If you’re going to call yourself the King of Collectibles—and anchor a hit Netflix series—you’d better back it up with jaw-dropping cards, historic memorabilia, and moments that keep raising the bar. And if you’re heading into a third season, each one has to top the last.

That’s the standard facing Goldin founder and CEO Ken Goldin as Season 3 of King of Collectibles: The Goldin Touch premieres on Netflix tomorrow, December 23.

Fresh off being named the Mantel Hobby Awards’ 2025 Collectibles Exec of the Year, Goldin has already been teasing what’s ahead this season: a never-before-seen T206 Honus Wagner, and a PSA 10 Pokémon Pikachu Illustrator consigned by Logan Paul—memorably worn by Goldin himself on a gold-and-diamond chain at the Jake Paul vs. Anthony Joshua fight.

Ahead of the premiere, we watched Season 3 and caught up with Goldin at his LA launch party to talk Ohtani home run balls, celebrity collectors, 2026 predictions, and what fans can expect when they hit play.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

 

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Mantel: 

Alright, I’m here with Ken Goldin, CEO of Goldin. King of Collectibles: The Goldin Touch returns December 23. Ken, this is season three now?

Ken Goldin:

Third season.

Mantel:

So you’ve done this a few times now. For people who’ve watched all three seasons, how do you raise the bar again? What’s different about this season compared to season two?

Ken Goldin:

First of all, the people watching this (interview) are in the hobby. This isn’t for the general public. If you’re in the hobby, this will be your favorite season—end of story. Bar none. Not a close second.

You’re going to lose your mind over episode three and episode six. Episode three is the one you got a little sneak peek of, right?

Mantel:

Yeah—and I was told not to say anything.

Ken Goldin:

Good. I just wanted to make sure I had the right episode number. I’ve seen them all so long ago, months back.

But the people we deal with this season are absolutely epic. The items are unbelievable. And most importantly, the stories behind them. You’re going to watch and say, “Holy shit—this is why I collect.”

That’s the best thing about this season. We go deep into the product, the history, the stories. They really get it. It’s by far the best season, and it was such a joy to make.

There are also some key moments nobody knows about—things that haven’t been in any preview. One special friend knows something he probably shouldn’t, but other than that, nobody will know until December 23.

You’re going to love it. And honestly, I think this season is going to set off a new gold rush—people hunting for great stuff.

Mantel:

Every year the show seems to get bigger. How much exposure has it really driven? Do people come up to you saying they saw the show?

Ken Goldin:

All the time. It’s brought so many people into the hobby.

People tell me it rekindled their passion, that they came back after years away, or that they just started collecting because of the show. And a lot of people thank me because now their wife understands what they’ve been doing. Their girlfriend finally gets it.

I’ll give you a perfect example. I’m literally standing in front of Shohei Ohtani’s third home run baseball right now—I just picked it up today. If it weren’t for the Netflix show, I would not have gotten it.

The first time I spoke to the guy who caught it, he said, “You’re the only one I’m thinking of. You’re the king—you have to handle this.”

That’s David Curtis—he’s actually here at the party tonight. He caught the ball, we made a deal, and I told him I’d debut it at the Netflix premiere and list it on Goldin when the show drops on December 23. He said, “You’ve got a deal.”

That’s why nobody’s heard about it yet.

Mantel:

Do you have a sense of where that ball might land value-wise?

Ken Goldin:

I think it’s a seven-figure ball. It’s the greatest individual performance in sports history.

On the mound—10 strikeouts, no runs—you’re going to the World Series, and you hit three home runs in the same game. There’s nothing in any team sport you can compare that to.

People always bring up Babe Ruth—and rightfully so—but this is different. One hundred years from now, this baseball will still matter. Babe Ruth pitched and hit home runs, but it wasn’t like this. Not in the same moment. Not on this stage.

Mantel:

You’ve worked with a lot of celebrities over the years. I won’t ask you to pick favorites—but are there certain people who just have a great eye?

Ken Goldin:

Absolutely. A lot of former baseball players really understand the hobby.

If we’re talking pure sports cards—again, I hope he doesn’t mind me saying this—but Josh Donaldson is one of the truest buyers I’ve ever seen. He’s real. No BS. What you see is what you get.

And when it comes to passion—pure passion—that’s Logan Paul. He genuinely loves this stuff. He gets excited, he cares, and he’s an absolute joy to work with.

But honestly, a lot of them are into it. Drake was buying from me through his manager five years before I even met him in person.

There’s a funny story there—his team called and said, “We need something Titanic.” So I start looking at shipwreck artifacts. Then my partner says, “Wait—do they mean the movie?” Good thing we checked. We ended up getting him something from Titanic, and they said he absolutely loved it. We’ve had pieces like Kate Winslet’s dress from the film.

I love the Hollywood stuff. It’s a great expansion for us. We did our first-ever rock auction—it crushed.

Cards, though? I’ve been doing this forever. I sold my first card in 1978. I’ve seen every rise, every fall, every so-called bubble. People have always said the same thing—the market’s going to crash, it’s a tulip. I’ve heard it all.

What’s happening now isn’t a mania like 2021. This is different. Collectibles are now firmly established as an alternative asset class. It’s smart money, educated collectors, people who actually care and do the research. And the market just keeps growing.

Mantel:

You’ve talked before about funds and institutional interest coming into the space.

Ken Goldin:

That’s very real. There’s more than one fund that hasn’t even announced itself yet that’s had serious conversations with me about entering this space.

Mantel:

Looking ahead—any predictions for 2026?

Ken Goldin:

I think vintage cards continue to rise. And I think we’re going to see a new collectible category emerge—something none of us are really covering yet. One item is going to hit, sell big, and suddenly that opens up a whole new lane.

That’s the fun part—we don’t know what it is yet.

Mantel:

Appreciate it, Ken. Excited to see the season.

Ken Goldin:

Thank you so much.

You can watch The Mantel Hobby Awards here: