Interview with Kristen Barner - former Press Pass Marketing Director

Taliasen

From a pack deep in the north country...
Transactions: 2
This is an older interview I had published a while ago, re-used with permission.

Press Pass Inc.


How did you get the job you are in today? Is there a particular college degree or specialized skills needed? What advice would you give to someone seeking employment at Press Pass?

There is a very diverse group of people working in the office. We have employees with degrees anywhere from art and design to journalism and business.


Thank you for taking the time to do this for us. I am wondering how you choose players for certain sets.

Players for sets are chosen based on talent, interest, and popularity.


Are Press Pass cards made from recycled material?

Not all Press Pass cards are made from recycled material; however, Element 2010 was made printed on recycled card stock.


Are there any rules at Press Pass that forbids employees from collecting cards/memorabilia?

No, there are no rules forbidding employees from collecting, but just like anyone else, in order for an employee to get Press Pass cards, we would have to go to our local store! All cards are kept locked up, monitored, and inventoried.


What affect do you think the current economic crisis will have on the industry?

Obviously, there is less disposable income for collectors to use to purchase trading cards. We are completely aware and are doing everything in this time to try and help our hobby stores. We have begun going to stores to help owners host events, providing promotions for retailers. These experiences have been great because not only do we get to become closer to our retailers, but we get to meet our collectors face to face and hear their feedback. We love getting feedback from our customers – any and all feedback is welcomed.


What is a typical day at the office for you at Press Pass?

This really varies in our office! A typical day could be spent designing new cards, visiting sports teams, speaking to collectors, visiting retailers, checking new memorabilia, planning new products, watching a new product pack out to make sure the odds are consistent and correct…and the list go on!


Do you have a corporate booth where you can attend card shows?

We are set up at many of the major trade shows. We will have a booth at the National Sports Collectors Convention and have many great promotions going on, so be sure to stop by!


Have you ever met any pro athletes through Press Pass?

Yes, we have met pro athletes. Whether it is by chance, a meeting, or a planned visit to our office, many of us in the office have had the opportunity to meet pro athletes.


One of my other hobbies is Photography. How are the photos selected? Does Press Pass have a dedicated photo staff? If so, how do you get into the biz?

We have a dedicated person on staff that selects photos for our products. We currently have an agreement with Getty Images to provide all of our current NASCAR photography, but we also utilize images from a number of freelance photographers for our sets that feature college football and vintage photography.


What can we expect from Press Pass in future products?

We are always striving to produce cutting-edge, highly collectible products. Stay tuned for more details on our newest addition to the Press Pass line-up, Five Star, premiering this year!


Usually how many sticker autographs do players usually sign at one time?

Due to timing constraints, we only have one release that utilizes sticker autographs. All other autographs are signed on-card, and we just have the athletes sign the number of autographs we need for a given product, so that info varies for each session.

Do you encourage or discourage players from adding inscriptions or other things along with the signature?

Athletes are encouraged to add inscriptions to their cards, and are sometimes provided with explicit instructions on how to execute ink variations throughout an insert.


How do you receive the event worn items and store/catalog them?

We pick up the materials from the team facilities, photograph each item and log it into our memorabilia inventory system. The items are kept in a secure room here in the office, which requires a pass-code for entry.


Recently there has been some discussion on The Bench about event used material cards and their authenticity. What steps does Press Pass take to ensure that your getting what the card says it is?

We work very closely with each race team to secure race-used memorabilia and ensure their authenticity. Some items are even picked up at the track! All items are labeled by the team so that in most cases we can even identify which race the item was used in.


Your cards are great and even better then most brands especially with the on-card autos and also the photography. Are you going to try and get a contract with the NFL?

We would definitely have interest in obtaining a license from other sports leagues that would be viable options for us. The NFL would definitely fit that bill, but ultimately, that decision is theirs to make. Since they are currently going through the process of reducing the number of licensees they have, it doesn’t appear that we will be getting a license in the near future.


What is the typical timeline for a set? How much times passes between concept, design, production, packaging and distribution?

We typically begin developing our sets around six months prior to the release date. Working this far in advance allows us to deliver on-card autographs to collectors. The time required for design and production vary depending on the complexity of the release.


Event worn and Auto cards have been around for over a decade now. Those are always considered "hits" in packs. Is there any new type of revolutionary card or item being discussed to toss into packs that could change the hobby and considered a "hit?"

As industry leaders in innovation, we introduced the first athlete-worn materials into the market in the mid 90’s. Since then the “hits” have come a long way, and we are continually looking at ways to provide additional value to collectors.


My thanks to Kirsten Barner for taking time to answer our questions!
 
Is Kirsten still at Press Pass? I use to use her as my point of contact when I was a mod over at a different site, but lost track of her.
 
Kirsten tried to help me a couple years ago with an issue I had with her company in regards to them losing my redemption card for a Chris "Jesus" Ferguson autographed card from their Main Event Racing brand. In the end, she was told to pass along to me by her superiors that unless I had proof I sent in the redemption, I was SOL. I couldn't find the slip, as it was well over a year after it was sent in(closer to two years), so I lost out on a $30+ ebay buy, and over $15 in shipping costs, because of their out-dated redemption process. The scan I had in my photo bucket, and the auction link to my purchase wasn't enough proof for them.

I have not bought one single pack of their products ever since, and have told hundreds of people my Press Pass experience, and will continue to do so till the day I die. I was also told that they were gonna switch to codes, and online redemptions like all the other card companies do, but obviously that was a lie. Why should someone have to pay to send in a redemption card from a pack of their product that should have had the auto in it in the first place? To this day, I don't think they've ever fulfilled Fergusons auto redemption, because they didn't have an agreement in place with these poker stars when they packed this out, and were not able to reach agreements with some of them afterwards, including Ferguson.

This is so wrong it's stinks, and they should have done back flips to fix this problem with me, but they chose to slap me in the face. I guess they have no loyalties to customers that have been with them since day one?
 
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