Sports Illustrated Blog #35 – Ungraded Newsstand – the Latest in New Buying Opportunities
Welcome to my Sports Illustrated/TIME magazine blog – Your collector’s guide to the latest hobby updates and insight into what’s trending now.
This week’s blog is especially important as I’m going to outline some new buying strategies that will help even the most modest buyer and casual collector in keeping up with the SI movement. It’s been two years since I started blogging on the merits of buying, collecting and investing in graded Sports Illustrated. Over that period, I’ve heard from many readers and without exception, their reaction has been positive no matter their level of participation – buying, collecting, or investing in SI’s, especially graded, has proved to be an exciting and rewarding journey.
I’m not saying that all my predictions fit the interests and risk factor for each and every reader, but what I am saying is that if you jumped in two years ago, you’re glad you did.
The downside for some is that graded mags, especially high grade stars and dark era copies, continue to increase in purchase cost measured by months, not years – and may have become prohibitive for many in the hobby.
What if I started late or if I’d like to begin collecting SI’s, TIME, and Newsweek now, what buying opportunities are still available to me that make sense and also fit my budget? The pricing on graded mags can be prohibitive for the casual collector so how do I get started? Is it too late?
No it’s not too late! First let me share a story, my story, on my Sports Illustrated collection evolution. I think many of you will identify. My first subscription began in 1965 and continued uninterrupted thru the mid 80’s. Years later, by absolute luck, I found my earliest issues stored and protected, neatly in my parents basement. Almost every issue intact and preserved – unlike my baseball cards, my Mom didn’t throw them away!
I thought these issues would really be worth something as they got older. Between the mid 80’s and 2000, I tried to add to my collection by finding and buying older issues, especially with baseball players on the covers. Pre-internet, it was difficult. 2000 thru 2010, removing labels became popular and I realized my label issues could never compete with these nice, label removed issues. Unfortunately, my early retirement dreams were dashed as soon as I saw the first label removed covers. So I participated in removing and selling label removed issues for a while but something wasn’t right – it wasn’t pure. As a result, I started buying newsstand issues when I could find them and afford them.
This is when it all started to make sense. The real collectors would always want newsstand issues over label removed. Shortly thereafter, I graded my first 1963 Cassius Clay – 9.6 – still the highest graded, POP 1, and perhaps the most valuable of all graded SI’s today. Soon after I sold my first graded issue, I relieved my entire collection of labelled and label removed issues, and I have never bought anything but newsstand since.
Why relate this story? Two reasons – 1. I know there are a lot of avid SI readers that saved their labelled subscriptions only to find out that they are not rare or even hard to find. And 2. Collecting newsstand issues is can be fun, affordable and profitable.
If you are interested in jumping into or re-directing your collecting interests, it’s not too late. I have begun selling a series of encapsulated – not graded, and raw SI issues, all newsstand, all high quality, and all affordable – none over $200. Each is meant specifically for those collectors who want to fill in their collections with the hardest, most popular covers known to the hobby in newsstand copy. And because they are newsstand, they are the standard of excellence within the hobby and you will sleep well at night knowing you have positioned your collection for long term success.
Available in this collection are many high grade newsstand issues including the first covers of popular but difficult stars such as Mantle, Clay, Mays, Orr, Aaron, Clemente, Williams, Gretzky, Jordan, and at least 50 more. I don’t collect commons, so I don’t sell commons. These are the ones you want. No fillers.
Part of my blog routine is giving advice and here it is. There is an urgency for those interested in taking advantage of this opportunity. These issues are selling right now and I’m predicting they WILL sell out fast so don’t be a watcher, pull the trigger or be sorry.
See for yourself. Below are a few examples.
I hope you are enjoying the reads on the history of TIME and SI magazines as well as an insight into relevant magazine collecting.
Great collecting to you and best fortunes with Sports Illustrated/TIME!