For many collectors and fans of baseball history, antique stores can be treasure troves waiting to be discovered. Whether you live in a small town or big city, chances are there is an antique shop or mall somewhere nearby that may have boxes of old baseball cards just waiting to be sorted through.
While the internet makes it easy to find and buy individual rare and valuable baseball cards, physically browsing antique stores allows you to make serendipitous finds of whole collections that someone may be looking to sell all at once. You never know what gems could be hiding in a disorganized box of cards that is priced to move.
Before heading out to local antique stores, it helps to do a quick search online to see what shops are closest to you and get a sense of what type of inventory they tend to have. Look for keywords like “sports memorabilia”, “cards and comics”, or “collectibles” in their listings. You’ll also want to check store hours in case any keep limited schedules.
Once you have a list of top prospects, get driving. When first entering an antique store, don’t bee-line straight for any shelves or boxes that look like they may contain cards. Take a lap around the whole shop first to get a lay of the land and see if anything else catches your eye that is also of interest. Building rapport with the owners or staff can help in the long run too.
When finally zeroing in on card collection areas, inspect boxes carefully and slowly. Often the most valuable individual cards will be buried deep within. Condition is still king even for older vintage cardboard, so examine each closely for creases, stains or other flaws that could downgrade a card’s potential value. Have your phone handy to look up comps of anything interesting you come across too.
Don’t be afraid to ask owners or other customers browsing about origins of collections. Some stores acquire whole estates with unknown histories that could provide clues to unearthing rare local players. Occasionally you may even find former minor leaguers, Negro Leaguers or obscure international stars whose cards are extremely hard to find otherwise.
Be sure to check end caps, tops of shelves and other hard to reach spots where less frequently touched boxes may be stored. Owners often group similar items together, so if you find a box of football cards, hockey cards likely won’t be too far away either. You never know what other sports or non-sports items could be hiding in a store until thoroughly investigating.
When ready to purchase, negotiate prices if appropriate but try not to lowball excessively. Building goodwill with store owners can open doors to first looks at new acquisitions before they hit shelves too. Cash is still king at many antique shops too. Consider walking out with more common duplicate cards versus leaving perfectly good cardboard behind. You never know what trades they may facilitate finding other hard-to-get needs.
While the thrill of an enormous score like unearthing a T206 Honus Wagner will likely never happen, that’s not the only way antique stores can delight collectors. The fun is in the hunt, making new discoveries, learning history and growing your collection. With some dedicated browsing, any shop nearby could end up being a treasure trove with something to excite even the most seasoned collector. Just have to put in the time to properly dig.
