eBay rejected GameStop’s Takeover Proposal… What this means for the hobby

It's pretty much that GameStop is not a good company, and eBay is awesome. Well, how was when you get associated with meme stocks, you know, like, aren't they just sort of wealthy because of all that? You know, they're in the sports card game and they want to have a stake in it, so they knew eBay was going to reject it, but it's crazy enough that we're talking about it right now. In the end, it's a genius move to let people know that they're in the same business as eBay. So Beckett changes their logo and branding. I really fit in PSA into that PSA's Beckett almost said PSA's B. I'll leave it there. Welcome to the Collector Nation podcast here on the Collector Nation Network. Whether you're chasing trails or calling bluffs, you take you inside the hobby. Here are your hosts, Ryan Offer, and Brian Lutton. What's up, guys? Welcome to Collector Nation here on the Collector Nation Network. You've got BRB, Brian, Ryan, Bella. What's cooking, guys? Oh, you know, life. I just had some delicious Chipotle. That was cooking for me that Bella got for. She cooked it right up. Yep. That's always a good lunch. Let's put you to sleep. You know, I had the bowl. So no big burrito. It was the big burrito. Oh, okay. And I said, Chipotle is great until it's really not great. And you just got to stop eating. Well, I don't eat lunch. And when I do, I get so tired that I'm like, why do I eat lunch? I eat light now. I don't eat breakfast. So I have to eat lunch. But I eat like, I'm in the lighter mode. I've dropped, I've actually dropped like 17 pounds less. You look great. Bang. You look great, you know. Hey, I appreciate that, Brian. I don't eat breakfast or lunch. And then I just dinner. You're crazy for that. I don't know how you're functioning. I would be a ball of anger. Well, no comment. I'm not just angry all the time. It doesn't affect me. Yeah. Living that CEO life, angry. Yeah, I don't get angry. Brian, what's happening? What's happening at LudEx Chicago? We give us the Chicago, you know, sports scene, rundown and LudEx rundown. So the baseball teams are doing well. So, you know, not a Cubs fan, but they're doing, they're a nice team to watch. Easy on the ice. The socks are doing well. So I'm for them 500, a little under 500. The bulls got the number four pick in the draft. They should have had six or seven. So that's good. And then just waiting for the weather to turn. We like, we've had such a yo-yo. It's like, it goes like 75, 80 and then it goes to 50, 75, 80, 50. So. So, and then a lot ofx, we're just, you know, we got some releases coming out, you know, with the eye towards the national for the big release. But we're migrating some of it over now. I showed you that super search, which is cool. And then the data, the data marketplace. And then just the new app, just like Beckett released a new, a new look, a lot ofx will release a new look. And a, but they'll get more pub. Yeah, like literally like a new logo or like a new, just new, it's the foundation of the app, right? Yeah, yeah, just like the whole overall experience with that. UI UX. Yes, exactly, you know, user interface, user experience is what that stands for. And it just, what it means is the ease and comfortability of the app experience for a technical and non-technical user. Yeah, you got it. And then I got a, I got my new background. Yes, that's probably the most important part of it. We have Sir Goat, Sir Aaronus, Michael Jordan. And yes, Brian and Ryan are actually an alignment on that. So if you don't think that's true, then that's your problem. You know what I found out this week about Pokemon? What? There's something called a God pack. Oh, we've had one ripped in the store. We've had four. Four ripped. Yeah, and I ripped one with my son a few months ago. Oh, you got one? That's a pretty legit. Yeah. When guy got a pack of ascended heroes, I believe it was that or charismatic, he got $3,300 in cards in one pack. And Cole, who was our store manager, he was going to buy that pack himself and open it. And he chose to do a different pack. And then the guy was like, I'll take that one that you didn't get it. Yeah. That's a tough one. Yeah, Cole's still recovering. He's like, I actually haven't. I mean, I've been happy for Cole, but I'm happier than that our customer. He's still in the corner sucking his thumb. We'll sell more in the store since the customer got it. Yeah, that's true. Yeah, but yeah, no, we've watched. There's, I've watched two or three in the store. We've had a hot store here lately. And then I opened one at home. So then it's three or four in the last six months. And what's the like, what's the chances of those like one in 10,000 or something like that? And again, I think it's three now. I know it's two. I might be adding one, but I think it's three. Two or three. Two for sure. Yeah. I might be in confusing mine and adding that to the number like, but we'll go with it just for hyperbole and promotion. It's better for the show. It's better for the show. Three God packs right here. See, but you know what always happens is every time me, the social media manager pulls out a camera, nothing is pulled. It's actually driving me up a wall. It's how we need 24-7 CTV. That's why I can never finish these apps. That's coming. Yeah, you have some cool stuff coming out. Yeah, you've got the collector station app coming and have baked into it some functionality that might be broader than just the app. If it does nothing but make our experience with customers and because it's dual purpose, it's both for the users and our customers and for us in managing the store. So it's a dual purpose interface and I'm pretty excited about it. It's got a lot of things that you know I felt like we're probably missing but then now we're owning a store for four months. I'm like, oh yeah, they're definitely missing. You got to tease something. I'll just say I have a really interesting take on values that's never been done in the right way. And there you go. And whether or not I pull it off or someone else pulls it off and uses an API or like it could become the TCG of sports car pricing. That would be amazing because we need it. We need it. And people don't realize that you do a lot of tech. You are not scared of technology. You create some awesome things. Yeah, so I'm sure this is going to be just as awesome. He's got me going down the rabbit hole now and I'll tease this. I tease it with Brian. Brian is going to see more of it this week but I think operating system. I'll put you in that headspace. So I'll leave it there. I don't want to get. I want to talk about it when I can actually like hold it up and like whatever. And I can but I can't because it's like 94% ready for prime time. It's ready for Brian to poke holes in it but it's not ready for prime time. Bella, have you seen it? I've seen parts of it. Bits and pieces and you know he's told me some stuff and I'm I'm ever amazed every single day when he comes up with a new idea. I'm like I don't know where you like I've realized that if it's one thing I am like give me a spreadsheet any day but I like the idea is just I don't I'm not I'm not the ideal gal so but that's okay you know I'm learning my strengths and weaknesses. I have a very I can distill and curate in my brain. It's what's made me good on like podcasting like you know some people might say oh you know another life or whatever I wasn't this style the other but in podcasting I can distill people saying curate and like and I that has proven very resourceful in this process and kind of like thinking about things differently like kind of reverse engineering and thinking about like okay we've always done this but why didn't we do this? There's some very reverse logic things that I've put into this that are like it's kind of like having a quarter and you never flipped it over to see that it had tails and you know but it's always had two sides and I think the people will be like well why don't I think of that well I don't know but I did well well I think it's like curiosity one yes and then and then also going back to Bella you are not the way you know your spreadsheet Brian's idea so good leaders surround themselves with people things that they're not so I would have a hundred percent guess that that what you are comfortable with of Ryan yeah exactly but you know it's fun process yeah and it's cool it's all met it now you know it's in the hobby we're talking about the hobby you know I have a friend that's a CEO running and doing things with data and who could sound bored and tell me I'm fucking crazy or I'm on to something you know and then you know we can put it into one big conglomerate and rule the world you know I want to rule parts of the world like you know like why the Mexico beaches not Ukraine or I ran or anything yeah no I was there speaking of ruling the world GameStop will not be ruling the world because eBay officially rejected their takeover they're takeover attempt and they listed six factors as to why and to sum them up it's pretty much that GameStop is not a good company and eBay's awesome well there's there's knowing the eBay people I do I'd say there's try some troops that I like all the eBay people I know yeah they said uncertainty regarding GameStop's financing yeah yeah what happens when you get associated with meme stocks like you know I get them with COVID what I mean it's like in there aren't they just sort of wealthy because of all that's still like the the reddit the Robin Hood yeah yeah exactly I mean is there isn't there some wealth or some value associated still from that Brian oh yeah it was all made up like just speculative it was on it was made up and they sold stock and that's why they're 11 like an 11 or 12 billion dollar company with nine billion in cash like and that that's 11 or 12 billion dollar company who's going to come up with 56 million well you need a few more of those short squeeze Robin Hood yeah yeah but that's not like they picked your stock because people are shortened it because they didn't like it and people are going to short the stock and try to make it go down because it's like when this isn't a good company