BLOWOUT BASEBALL CARDS

Blowout Baseball Cards: A History of the Hobby

The baseball card collecting hobby has evolved tremendously since its inception in the late 19th century. While cards were initially included as promotional inserts in tobacco products to help sell more cigars and chewing gum, they soon took on a life of their own as collectors sought out rare and valuable specimens from years past. By the 1970s, the hobby had really started to take off, aided by the rise of specialized card shops that catered specifically to collectors. None was more influential than Blowout Cards, which helped transform the industry and take collecting to new heights.

Blowout was founded in 1978 by David Kohler in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. At the time, the baseball card market was still in its relative infancy. Most collectors had to rely on drug stores, convenience stores, or corner newsstands to find new packs, and options for buying, selling, and trading individual cards were limited. Kohler saw an opportunity to open a dedicated shop focused entirely on sports cards. He named it Blowout Cards both as a nod to the “blowout” scores that can happen in baseball games, as well as the idea that his store would be a “blowout” success in the industry.

In those early years, Blowout Cards established itself as a premier destination for collectors in the Midwest. Kohler stocked shelves with the latest wax packs, but also maintained an extensive inventory of singles available for sale. This was a novel approach at the time, as most shops focused on sealed product over individual cards. Blowout also hosted trading sessions and organized tournaments, giving collectors a place to socialize with others who shared their passion. Within a few years, Blowout had become the top card shop in Milwaukee and one of the most prominent in the entire country.

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As the 1980s dawned, Kohler made the innovative decision to expand his business into a mail order operation. In 1981, he published the first Blowout Price Guide and began accepting orders via phone and mail. This allowed Blowout to reach collectors nationwide rather than just those in the local Milwaukee area. The price guide also brought much-needed standardization to the wildly fluctuating marketplace, where values could vary drastically between different shops, shows, and publications. Blowout’s comprehensive guide soon became the hobby’s gold standard for tracking card values over time.

The mail order expansion was a pivotal moment that helped transform Blowout into a true industry powerhouse. Collectors across the U.S. and beyond now had a reliable, well-stocked source for buying, selling, and trading cards without needing to visit a local shop. Blowout’s inventory and selection grew exponentially to meet the rising demand. Throughout the 1980s, the company cemented its reputation for top-notch customer service, fast shipping, and fair pricing. When the baseball card market exploded in the late 80s, Blowout was perfectly positioned to capture a massive share of the booming business.

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As values soared, fueled by the arrival of stars like Ken Griffey Jr. and Mark McGwire, Blowout expanded its operations further. In 1988, the company opened a new, larger retail store in suburban Milwaukee to accommodate its burgeoning business. Behind-the-scenes, Blowout also invested in new technologies to help scale its mail order and inventory systems. The company launched an early website and database to digitally catalog its immense stock. Blowout also brought on additional staff and developed industry-leading quality control processes to ensure flawless fulfillment of orders.

This period of hyper-growth saw Blowout Cards truly cement its status as a veritable institution within the sports collecting world. The shop became a required pilgrimage for any serious collector visiting the Midwest. Blowout’s immense inventory, which encompassed millions of individual cards across all sports and eras, was unmatched. Meanwhile, the company’s price guide and market reports were must-reads for anyone looking to stay on top of the latest hobby developments and valuation trends. By the 1990s, “Blowout” was practically a generic term used to refer to any big online order or haul among collectors.

In more recent decades, Blowout has remained on the cutting edge, adapting to ongoing changes within the industry. The company was quick to embrace the internet as the marketplace increasingly shifted online in the late 90s-2000s. Blowout’s pioneering website allows seamless searching of inventory and has processed millions of transactions. The shop also led the way on specialization, with dedicated focus on hot modern products, unopened wax, autographed memorabilia, and high-end vintage cards. Blowout’s team of authenticators and graders helps ensure only legitimate items change hands.

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Today, over 40 years since its founding, Blowout Cards is still going strong as one of the hobby’s most trusted names. From its headquarters outside Milwaukee, the company ships to customers in over 150 countries and employs over 60 full-time staff. Blowout’s inventory on any given day holds a valuation well into the tens of millions. The multi-volume price guide remains the most authoritative in the business, while the company’s forums and blog provide valuable insight, news, and analysis for collectors.

Through decades of dynamic changes, Blowout Cards has endured because it consistently meets collectors’ needs through top-shelf service, competitive prices, a vast selection, and deep passion for the hobby. The pioneering shop that helped revolutionize the industry in its early days remains as relevant as ever today. For countless fans around the world, Blowout Cards is virtually synonymous with the golden age of baseball card collecting and its enduring legacy.

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