I hope Ludkins and Graded Gem still have business despite the PSA closure.
6 Likes
If they offered tiers other than bulk I’m sure they would
Glad to see PSA do this. Sure suspended grading for a bit is a bummer, but hopefully they can come back from this more equip for future orders.
eerily similar to last year’s boom start…
2 Likes
With it being so close to April 1st, I thought this headline was an April Fools joke.
For anyone dropping in on this thread come the first of the month, a PSA for PSA if you will, this is real.
1 Like
I do hope this helps out with the backlog. I do also agree that when they do reopen the tiers submission volume will be insane. They need to continue to hire and increase capacity during this hiatus. They may need to increase prices again as well. I think we all realize now that the $10-$20 change on value tier didn’t have much of an impact. People will still submit at $50 value
How much will this stoppage actually help long term, though?
As soon as they open back up we’re going to be right back at square one. If they cant handle the submission quantities right now, how is a stoppage going to help that when it’s going to be even worse when they open back up due to all the submissions people would be hanging on to?
To aid in processing through the backlog PSA should isolate every submission where every card value is declared at $1 and just torch that building. Costs them a buck a card to clear probably half the backlog and then they can spend that time grading at $50/card 6 months to a year sooner.
16 Likes
[br
Hopefully hire many more employees and expand to new locations, like they mentioned. 3 months is a lot of time, probably hire a fair amount of graders and clear up a lot of the back log. If theyre lucky add a new building or 2 in that time as well
How is this realistically feasible?
They will bring back the services, sure. But there will be a tidal wave of cards waiting to be graded by then and waiting times will just keep on increasing.
This seems more like a loop rather than a solution.
1 Like
That all sounds like a heavy lift for only 3 months tbh. I think they’re just gonna be all hands on deck, doing everything they can, but there’s only so much they can do to recruit/hire/train and expand their workspace in that amount of time. Their best bet would be to lure graders away from BGS or CGC, but I’m not sure anyone would switch companies to put themselves in this mess
This is significantly different to last year’s closure as that stopped graded cards going out onto the market, this closure only stops more raw cards going into PSAs warehouse.
If anything, graded cards going out onto the market may increase (if PSA show some competence) as they can reassign those staff who would usually be processing new deliveries to grading.
turns out yes, the vouchers expire with the membership, so +3 months to those too
I’m just happy they are catching up on backlogged stuff. My subs that arrived in June and logged in August are finally moving forward quickly since leaving stage 4. Hopefully this helps with turnaround times next year.
6 Likes
When did CGC started grading trading cards, like a year ago? Talk about perfect timing lol
Obviously the right choice for PSA, something had to change
1 Like
CGC has just had a terrific run. One good thing after another happening for them.
This is some crazy news, but I think it’s the right choice. Those 3 days more than 3 months??? I can’t even fathom. Really curious to see where this takes us. What a fun ride! Anyone want to start a grading company? Seems like now is the time!
They never said they’ll come back at the same price. Anything less than 2x would be lunacy IMO but if last year was any indicator then we can expect a $15/card special when they bring it back and a decade long backlog.
2 Likes
That’s a good point and the only “reasonable” workaround to be honest.
This will probably lead to more raw cards in the market as people will be less inclined to grade, also knowing other grading companies will pick up the market leading to even longer delays at bgs and cgc, especially with the lower end junk slabs. It may also lead to less demand from flippers which leads to less demand from scalpers? Just the wait to get returns may scare many away, especially not knowing what the prices for sub tiers will be when PSA returns in July. I’m very curious as how the market will react.