Family-owned business strives to connect customers with autographed collectibles
Published in the April 30 – May 13, 2014 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Staff Report
Photo by Marty Cheek
Small Town Memorabilia owners Amanda Van Winkle and her husband Sam Leyva with daughter Emma Leyva, 7 and son J.J. Leyva, 5.
South Valley residents looking for a unique autographed gift item or who simply want a personally signed photo from a celebrity have the perfect store in Morgan Hill. Small Town Memorabilia is a family-owned shop in Morgan Hill’s Plaza Shopping Center that features an array of collectible photographs, sports equipment and toys, many of which have the added value of a celebrity or sports hero’s signature.
Morgan Hill Life asked owner Sam Leyva about his collectibles store and why he helps shoppers connect with famous people through autographed items.
What is the appeal for people to collect photographs or sports items such as baseballs that have an autograph from a celebrity or sports figure?
When you come right down to it, it’s the fact that through pen to paper you now own a piece of them, a moment in time, a memory of that celebrity. Your favorite celebrity became your favorite when they did something that you loved. Having a collectible on your wall that you know for a fact was signed by that person and staring at it before every game or concert or family movie gives you that extra boast of pride.
Much of your business as a ‘grapher’ involves traveling with your family to sports tournaments and special celebrity events where you meet athletes and entertainers. Describe why this is a fun part of your business and how you approach famous people for their autographs.
It’s a lot easier then you might think to approach celebrities, no matter if it’s at an event or just walking down the street. Just walk right up, be polite and ask if they have time to sign an autograph or take a photo. Most celebrities usually will take the time. We respect the time athletes and musicians give to attend celebrity events and sign for their fans. Not every “big timer” is happy to sign, and that keeps things interesting. But the fun fact of our job is we take working vacations. We get to dress nice and comfy and take lots of pictures. We can’t afford to not go, and since we started doing consignments we haven’t had a year that we couldn’t afford to go.
You provide a certificate of authenticity with your autographed items. Explain what this is and why you can provide this certificate.
A certificate of authenticity is a card that certifies the authenticity of any autographed item. We provide COAs for all our autographed items so that our customers know they are receiving a real, authentic, hand-signed autograph.
You take consignments from customers. How does this work and what items do you usually take on as a consignment?
Every month I send an email describing special events I’m attending. I list celebrities or athletes I’ll be seeing. Say the Yankees are in town and a customer has a Derek Jeter jersey they want signed but don’t have time to get it signed themselves. That’s where I come in. For a fee, I’ll take the customer’s item to the event and get it signed for them.
Small Town Memorabilia helps out local nonprofit organizations by providing autographed items for silent auctions at functions. Why do you think this is important to do?
As a new business, we look for ways to help out our community. By doing silent auctions, the money that is raised goes to a good cause that helps people throughout the Morgan Hill community.
