Topps
In 1938, four brothers named Abram, Ira, Philip, and Joseph Shorin established a company that would eventually become the world's leading trading card manufacturer. They launched Topps as a chewing gum business, leveraging existing distribution channels from their family's American Leaf company. The name Topps was chosen to signal dominance in their field. Their first major success came with Bazooka bubble gum, which included small comics on the wrapper starting in 1950. This strategy proved so effective that they began packaging cards featuring Western character Hopalong Cassidy alongside the gum. By 1951, baseball cards had emerged as the company's primary product line, shifting focus away from pure confectionery.
The autumn of 1951 marked a turning point when Sy Berger designed the 1952 Topps baseball card set while sitting at his kitchen table on Alabama Avenue in Brooklyn. At age 28, this World War II veteran created a format that combined player photos, names, team logos, and biographical data on one side with statistics and career details on the other. Berger worked for Topps for fifty years between 1947 and 1997, serving as both employee and consultant. He personally negotiated player contracts annually, paying athletes in merchandise like refrigerators and carpeting rather than cash. In 1964, Shorin sent Berger to London where he successfully secured Beatles trading card rights by speaking Yiddish directly to manager Brian Epstein without an appointment. The most famous example of his work remains the 1952 Mickey Mantle card, which sold for $12.6 million on the 28th of August 2022.
Bowman Gum dominated the early baseball card market until Topps entered competition in 1951 by selling cards with caramel candy instead of gum to avoid Bowman's exclusive contract language. Bowman sued Topps in federal court over trademark infringement and unfair competition, but the court rejected Bowman's claim to own the word "baseball" in connection with gum sales. By 1956, Topps had purchased Bowman outright, leaving it as the sole producer of baseball cards for the next quarter-century. Fleer challenged this monopoly in 1959 by signing Ted Williams to an exclusive contract, but Topps maintained control through aggressive player agreements. A Federal Trade Commission hearing examiner ruled against Topps in 1965 regarding unfair competition practices, though the commission later reversed that decision. Fleer ultimately sold its remaining player contracts to Topps for $395,000 in 1966, cementing Topps' effective monopoly. The monopoly ended only after a 1980 lawsuit decided by Judge Clarence Charles Newcomer allowed Fleer and Donruss to enter the market again in 1981.
Topps began creating digital sports cards in 2012 with the launch of the Topps Bunt mobile app for baseball fans. This was followed by apps for soccer (Kick) in August 2014, football (Huddle) in April 2016, and hockey (Skate) in 2017. The company expanded into non-sports digital collectibles with Star Wars Card Trader in March 2015 and Walking Dead trading card app in May 2016. In spring 2019, they released Marvel and Disney trading card apps. A significant technological shift occurred in March 2020 when Topps announced collaboration with WAX.io to make Garbage Pail Kids cards tradable on blockchain technology. Plans to go public via merger with Mudrick Capital Acquisition Corporation II were announced in April 2021, valuing Topps at $1.3 billion. However, Mudrick backed out within six months. Fanatics acquired exclusive MLB licensing rights in August 2021 and purchased Topps itself for US$500 million in January 2022.
Topps Europe Ltd. operates from Milton Keynes, UK, launching products across Spain, France, Germany, Norway, and Italy. The division coordinates releases throughout international markets including the Far East, Australia, and South Africa. In 1994, Merlin Publishing secured the Premier League license for official sticker collections in the UK, creating immediate demand that exceeded expectations. Topps completed its takeover of Merlin Publishing in 1995, renaming it Topps Europe Limited while retaining the Merlin brand until 2008 due to consumer recognition. Match Attax became the biggest selling boys' collectible in the UK three consecutive years, with an estimated 1.5 million children collecting it domestically alone. Bundesliga Match Attax launched in January 2009 and now reaches over 40,000 stockists across Germany. As of February 2016, Topps Match Attax occupied two of the top three spots on the stickerpoints.com most popular soccer collection list. In January 2023, they released physical and digital cards for the 24 Hours of Le Mans Motorsport event featuring artwork from race posters dating back to 1923.
Topps shifted creative focus toward non-sports themes after baseball cards dominated their revenue stream. Space Race inspired a set of Space Cards in 1958, followed by Beatles trading cards and John F. Kennedy biographical sets. Future screenwriter Gary Gerani joined the company in 1972 as editor/writer for movie and television tie-in products including numerous Star Wars card series. Art Spiegelman served as main staff cartoonist for over twenty years starting as a teenager. The company produced Mars Attacks cards in 1962 sketched by Wally Wood and Norman Saunders, later inspiring a Tim Burton film. Wacky Packages parodying household consumer products and Garbage Pail Kids mocking Cabbage Patch dolls became cultural phenomena. Between 1973 and 1974, Wacky Packages stickers outsold Topps baseball cards for the first time since the gum-only era. Pokémon cards achieved similar sales dominance starting in 1999. Topps Comics division published titles like The X-Files (longest-running bestseller), Lone Ranger, Xena: Warrior Princess, and Mars Attacks before exiting the comics business in 1998 due to stagnating sales.
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Common questions
When did Topps start as a company and who founded it?
Four brothers named Abram, Ira, Philip, and Joseph Shorin established the company in 1938. They launched Topps initially as a chewing gum business leveraging distribution channels from their family's American Leaf company.
Who designed the famous 1952 Topps baseball card set and when was it created?
Sy Berger designed the 1952 Topps baseball card set while sitting at his kitchen table on Alabama Avenue in Brooklyn during the autumn of 1951. He worked for Topps for fifty years between 1947 and 1997 serving as both employee and consultant.
How much did the most valuable 1952 Mickey Mantle card sell for and when?
The most famous example of Sy Berger work remains the 1952 Mickey Mantle card which sold for $12.6 million on the 28th of August 2022. This sale represents the highest value achieved by this specific trading card to date.
When did Topps acquire Bowman Gum and what legal outcome followed?
Topps had purchased Bowman outright by 1956 leaving it as the sole producer of baseball cards for the next quarter-century. A Federal Trade Commission hearing examiner ruled against Topps in 1965 regarding unfair competition practices though the commission later reversed that decision.
Who acquired Topps and for how much money in January 2022?
Fanatics purchased Topps itself for US$500 million in January 2022 after acquiring exclusive MLB licensing rights in August 2021. Plans to go public via merger with Mudrick Capital Acquisition Corporation II were announced in April 2021 valuing Topps at $1.3 billion before Mudrick backed out within six months.