Upper Deck Sports Zone: Help us "Save Jay's" Sports Card and Memorabilia Shop.

This just in from Chris Carlin at Upper Deck Headquarters. There is a shop in Ashland,WI. that needs our help as collectors to "Save Jay's" Sports Cards and Memorabilia Store. The store is located at 212 B West Main St. in Ashland,WI. You can get in touch with Jay at : jayssportscardsllc@gmail.com to see how YOU can help or just stop by the store and purchase some product to help him keep his store open.
From Chris Carlin:
We love to spotlight our Certified Diamond Dealer Partners and some reasons why you need to visit their stores. If you haven't been to a card store lately and are in the Wisconsin Area, make sure you visit our Featured Retailer.

Jays Sports Cards
212 B West main St.
AShland,WI.
(715) 292-6279
Email: jayssportscardsllc@gmail.com
Click HERE to "LIKE" Jays Sports Cards on Facebook.
Store Hours : Tuesday-Wednesday 10AM - 7PM, Thursday - Friday 10AM-9PM, Saturday 9AM-6PM and closed Sunday & Monday.

Jay's Sports and Memorabilia is located in the basement of this retail address so he has to work hard for people to find his business.

We have been publishing a series of blog post's on "How to open a Trading Card Shop" as of late and as I shared those with our fan base, I saw a portion of a comment that immediately grabbed my attention:

" Been open for one year and six months and will be closing in thirty days. I did everything those guys talked about and it sill did not work."

Now my main job ( Chris Carlin at Upper Deck ), is helping our hobby shops be successful and a piece of that would also be to keep them in business. We reached out to the shop owner who posted those remarks and found out more about what was going on with him. I was immediately impressed by his passion. He had worked hard to get the shop opened by supporting his business with revenue from his former main business. Jason ( Jay ),, removes BATS from businesses and residences without harming the little critters. His Business "BATS BY DAY" has done well for him, but I immediately sympathized with his plight. Wouldn't rather be dealing with sports cards then something like this?

YIKES! I'd rather much be talking about trading cards then shooing this guy& his family from an attic!

Now Jay has opened his shop in a small town which has certainly been affected by the adverse economy so he has been having a tough time making this business work. Things are at the point where he needs the help from the community to get behind his business and help or he may have to close his doors. Here at Upper Deck we have committed to helping Jay by helping to organize a "Save Jay's" Event on Saturday March 24, 2012 from 5PM-7PM. Stop by for your opportunity to take home some GREAT Giveaway Items including signed memorabilia and autographed cards! In the mean time here is Jay's Story:

"My name is Jason but most people call me "Jay". I own Jay's Sports Cards and Memorabilia in Ashland, Wisconsin and we have been opened since November 2010. I started collecting cards at the age of four when my Uncle gifted me a small collection. They were probably all commons, but I loved them anyway. I got my first pack of cards in 1988 and pulled a Tom Glavine Rookie Card and he has been my favorite player ever since.

" At the age of 10 I walked into a card shop for the first time in Washington and knew that this is what I wanted to do. I looked around the shop and there were cards upon cards with $100 price tags on them, I could have stayed there for hours on end. I had brought in my most valuable cards to see if I could sell them, to my dismay the most valuable card I had was worth one dollar, but to a 10 year old this is a lot of dough.

"The card shop owner told me they were looking for higher dollar items and to bring them in if I got them. It took me a little more then a year and I hit a FRANK THOMAS Triple Crown insert out of an Upper Deck Product valued at $15.00. I sold it for $7.00 and at that moment I was hooked!

" I opened the shop to fulfill a lifelong dream and because there are no card shops in Ashland with the last one closing in 2001. Another reason I opened the shop is because there really isn't much for kids to do in Ashland. I wanted to provide a safe and fun place for kids to go. I remember my experiences in card shops as I was a young boy and I want to be able to provide that to other kids. Unlike most businesses I promote loitering. Come down to Jay's, talk about sports and check out some cards you hope to add to your collection one day.

" I love the hobby and I am very passionate about sports: mainly baseball and football. I grew up a baseball player and like any kid I wanted to be like Mickey Mantle or Ken Griffey Jr. I would pretend to be in the bottom of the ninth with bases loaded, two outs, a full count, down by three runs, in the fianl game of the World Series. I frequently hit a home-run in those circumstances and the crowd went wild, AHHHH! Today I'm not looking to hit a home run with my shop,I'd be happy to hit a series of singles to keep the business going.

" At Jay's Sports Cards and Memorabilia , we do more then just sell cards. I want to help new collectors understand the hobby and how to be happy with their collection. I want to teach kids how to take care of their cards because I know I didn't when I was younger. If someone new comes down to the shop and I don't have what they're looking for I will go and find it for them.

"But those who do love cards, we have a great assortment of new and vintage stock with boxes,packs and single. I am also happy to trade with customers as well. Another reason why folks should come to Jay'sis because we hit BIG CARDS in here ALL the time! Since opening we have hit OVER 20 one-of-one cards and around SEVEN BRYCE HARPER AUTOGRAPHS! I'm not saying every box will yield huge hits, but it seems we get some great here in Ashland. In my 26 years of collecting I have never seen this many BIG Hits pulled until I opened the shop.

" Like most retail businesses in small markets, we have struggled as of late and I appreciate Upper Deck is willing to help out with a "Save Jay's" Event. This is my dream and it means a lot to my customers in the area that we stay open. I'm not in this for the money, I love what I do and I want to share this hobby with people in our community. I don't want my dream to end and I appreciate everyone's help with that. So please stop by today and join me in this wonderful dream!'

If you are near the Ashland, Wisconsin area, please make sure to visit Jay's this month in particular and don't miss the "Save Jay's" Event on Saturday March 24, 2012 from 5PM - 7PM!!! We prefer to see Jay like this!

And what can you expect to score if you attend the "Save Jay's" Event? Well this is just a portion of the items we are helping jay out with! DON'T miss out!