Someone has been taking notes 📝 but is this enough to protect the customer? 🤔

True stewardship isn't about squeezing every dollar in a night's live stream or break-it's about knowing when excitement tips into compulsion and stepping in to protect collectors when they can't protect themselves.

At Collectors MD, we're partnering with shops, breakers, and leaders across the industry to embed #CollectWithIntention and #RipResponsibly into the hobby ecosystem-because protecting the hobby means protecting the people inside it.

If you own or work at a card shop or break company, we invite you to reach out (info@collectorsmd.com). Together, we can create a culture that chooses sustainability over short-term gain, and responsibility over recklessness. Because protecting the hobby means protecting the people inside it.

Collect With Intention. Not Compulsion.

#CollectorsMD | #CollectWithIntention | #CollectResponsibly

https://www.instagram.com/p/DPMcbzGEW7f/

In this episode from the Hoosier Pulls YouTube channel, Alijah sits down with Alyx Effron, Founder of Collectors MD, to confront the uncomfortable truth about the hobby: how easily collecting can slip into gambling, overspending, and addiction.

Alyx shares his personal journey—what led him to create Collectors MD—and why he believes the sports card industry is at a crossroads.

Together, they dive into:

• The rise of repacks, countdown auctions, and other gambling-like mechanics

• Why kids and vulnerable collectors are at the greatest risk

• How influencer boxes and curated content fuel unrealistic expectations

• The urgent need for transparency, accountability, and consumer protections

• How Collectors MD is building support systems, partnerships, and reform initiatives for a healthier future

This conversation doesn’t aim to tear the hobby down—it’s about protecting it, and the people in it. Whether you’re a collector, breaker, or industry insider, this episode challenges you to think critically about where the hobby is headed, and what role each of us plays in shaping it.

Subscribe, comment, and join the movement. And remember to collect with intention, not compulsion.

Learn More & Join The Movement:

Website: https://www.collectorsmd.com

Socials: https://www.hopp.bio/collectorsmd

Weekly Meeting Sign-Up: https://bit.ly/45koiMX

Contact: info@collectorsmd.com

Instagram: @collectorsmd

#CollectorsMD | #RipResponsibly | #CollectResponsibly https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saQbJIx0h1o

Published August 04, 2025 | By Alyx E, Founder of Collectors MD

In our Collectors MD support group chat this week, the conversation has been heavy—but necessary. We’ve been unpacking the emotional, financial, and ethical weight of where the hobby stands today.

And truthfully, it’s scary what the hobby has become.

What used to be fun, social, and simple has morphed into something far more aggressive. The prices. The pressure. The performance. For many, collecting now feels less like a joyful pastime and more like trying to “beat the house.” And the house? It’s built to win.

We reflected on how breaks that once cost $20–30 and felt like hanging out with friends have devolved into high-stakes, profit-driven streams—filled with influencers shouting over background music while flipping low-value cards at absurd markups.

Over the weekend, we witnessed a reseller auctioning off paper base Bowman prospect cards for $30–40 apiece—cards genuinely worth less than the toploader they were being showcased in. When someone respectfully called out the price manipulation and inflated comps, they were immediately banned from the stream—no questions asked, no room for discussion.

Some in the group shared that if they’d never opened apps like Whatnot, they might’ve had the savings to put a down payment on a home—or even send their kids to college.

This isn’t just about bad actors—it’s about a broken system. From artificially inflated prices and shady trade-in schemes to comp manipulation and the normalization of gambling among kids, the ecosystem has shifted in a way that hurts more people than it helps. Even trading, once the soul of the hobby, has become sterile and transactional—more about spreadsheets than stories.

This is the reality we’re facing: the hobby is now conditioning impressionable kids to treat high-dollar repacks as a game of recouping value, not collecting. When the focus shifts entirely to “getting your money back,” the joy is replaced by anxiety—and the line between collecting and gambling disappears. It’s not just dangerous. It’s predatory.

When one of the guys in the group chat said, “I want the hobby to collapse,” what they really meant was this: “I want it to go back to when it actually felt like a hobby.”

And that’s a feeling we all understand.

But here’s the hard truth: there’s no going back. The money, the infrastructure, and the corporate consolidation are too deeply embedded. Fanatics isn’t going to let it collapse—they’ve invested billions to scale it into a full-blown entertainment ecosystem, one that blends gambling, streaming, influencer culture, and brand-building.

That’s why we’re not trying to destroy the system—we’re trying to reshape it.

Fighting Fanatics, Whatnot or any of these platforms or manufacturers head-on would be like storming the gates with cardboard swords. We’d get steamrolled. Instead, we’re playing the long game: building relationships, embedding ourselves where it matters, and fighting for a seat at the table.

Think of the movie 300. Leonidas didn’t assemble a random army—he handpicked warriors who stood for something. At Collectors MD, we’re doing the same. We’re forming a community of disciplined, purpose-driven collectors who want to rebuild this space with intention, education, and integrity.

We’re not aimlessly throwing spears. We’re getting inside the walls—to strategically influence from within.

And for those who still want to host breaks or be part of the marketplace? That’s okay. This hobby isn’t one-size-fits-all. For some, it’s casual. For others, it’s a slippery slope. What matters is self-awareness, boundaries, and responsibility.

We need more people asking:
“Is this in line with my values?”
“Am I protecting my community?”
“What example am I setting?”

Because ultimately, the hobby’s future won’t be determined by billion-dollar companies alone—it will be shaped by the choices we make as a collective. Whether it’s calling out fraud, educating the next generation, or showing others a healthier way forward, we each have a role to play.

We can’t rewind the hobby. But we can reshape what it looks like going forward. And that’s exactly what we’re here to do.

#CollectorsMD
We’re not trying to beat the house. We’re building a new one.

—
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Published July 10, 2025 | By Alyx E, Founder of Collectors MD

This past month, collectors spent $305 million on trading cards. That’s not a projection. That’s documented sales—from marketplaces, apps, and platforms that actually track these transactions.

But here’s the thing: That number doesn’t include private deals. It doesn’t include the cash exchanges at card shows, local shops, or backroom trades that happen every single day. It doesn’t account for the volume of money moving through the hobby under the radar.

Which means the real number? It’s almost certainly much higher.

And still—no guardrails. No disclosures. No oversight. No transparency. No consumer protection. No regulation.

Imagine if the stock market or any other financial system operated at this scale—with this much money changing hands—and remained virtually untouched by regulation or accountability. Headlines would explode. Lawmakers would scramble. Investors would demand answers.

But in the hobby? It’s business as usual.

We regulate banking. We regulate investing. We regulate gambling. We regulate anything that puts people’s money or mental health at risk. So why is the hobby—now a multi-billion dollar industry—still operating without guardrails? It’s time to stop pretending this is just a game. Protection shouldn’t be optional.

We keep chasing the next record-breaking month without asking the hard questions. We celebrate the boom without confronting the risk. We treat this space like a game, when in reality it’s functioning more and more like a financial market—with none of the structure or safeguards in place to support it.

That’s not sustainable. That’s not safe. And that’s not okay.

This isn’t a call to kill the fun—it’s a call to protect the people inside it. We need transparency. Guardrails. Clarity. Regulation. Not just for the hobby’s sake, but for the sake of every collector getting swept up in something far bigger than they realize.

#CollectorsMD
Growth without guardrails is just chaos in a costume.

—
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Subscribe to our Newsletter & Support Group
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