and then the buyers come in and they buy more than that and then the sellers have to buy it back and then it goes up higher and higher and higher and then the company sells the stock and makes a lot of money and then it goes back down it's pretty it was pretty awesome to watch that happen because I was on the floor watching that happen and I was like wow this is this is crazy but it worked for it worked for them I think they did twice I think it happened twice yeah unbelievable gotta love the power for whatever you want to call it I don't know I mean clearly and it's sort of the world we live into like the speculative hype like that we all want to like sigh yeah you know but it it created billions of dollars of out of thin air well right it wasn't it wasn't data it wasn't like sales like you know the old things that mattered Brian and I were talking about pre episode or like no publicity is bad publicity they easily could have had this whole thing conjured up just so that you know they could get some publicity now they're in the sports card game and you know they want to have a stake in it so they knew ebay was going to reject it but it was crazy enough that it would you know we're talking about it right now and so is every other creator in this space yeah I mean I I think it could be a bunch of different things but in the end it's it's a genius move to let you know let people know that they're in the same business as ebay yeah well I was gonna say is I I'm curious to see all the tech tech advancements that have been happening over the last year I'm curious how it might impact this year's national and I won't be able to I mean I've never gotten so this would be my first year and I won't have a baseline but I'm curious as to if when y'all are there if you notice differences based on just the tech that's available now hmm I think you'll feel is what is sort of both the wonderfulness and the problem of the industry which is a lot of dealers and a lot of people in the floor that really want no part of it even though it's going to be part of it and the youth want it and are absorbing it in the leaders of the future will but it's a lot of cash and a lot of vintage cards and a lot of modern cards but a lot of cash and just absolutely no data control or in a lot of pencil and paper note booking like I've never seen since 1989 that was the guys the guys will sit they'll bring a chair like that's what they're carrying their their cards in the chair and they sit down on the chair and they go through these dollar boxes yeah and then they have a spreadsheet they have a legal pad legal pad they are right right right down I mean this they're hobby I mean that's cool I you know it's just I part of me just wants to grab him and go do you know how easy we could make this it was no because it's kind of like it's kind of like anything the journey is is everything and so the best the journey for them and if you shorten it it's kind of like taking out the best part of the movie you know and I get it but I just like to move fast and I like to move like yeah you moving fast that's crazy you'll be I think you'll see is I think you'll be unimpressed with the technology at the national yeah okay you know but it's wonderful at the same time yeah yeah it's amazing I love it it's so fun but like it's fun for different reasons it's fun because it's just so much going on um but like those guys I mean I don't know some of those old timers who have been there for 30 years probably make 95% of their money in those five days yeah and that's it and so they they just want a wheel and deal that makes sense but we should we should have this we should have Bella go with like 10 questions that she won't answer until the end and then when she comes back and what are those questions like what does tech look like what did you see who did you meet stuff like that because you have new eyes which is interesting PSA reported that they had 3.1 million submissions this past month or in April I have mine blowing I don't even know how you could possibly have enough graders or enough time in the day or hours in the week to get that many cards done and actually have the quality control that you need they hired all those first graders I mean I mean there's gotta be you know just the math on it my head like I just what the average grader does in a day like the amount of people they have grading is like 100,000 right our thousands it's got 8,000 right thousand to do I mean to do that mean 3 million gotta be 10 20 30,000 that they work in seven days a week or you think they're five also dude you kid me they got in that pause working four days a week it's corporate America yeah they got a belt in gym pull yeah cafeteria exactly they can just live there they got AI grading 99% of it they just put the PSA logo on it now I just saying I mean that job has to be like way cooler than like way cooler when you get it then it is when you do it and like eventually you gotta be like what I'm sitting in this dark room like what am I doing like that you have to go insane well I mean I think that's my mind person and