Collector Nation - The Luxury Upgrade Cards Have Been Missing | Brian Pirrip & M1nt

Episode Date: May 26, 2026

Ryan Alford sits down with Brian Pirrip for a conversation about design, collecting, and why some of the hobby’s most valuable cards still live in packaging that feels stuck in the past. Brian shares the thinking behind M1NT and the G1 case, what it took to get the product right, and why he believes collectors, athletes, and high-end cards all deserve something more intentional than the same old plastic slab. He also talks about product rollout, showing cases in person, working with Mike Baker, and why the in-hand experience changes how people think about display immediately. Ryan connects with Brian not just on product, but on what makes the hobby healthy long term: better shops, better experiences, stronger design, and a culture that still values collecting over status chasing. This episode is for anyone who cares about where the hobby is headed and what it looks like when someone tries to build something genuinely better inside it. Topics Covered The origin story behind M1NT Why the G1 case exists What collectors notice the second they hold it The role of Mike Baker in the early rollout Why hobby innovation often moves too slowly Brian’s view on grading, Fanatics, and the current state of the hobby Why experience and presentation still matter M1NT’s roadmap, events, and long-term vision Brian Pirrip / M1NT https://m1ntaverse.com/ https://www.instagram.com/brianpirrip/ https://x.com/brianpirrip https://www.facebook.com/BrianPirripOfficial/ Ryan Alford / Collector Nation https://www.thecollectornation https://www.instagram.com/ryanalford/

Once people hold them and see them, it's really hard to go back to plastic. There's nothing quite like handing an athlete, like a Hall of Fame athlete, a card, their card in a G1 case with a grade by Mike Baker. Those kind of moments are just priceless to me. Welcome to the Collector Nation podcast here on the Collector Nation Network. Whether you're chasing grails or calling bluffs, you take you inside a hobby. Here's your host, Ryan Allford. Today, Brian Piropp is back with us, and this one's a little different. We talked about the Mint before his company, Mint.

Now the G1 is out, and he's actually launching it across the nation in a way you wouldn't expect. He's going out, talking with people, putting in the hands of celebrities and athletes, and really organically growing the brand. Today, we're getting into what that process has been like, all the feedback he's getting from collectors, how it fits in the hobby, and hey, just remind everybody how nice a guy he is.

Brian, what's up, man? Pump to have you. Welcome to Collector Nation. It is great to be here. Ryan, thanks for having me again. Real pleasure to be here. How are things? I'm good, man.

I'm glad to have you back. I feel like we're brothers from another in some way, being entrepreneurs. You came to my shop. I appreciated that. I love watching the content. And I do have a beautiful case next to me with your, indirectly your name on it. Dang, that looks good, man.

Love to see it there. That's actually a special color way that we did just for the people in the 100 club. So there's only about 105 people that have that ability to have that color way. It's good to see it. I feel special. and it feels special man i think feels like a million dollars the mint doesn't it though it does it does i mean it's the first thing that's ever done that card justice oh yeah yeah no it actually a card like that deserves a lot better than a piece of plastic i'm sitting here with some of my

cards and plastic and uh and it just feels like oh this is like you know these are like five dollar items and yet you know you got a thousand dollar card and uh you know some uh noteworthy cards here and it just doesn't feel like that once you know once i've held a g1 case and so uh you're entirely right it feels like a million bucks the second you uh hold your g1 and you know we had john if i would come full circle we talked about the meant case and now you've been on you know the road with a real product in hand you hand delivered this one to me uh which I'm so appreciative of. And what's it like, man?

I mean, you know, it's clearly the case speaks for itself, but what's the process been like for you? Well, yeah, it's, it really does speak for itself. Every time I show the case and pictures, videos, or on social media, people go, oh, that's, what is that a glorified one touch? Is that a, some sort of an iPhone, you know, these kinds of things. then, and people never really understand it while they're seeing it on camera. But as soon as I show people the case in person, instantly everybody understands.

It's just an instant impact every single time. And so it's been really fun to travel the country. And then just in the last three weeks, I've been in Atlanta, Toronto, Dallas, San Francisco. And everywhere I go, I put the, I, that's one of the reasons I roadshow so much is I want people to hold them. You really have to hold them and see them in person to understand. And the second that somebody puts it in their hand and holds it, they go, okay, now I get it. And then the next question is, Brian, can you hook me up? How do I get one? You know, so it's been, it's been really fun because that's what I'm trying to do is I'm changing hearts and minds here. I'm putting them out there

in the world, getting people to hold them and see them. And once people hold them and see them, it's really hard to go back to plastic. You know, I always see people with their, they have their PSA slab, and then they've got it inside of a slab mag. And so it's like plastic inside of plastic, inside of plastic. And it's just holding a G1 in person versus holding like a slab mag with a PSA, it's just not even comparable. It really is the difference between holding like a Nokia flip phone from the,

you know, late 90s. and an iPhone 16 pro. It just isn't an order of magnitude kind of difference.