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Sotheby’s, a 280-year-old company with a market cap of $2.6billion, staged an auction in Harlem last week to sell what American mothers traditionally dismiss as scraps of cardboard.
These days trading cards are made using sleek, elegant card stock and, of course, they’re no longer sold with chewing gum or tobacco. There are holograms, limited printings, and even pieces of authentic game-worn jerseys, all of which can turn a 2.5”X3.5” souvenir into a six- or seven-figure treasure.
Then there are the vintage ancestors of modern cards, like the rare 1955 Topps Roberto Clemente rookie that went for $840,000 — the evening’s top selling price.
All together, the vintage, modern and ultra-modern cards have developed into an estimated $10 billion industry in the United States, but that’s not exactly news. The rising tide of collectibles coincided with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic nearly half a decade earlier. Now, with speculation fueling the market, sales records seemingly fall every week.
What is new is the auction’s physical environment: An opulent converted church, Harlem Parish, packed with A-List stars Tom Brady, Meek Mill and Logan Paul, billionaires such as Michael Rubin, Robert Kraft and Shahid Khan, as well as wealthy collectors, all of whom were on hand to see this hobby graduate into a real spectacle.
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Tom Brady talks with his former boss, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, in Harlem
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The floor was reimagined into baseball diamond with the auctioneer on a makeshift mound
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Broadcaster Taylor Rooks (left) and her friend Mallory Edens (right)
‘This is what we talked about years ago,’ renowned investor and collector Gary Vaynerchuk told DailyMail.com on Tuesday night in Harlem. ‘This was on the road map. You knew that it would elevate. Art went through this, sneakers went through this. This was a foregone conclusion [in 2020]. It’s also nice to see it materialize.’
Until Tuesday, when Sotheby’s and Fanatics sold $7 million in trading cards at the inaugural Holy Grails auction, such events took place online. And that aspect of the industry isn’t going anywhere. Even on Tuesday, a phalanx of Sotheby’s employees was on hand to receive bids via phone or internet.
But now, semi-removed from the virtual world, such auctions feel like a Broadway show or an exclusive concert.
In Harlem, the Parish floor was reimagined into baseball diamond with the auctioneer positioned on a makeshift pitchers’ mound. And the bidding was preceded by a swanky cocktail hour, where mini lobster rolls and other high-end finger foods were served to the few thousand lucky enough to attend.
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Meek Mill at the Holy Grails Auction, where he nearly spent $300,00 on a LeBron James card
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Two modern cards up for auction: An Elly De La Cruz prospects card and a Shohei Ohtani
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Michael Rubin, Logan Paul, Charles F. Stewart at Fanatics x Sotheby’s “Holy Grails” Auction
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Shahid Khan, owner of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars and Premier League’s Fulham
Standing at the center of it all was Brady, surrounded by throngs of wealthy friends and admirers as if the NFL legend had a gravitational pull on all the money in the room: First Rubin, the Fanatics CEO and Brady’s business partner, stopped by, followed by the Patriots owner, Kraft, and rapper Meek Mill.
Somewhere in the thicket of humanity were Rich Kleiman, Kevin Durant’s agent, and Khan, owner of the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars and Premier League’s Fulham.
Other attendees spent their time circulating around the room.
Glamorous sports broadcaster Taylor Rooks and her friend Mallory Edens, the daughter of a Milwaukee Bucks co-owner, breezed from one lot to another, examining the cards and chatting with attendees.
Truthfully, though, the pair wasn’t on hand to do any bidding. Edens told DailyMail.com that she knows nothing about the hobby, while Rooks’ collection of sports memorabilia is only notable for its sentimental value.
‘Anything from the NBA bubble I think is so cool because there was such a small number of us there,’ Rooks told DailyMail.com, referring to the final weeks of the COVID-interrupted 2019-20 season at Disney World. ‘I kept all my merch, I kept all my hotel card, my COVID pass.’
Like many, Rooks was really on hand Tuesday to relax and do some people watching.
‘We’re in this amazing venue and there’s drinks and people,’ she said. ‘And you get to see everyone, so I enjoy the activity of this. I wish I knew more and I wish I was buying. But I enjoy looking.’
Robert Kraft buys Tom Brady autographed rookie card for $120K at auction
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Tacko Fall, a 7-foot-6 former Boston Celtics center, was on hand for the bidding Tuesday
Of course, nobody stood out in the crowd like 7-foot-6 Tacko Fall, a former Boston Celtics center who is coming off a season in China.
