Topps is one of the most iconic trading card brands in the world, known especially for its decades-long dominance in the baseball card industry. Founded in 1938 and headquartered in New York City, the Topps Company manufactures, markets and distributes trading cards, confections, and various other entertainment products. Its stock trades on the public markets under the ticker symbol TOPP.
Topps began as the Brooklyn-based American Leaf Tobacco Company, founded by brothers Israel and Lazarus “Larry” Shorin as a chewing gum manufacturer. In 1938, they decided to include a series of lithographed baseball card images inside their chewing gum packs, marking the birth of modern sports and entertainment trading cards. This innovative marketing strategy proved wildly successful, and Topps gained the exclusive rights to produce MLB player cards starting in 1948.
For over half a century, Topps was the undisputed king of the baseball card industry, holding the MLB license without competition for decades. Its iconic designs like the “action pose” card became instantly recognizable worldwide. Topps expanded into other sports and pop culture genres as well, including non-sports trading cards depicting movies, television shows, music artists and more. Baseball remained the company’s biggest driver and most iconic product line by far.
In the 1990s, competition to Topps began to emerge. Fleer and Skybox obtained MLB licenses to produce rival sets, chipping away at Topps’ market share. Upper Deck debuted ultra-premium cards that captured collector attention. During this time, the collectibles bubble also burst, sending the entire trading card industry into a downturn. Topps struggled with declining sales and profits. Attempts to branch into new businesses like candy and toys also failed to gain traction.
As it faced stiffer competition, Topps underwent a strategic reevaluation. In 2000, former Disney executive Michael Eisner acquired the privately-held Topps in a leveraged buyout for $385 million. Eisner aimed to revive Topps by emphasizing brands, innovation and tapping into growing collector demand for vintage material. New products like limited autographed memorabilia cards caught fire. Topps also acquired rival operations like Bazooka Joe, Cracker Jack and the sports division of Fleer.
After over a decade of ownership, the Eisner private equity group decided to take Topps public again. In October 2021, Topps merged with Mudrick Capital Acquisition Corporation II, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), in a deal valued at $1.3 billion. This brought Topps to the Nasdaq stock exchange under the new ticker symbol TOPP. The move provided Topps with growth capital as it aimed to evolve its digital offerings and expand internationally.
Since going public, Topps stock has seen mixed performance in its first year of trading. Shares started strong in the immediate aftermath of the SPAC merger but the initial enthusiasm soon faded. TOPP sank amid broader market weakness and uncertainty around Topps’ plans for ramping up new revenue streams. As of spring 2022, Topps shares trade around $8, below the initial pricing of $10 following the SPAC deal.
Looking ahead, Topps faces challenges balancing its legacy physical card business with developing compelling digital offerings. Digital functionality and the rise of NFTs have injected new excitement into the collectibles space, but monetizing this remains a work in progress for Topps. There is also uncertainty around the future of print media and memorabilia amid economic headwinds. The Topps brand remains one of the most iconic in the industry due to its deep history and relationships in sports and entertainment. If the company can successfully transition more of its business online while remaining the market leader in traditional cards, the long-term outlook for TOPP stock may brighten over coming years.
In summary, TOPP is the public ticker symbol for the legacy Topps Company, best known as the creator and long-dominant force in the baseball card industry. After over 80 years of success but also volatility, Topps went public via SPAC in 2021 to fund its evolution into digital platforms. The stock currently trades modestly below its IPO price as Topps works to prove out new revenue streams. Though it faces challenges balancing print and digital, Topps remains one of the most storied brands in collectibles due to its rich history at the root of modern sports cards.
