Colts Memorabilia a Tough Game

By David Barras
News 8 @ 5:30

INDIANAPOLIS - Now that the Colts have won the Super Bowl, plenty of people are spending plenty of money buying Colts memorabilia. But what separates a nice memento from a true collectible is a question for the experts.

It is truly a flip of the coin figuring out whether or not Colts memorabilia will go up in value as the years go by. 

"When they start the game for the coin toss, yea, those are the coins. Now it's not a game used one, no, it's a replica," said Dick Autry, owner of the Baseball Card Exchange.

The Baseball Card Exchange in Indianapolis has Peyton Manning rookie cards, Peyton Manning Colts toy trucks and even a Peyton Manning beanie baby. But Super Bowl win or not, he said you need to keep the following in mind.

"If it's limited and numbered you stand a chance. If it's pennants and shirts and hats, anything you can get on the retail market, odds are it's just the hype of the moment," Autry said. "These are actually made, signed, numbered."

Autry said it comes down to a matter of supply and demand. The Super Bowl win puts the Colts in the spotlight, so if you have Colts memorabilia, now is actually a good time to consider selling. 

"Player flops, card flops. Memorabilia flops. Everything goes by the way of the player. If Manning were to break is arm today, his cards would go down."  

"Not only is that the rookie year jersey, he signed and dated it in his rookie year. So we can't go back and make that collectible again," said Garry Boyer, owner of Mickey's Autograph Arena.

The Manning rookie jersey sells for about $1,500 at Mickey's Autograph Arena in Indianapolis.  Boyer said you probably should not plan on paying your kids college tuition by investing in sports collectibles.

"As I tell people a lot of the time, find things you like. Buy things that you are really going to enjoy and then that added opportunity for an enhanced value down the road is just another benefit."

Boyer also said future value will depend on how much a star charges for his or her autograph.  Turns out, making money on sports memorabilia is a very tough game.