I mean there's no consistency they they're not held to any standard because again countless experiments including teapot who mentioned it today they said all these same cards in multiple times they came back great a different you were from a six to a nine and a half or them saying that the card was messed with them but they couldn't grade it it's kind of like the weatherman you know they get paid to be wrong they get paid to be wrong and no one challenges it and no one corrects it because ah just the way it goes what a great business I was a meteorology major for three years so where are you actually yeah I could actually probably sort of actually have a other thing behind me you're way too smart you're way too smart to be a weatherman oh no do those guys are we smarter than me like real meteorology like it's you get a double degree in math and why are they wrong so much could you go predict the weather they get they're better with the temps like that I will give them that like they're pretty good like a week out 10 days out which isn't it is crazy impressive to begin with that you can predict the weather seven days out that's all modeling now I could build that in clawed in like five minutes yeah clawed but how about like being a weatherman in like Arizona in the summer he's just like 110 all right see what that in like groundhog day or something he's like it's gonna be sunny again anything three things over and over again about a repetitive job like yeah you got three possibilities you got sunny cloudy and rain and somehow we make it into this secret fortress of meteorology what is gonna happen I don't know is it gonna tornado I don't know that's like the greatest moment ever for news for everything else because you get this moment that breaks all the attention all the other articles get clicked because there's a tornado they see all the others that look that's how it works it's fear monster even better if people die like it's even better it yes it's not but it is like for them it's like what does hey if it bleeds it reads or something like that it's not it's literally I'm not making this shit up I mean I don't kill the messenger you're not you're not a bullshitter no that's what it is like they get made and not funny uh not people dying but it's it's funny the mechanism that sort of triggers this tough now we got on the weather yeah yeah let's let's rain it back in kind of like a speculative nature of top cone football yeah did I bring it back um so funny well moon not funny but this this guy I'm compel shit but keep I want to hear go ahead this guy claimed to have lost a 2013 rookie air and judge superfractor one of one card and super bummed about it obviously 101 went looking in his collection recently and somehow stumbled upon the card within his collection and is now selling it at an auction for a hundred and forty thousand dollars it's just like you just make this up right to me like the immediately when I heard of that is when people do like insurance fraud on art and like yeah he started claiming it four times on different insurance yeah like I like I don't know it just seems a little odd or like we were talking about it earlier like the the Mickey Manel card that's in the uh baseball packs like I'm like somebody could have pulled that or something they just haven't said anything about like and are just waiting or tops knows exactly where the card is and just hasn't even distributed it again I didn't see chip or track and chip and that's hopefully that's how we're all being tracked by the government that's what the hobbies are guys baseball chips yeah they got chips and I think I don't what do you think I'm gonna start that room Ryan and that I think is I'm gonna tell you what I think without telling you what I think I lost my son today I'm gonna go to news tell him that he's actually at home in the closet and then tomorrow I'm gonna call and say oh I found him in the closet but man you know a crazy and I'm gonna get it but I like but I'm saying like why I could easily and people do fabricate stories to create a story I mean we wouldn't be talking about it right now if you hadn't it sounds like it I mean maybe there there has to be more detail to this because otherwise it sounds very easy to just fabricate I would think there's some like I don't know video collection or something that sort of documents all this story for way longer than like oh I lost it but I just wanted people to again use marketing to be like hey do you guys know that there's a 101 on the you know an auction this week exactly get more clicks sell it more something it's gonna sell for once it's 130 that's called attention engineering I like it works I love how you always bring it back to marketing I mean just telling you it's a real thing I've written like I have a half a book written on it that's like I do everything else but also raising a brand but that was going to be number one that's green oh we can save the books for when you're done coding just to save my that that that that no go that hurt a little I'm sorry oh hey guys what's up welcome to the audit segment