brett for a collector-focused conversation during the biggest week of the year.
They discuss why Fanatics Fest increased their confidence in wrestling cards, what the Wrestling Card Takeover represents for the community, and how Topps is putting WWE beside its other sports at The National.
The conversation also covers the rookie cycle surrounding Oba Femi, collecting Roman Reigns across different eras, SummerSlam, and recent sales involving Gunther, John Cena, and Roman Reigns.
Wrestling cards once felt hard to find at major shows.
That is changing.

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