To PSA’s Chris Carlin, collectors and hobbyists are like family

I've gotten to know Chris Carlin for some years now. From the onset I knew he was a person who loved and cared about the hobby.

Full of energy and oozing with passion, Chris was the front man for Upper Deck when I first met him, a role he served for a mind-blowing 24 years. Chris personifies customer service. He cares and treats others as he would want to be treated, or how he'd want his family to be treated.

Wanting a new challenge, Carlin took his energy and passion to Collectors/PSA. It was a tough decision, but he felt a little pushed and was guided in spirit by his late brother John, who passed away from ALS in November of 2021 after being diagnosed in 2016. His new role and location allow him to spend more time with his parents.

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If you know Chris as I do, you know how important family is to him, and he's not shy about sharing that love. But the other terrific thing about Chris is he is the kind of guy that treats everyone he meets like family.

I can personally attest to his caring nature and personality. A few years back our beloved dog, Mocha, passed away. He extended condolences and asked for a picture of myself and Mocha. Soon after a package arrived on my doorstep. It included a poster created by Upper Deck of myself with Mocha that still hangs on my wall today and is a constant reminder of two things: the love for my dog; and the generosity of Upper Deck and Chris, which knows no bounds.

I've seen him in action at Upper Deck, spearheading special sets and cards for people who inspire others and honoring people no longer with us whose stories were just as inspiring. In that, Chris is inspiring himself.

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Now he employs those traits at Collectors and has hit the ground running. Again, I've seen first-hand his dedication to the hobby. At the 2022 PSA Registry party, I witnessed him going table to table, talking with everyone and not only asking what they liked about Collectors/PSA, but “what can we do better?” Or, “what would you like to see?”

He not only listened intently, but took notes to refer to later.

Whether you know Chris personally, or even if you just follow him on social media, it becomes very apparent quickly that this is a gentleman who not only cares about the hobby but also cares about people.

The hobby is a better place because of him. … Check that, the world is a better place because of Chris Carlin.

— John Newman is a collector, dealer and the host of the Sports Card Nation podcast. Catch his Hobby Quick Hits on Monday and his guest interviews on Friday on your favorite podcast plat­form. You can reach him at sportscard­nationpc@gmail.com or on Twitter at @sportscardnati1

Also See: More John Newman “The Hobby is the People” columns