A Card Show in Your Pocket: How Loupe Is Trying to Be an All-in-One, Live-Streaming Community

There’s no denying that online group breaks have revolutionized the hobby. They give collectors a chance to buy into hard-to-obtain boxes and cases while simultaneously building community. One thing is for sure: they have changed the way many people experience the hobby while attracting a wide spectrum of collectors.

The Loupe app, an all-in-one group breaking and card buying experience, aims to take the online hobby experience to the next level. Unlike conducting breaks on social platforms such as Facebook and Instagram that can be a disjointed experience for sellers and buyers, Loupe is built specifically for collectors by collectors. Being called a “card show in your pocket,” the app handles all aspects of the experience, from sellers streaming a break, to users jumping into chats, to payment processing, and even shipment tracking.

Users can follow specific sellers and receive notifications when they start a stream. All sellers are vetted by Loupe, which gives buyers confidence they are buying from trusted sellers. Since Loupe handles all transactions, all parties are protected from chargebacks and refunds. It takes just a few seconds to make a payment, and shipping information can remain on the app.

“I really see ourselves as a local card shop in your pocket or even like a card show in your pocket,” says Loupe CEO Eric Doty. “So, if you ever want to discuss sports cards, or buy sports cards and interact in any way in the hobby, our app is always available to you to do so.”

Baseball, football, basketball, hockey and other card products are broken and sold on the app every day. A recent monster hit was a 2020 Panini Flawless Joe Burrow autograph Nike patch card. But the platform isn’t just for box and case breaks. Single cards can also be showcased and sold, which gives sellers the opportunity to go live with theme-based streams, such as Rookie Cards of a certain player or cards from a specific era. It also lets collectors talk about the featured cards. Users can ask questions in real time, and the app allows all parties to develop relationships and build a genuine community of collectors helping each other build their collections. There is even a consignment component to the app, which allows people wanting to sell cards to work with a verified seller.

Eric says their goal is to help build a community around sellers and streamline the payment processing so the sellers can focus on growing their business. “Demand for sellers has exceeded expectation. We already have a waiting list of basically hundreds,” he says. “These are sellers that are approved and legitimate.” He also explained that if sellers demonstrate they cannot handle the responsibility of selling, they will be removed from the community. The same applies to buyers if they regularly cause trouble.

Loupe launched in October 2020, so many features are still in development, especially enhancements to the community aspect of the experience. Eric wants Loupe users to feel as if they are at their local sports bar or card show. “There are regulars that say ‘Hi’ to you the moment you join a stream,” he says. “Over time they learn more about you and what you like to collect. I can’t overstate how good that community aspect is—people love just sitting around and learning and talking about cards, and then on top of that grabbing one or two cards for your personal collection.”

The Loupe team plans to be at the 41st National Sports Collectors Convention in Chicago, July 28 – Aug. 1.

Loupe is available for Apple and Android devices.