Dave & Adam’s Baseball Card Company: The Little Company that Could

Dave and Adam’s Baseball Card Company started small in 1995 as a baseball card shop in Oceanside, California run by childhood friends Dave Edgington and Adam Goldberger. Both lifelong baseball card collectors, they decided to turn their passion into a business by opening a local store to buy, sell, and trade cards. Little did they know that their humble shop would grow into one of the largest and most respected companies in the sports card industry.

In the early days, Dave and Adam ran the store themselves, building up their inventory through purchases from customers and at card shows. Baseball cards were extremely popular in the 1990s during the height of the junk wax era, so there was no shortage of people looking to trade or sell their collections. By catering to collectors of all ages and budget levels, their shop became a popular local haunt. Within a few years, they had built a solid customer base and were doing a steady business buying and selling both common and high-end vintage cards.

As the Internet started gaining widespread adoption in the late 90s, Dave and Adam recognized the opportunity it presented for their company. In 1998, they launched DaveAndAdams.com, one of the pioneering online sports card retail sites. This allowed them to reach a much larger customer base and offer their inventory of thousands of individual cards to collectors around the world for the first time. The site was an immediate success and sales grew rapidly as more hobbyists transitioned online. By 2000, their Internet business had surpassed the store and they decided to focus solely on e-commerce going forward, closing their physical location.

Through the early 2000s, Dave and Adam’s continued expanding their online presence and catalog. A key part of their strategy was cultivating relationships with other collectors who wanted to sell portions of their collections. This helped fuel their inventory growth as they acquired new lots of cards on a daily basis. They also worked to digitize their catalog, making tens of thousands of items searchable on their website. This greatly improved the shopping experience for customers and increased sales conversions. By 2005, DaveAndAdams.com was one of the top destinations for anyone looking to buy or sell sports cards online.

Another factor that contributed greatly to their rise was their emphasis on customer service. From the beginning, Dave and Adam made it a priority to respond to every email and ship orders promptly. They guaranteed satisfaction on every purchase and strove to resolve any issues that arose. This earned them a sterling reputation in the hobby and helped turn many one-time customers into repeat buyers. Their attention to building trust and loyalty with collectors set them apart from competitors and was a key driver of their organic growth.

As their business flourished, Dave and Adam continued adding new product categories beyond just baseball cards. In the late 2000s, they expanded into other sports like football, basketball, hockey, and non-sports trading cards like Pokémon. This diversification allowed them to attract more customers and further cement their status as a one-stop shop. They also began offering consignment services, letting collectors sell portions of their higher-end collections through their site with Dave and Adam handling the transactions, photography, and shipping. This became a major revenue stream.

By 2010, Dave and Adam’s had grown into a true industry powerhouse. They were doing millions of dollars in annual sales and had over a million individual collectibles in their online inventory at any given time. Their staff had also grown to over 20 full-time employees to support the booming business. That year, they opened a new 10,000 square foot headquarters and warehouse in San Marcos, California to accommodate their expanding operations. This facility allowed them to better organize their growing stock and improve fulfillment speeds for customers.

Throughout the 2010s, Dave and Adam’s continued innovating and finding new ways to reach collectors. They launched mobile-friendly website updates, introduced live video breaks of unopened wax boxes, and started producing original sports card-themed podcasts and YouTube shows. This helped connect with younger generations of fans and collectors. They also doubled down on consignments, making themselves a go-to destination for selling complete vintage collections. By offering competitive payout rates and global marketing exposure, they facilitated millions of dollars in secondary market transactions annually.

Today, Dave and Adam’s Baseball Card Company has cemented its place as one of the most important and trusted companies in the industry. Over a quarter century after opening their first small shop, they have grown into a true multi-million dollar business with over 10 million cards and memorabilia items sold to date. Through a relentless focus on the collector experience, competitive pricing, and best-in-class service, Dave and Adam have built an empire that has enriched the hobby for generations of sports card fans. Their story serves as an inspiration for any small business owners who dare to dream big.