INSIDE UPPER DECK

This week we’re joined by Paul Zickler, Director of SportsBrand at Upper Deck, for a rare look behind the curtain at how one of the hobby’s biggest manufacturers thinks about the cards we collect.

Having seen the trading-card business from the rights-holder, player, and manufacturer sides, Paul brings a fascinating perspective on what actually goes into getting a card from an idea to a pack - and why the process can take up to two years.

We go back to the beginnings of Upper Deck hockey andexplore how more than three decades of products evolved into the range collectors know today, how the annual release calendar comes together, and why offering collectors different ways and price points to participate still matters.

From Young Guns to The Cup, the growth of women’s hockey tonew technology, we get into how Upper Deck balances innovation with authenticity and quality, how products develop as the hobby changes, and why genuine connections between athletes and collecting can make such a difference.

And for those of us who arrived through non-sports cards,there’s a fascinating look at how ideas move between hockey and entertainment - and why the two worlds might be closer than they first appear.

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⏳ TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Meet Paul Zickler of Upper Deck04:08 Paul’s Road Through Sports & Back to Upper Deck11:44 Upper Deck Hockey: 36 Years, Flagship & Young Guns16:27 The Growth of Hockey & Making a Statement at The National29:20 How Upper Deck Builds the Hockey Product Calendar35:21 The Cup, Rookie Autos & Game-Used Innovation39:48 Growing PWHL Cards & Upper Deck Moments45:56 Authenticity, Quality & What Makes Upper Deck Different53:24 Players, Collectors & Building Genuine Connections57:43 From Hockey to Entertainment & What Comes Next

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👇 CONNECT WITH US

• Instagram: www.instagram.com/thatccpod

• Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ThatCCPod

• All Platforms Hub: https://linktr.ee/ThatCCPod

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🎙️ SHOW CREDITS

• Intro: Smooth vocals by Greg McLaughlin of The Rebel BaseCard Podcast – check out his show here:https://open.spotify.com/show/2T5nysLpxbK2ZpRrgcCO8I⁠

• Music: "I Got a Stick Arr Bryan Teoh" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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ABOUT THAT CARD COLLECTORS PODCAST

Pop-culture trading cards, with a side of sports.

Hosted by Ian Taylor (@happy.place.cards), talking cards andcollecting: non-sports, the hobby, creator and industry interviews, and the community around it.

Established in 2019 as the Marvel Card Collectors Podcast,we’re now in Season 2 — same authentic passion, refocused.

Founding member of The Certified Trading Card Association.

#EnjoyCollecting

FROM COLLECTOR TO CREATOR.

This week we’re joined by artist and collector Tim Colon,fresh from New York Comic Con and with plenty to talk about.

Tim talks about how collecting led him into sketch cards,starting with buying cards and becoming part of the community before gradually turning to creating art of his own — and eventually official sketch-card work for Upper Deck.

We talk about what it feels like to see your own artworkpulled from a pack, how being a collector shapes how Tim approaches every card, and the people who helped him get from posting in Facebook groups to working on releases such as Batman Metal and Fleer Ultra Superman.

There’s also a very real look at the work behind the art:fitting it around family and a day job, spending hours on a single sketch, and continuing to learn from the artists he admires.

Underneath all of it is community. Tim is very clear that hedidn’t get here alone, and that the collectors, artists, and friends around him remain the foundation. With new projects already opening up, including his first Fanatics work, Tim’s story still feels like it’s only getting started.

Follow Tim here; https://www.instagram.com/art_timcolon/

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⏳ TIMESTAMPS

00:00 Meet Tim Colon & New York Comic Con

05:06 From Collector to Sketch Card Artist

18:25 Marvel Masterpieces, e-Pack & Lessons Learned

25:38 The Collector Hat: Sketch Cards, Batman & Thanos

38:03 Seeing Your Own Art Pulled from a Pack

45:00 The Sets Tim Wishes He’d Worked On

56:19 DC Masterpieces & How Tim Builds a Sketch

1:04:56 Art After Hours, Family & a First Fanatics Project

1:21:21 What Comes Next & Why Community Matters

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👇 CONNECT WITH US

• Instagram: www.instagram.com/thatccpod

• Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ThatCCPod

• All Platforms Hub: https://linktr.ee/ThatCCPod

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🎙️ SHOW CREDITS

• Intro: Smooth vocals by Greg McLaughlin of The Rebel BaseCard Podcast – check out his show here:https://open.spotify.com/show/2T5nysLpxbK2ZpRrgcCO8I⁠

• Music: "I Got a Stick Arr Bryan Teoh" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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ABOUT THAT CARD COLLECTORS PODCAST

Pop-culture trading cards, with a side of sports.

Hosted by Ian Taylor (@happy.place.cards), talking cards andcollecting: non-sports, the hobby, creator and industry interviews, and the community around it.

Established in 2019 as the Marvel Card Collectors Podcast,we’re now in Season 2 — same authentic passion, refocused.

Founding member of The Certified Trading Card Association.

#EnjoyCollecting

COLLECT WHAT YOU LOVE.

This week we’re joined by UK-based Marvel collector BenMarshall, who takes us through a collecting journey that started with GI Joe and X-Men, and eventually led him into Marvel cards and the dangerous world of original sketch art.

While Mystique became the focus of his character collection,Rogue remains a firm favourite, and somewhere along the way Ben gave himself a new challenge: build his own Marvel Masterpieces set entirely from sketches - one card for each character, and only when the artwork genuinely feels right.

That gives us plenty to look at: recent pickups, favouriteartists, Lydi Li, Ash Gonzales, transformation sketches, the joy - and danger - of commissions, and one rather spectacular Savage Land Rogue all make an appearance.

PLUS, we get into why the community side of collectingmatters, hear Ben’s excitement for GI Joe cards from Upper Deck, and why sometimes the smartest collecting strategy is simply to buy the cards that make you happy.

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⏳ TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Meet Ben Marshall (with Josh literally ‘phoning it in’from a Card Show)
05:35 From GI Joe to Marvel Cards
10:11 Discovering Sketch Cards & the Community
21:07 Mystique, Rogue & Character Collecting
23:26 Building a Marvel Masterpieces Set from Sketches
29:13 Recent Pickups, Favourite Artists & Cards That Speak to You
1:00:34 Big Reveals, Commissions & Savage Land Rogue
1:11:54 What’s Next? GI Joe, Grails & Enjoying Collecting

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👇 CONNECT WITH US

• Instagram: www.instagram.com/thatccpod

• Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ThatCCPod

• All Platforms Hub: https://linktr.ee/ThatCCPod

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🎙️ SHOW CREDITS

• Intro: Smooth vocals by Greg McLaughlin of The Rebel BaseCard Podcast – check out his show here:https://open.spotify.com/show/2T5nysLpxbK2ZpRrgcCO8I⁠

• Music: "I Got a Stick Arr Bryan Teoh" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

---

ABOUT THAT CARD COLLECTORS PODCAST

Pop-culture trading cards, with a side of sports.

Hosted by Ian Taylor (@happy.place.cards), talking cards andcollecting: non-sports, the hobby, creator and industry interviews, and the community around it.

Established in 2019 as the Marvel Card Collectors Podcast,we’re now in Season 2 — same authentic passion, refocused.

Founding member of The Certified Trading Card Association.

#EnjoyCollecting