I think CGC has the best looking and best feeling slabs in the business. And I would love to see another viable alternative for vintage grading. But, as I’m sure you know, it’s hard grabbing market share from the behemoth. A bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy: Slabs from the behemoth sell for more, so people keep shying away from alternatives and feeding the behemoth despite higher cost, longer waits, and questionable consistency of product. And then, as the behemoth continues to grow because people are hesitant to choose an alternative, the gap in “sold prices” between them and competitors stays the same, and the cycle contintues. Anyway, I’m curious what steps CGC is taking to market to vintage hobbyists? Do you have ideas to help break this cycle? I had high hopes for SGC but as Collectors puts a tight belt around their growth and actually tries to shrink their market share, I’m hopeful CGC can take advantage of any opportunity in the market that might arise in the next year or so. Thanks.
Great question. Building our reputation in the grading space is not a sprint. It takes years of doing the right thing consistently. Having the best holder in the biz is but one small part of the whole equation.
I’ve been professionally grading cards now for over 26 years and I have learned what is important in card grading. I’ve learned this not just by being on the professional side, but also from being a customer. Collecting is still my life! So, I know what I like as a customer. That helps drive what we do here on a daily basis. Turnaround times are important to you, they are important to me. I hate waiting to get my cards back. And that drives me everyday to innovate and improve our processes so that you do not have to wait any longer than it is necessary.
CGC reached 5 million cards graded faster than any other grading company. What that means for customers is that we know how to scale. When demand increases, we have the infrastructure to hire and train graders in our classroom. The faster we can add more qualified graders, the faster you get your cards back.
We have been a leader in innovation in card grading. We have implemented some amazing automation in our processes, including in encapsulation.
I take pride in our new grader training and our continuous training programs for our graders. Being the most consistent grader is as important as being the fastest grader.
We take pride in our expertise. Can you name any experts at any other company you submit cards to? Why is that? If you are leading experts, why hide it?
It’s going the extra mile that matters. Like our customer service, you can call or email and actually speak to someone! Better yet, we have a number where you can text with our CS experts. That may seem small until you try contacting other grading companies!
Research is another area where we excel. We are willing to go the extra mile in researching card info for labels and for authentication. One thing I have been known for is bringing unique new cards to market. It takes not only expertise, but time to research previously unknown card issues in order to authenticate new discoveries. Time that other companies are not willing to do.
As I said before, the race to be the best is a marathon, not a sprint. We will keep doing the right thing everyday.
I personally love vintage so growing our presence in the vintage world is important to us as a company. We will continue to partner with people in the vintage space and offer services that others cannot. We are seeing some great vintage cards! We had the honor of grading a 1961 Topps Dice Game set at the National this year.
@cardgrader That's a great answer, Andy. Do the right thing every day and build a reputation for the long haul. Scale up responsibly and stay consistent. Doing things like this Cardhound forum engagement is a great way to spread the gospel and grow the brand in the vintage community. Thanks for taking the time to engage!
I'm glad I could do this!@cardgrader That's a great answer, Andy. Do the right thing every day and build a reputation for the long haul. Scale up responsibly and stay consistent. Doing things like this Cardhound forum engagement is a great way to spread the gospel and grow the brand in the vintage community. Thanks for taking the time to engage!
