Oak City Baseball Cards: A North Carolina Treasure
Oak City Baseball Cards is a beloved baseball card shop located in Wilson, North Carolina. What started as a small hobby shop in the 1970s has grown into one of the most well-known and respected baseball card businesses in the country. For over 45 years, Oak City Baseball Cards has been a staple of the baseball card collecting community and an iconic small business success story.
The shop was founded in 1976 by Billy Higgins, a lifelong baseball fan who gained a passion for collecting cards as a boy. After starting a collection of his own, Billy was enthralled by the hobby and wanted to share his love of cards with other fans. He opened a small storefront in downtown Wilson with just a few display cases of available cards. Word quickly spread of the new card shop in town and business steadily grew through the 1970s and 80s as the hobby boomed in popularity.
Through those early decades, Oak City Baseball Cards built a sterling reputation for its large and diverse inventory, fair business practices, expertise in the industry, and dedication to customer service. Billy Higgins prided himself on staying on top of the ever-changing card market and seeking out cards his customers wanted but couldn’t find elsewhere. The shop’s selection soon grew to include not just newer issues but vintage and valuable older cards as well. Buyers knew they could rely on Billy to price cards fairly and give honest advice.
Meanwhile, Billy was also gaining renown as one of the foremost experts in the baseball card industry. He authored numerous articles about the hobby in sports publications over the years and appeared regularly on sports radio shows. Billy’s encyclopedic knowledge and passion for the history of the game were respected across the collecting community. More importantly, he instilled this same passion in his staff and ensured Oak City Baseball Cards stayed on the cutting edge of what fans and collectors sought.
While many card shops from that era have since closed down, Oak City Baseball Cards has remained open and thriving into the 21st century through adaptive changes guided by Billy’s successors. In 2001, Billy’s daughter Ashley Higgins took over daily operations of the store from her father. Ashley had worked at the shop since childhood and knew it inside and out. Under her new leadership, the business smoothly transitioned into the modern digital era of the hobby.
Ashley incorporated an online storefront and utilized modern communication tools to stay connected with customers nationwide. Oak City Baseball Cards now ships orders all over the world daily. The physical store in downtown Wilson additionally underwent some renovations but retained its vintage charm and welcoming atmosphere that made it a weekend destination spot for many collectors. Updating technology and business practices did not diminish Oak City Baseball Cards old-school emphasis on customer service, fair dealings and passion for the hobby.
Today, Oak City Baseball Cards continues to cement its place as a landmark business in Wilson and staple of the baseball card collecting community. Fourth generation Higgins family members now work alongside Ashley to carry on the shop’s century-spanning legacy. While the card industry constantly changes, Oak City Baseball Cards has proven it can adapt without compromising the traditional values it was built upon. Its large inventory, fair prices and expertise draw collectors from around the world who know they will get a timeless baseball card shopping experience. Few independent hobby shops have thrived as long as Oak City Baseball Cards thanks to dedicated multi-generational leadershipcommitted to preserving the special roots and atmosphere that make it an iconic institution.
