Collector Spotlight: Jesus Rivera
Jesus Rivera, the first user to work with us on selling his own card as a drop, was kind enough to take the time to sit down with us for an interview.
With Jesus, we discuss how it feels to be the inaugural Sell With Dibbs drop, his journey as a collector and much, much more.
Jesus' card, the 2003 Pokemon Skyridge #146 Charizard Holo PSA 10, is dropping this Thursday, 1/13/22, at 1pm EST / 10am PST.
Read on to learn more about the Sell With Dibbs process, and what makes this card so special!
How does it feel to be the inaugural Sell With Dibbs drop?
Jesus: Honestly, I'm excited because this is something interesting. Something new and it kind of pushes us into the future of NFT, fractional shares, and selling your assets digitally.
When did you start collecting?
Jesus: I've actually been collecting my whole life. I started from a young age, like most people, with Pokémon on the playgrounds, and then I moved on to Yu-Gi-Oh, Magic, and then finally circled ack with Pokémon during the pandemic, basically taking out my old collection and seeing what I actually had.
What do you typically collect and why?
Jesus: I typically collect PSA 8s because I feel that's a good balance of beauty and affordability, now that things are getting more expensive. I also believe that PSA 10s should be cherished and put out into the public like that, so everyone can enjoy them. Personally, I choose around 8. Sometimes 5 or 4, but that's just on specific cards.
In your opinion, what are the standout things about this card?
Jesus: What is very interesting about this card is it was manufactured towards the tail end of the Wizards of the Coast. It was the last set that Wizards of the Coast, the makers of Magic The Gathering, actually made for Pokémon and because of that, it actually has a couple of very interesting things: It has a shorter print run than usual, these cards are also some of the best quality. Therefore, a lot of them get high grades, and that adds to the rarity because it was a short print run and fewer out there. This card is not seen that often in this form.
We both know this card is rare, but could you relay to the Fractionauts just how rare it is?
Jesus: Out of the first couple of Charizard sets, this is the one that has the lowest PSA population. So if you look at all the cards that have been graded of this on Holo Charizard, there's only six hundred. To put that in perspective, there are around 600 PSA 5 first edition Charizards, that's not even counting all other grades.
In our initial meeting, you mentioned two words “celebration” and “community” over and over again. Could you walk the Fractionauts through what these words mean to you?
Jesus: PSA 10 cards should be celebrated. They should be enjoyed by the community in a sense that everyone should be able to come together for the passion of the hobby and basically be united through owning a fraction of something incredibly rare. Instead of it being locked away in a vault somewhere nobody will see it, people can share it through the ownership. That's what builds community.
What direction would you like to see digital ownership of physical collectibles go?
Jesus: I think there's actually a very powerful thing in the future. So, currently we are seeing scandals about not being legitimate. For example, the Logan Paul case that might not be real, so it's like, in the future that case would basically be an NFT that could be traded and sold freely, in a more credible and validated way. That's what I see, especially for high-value collectibles.
Do you see yourself selling with Dibbs again?
Jesus: Yes, if I had a collectible that I felt was worthy enough. So, another one of these grails that should be shared with the community.
Were you on Dibbs as a collector first?
Jesus: I was on Dibbs as a little bit of both [a collector and a buyer]. At the beginning, I was all about it. At first, I was just learning about different platforms, because like I said, I think we're in a Renaissance of collecting, so society was basically stuck in the 80s before using all of this technology. With this new influx of people in the space, we got a lot of talented individuals, like those in your company and everyone else, that are basically bringing this market into this century and then catapulting it towards the future. I think it's a very good time to be on these platforms as a seller but also as a buyer, and then just growing the hobby.
How has the emergence of fractional ownership changed the way that you collect?
Jesus: I think fractional ownership changed some of my ideas behind collecting. I still have mostly whole cards, like I mentioned, lower grades, because I think that still allows you to celebrate the beauty of the card, but it's not necessarily tied to that, like, big money aspect. It's like, no, I just want to celebrate the card and own it myself and enjoy it in that aspect. I think that fractional ownership has really changed the idea about what this can become in the future. The idea that people can unite over sharing one card and use it for the same utility in the NFT generation that's coming up.
