Jacob Ross describes his shop, Ross Cards and Coffee, as a sports card memorabilia and coffee lounge. So, what does coffee have to do with collecting sports memorabilia? “Since I didn’t want to just do cards,” says Ross, “I decided to add the elements of coffee and teas, mostly because I enjoy the process of perfecting pour-over coffee.”
Ross, who grew up in the small island town of Friday Harbor, Washington near Vancouver, Canada, became interested in collecting cards of sports figures at about age 9.
“There was a little card shop on the island where my brothers and I would spend a lot of our allowance money.” This led to his interest in sports, mostly baseball, which he played in high school and college.
In his shop, Jacob says he has cards from a number of major sports: baseball, basketball, football and soccer (more to follow). “I also have Pokemon and Magic cards, which are other trading games,” he says. “There’s also been a recent budding interest in women’s sports cards, some of which include soccer, gymnastics, and basketball.”
His cards run the gamut from expensive to ones costing only a dollar for kids interested in collecting their favorite sports figure.
“A lot of my customers are fathers and sons, as well as mothers and sons. There are also a number of men around my age who have decided to get back into the hobby they once pursued as children.”
For 20 years after college, Jacob didn’t think much about his sports card collection while he pursued a career in sales. Then a couple of years before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Ross went home and began looking through his collection and discovered he had some valuable cards.
This was the same for many during COVID-19 who were once enthusiasts.
“Trapped at home, they became bored, which was why many began searching through their old collections,” Jacob says. “Like me, some discovered valuable cards.”
In the 1980s and ’90s, collecting sports cards was mostly a hobby. Since then, it has become a more sophisticated endeavor.
Now, there are grading companies that will assign value to your collection. “You can come into my shop,” says Jacob, “and we’ll help you with a grade for your cards. A company we work with will prep your collection then send it to one of the grading outfits, such as PSA or Beckett.”
Even if you can’t visit his shop in person, you can go on Instagram on Wednesday evenings, starting at 7 p.m., and watch a live-stream of Ross displaying his inventory, during which you can buy items he will open for you.
In October, Jacob is planning his first trade night, inviting collectors to his shop to trade and/or buy from him and one another.
Ross Cards & Coffee
267 North El Camino Real, Ste. G
Encinitas, CA 92024
760 704 8164
Instagram:
@ross_cards_coffee
Email:
[email protected]
Hours:
Mon-Fri, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Sat and Sun 10 a.m – 5 p.m.
