The grand opening of CardVault by Tom Brady at the Mall of America in Bloomington was nothing short of a spectacle. All four levels at the rotunda surrounding the stage were packed with fans eager to catch a glimpse of the GOAT himself (the first people in line got there 7 hours early). Tom Brady took the stage to address the crowd, speaking briefly before turning the event into a highlight reel moment. He autographed and tossed footballs into the audience, sparking cheers with every throw. One lucky fan in front of me reached over the railing to catch a ball—though it got a little smudged in the chaos, that imperfection will forever be part of his story.
Once the ceremonial opening wrapped, the real challenge began: getting inside the store. I made my way to the main level only to discover the line stretched so far it wound deep into the Nickelodeon Universe amusement park. Once there, it took nearly half an hour just to reach the original “end” of the line, and another hour of waiting before I finally made it into the shop. A few of the first fans who made it inside the store first were rewarded with autographs from Tom Brady. By all accounts he was very good to the fans but he had to take off bout 15 minutes after the shop opened.
The store itself is compact—just 1,700 square feet—but the design makes a strong impression. They have the modern vertical display cases, custom murals of local and GOAT athletes, and most everything was organized and clearly labeled (ex: a case might say “football” and each box has the price posted). A recent shop I did a tour of reminded me of being in an antique store – well this one feels like you’re in a jewelry store because of the elaborate displays and not much you can put your hands on. There are 4 double sided vertical display cases for singles. A side of one was Pokémon, and the rest were modern sports cards (only saw a handful of vintage). There are 5 glass cases filled with sports hobby boxes, 1 glass case with sealed TCG, a few shelves with sealed retail sports cards, and a scattering of value boxes to sift through that are priced clearly, but not organized. A focus of the store is authenticated autographed memorabilia. These are things such as autographed jerseys, helmets, hockey pucks, and the like. The prices vary wildly depending on the player – an autographed Brady jersey is $3299. A lot of the space is devoted to CardVault branded clothing which is cool, but I’d rather see most of that space used for more cards or even supplies. Most of the real high end cards sit in a small case on the checkout counter. It has several big cards including a PSA 10 autographed Brady Crown Royale rookie card priced at $8,000.
I normally share my pickups, but I didn’t make a purchase this time due to the crowds. CardVault definitely has the cool factor going for it, but I can’t honestly say it’s a must see shop for local collectors yet. It may get there once they get established, but right now there is definitely more to offer to card collectors at most of the LCS’s in the area. Regardless, the grand opening of CardVault was an unforgettable event and I look forward to watching it evolve over time. Their hours follow the Mall of America’s hours, which you can always find on their website.