Michael Jordan’s Hobby Reign Endures as Collectors Descend on Chicago
If the producers of Air are looking for a sequel, they could find inspiration in Chicago this week.
A few years after Nike inked Michael Jordan in 1984, another young, high-flying company leveraged a relationship with the Chicago Bulls sensation on its way to upending an industry. And 30 years later, Upper Deck continues to lean on MJ.
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As up to 100,000 sports memorabilia and card collectors descend on Chicago for this year’s National Sports Collectors Convention, Upper Deck is unveiling a full-on shrine to His Airness. A mobile museum truck will drive the streets of Chicago, showing off basketballs, jerseys, shoes and other art in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the Bulls’ 1998 championship win (AKA Jordan’s Last Dance). The display is also a reminder of MJ’s continued reign atop the hobby, 20 years after his final game.
Following a massive spike in pandemic-fueled interest, the sports card industry has found itself in a quieter year. Card prices have largely stabilized somewhere between pre-2020 baselines and mid-2021 peaks. One recent industry report found that the number of six-figure sales fell 55% year-over-year in Q2. Startups have pivoted their business models and sold off assets amid continuing consolidation in the market.
But Jordan-related hype has hardly died down. A pair of Air Jordan 13s worn during the ‘98 Finals sold at Sotheby’s for $2.2 million in April, a record for sports footwear. That came after a “last dance” jersey set a new standard by selling for $10.1 million. Just last week, a signed photo of Jordan sold for $52,800 at Goldin Auctions. On Twitter (or whatever we’re calling it today), Darren Rovell said the final tally was the “craziest price I’ve ever seen for an autographed photo.”
“I think what we’re finding is the rare stuff, the good stuff, whether it’s memorabilia or whether it’s blue-chip cards … that stuff is still rock solid,” Heritage Auctions’ VP of sports auctions Derek Grady recently told Sports Collectors Digest. And it doesn’t get more blue-chip than Jordan.
“In terms of covetability, both domestically and internationally, Michael Jordan sits at the top,” Sotheby’s VP, head of streetwear and modern collectibles Brahm Wachter said.
In 1992, with MJ coming off an MVP year, a billboard in Chicago earned headlines by declaring, in bold font: “TRADE JORDAN.” After a week of head scratching, a follow-up ad included a photo of a Jordan card and the text: “We’ve been doing it for years….”
Following the likes of Apple and Nike, Upper Deck’s provocative marketing helped boost sales for its inaugural basketball set, as did a number of TV commercials starring No. 23. Founded in 1988, the company reportedly quickly blew by $100 million in annual sales on the back of its new-age offerings and celebrity endorsers.
From 2000 to 2012, Upper Deck continued paying Jordan roughly $1 million a year, about the same it was paying LeBron James during his early peak, according to court documents. And in 2015, despite losing the license to print cards featuring NBA logos, UD kept its Jordan connection, notably promising at that point to keep his signature a rarity.
In 2019, the company partnered with Hanes, putting exclusive Jordan cards in close to a million clothing packages, briefly triggering a run on undies. “He is core to everything we do as a company,” current Upper Deck president Jason Masherah said in 2020.
ELSEWHERE ON THE SHOW FLOOR …
While the sports investor frenzy may have cooled, NSCC organizers are still expecting a potential record turnout in 2023, with 10% more dealer booths and corporate sponsors than last year.
“I think what you’re gonna see this year versus the last couple years is that you’re going to see the true collector come back in a big way,” Masherah said. “The last couple of years, we had a lot of people who had seen all the buzz, all the hype, and they jumped in. … So I think it’s gonna be a lot better vibe this year.”
The combination of families, casual collectors and hardcore buyers makes the National a unique event, and increased inventory combined with lower prices will make it easier for brands and resellers to serve each market.
“You’re gonna see a younger audience more engaged,” Panini SVP of marketing Jason Howarth said. “We continue to see growth on the kids side.”
While Panini hosts a VIP event every year for those seeking exclusive experiences and expensive cards, it also hosts free giveaways for children.
“The thing that I always get excited about at the National is seeing the look on kids’ faces as they’re opening up packs and just their love and passion for the product because it’s so innocent,” Howarth said. “That’s the part where you’re like, ‘Oh yeah, this is what cards are supposed to be about.’”
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