Collecting comic books will be high-tech. And the San Diego company is leading the way.
Upper Deck, a sports trading card company based in Carlsbad, took advantage of the Comic-Con media spotlight to announce an innovative new way for fans to add to their collections without having to free up more space in their homes.
The company is launching Collect Forever, an online buying and collecting hub that will initially focus on Marvel and DC comics, trading cards, and collectibles.
Fans will be able to go to collectforever.com and preorder comics and items which will then be sealed and stored in the Upper Deck storage facility. Fans can store them in storage, ship them home, or trade them online with other fans.
“This will change the way people collect collectibles forever,” said Upper Deck President Jason Masherah.
He added: “If they want to shop for underwear at two in the morning, we want them to buy comic books, figurines and collectibles at two in the morning.”
The launch of Collect Forever comes during a period of pandemic-induced growth in the collectibles industry over the past two years as more people feel at home and with more time to engage in hobbies. Having comic books and collectibles that can be viewed online and stored securely will make it easier to exchange comic books with fans around the world.
“This is the opposite of NFT, said Masherah. “Everything is physical.”
Upper Deck will store purchases at facilities in Pittsburgh and Seattle. There are currently no plans to open a storage facility in San Diego, said Ben Swiderski, director of e-commerce at Upper Deck.
Collect Forever launches Thursday, the first full day of Comic-Con with an exclusive Michael Jordan Funco Pop figurine that retails for $40.
“Interests are very, very high,” said Swiderski.
