What do you call a non-fungible token (NFT) that suddenly becomes … fungible?
Well, the world is about to find out as characters from Gary Vaynerchuk’s NFT Project, VeeFriends make the jump from digital assets to physical trading cards as part of the launch of zerocool, a new trading card brand from Fanatics Collectibles. Think of it as a “backward NFT” play.
Known as a major player in the world of sports-related fandoms, Fanatics Inc. bought The Topps Co. earlier this year gaining instant access to a trading card business in the process. Through its Fanatics Collectibles subsidiary, zerocool will serve as what the company is calling “the first trading card brand for the world’s most important people, IP, and brands across pop culture, art, and entertainment.”
Now, that could be considered a bold statement as nonsport trading cards — including those based on entertainment franchises — have been around for decades.
Zerocool says that its premium products will be offered through a direct-to-consumer platform using a Blind Dutch Auction model “that utilizes market-based pricing to ensure fair and transparent access to product for all collectors.”
Over the past few years, trading cards have become hotter — and more valuable — than ever, and Fanatics says that it’s consciously seeking to put collectibles on the market that will become truly valuable and accessible using a three-pronged approach to its business principles:
- Valuable Product: zerocool believes in creating trading cards that have long-term value and will err on the side of valuable product over short-term profits.
- Equitable Distribution: zerocool believes in providing fair access to trading cards through a holistic distribution strategy, transparency of process and, whenever possible, transparency of data including numbers from print runs.
- Market-Based…
