Collector Nation - Why Most Collectors Are Using the Wrong Data | Ryan Stuczynski, GemRate

Episode Date: June 9, 2026

Ryan Alford talks with Ryan Stuczynski of GemRate about the missing layer in the hobby that affects everything from grading to buying to long-term value: usable data. Ryan breaks down how GemRate started, why supply data matters more than many collectors realize, and how bad assumptions around comps and scarcity can lead people into poor decisions. They also get into PSA’s dominance, the risk of grading bottlenecks, why hobby transparency still lags behind other markets, and how collectors can think more intelligently about what they are actually buying. It is a practical episode for anyone who wants to understand the hobby at a deeper level and make decisions with more confidence and less guesswork. Topics Covered The origin of GemRate Why supply data matters in the hobby The problem with using only last comp PSA’s backlog and market impact Why grading transparency still matters How newer grading companies can find a lane What smart collectors look for before they transact Ryan Alford and Ryan Stuczynski on smarter hobby participation Links Collector Nation https://www.collectibles.show/ https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/collector-nation/id1832831782 Ryan Stuczynski / GemRate https://www.gemrate.com/ https://www.gemrate.com/newsletter https://www.instagram.com/gemrate/ https://x.com/gemrate

People had cards that were being devalued day by day that were sitting in an office month on month. And by the time they sort of got them back, they were pretty much worthless. In a category where a lack of information has been a feature for the most part, we are trying to sort of democratize data in a way that allows buyers to feel like they're as informed as possible. You know what I don't like? This isn't necessarily PSA's fault. It's like PSA 10 or bus with everything. We devalue every other number. Welcome to the Collector Nation podcast here on the Collector Nation Network.

whether you're chasing grails or calling bluffs. You take you inside the hobby. Here's your host, Ryan Alford. Grading is one of the most talked about forces in the hobby today. Everyone's talking about it, but not everyone has the data they need. It's incomplete. Until now. Ryan Soszinski, the founder of Jim Raid, built a platform that helps bring more transparency

to grading data, population trends, and what collectors are actually submitting across the market. In this episode, we get into why hobby data has been so fragmented, how grading behavior is changing, and what PSA's backlog and pause means for collectors. Why being informed matters whether you're buying, selling, grading, or just trying to enjoy the hobby. What's up, Brian?

Welcome to Collector Nation. Brian, thank you for having me. Yeah, man. Pleasure. I feel like I got it on a call full transparency with Ryan and his team with Jim Raid and really down to earth. I think you sort of start putting things on pedestals because I see Jim Raid. I get the newsletter. I'm in there and I'm getting deeper in the hobby.

And I'm like, man, this guy is really nice and approachable and easy to talk to. Like I'm expecting something completely different. And not because I thought it would be bad. This didn't expect you to be so approachable. and like down to earth. And I was like, yeah, I got to talk to this guy. I love what you've done with Jim Raid. It's just, it's simple, but it's effective and it's helpful.

That's the best. Those are the biggest compliments I can give you. I appreciate it. That's how I like to be in person. And I'm glad the company represents that as well. Yeah, we try to keep a low profile add value where we can, but we're not trying to draw too much attention to ourselves. In anybody's listening, I'm going to let Ryan describe, you know,

how and what Jim Rate is. if you don't know it, you need to know it, if you're a serious collector or even just, even if you just like, I'm kind of a data junkie. So that's why I'm, that's why I've been digesting it. So it's been very helpful. But, Ryan, let's give everybody over here. What is Jim rate? Yeah, so we started five and a half years ago.

And what we first became known for was just putting out monthly reports on grading activity. You know, this was, you know, we're sort of revisiting the past here because PSA had a backlog and was just opening back up. And people were wondering what kind of grading volume they were. doing where people were grading when PSA was shut down. And we were just providing some high level overview of what does grading activity look like. And those reports did really well. And so that kind of is how people became aware of what GEMRATE was back then. And then over the years, we've launched a website. We've got a bunch of different tools and we've got newsletters and other

sort of content that we published. But we're basically trying to inform, you know, collectors, investors and make them feel as sort of savvy as possible as they're sort of transacting in the space. And so, you know, for the most part, we're bringing supply data to market. We've started to do a little bit more on sales trends data in a differentiated way, sort of trying to help people understand collectability a little bit differently than sort of you might find across the hobby. But yeah, we're just trying to make people feel informed. And in a category where a lack of information has been a feature for the most part to sort of get sellers to highest prices, we are trying to sort of democratize data in a way that allows buyers to feel like they're fully informed or as informed as possible so that they stay,

persist in a hobby and feel confident over the long run. Yeah, man, one of the few actually doing that. A lot to unpack there's very simply stated, but a lot to unpack. Coming back into the hobby last couple of years, that's been the biggest eye opener is like, we have more data than we know what to do with than every other industry. And here it's like there's a lot of data, but there's a lot of ambiguity and no socialization.

And like you said, it's almost like it's intentional. I don't know. Have you right? Don't name any names, but do we think that's intentional? You know, I do think it's been intentional. I also think it's just been, this has not been a growth category for a long time. You know, it was, I had worked on a Tops project back in 2010. It was feeling like Tops was sort of on its way out.

Like, cards were sort of, you know, basically becoming a thing of ancient history. And then, you know, 10 years later, COVID hits and obviously it skyrocketed. but people weren't prepared for that. And so, you know, the data sort of reflects a hobby that was, you know, at the tail end of its life. And so people just didn't prioritize it. And so the data reflects that. And we've been slow to catch up, you know, despite all the momentum in the hobby, it's not been sort of, it's a long, you know, it's a long-term play.

And a lot of players in the hobby are sort of skating towards where the easy money is or the quick money. And so despite the fact that the hobby's seen this great growth, data's sort of still been moving much slower than a lot of the hobby. in general. And so I would say it was just deprioritized, probably not super intentional, but certainly not prioritized in sort of a point of focus, unfortunately. And we're sort of struggling to sort of recoup, you know, or sort of recover from that. And, you know, we're trying to add value and sort of paint some of that picture. But I mean, man, it's, it is a struggle on many different fronts, you know. And it still is, you know, to degree when you look at the

manufacturer sites today, you can't even get it. You know, and this is not really trying to throw a ton shade at anybody in particular here, but I'm appreciative that we get odds and things like that, but it looks different from set to set, you know, the format, you know, checklists are harder to come by, you know, still. And so anyways, even some of the basics you think would be sort of normalized today are still a challenge at times.