• Much nicer printed display boxes (I didn't have the budget for display boxes in the first set).
  
• Better collation across boxes and cases. Two guaranteed complete sets per case.
  
• State quarter relic cards. Each senator will have a number of thick cards made with their state quarter embedded in it.
  
• Sequentially numbered cards out of 10.
  
• Rare refractor versions of each card.
  
• Autograph cards (assuming I can get them...this is the toughest part so far).
  
• A parallel set featuring buildings and rooms related to congress.
  
• A Kickstarter backer-only card number #0/535.
  
• One "hit" (special card) in every five packs.
  

quote:

Originally posted by webjon:
Entertainment cards definitely seem to be an undeserved market.

quote:

Originally posted by Raj:

quote:

Originally posted by webjon:
Entertainment cards definitely seem to be an undeserved market.

I hope you meant underserved instead if undeserved.

quote:

Originally posted by EricFC:

Autograph cards (assuming I can get them...this is the toughest part so far).

quote:

Originally posted by webjon:
I also sincerely appreciate that you are working to get the word out on various forums. I'm always surprised at the number of small manufacturers who really don't attempt to start or participate in discussions on their products at all.

quote:

Originally posted by Bill Mullins:

Congressmen have Autopen machines. Try and make sure that you get real signatures instead of these machine-made ones.

quote:

Originally posted by EricFC:
Thank you! The next set will be the 2021 U.S. Congress set. I'm also working with a few companies on obtaining permission to use images for other types of sets. A few that I'm really hoping to produce are North American Birds, U.S. States, and U.S. Cities.

I feel the non-sports market has been under-served, and I'm hoping to help turn that around a bit.

quote:

Originally posted by catskilleagle:
First of all, congratulations on selling out on your first set and one devoted to Congress. That doesn't sound like a subject that would be a fast seller. There was a set in 1993 like that but I think those cards were given away so you deserve praise for making the idea work as a product and one that sold out within a month.

It will be interesting to see how your future projects develop. Doing a set on North American birds or U.S. Cities would be something of a fresh idea among the constant flow of superhero/Star Wars movie sets we've been getting for years. Nature and history cards have been popular in the past and I think there is a hunger in the card collecting world for old school sets that are neither autograph nor sketch-driven.

A set about birds can be colorful and educational. The chase sets could cover endangered species or extinct species of the 20th century or you could go into the truly prehistoric past and feature extinct birds of the La Brea Tar Pits and other odd birds of North American fossil deposits. Those could show glow-in-the-dark skeletons. A glow-in-the-dark owl subset might be cool. You'd want the set to have informative text on the backs to attract both amateur bird watchers and ornithologists as well as card collectors looking for something different. I guess you could include sketches for a bird set but you'd want to find talented wildlife artists for that.

In any case I wish you good luck.

Jess

quote:

Originally posted by webjon:
It will be very interesting to see how this plays out as your products seem to be content based where most products sell based on the hits. I definitely wish you luck, and you are obviously doing well with your first set. . .

If someone told me you'd be able to sell out a $100 a box product with half a base set in a box and the only hit being a serial numbered base card I wouldn't have believed them. Clearly you are on to something here. . .

I'm curious to who your buyers have been -- are they political collectors or card collectors? If card collectors are they entertainment card collectors, sports card collectors or vintage card collectors?

Good luck!

quote:

Originally posted by EricFC:
Yeah, I've been warned about that. To be honest, I'd rather have signatures done by auto-pen then no signatures at all, but at the same time I don't want people to feel ripped off. I have a person on the inside in D.C. (a family member of a congressman) and I've asked her to get a selfie with as many possible members of congress as possible to help prove authenticity.

quote:

Originally posted by Raven:

Word of advice, you don't EVER want to accept an autopen for a signature. It is a facsimile. Although it may have the approval of the signer, it is not handsigned and as such, is just an exact copy of no worth at all to an autograph collector or an autograph card collector.

You must disclose that it is autopenned and you can't call it autographed, as it's a mechanical copy added on to the card surface. A facsimile is generally produced in the card and is part of the card. Yet it all amounts to the same thing, an exact replica that is in no way an authentic signature.

If you can't get them to really sign, I would suggest that you leave it alone and just do numbered 1/1s. An autopen is not an alternative to anything. Lots of luck with your products.