Waco Card Show has strong opening in debut weekend

WACO, Texas (KWTX) - This past weekend, the Waco Card Show debuted at the Waco Convention Center, attracting hundreds interested in the fast-growing industry of sports card and memorabilia collecting.

About 80 different vendors from across the country made their way down to Waco to sell, trade, and show off their cards.

Chris Fernandes, who organized the show, has had the vision of a big show in Waco for the last several years. He said so far, the event has surpassed their expectations.

“It’s insane,” said Fernandes. “This is our first show, we really didn’t know how this was going to end up. Lots of foot traffic coming in and out, it’s been great. It’s been a long time waiting, but at the end of the day, our goal is to serve our vendors and or attendees as best as we can.”

Many people in the Waco community, including Brent Bankston of Bankston’s sports memorabilia, comics, and collectibles shop here in town, say that Waco is the perfect spot for a big show because of how easy it is to get to the city from all parts of the state.

“Waco is ideal because it’s centrally located,” said Bankston. “We’re in the heart of Texas, and right off 35 (I-35). It’s inexpensive, you can eat some great food here and have a great time. Really, we’re excited to show off Waco a little bit.”

The card show takes place from Friday, August 18 through Sunday the 20th, and it couldn’t have debuted in Waco at a better time. Since the surge of the card industry took off during the pandemic, the hobby has only continued to grow.

“The industry has hit all new highs of interest,” said Bankston. “You’ve got anyone from 8-year-olds to 88-year-olds who are all excited about the industry.”

While this isn’t the first time there has been a larger show in Waco, it’s still the first time in a long time. Fernandes says he hopes to continue to grow the show and make the Waco Card Show the premiere event in the Lone Star State.

“Even to this day, since we booked out all of our tables, we are getting calls daily, adding more tables,” said Fernandes. “Our goal is to get a bigger room next time, and (autograph) signers at the next show. The growth is honestly exponential from here.”

Waco Card Show plans to have a series of shows throughout the year to attract even more new collectors into the hobby. Their next show is scheduled to take place in October, though a specific date and location have not yet been determined.

Fernandes also told us that this weekend, the Waco Card Show is giving a 50% discount to current Baylor students or anyone who wears Baylor gear to the show.

For more information, visit https://www.wacocardshow.com.

Copyright 2023 KWTX. All rights reserved.