Collectors Heaven

Had to pick up some 6 pocket sleeves for my ticket stub collection & stopped in. It’s been a very long time since I’ve been in a card shop that had anywhere near the selection this store has of just about anything one would need. Wound up getting 2 packs of 2015/’16 hockey cards along with the sleeves I originally went in for. The couple that run the place seemed helpful enough today.

If I could give this store a less than one star review I would. I went to the store with a friend who has an intellectual disability and loves sports. He has a large collection of cards and enjoys visiting places like this to expand his collection. He is not a big spender but always spends around $ 20, which should have been welcomed, considering It was late Saturday morning and we were the only customers in the place. Upon entering the store we were greeted by an older woman who rudely asked, but sounding more like an order, «you’re going to stay with him right», she did not even say hello! He is paying customer and has shopped here before. We proceeded to shop, occasionally my assistance was needed by my shopping companion, mostly to help him put the items he was considering purchasing back in the appropriate place, since this was the first time I have gone to this store with him I was told how to help him in advance and was quite aware of his needs. We shopped for quite a while, the entire time our every move was watched by the three employees, strategically standing around the store, I can only assume hoping we did something considered worthy of being asked to leave. After shopping for a while, admiring some of the rare expensive items (I am sure others do this as well, not everyone has thousands of dollars to spend), and explaining some of the cards to me, he started to gather his purchases. We were running a little late for a movie and I was reminding him that we needed to leave which created some need for quick decisions. At this point he needed a little extra guidance to put the packs of cards (nothing expensive or rare) back in the appropriate place, but he put everything back where it belonged! He had gathered his purchase, which totaled about $ 20, more than the other 5 or so people that came and went, who purchased nothing but were greeted warmly and asked several times if they needed help finding anything. At this point an older gentleman quite rudely said a bunch or terrible things to us that started with, «as business owners we have the right to refuse to let anyone shop here that we decide» he continued to say things like, we can refuse to let him in, and we could call the police and have him removed. These statements came out of the blue, and he had a bunch of things he was clearly going to buy. I was appalled at the DISCRIMINATION, but given the lack of business it does not surprise me that something (and I guess now I know it was their customer service skills) kept people away. This paying customer that I shopped with barely talks above a whisper, so it was not that he was disruptive in any way. I also kept my voice to a minimum as the environment seemed to request that. I can only assume it was IGNORANCE that was the cause for our MISTREATMENT but it was difficult to explain away the DISGUSTING, DEPLORABLE manner in which we were DISCRIMINATED against as paying customers.
After we left I asked my friend what he thought of the experience. He stated that they were jerks but it was the biggest store of that kind (that he knew of) in NH. I am hoping I can help him find one and would welcome any suggestions of places like this to shop in.
This DISCRIMINATION was/​is UNACCEPTABLE and I will be sure to shout this from the rooftops!

I went to this place today for the first time in ages. It is a large place, with a lot to look at. I walked in with a coffee, as I was looking forward to spending some time going through the store. One of the people working there put a paper on the counter and told me that my coffee would be there when I was done looking around. I took that as my cue to leave the store. As a grown adult, I haven’t spilled a drink in a few decades, and didn’t appreciate being treated that way.

Words can not describe the depth of the collection and variety of packs old and new to chose from. But, it’s the little touches like labeling the older boxes of cards with what rookies might hide beneath the wrapper. Hands down best sports card shop in the Merrimack Valley. A gem of a place and I can’t wait to shop here again…
Parking is on the street a quarter gets you 20 minutes

I travel alot for work, and everywhere I go, I try to get a hockey puck for my son’s collection (now you know why my reviews are on the boring side). This is generally very easy in Canadian cities (where they are prominently for sale right next to the newspapers in the airport) and harder in places like Florida. In Manchester this week for work, found myself right across the street from the Verizon arena and this family-​owned treasure trove of sports memorabilia. I promptly snagged a Monarch’s puck for the young man and browsed an amazing selection of cards, clothing, balls, collector’s cases. When I hesitated to buy some hockey cards for the progeny, the proprietress promptly told me that studies have shown that kids who collect trading cards exhibit higher test scores and are less likely to engage in criminal activity (she actually did cite studies). She also told me that collections are great because the collector defines the rules — I’d never thought of that before. This place is right off 293 so if you’re a collector or looking for a unique gift for a sports head this place is a gold mine.