NC Card Show Promoters Clash Over Same-Weekend Events
A North Carolina card show promoter is claiming “competitors” tried to sabotage their Raleigh event by scheduling a Charlotte show on the same weekend — but the alleged sabotage appears to have backfired.
Tidewater Cards & Collectibles posted on social media Saturday that their Feb 27-March 1 show at the NC State Fairgrounds broke attendance records despite a competing Charlotte show running simultaneously.
“WHEN COMPETITORS TRY HARD to Sabotage our Raleigh Show, by doing a Charlotte Show on the Same Weekend, we just keep Breaking More Attendance Records!!” the post read.
The post claimed 3,250+ guests on Saturday and 1,700+ on Friday, putting them “on Pace to Break our All-Time 6K Record set last July.”
Two Shows, Same Weekend
The competing events:
Raleigh: NC State Fairgrounds Sports Card & Hobby Expo
- Dates: Feb 27-March 1, 2026
- Venue: Kerr Scott Building, NC State Fairgrounds
- Organizer: Tidewater Cards & Collectibles
- Website: TidewaterCardsAndCollectibles.com
Charlotte: The Charlotte Card Show
- Dates: Feb 28-March 1, 2026
- Venue: Park Expo & Conference Center
- Organizer: Inside Pitch Promotions (Ryan DeLaunay)
- Admission: $7 daily / $10 weekend pass
- Tables: 500+
Charlotte and Raleigh are approximately two hours apart by car.
Industry Reaction
Not everyone in the hobby community agreed with Tidewater’s characterization of the situation.
Jamel Mohammad, owner of The Meelypops Shop in Gainesville, Florida, and a card show vendor, commented on the Tidewater post: “As someone who owns shops and does lots of shows and hosts shows, grow up. We need to show people how amazing the hobby is and celebrate all the shows vs being petty.”
The Territorial Question
Do promoters “own” cities or regions? Is it acceptable for competing shows to operate in the same state on the same weekend if they’re two hours apart?
The card show industry has no governing body to arbitrate such disputes, leaving territorial boundaries undefined.
One commenter on the Tidewater post questioned the premise: “Why do people think they own a certain date/weekend/area?”
No Response from Charlotte Promoter
Sports Card Radio reached out to Inside Pitch Promotions for comment on the sabotage claim and to ask when The Charlotte Card Show was scheduled relative to Tidewater’s announcement.
Inside Pitch Promotions did not respond to the inquiry.
Background
Tidewater Cards & Collectibles operates shows across Virginia and North Carolina and bills itself as “the Area’s Premier Trade Show Promoter with Over 50 Locations.”
Inside Pitch Promotions runs The Charlotte Card Show as part of their “NC Collector’s Roadshow” series, which also includes events in Hickory and other North Carolina cities.
This is a developing story. Sports Card Radio will update with additional information as it becomes available.
Written by
Grayson Bryce Thompson
Grayson writes about the sports card hobby — the money, the frauds, and the stories the industry doesn't want told. He's been collecting since the junk wax era and still has the boxes to prove it.
Check out Tidewater’s promoter’s FB – you will see he’s the instigator/always the victim.
A little added perspective for anyone wondering:
Tidewater’s standing among vendors seems to have slipped over time. You’ll notice the same group consistently placed in the most visible, high-traffic spots (which aren’t quality vendors most of the time). Meanwhile, some of the other long-time vendors regularly end up with less desirable locations. Table assignments can feel uncertain, since placement requires direct communication (text and hope he remembers you) with the promoter and there’s no real guarantee you’ll receive the number of tables requested. Arriving late to setup or the morning of the show as a vendor puts your table count and spot at risk. There’s so many stories to be told from Virginia vendors where there’s another promoter that has “waged a war” against Tidewater (this is self imposed at this point, Tidewater is always the victim).
During colder months, heat typically isn’t running until doors open, and in the summer the same applies to AC during setup. This isn’t a big issue in the winter but during the summer in NC it can be brutal for some of the older vendors. Over time, many traditional sports vendors have moved on, and the floor now trends heavily toward TCG. There have also been stories about tighter entry monitoring and alarm installations aimed at preventing unpaid access.
Inside Pitch, on the other hand, recently transitioned to new ownership, and the operational differences have been noticeable. The booking process is streamlined with online reservations and invoicing. Vendors receive the table counts they request, climate control is running during setup and off-hours (again not a huge issue, seems like it should be the minimum) , and there are small but thoughtful touches like providing pizza to vendors during setup. Staff interaction are professional and accommodating, more like you can actually talk to someone vs being told to wait with Tidewater since its a one man show, and it appears they make efforts to attract and retain larger vendors who actively buy, which helps liquidity in the room. Inside Pitch stays in their lane, does their social media promotion videos with influencers (silly but its a business I guess), handles shows like a business in a professional manner.
As for scheduling overlap, Inside Pitch ran this same weekend in Charlotte last year, so it seems planned well in advance. With Raleigh and Charlotte being the primary markets in North Carolina, some date conflicts are likely inevitable given the number of promoters operating statewide; Inside Pitch, Tidewater, Sports Wax, and POW Productions. Tidewater seems to be the only one that posts about attendance numbers, every show seems to be a “record” which you can take with a grain of salt.