How to Buy Autographed Sports Memorabilia

Collecting autographed sports memorabilia is fast becoming an in hobby, which is both a blessing and a boon to the serious collector. On the one hand, the growing demand for sports collectibles has greatly increased the supply of legitimate pieces on the market. On the other, it has also increased the number of fraudulent sports memorabilia, scams and traps for the collector. If you’re just beginning to collect sports autographs, these tips can help you avoid the traps and enjoy your collection and collecting.

Focus on a Niche Market

The best and most satisfying collections of sports collectibles are those that have a specific focus. If your focus is basketball memorabilia or baseball memorabilia, for example, you might narrow your collection to sports collectibles from one particular team, or only from championship teams, or to autographed game jerseys from one team. In addition to giving you a more focused – and thus, more valuable – collection, it will allow you to build your knowledge as you build your collection. That way, when you’re ready to move on to buying more expensive pieces, you’ll know the market well enough to spot improbable “deals” and have the contacts to help you track down specific pieces that you want.

Meet People in the Sports Memorabilia World

The more you know about the people who collect and deal in autographed sports memorabilia, the more equipped you’ll be to find and evaluate sport memorabilia. If you can, attend some local memorabilia auctions where you can meet people in the industry as well as other collectors. Those contacts – even if they specialize in movie memorabilia – can be valuable down the line as you start looking for pieces to fill out your collection. Don’t overlook the Internet as a source of knowledge, either. A sports memorabilia discussion group is a great place to meet experienced collectors who can help you out with information and advice, point you to reputable dealers and steer you away from those whose reputation is shady.

Protect Yourself from Frauds

According to one study, only about 20 percent of Lou Gehrig memorabilia was genuine. That’s a scary, staggering number for a beginning collector. But it’s not hard to make sure that you only purchase genuine autographed sports memorabilia. It just takes some knowledge and a good eye.

For example, stay on top of the signing habits of particular athletes that whose sports autographs you want to collect. Most of the top athletes have contract agreements with companies that sell memorabilia and only distribute through specific houses. Knowing about those contracts can save you from making expensive mistakes. Likewise, if you know how much various players charge for their signature, you’ll be able to eliminate a lot of the “great deals” you might find online at places like eBay.

Buy from Reputable Dealers

When you first start out, make it a practice to only buy autographed sports memorabilia from legitimate, reputable dealers with a good reputation in the industry. Dealers with a name have no reason to try to pass off fake autographs, and they’re very careful about the pieces they sell. They have a lot invested in maintaining their reputations for dealing honestly in authentic sports collectibles & memorabilia.

Welcome to the world of collecting autographed sports memorabilia. Get to know your merchandise and your favorite players, teams and items and you’ll quickly build a worthy collection of your own.