Panini America On Location: A Frenzied First Day at the 2011 National Convention

ROSEMONT, Ill. -- The Panini America team landed in Chicago early Wednesday morning and hit the ground running for the "sneak peek" of the 32nd Annual National Sports Collectors Convention.

Chicago-based freelance writer Dan Campana contributed to this report and will file updates and images to The Knight’s Lance throughout the week. 

ROSEMONT, Ill. — The Panini America team landed in Chicago early Wednesday morning and hit the ground running for the “sneak peek” of the 32nd Annual National Sports Collectors Convention.

Mere seconds after the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center doors opened Wednesday afternoon, dozens of Panini fanatics had descended upon the company’s huge display in the heart of the corporate pavilion. Can you guess what they were after?

None other than the first crack at the company’s coveted wrapper-redemption packs earned by opening many of Panini America’s 2010-11 line of products. Many collectors took full advantage of the promotion Wednesday by breaking multiple cases of 2010-11 Totally Certified Basketball and 2010-11 Luxury Suite Hockey and exchanging the empty wrappers for the silver packs with the silver lining.

We’ll have more on the excitement of Panini America’s 2011 redemption program tomorrow.

The Panini America display is hard to miss, with a giant Tom Brady VIP card blow-up easily spotted from most of the convention hall floor. There’s also plenty of Chicago touches inside the booth, with posters of the Blackhawks’ Jonathan Toews, the Bears’ Jay Cutler and Bulls young superstar Derrick Rose prominently displayed.

And, just to show the company is on top of current events, there was even a sweet patch card of newly re-signed Blackhawks sniper Patrick Sharp in one display cases. Oh, and be sure to check out the captivating displays devoted to the company’s Panini HRX Video Trading Cards and the golden goodness of 2010-11 Gold Standard Basketball. These cutting-edge cards must be seen to be believed.

Stay tuned to The Knight’s Lance all week long for more exclusive coverage from the NSCC show floor. For now, enjoy this massive gallery of highlights from a productive first day, including a special guest appearance by Forever The Sickest Kids lead singer — and noted collector — Jonathan Cook.

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40 Replies to “Panini America On Location: A Frenzied First Day at the 2011 National Convention”

  1. saturday , can’t wait. why do u guys have the hrx cards there , but i can;t redeem mine???
    opened a case of national treasures basketball yesterday. 2 rookie patch autos only i one 4 box case, bad deal. case hit was a derrick rose, ok i guess.

  2. You are teasing us with a picture of the case that has all the sketch cards and mini helmets. haha Awesome job covering. Would love to see some photos of the more rare stuff. And thanks for doing the redemption pack give away.

  3. I wanted to make it this year. But alas it wasn’t meant to be. Next year for sure! And Im super stoked to get a chance for some of those wrapper redemption packs!!!

  4. Missed the word “card” before “blow-up” the first time around and thought I was reading about a whole other convention for a moment.

    Looks great. Would love to be there.

  5. Was the Donruss Elite 10-11 released for NBA and MLB at Panini? Cause I know Elite for NFL already came out! Nice stockage of people down there busting some packs of Panini Products. It’s nice having people busting open packs you know? Hope I can come next year!

  6. Oh, i am going to have to go next year, or the next….I just have to. Your booth looks amazing! Thanks for the pics and videos. Keep up the good work Panini!

  7. I wish i was able to go, but i had to go out of town for work. Panini looks like they did a great job, and what a pack redemption program. love one of those hockey or sketch auto’s. i went to the last national in chicago and no card company created as much buzz as panini. great job guys

  8. Those are some awesome photos. I love the pictures of the gold cards! Maybe I’ll get lucky and pull one myself.

  9. Man that looks “AWSOME” I have been wanting to go to the National for like 3 years and I never get to something always comes up!!!!

  10. I remember that booth well from the All-Star Weekend Jam Session, though there are some notable additions to the displays. Thanks for supporting your fans, Panini!

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