of the week here with Leonard Barry he oversees youtube content and all strategy it on it I just gave you I just made you the strategy executive director blender yeah I don't know I don't know if my paycheck reflects we're going to get to where they get you have a raise but no he's doing cool shit over there and I'm just jealous he's gonna be on the road with all the college athletes this summer but what's cooking today oh nothing much just enjoying my upgrade to the c-suite title can you send that private jet down for me yeah can I can I get a trip to the collector station please no I'm good though I mean it's a good week softball regionals are starting always a fun time last week a baseball regular season just it makes me sad that like I almost pressure tear to my eye because you think about it this is the end of the 2025 2026 college sports season we are into the last stretch to the regular season in baseball and then it's just all postseason and then we got to sit and wait through July in part august I think we've mentioned this like women sports gaining popularity is this I think you've got two things at play it feels like number one people are kind of over like standard like people like sports they want to watch more sports no matter what you don't want to watch crappy television sports are hotter than ever and then the Caitlin Clark effect you know I feel like she sort of escalated everything in female sports I think she needs to get like royalty chicks because I think I don't think it's like art official I think she signed light on number one some really talented you know female athletes that weren't maybe getting that visibility before it's not like she's shine light on you know they call it like lipstick on a pig no she put she put a spotlight on what should have probably already had a spotlight which is really competitive really fan-based especially in the college athletics and hey on it products that are covering all of it at the highest level but talk about that he literally think there is a little bit of that you know Caitlin Clark effect yeah I think so I mean for sure obviously Caitlin Clark drew a number of people to a women's college basketball and the question was going to be does the viewership remain at the same level and it's basically stayed the same if not slightly grown too so you know players like page backers players like AZ FUD Sarah strong like there's just a long lineage of really good talent in women's college basketball and the WMBA or you know women's professional basketball has been around for a while so what I'm really loving to see recently is the cropping up of all of these newer professional leagues you look at LOV volleyball you know that is something that was literally just like AAU travel style tournaments for people who were going to get recruited to go play in college late part laid that into a full fledged league that is expanded there's a team now in Lincoln the Huskers as you know many people out there are probably where very good draw they sold out the freaking football stadium playing a volleyball match outside you couldn't even imagine watching a volleyball match from like the nosebleeds it was easy you can't see anything but people still paid to get in the door you know and athletes unleaded softball league too we just had a bunch of players get drafted into that last week they're expanding as well so like you said that the growth of like what Caitlin Clark brought eyes to and then what some of these other media conglomerates and just investors in general who are putting the money where their you know eyeballs are when they say hey I love to watch women's sports like I'm going to back it financially and you see a lot of people become you know new investors start up new teams the barrier to entries a little bit lower you don't have to be a multi billionaire to buy a team maybe get by a couple million yeah I think that there is you know in a world where everything is so flip inexpensive the time is your most valuable resource and I think that a lot of people are starting to kind of shift away from being outpriced a price gouged away from you know watching some of these sports in person and they're shifting their eyeballs and their money and their wallets to places that are easily accessible and I've just about this just about the same amount of entertainment value that's a really interesting point and I think it's true I think people like the entertainment factor of sport and again whatever shine the light on it you have highly competitive of things happening and no bigger stage that shows this then what's happening in the softball we've got what 12 teams you got the Oklahoma powerhouse you got Nebraska I don't know what it is about Nebraska Oklahoma Texas I mean like what is the the trifecta there within the geography and you know all on it teams talk about what's happening with on it products and the softball tournament everything going on yeah that central time zone it's killer yes we got 12 on it teams hosting regional so the 16 regionals across the country happening 12 of them are being hosted