General Sports
What PSA Hiring 1,000 Graders and Expansion Will Mean For the Hobby
Collector Nation›
May 22, 202640:44
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Episode Notes
Ryan Alford and Brian Ludden are back to break down what is really happening beneath the surface of the hobby right now.
This episode covers PSA’s reported hiring push, the challenge of maintaining grading quality at scale, the growing speed of new product releases, and how companies like Ludex are trying to keep up with collector demand in real time. Ryan brings the card-shop and operator perspective, Brian brings the product and data perspective, and together they connect the dots between infrastructure, hype, and what collectors are actually dealing with day to day.
They also touch on major sales, market signals, and why so much of the hobby is now building toward one thing: The National. It is a good episode for collectors who want more than product hype and are paying attention to how the business side of the hobby is evolving.
Topics Covered
PSA growth and grading backlog pressure
Whether more graders means better or worse outcomes
Ludex’s approach to product launches and scan demand
The market meaning behind major card sales
Why release cadence is getting harder to track
How Ryan and Brian think about hobby infrastructure
The road to The National and why it matters
Links
Collector Nation YouTube: youtube.com/@TheCollectorNation
Right About Now / Ryan’s main podcast hub: ryanisright.com
Collector Station: thecollectorstation.com
Collector Station Instagram: instagram.com/thecollectorstation
Ludex: ludex.com or Download the LUDEX app
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"What PSA Hiring 1,000 Graders and Expansion Will Mean For the Hobby" is an episode of Collector Nation. Runtime 40 min. Published May 22, 2026. Hit play above to stream it here, or open the free Spot Sports app for background play and offline downloads.
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Quick FAQ
- When was this episode published?
- May 22, 2026.
- How long is this episode?
- 40 min.
- What podcast is this from?
- Collector Nation. Browse the full back catalog on the show page.
- What does this episode cover?
- Collector Nation covers general sports. This episode runs on the show's regular cadence.