Fall, who spent much of his evening having his photo taken with shorter people, is admittedly new to the hobby, but did have one card in mind.
‘Oh Tim Duncan I would love,’ he said of the Spurs legend’s rookie card, which sold for $168,000. ‘He’s my favorite player.’
Some were surprised by the stylish ambiance at the Parish, where most attendees were dressed for the red carpet.
Then there was ESPN host Ryan Clark, a former NFL safety, who arrived in a black Philadelphia Eagles sweatshirt with Randall Cunningham’s No. 12 stitched on the back.
‘This is my first time [at an auction],’ Clark told DailyMail.com. ‘I’m underdressed.’
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The Harlem Parish was turned into an auction house, where $7 million in cards were sold
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The 1998 Pokémon Japanese Promo Illustrator Holo CoroCoro Comics Pikachu sold for $360K
Like other celebrities in attendance, Clark was in Harlem because of his ‘connection with Michael Rubin and Fanatics,’ he explained. But he was also intrigued by the number of Pokémon cards up for auction.
A Japanese cartoon franchise that moved into the trading cards, Pokémon now represents a sizable market within the industry.
‘I want to know what the Pokémon cards go for,’ Clark said. ‘I don’t understand it. Pikachu? It’s just such a big deal to people. It’s not just about the money. It’s about the clout of being able to have a certain card.’
Well, it might be about the money, too.
‘Pokémon is a $100 billion [intellectual property],’ crowed Vaynerchuck, who was eyeing a ‘Charizard Holo’ card that later sold for $180,000.
Pokémon, of course, appeals to a slightly younger audience, such as 19-year-old Max Shekoff and his 23-year-old business partner Grant Gvozdanovic, who jointly own a company that buys and sells the valuable assets.
‘I’m specifically looking at the Illustrator Pikachu,’ Shekoff told DailyMail.com, referring to a card that ultimately sold for $360,000.
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Kevin Durant’s agent, Rich Kleiman, appeared at Tuesday’s Holy Grails auction in Harlem
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One Tom Brady card went for $120,000… The buyer was Patriots owner Robert Kraft
Curiously, though, that sales price was well short of Sotheby’s $550,000-$650,000 estimate.
In fact, a number of cards failed to reach their minimum estimates on Tuesday.
A collection of Kobe Bryant cards went for $156,000, falling short of its $180,000-$220,000 estimate, while a Juan Soto prospect card failed to crack $60,000.
Then there was a Lou Gehrig card, which didn’t have an estimated value, but still sold for a surprising $132,000 — a price one insider described as disappointing.
One potential issue from bidders’ perspectives was the amount of money in the room. Being wealthy is one thing, but getting into a bidding war with a Kraft or Khan is a much different.
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Renowned collector Gary Vaynerchuk
‘Before I came in this room, [my confidence was] pretty high,’ bidder Rohan Gaur told DailyMail.com. ‘Now that I’m in this room, the kind of names, the kind of people I’m seeing here, I don’t know what to expect… Pretty crazy.’
In one dramatic scene, Kraft submitted a winning $120,000 bid on a Brady card, helping that lot narrowly eclipse its estimated minimum price.
The fact that Brady, the subject of the card, and Kraft, its buyer, were seated alongside each other served to encapsulate the evening nicely.
But some cards did exceed expectations, like a LeBron James rookie that attracted a flurry of bids. Even Meek Mill got in on the action before bowing out around the $300,000 mark.
The lot ultimately closed at $432,000 — $200,000 above its high estimate — with the gavel coming down just as Brady was making his way to the exit.
In the end, 32 of 33 lots sold in this first-of-its-kind event. And while there were a few disappointing sales prices from Sotheby’s perspective, a company spokesperson was encouraged by the number of bids received. On average, each lot saw the price increase 41 times, which was described to DailyMail.com as ‘extraordinary.’
The real winners, though, were the people who didn’t spend a cent.
Similar art auctions have always been a rarified domain, allowing cultural elites to compete to see who can say the biggest number without much attention from the masses.
Sports and the collectibles market, on the other hand, are easier for the public to grasp. And even if we’re far too poor to make a competitive bid, it’s still fun to watch the action unfold.
‘I love them,’ Rooks said of the cards on display. ‘I think they’re great and I wish I was rich enough to buy them.’
