WESTGATE CARD SHOW AND SHOP GRAND OPENING

When Cole McAuliff enrolled at ASU, he wanted to pursue a degree in sports media business because he had an affinity for the movie “Moneyball” and statistics.
He also had another lifelong passion: collecting sports trading cards.
He grew up collecting cards, but mainly focused on basketball and baseball.
He was searching for a card show to attend, but nothing was close enough to Tempe. McAuliff then decided to host his own card show, which spawned Collectibles on College.
His first show was on College Avenue in 2018 and since then he started the Arizona State Card Show. McAuliff said it still feels surreal to be working in a business that he pursued as a hobby growing up.
“It’s time-consuming (and) a little bit in the growing phase right now, but I do have to check myself every once in a while and appreciate what I’m doing,” McAuliffe said.
Collectibles on College hosts a monthly card show in Tempe, the Arizona State Card Show, live auctions and more.
McAuliff’s monthly card shows have seen significant growth since the launch in 2018.
“We used to be probably 20 or 30 tables and now we’re up to 65 (or) 75 tables,” McAuliff said.
McAuliff recently hosted his first show in the West Valley, the Westgate Card Show.
The event was held to celebrate the opening of Westgate Cards, a card shop located at in Peoria.
It featured 45 vendors who sold sports cards and cards from trading card games like Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokémon, Magic and more.
McAuliff said the event was beneficial for his business, Westgate Card Shop, vendors and West Valley trading card enthusiasts.
“For me, it was really just a great, mutually beneficial event,” McAuliff said. “I was able to get to the west side for the first time, which is on complete opposite sides of where our monthly show is and our big state shows in Phoenix…We probably get customers from our state show who are from the west side that appreciate us being in their backyard.”
McAuliff said expansion plans are in the works. He is putting together a 100-table card show in Scottsdale on Feb. 8.
He said he wanted to host a show there due to the lack of cards shows in Scottsdale.
“There just hasn’t been a show in Scottsdale,” McAullif said. “It’s pretty much going to be twice the size of a monthly and it’ll be good just to have a show on a different side of town again, similar to Peoria.”
McAuliff said Collectibles on College will host a Spring Training show and live auction in March.
While McAuliff doesn’t want to oversaturate the market for card shows, he thinks Collectibles on College’s card shows are a high-quality experience.
“I don’t want to overdo or oversaturate the market because right now there are a lot of card shows, but at the same time, we run good card shows,” McAuliff said. “So if there’s an opportunity for us to help out a business or to put on a good event in an area that’s needed…that’s kind of the goal.”
McAuliff regularly brings out prominent athletes to the show for autograph signings. Players like former D-backs utility player Evan Longoria, D-backs outfielder Alek Thomas, Suns rookie Oso Ighodaro, and ASU running back Cam Skattebo have signed autographs.
Some of the athletes collect themselves, so McAuliff got the idea to film undercover shopping sprees for the company’s YouTube channel.
McAuliff is always looking for ways to improve the shows’ entertainment value.
“My biggest thing is just making the show better,” he said. “Adding in show experiences if we can, providing value for both viewers and customers, and I think we’ve done a good job at that.”
The trading card business has become a popular hobby since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
With so many new enthusiasts, McAuliff wants to provide a space for them to learn and meet like-minded hobbyists.
He encouraged people to come to a show and experience it for themselves.
“Becoming a beginner is just stepping into the door the first time and just accepting that, ‘Hey, I’m here to have fun. I’m here to learn. I’m here to spend some money and buy sports cards,’” McAuliff said. “And, honestly, by the end of it, you’ll probably learn…probably have a bunch of connections (and) new friends, whether that’s in the sports card hobby or you guys go out and hang out afterward. You just meet a lot of like-minded people at an event like this.”