by on it teams we only missed out on a couple we set 14 teams in total to the tournament out of the 16 teams that we work with so that's pretty good return I haven't done the math but I think it's well over 90 percent so lots of teams going on lots of number one seeds you mentioned to Oklahoma there are one seed Texas SEC champions last year's national champs looking to repeat their hosting in Austin you got Nebraska if it hasn't been to Oklahoma City since 2013 they'd never want to title two way star Jordy from leading the way for them they're a very intriguing bunch out there and Lincoln I mean you got a team like UCLA who is hit a bundle of home runs including Megan Grant she just got shortlisted as a potential player of the year she broke Lauren Espinoza single season home run record she's hit 38 home runs in 55 games at the time of this recording Lauren Espinoza hit 37 in 72 games back in 1995 so when you talk about like women sports viewership going up the talent has certainly increased as well when you look at players like Megan Grant Jordy from Nigerian Kennedy out there Texas Tech so I mean it's just a never-ending list it feels like Ryan when it comes to the talent that we have on the softball rosters I love it man any final mentions as we wrap up here today Leonard as far as men's baseball any updates or anything there we want to call out yeah I'd be a remiss if I didn't mention that Georgia Tech is gonna be dropping on our website very shortly number three team in the country only behind UCLA and North Carolina they are loaded with talent Drew Burris Vaughan Lackey Jern Arvand Chua all those guys are potential first rounders in the MLB draft this summer so I would definitely hop on the website on athlete.com take a look at Georgia Tech West Virginia just out of huge series where they swept number seven Kansas they're back in the big 12 title race their live on the website Gavin Kelly is homerid in five straight games he's in the set so lots of good baseball stuff coming up I'm sure we'll talk more baseball next week when they get into their conference tournaments but definitely would stop by and check out the website for any of your baseball needs love it man of course you can go to the website we've got that link on all the show notes again that is on it athlete.com use code collector nation it check out to receive 15% off your order again support these athletes support the schools and get in and start collecting something new yet on it we appreciate you Leonard always a pleasure Ryan thanks so much for having me all right guys we'll see you next time all the on it college segment of the week all right anything else oh Brian Shirley you know something what what are we doing this weekend Brian your home you know on the road you're not getting terrible news or you know bullshit bad people you're not dealing with any of that what you doing this last week was busy because my mom turned 80 and we had a party for her the mother's day and then this week it's not it's really I don't want to do anything I was like the road I hate travel do you hate travel Brian yeah I quit my job and became a crazy entrepreneur and made it work purely out of not wanting anyone to control one minute of my time or me to be on the fucking plane every week so you're loving the poster childhood yeah yeah it's like three places I like to be the boat this place in my house there you go three or at a white sucks game with you no that's gonna happen or the next I mean like maybe we gotta work that out how do we work that out what I come up like a few days it's gonna be so crazy for the national you can be pulling your hair out on there but like we'll be in Chicago can we slip away can we can we bail on the national one day it's good with a white sucks game or is that just a card stab it we can go hey I mean you can stay an extra day or two yeah it's not that I mean it's not that great to go to the sucks game but uh it's not that that's not really the point Brian it's for me and you to sit there and have a hot dog a beer or two and sing kumbaya five exactly have a little bromance we will we'll let me tell you about my best friend if we just become best friends we'll make it all anyway all right we appreciate everyone Bella appreciate you Brian love you thanks guy hey the collector nation dot com L U D X let X in the app store go check it out always advancing user interface improvements coming uh collection management eBay management look I'm seeing the collection management stuff let me just tell you if this is this is where it goes next level so collection management uh knowing what you have slicing dicing doing what you need to do that's the that's the future that's L U D X in the in the app store I'm at Ryan all for it on Instagram drop me a DM just be nice we love you we'll see you next time I'll click your next hi thanks for tuning into the show be sure to follow us on your go to podcast platform and catch the full video episode over on youtube visit us at collector nation dot com and follow Ryan on Instagram at Ryan Allford now get out there and collect yours