Game Used, Issued, Etc.

[Rmmm912]

On the subject of Game Issued vs. Game Used, I feel compelled to post as we do get caught inadvertently in the crosshairs when one of our items gets misrepresented.

We take this breach of trust very seriously, as it affects every honest collector and reseller in the industry—and if the industry is tainted, we all are to some degree. That being said, in instances where individuals have been clearly identified as engaging in this type of activity, we reserve and enforce the right not to sell Game Issued items to these entities--and have "blacklisted" parties known to buy with intent to defraud (such as buying game issueds and reselling as game used). We cannot monitor every item as it makes it's way through the marketplace, but eventually, patterns do tend to emerge.

In addition, we have recently begun the practice of marking Game Issued jerseys (in a place that is not visible from the outside), to further help identify these items as Game Issued in the secondary marketplace.

If you are presented with an opportunity to buy a Game Used item that likely originated here at Steiner Sports—especially a high end item, feel free to contact us and we can tell you if similar items have been sold as Game Issued. That doesn't mean we can validate it one way or the other--you still need to be careful, as this doesn’t necessarily offer conclusive evidence, but at least you will have additional information with which to base your decision. Naturally, we cannot divulge confidential customer details, but we can probably help in instances where we see patterns of dishonest activity.

Lastly, even with these precautions taken, there are no guarantees; markings can be removed, LOAs can be forged, people can buy under assumed names, and there will always be instances in which fraud succeeds. We will continue to monitor this and hopefully learn and adjust to these challenges in the marketplace.

Bob Malandro
Yankees-Steiner Collectbles/Mets-Steiner Collectibles

[allstarsplus]

Bob - I applaud you and your company for many of your efforts. You personally truly are a breath of fresh air in this game used arena.

I have catalogued old Steiner Yankee inventory lists to do the same thing as I did to see the vast #'s of the blank jerseys as well as the specific player game issued. By you "Blacklisting" some buyers, this will help.

I think that in the future if Steiner can put a permanent stamp on the blanks and game issued, then hopefully, hopefully, hopefully, we can put this mostly to rest. Going to #'d matching holograms is a great tool also. It still won't stop people buying the commons and changing the jersey numbers which as we all know we can't stop all the frauds out there.

Andrew

[JETEFAN]

As far as Yankees items, Steiner has done it's damage. Too much "issued" out there already. Too little too late. It's nice to see Bob on the site though!!!

George

[JETEFAN]

As far as Yankees items, Steiner has done it's damage. Too much "issued" out there already. Too little too late. It's nice to see Bob on the site though!!!

George

As far as contacting Steiner with high end help to "see if a similar "game issued" has been sold" are you kidding!, I think the only thing "issued" that I haven't seen yet is a pair of the Bosses boxers!!! Everthing and everbody else...been there done that!!

[Eric]

To Bob and those at Yankees Steiner

This is a monumental step.

I offer my thanks to you in doing your part to keep the hobby clean. I urge others including the NFL to follow the example set by Yankees Steiner.

Recently, I have had email conversations with NFL Auctions about this exact topic.

After showing some recent examples of people manipulating their items, I asked,

"Is there something you can do to prevent these people from defrauding the public using your items?"
"Are the game issued jerseys marked in any way so they can't be sold as something they're not?"
One person responded basically, Nothing we can do. It's up to the buyer to do his homework.

I followed up with someone else who said they were in the middle of working on the Super Bowl auction and once that was over, this topic would be addressed with their legal department.

It is my hope that NFL Auctions follows up on this.

But back to the topic at hand. A gold star for Bob and Yankees Steiner. This is the right thing to do. Thanks for informing us.

Eric

[Eric]

As far as Yankees items, Steiner has done it's damage. Too much "issued" out there already. Too little too late. It's nice to see Bob on the site though!!!

George

George-

Not sure it's fair to say too little too late.

They are allowed to sell game issued items. How has the damage been done exactly? If you see a game used yankees item with a steiner letter, you know what it is. If you see the same item in an auction listed as game used with a lampson letter, which are you going to buy?

I don't understand how you can be critical of them for taking a step of banning people who buy game issued- thus costing steiner sales.

Eric

[PK]

In addition, we have recently begun the practice of marking Game Issued jerseys (in a place that is not visible from the outside), to further help identify these items as Game Issued in the secondary marketplace.

Bob Malandro
Yankees-Steiner Collectbles/Mets-Steiner Collectibles

Bob, thanks for the post and glad to see you here. Can I ask that you share what is exactly put in the Game Issued jerseys so collectors know what and where to look for it?

Thanks

[suave1477]

I think I understand what George is saying I am not saying either him or Bob is right I am just confirming a feeling please George correct me if I am wrong in what I am saying,


From what it seems for every players used Jersey there happens to be about 3 or 4 issued Jerseys for that same player (FROM WHAT IT SEEMS) not to mention the blank Game Issueds which all SEEMS there is no end too.

Now I do understand it is a business and it is available "so why not sell it right?" thats what your there for to make profit and I agree.

BUT....

Within this hobby when something can be duplicated so easily to the untrained eye. You also (Steiner and any other dealers) have to take part in the responsiblity what is let out into the open market.

(I AM GONNA CATCH FLACK FOR THIS BUT HEAR ME OUT)

Maybe if you have - example 3 Game Issueds of one player to only sell 1 or 2 of them make it a little bit harder for frauders to doctor up more Jerseys. Now your probably saying thats crazy why would we stop from seling items as we would lose profit, not nessecarily because by doing that I beleive would give unbelievable strong confidence to the consumer that he would be getting the real item from only Steiner as they are so air tight to the concerns of the collector not just business and I think it would cause more buyers to rely on getting the real thing only from steiner which in turn would boost sales even more. This becomes a MORAL issue to Steiner!!!

So what it boils down too is a Moral Issue vs. Business Issue

I think if Steiner stood behind the Moral Issue, the Business Issue will take care of itself!!!

JUST MY 2 CENTS!!!

[indyred]

It's a great idea. With all the technology out there today, I just wish more teams and leagues did stuff to protect there game used stuff. I really like how Meigray does things. I would love to see more items with a serial # tag, with matching paperwork.

[Rmmm912]

Bob, thanks for the post and glad to see you here. Can I ask that you share what is exactly put in the Game Issued jerseys so collectors know what and where to look for it?

Thanks

We are marking the jerseys on the inside (armpit area) with a blue or black "dot"; we are also considering marking the game used jerseys with an invisible ink. I know, not very high tech, but for the time being, its an improvement.

In response to the business/moral issue...I respect your opinion, but please also understand that most people look to buy game issued jerseys for legitimate reasons--whether that is because they want to wear them, or because they are economically priced (compared to the used jerseys)...in many instances, I have sold Yanks & Mets issueds for $100 or even less--lower than the price of a Majestic off the rack in a retail store, so taking them out of circulation is not just a business issue (or a moral one), in my opinion--because it also enables the average person to own a cool item that belonged to a player on their favorite team.