Collectors, I’ve said it before - if an item exists, there’s probably a community of people who collect it, and I read two articles this week in major newspaper
Collectors, I’ve said it before - if an item exists, there’s probably a community of people who collect it, and I read two articles this week in major newspapers that perfectly illustrate my point.
The Wall Street Journal wrote about people who collect - AND EAT - very old military rations. We’re talking crackers from the Civil War and lasagna from the Gulf War. There is a whole community collecting MREs and a crew of brave (if I’m being charitable) souls who occasionally crack open a tin to see how they’ve held up over time.
And The New York Times published a piece about people who collect semi-cured nail strips, which I guess are the 2025 version of press-on nails. One woman interviewed had more than 2,000 nail sets - not to wear, mind you, but to keep for her collection - including rare sets from Korea and Japan.
Makes me feel slightly less silly about my collection of sports cards… toys… watches… stock certificates… Ok, never mind, let’s just get into Above the Mantel…
For the first time in 15 years, Topps will hold the NBA license, with the debut release expected the week of Oct. 20. The rollout begins with Topps flagship, followed later by Chrome NBA, projected at $300+ a box on release thanks to hype around rookie Cooper Flagg and breaker demand. Expect Topps Now NBA cards, debut patches (prediction: these will be massive), milestone autos, and star signatures like LeBron and Curry. For now, Panini still holds the WNBA license (and exclusive rights to Caitlin Clark autograph cards) with Donruss, Impeccable, and Prizm on deck.
Whatnot is rolling out new rules for repacks on Nov. 3, requiring manufacturers to apply for approval, undergo independent audits, and provide public checklists for each release. Only products on Whatnot’s official approved list will be eligible to sell, with strict bans on sellers holding insider knowledge of contents. The move comes amid growing scrutiny of the repack market, which some liken to unregulated gambling, and follows similar transparency efforts by Fanatics and PSA. For Whatnot, it’s a major policy shift aimed at boosting trust and accountability across its $2B platform.
Tony Gwynn’s legacy continues to resonate in the collectibles market. His 1990 Gold Glove Award just set a new benchmark, selling for $102,100 at The Realest’s “Eternal All-Star” auction - the highest Gold Glove result ever, surpassing Roberto Clemente’s long-standing record. Gwynn’s awards have drawn strong bids recently: his 1991 Gold Glove fetched $62,000, while his 1994 Silver Slugger sold for $60,500, a new record for the award.
Shameless plug! Cardhound Vintage published a review of Mantel, and everyone should read it, click the links, sign up, all that jazz… Per the review, with features like customizable “Mantelpieces” to showcase grails, flexible group structures, and multimedia-friendly posting, the platform feels like Facebook reimagined for The Hobby. It’s still in growth mode, but Mantel’s collector-first design and responsive team (👋) have users optimistic they’re witnessing the start of something special (and we agree!).
I guess digital ain’t dead, because Panini Blockchain just posted back-to-back record months, with collectors spending over $15.6M in September across nearly 341,000 transactions, more than double August’s mark. The headline sale was Caitlin Clark’s Green Kaboom 1/1 NFT, which went for $175,000, one of more than 50 transactions topping $10,000. Year-to-date, Panini Blockchain has surpassed $48M in sales, crushing its previous annual record of $32M set in 2022.
via Netflix Family Magazine
A little-known collectible may be hiding in plain sight: the Netflix Family Magazine, Issue 9 (Summer 2025), which included the first officially licensed KPop Demon Hunters stickers. With the film becoming one of the biggest global hits of the decade, licensed merchandise has lagged behind demand, which leaves this magazine, rarely preserved and unavailable on the secondary market, as a possible “rookie card” equivalent for the franchise. If a graded copy surfaces intact with stickers, it could fetch serious money thanks to scarcity, condition sensitivity, and cultural significance. If you find one for sale, come over to Mantel and let J.R. Fickle know.
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🚨SATIRE ALERT🚨 The Onion delivered a gem this week for a community like ours, with a send-up of a collector preparing for doomsday. “When it all goes down, there’s only going to be one place to watch the Tomb Raider movies in their entirety with all the deleted scenes, and that’s going to be my bunker,” says local collector David Campbell, who gleefully imagines a post-internet world where region-free DVD players and Father Ted box sets become currency. He even predicts his 50th anniversary Jaws 4K will “give him full control over the drinking water supply in the event of a nuclear winter.” 🚨SATIRE ALERT🚨
via Esquire
A panel of editors, artists, and critics came together to pick the 25 most influential magazine covers of all time, underscoring how covers have long shaped cultural conversations even as print’s power has waned. The list spans politics, fashion, and art, but the top spot featured an athlete - Esquire’s searing 1968 Muhammad Ali cover, portraying the exiled boxer as a modern Saint Sebastian, arrows piercing his body in a symbolic stand against the draft and for civil rights. Do you own any graded copies of the highlighted issues? Let us know over on Mantel.
via GQ
Rolliefest, a biannual gathering of elite watch collectors, has become one of the hobby’s most exclusive events. The invite-only weekend brings roughly 200 vetted enthusiasts together at secret venues, from the Met’s Temple of Dendur to the 102nd floor of One World Trade. Attendees casually pile millions in Rolex Daytonas, Pateks, and other grails on a single table, where the “flex” is more about knowledge than money (or so GQ says…). While the vibe can be frenzied - writer Gary Shteyngart compared it to a “coke-infused scrum, without the coke” - collectors say the real magic is the community, with passion outlasting the speculative boom. We’re hoping a representative from Mantel gets an invite in 2027.
Category: General Sports
