Since starting CW Sports Memorabilia ten years ago, Charles Warburton has continued to blend his passion for hockey, photography, and collecting sports memorabilia into a thriving business while forging a reputation for offering a variety of unique and authentic collectables to customers.
Warburton, who organically hails from Etobicoke, Ontario, and now makes his home in Brantford, delved into how he got started as a collector and eventually as a business owner.
“I used to just be an autograph collector at the rinks, getting a couple of signatures from players. One day, a few guys asked if I would sell some…as I had a couple of extras…and it kind of took off from there. It really started with something so simple….once I had extras and people were asking about them, I started looking into the business,” he said, “I found a framing company that helped me out, so I began selling framed items and getting in on bigger signings with players through larger companies. I was kind of a nobody at the time, doing maybe 10 or 20 pieces to get the unit price down and grow from there.”
From there, he started to steadily grow CW Sports Memorabilia from his home office.
“Eventually, I moved operations to my basement office and started organizing my own private signings, where I would hire the player directly to get the cost down. The upfront cost is a lot higher, but you can make more money in the long run,” he noted. “Hockey has essentially been my whole life in every single aspect. This was just another way to stay involved with the sport and get to know these players personally. I’ve been a player, I’ve coached, I’ve done tons of refereeing, I do sports photography in the OHL, and we do autograph signings on the memorabilia side. Hockey is pretty much everything to me.”
However, before pursuing this endeavour, Warburton grew up playing hockey and being involved in other aspects of the game including refereeing.
“I’m originally from the Etobicoke area, so I grew up playing in Mimico for the Queensway Canadians, a house league select team [and] I also played Single-A and Double-A for the West Mall Lightning. For refereeing, I started at Mimico Arena when I was about 16, officiating the younger kids and working my way up to the GTHL and high-end Triple-A hockey,” the business owner said. “Eventually, I transitioned to men’s leagues because it offered consistent, easier pay and night hours. I’ve been doing that for over 20 years. Unfortunately, since moving to Brantford, I haven’t found a new gig for that yet. Timing is harder now because I have a kid, so my evenings are dedicated to him rather than refereeing.”
Photography, through the years, has also become another passion of his.
“That started because I have two younger brothers who played a lot of sports growing up. I always had an interest in photography. I took a class in high school, and my great-aunt gave me a film camera. I enjoyed taking pictures at my brothers’ games, so I pursued it further. I [also] worked at camera stores like Black’s and Henry’s to learn the technical side, though I never went to school for it. I’m completely self-taught from shooting my brothers’ games. Oddly enough, one of my brothers got an internship with the Mississauga Steelheads and asked, ‘Do you mind if my brother shoots a game for fun?’ I thought that would be great.” he reflected. “The following year, they were looking for a staff photographer and asked if I wanted to come back as a paid shooter…so I jumped at the chance. That was back in 2013. I’ve been the Steelheads’ photographer ever since. Even though they’ve moved to Brampton and I’ve moved to Brantford, I still make the trip for team media days and shoot for the OHL league itself. This year, I shot the OHL Draft, the OHL Awards, and the OHL Finals in Kitchener, which was a lot of fun.”
Nevertheless, photography has fascinated Warburton because it captures moments frozen in time for people to appreciate.
“It’s about capturing that single cool moment that only lasts a fraction of a second. When a player takes a shot and the stick flexes, that bend only lasts a millisecond. Grabbing that exact frame is an incredible feeling, and so is the reaction you get from others. The players and fans love it and parents will come up and say, ‘Oh my gosh, I can’t believe you got a photo of my son…that was his first goal!’ Feedback like that keeps you going. It started with my own family’s reactions, which meant a lot, but seeing these players grow up and seeing the parents and teams appreciate the work makes it so rewarding,” he stated.
And photography has provided him with a stepping stone into the world of memorabilia collecting and selling.
“Getting to know players at the OHL level gives you a head start when they get drafted into the NHL. I’ve reached out to several former Steelheads for signings once they made it to the pros. Since I spent years giving them photos during their junior careers, they’re often happy to return the favor by signing items for me,” Warburton said. “I’ve done signings with Owen Tippett (now with the Philadelphia Flyers), Nick Hague (when he won the Stanley Cup with the Las Vegas Golden Knights), and Mason Marchment (when he was with the Seattle Kraken). Having a personal relationship built over their junior years creates a connection that sticks. It’s nice that they remember me and are willing to help out my business.”
However, the sports memorabilia market is big, which has made Warburton think about ways of sticking out from the competition.
“The biggest challenge is finding ways to stand out because there are so many companies now. For a standard signed 8×10 photo, you’ll see ten different companies selling the exact same image for $50 or $100, which gets boring. I try to offer unique items…[so] I create custom photo designs myself, or I work with artists who create one-of-a-kind canvases from which we produce small, limited print runs. That way, I have a truly unique product that nobody else carries,” he said.
While he has become a respected entrepreneur in sports collecting, at the end of the day, Warburton still prides himself as being a collector as well which started in his childhood and as a Toronto Maple Leafs fan.
“Growing up in the early ’90s, I was a huge Toronto Maple Leafs fan…and still am. Felix Potvin was my favorite player. My parents got me his jersey when I was around 12 years old and I’ve remained a fan ever since. Through this business, I’ve had the chance to meet and work with Felix at least five times now. Whenever we do a signing, I keep adding pieces to my personal collection because he was my childhood hero,” he noted. “Most of the signed items in my personal collection are Felix Potvin pieces. In my basement, I have replicas of his iconic ’90s “cat claw” goalie pads, blocker, and glove. I had him sign them and even took a photo of him holding the pads. Anyone who was a Leafs fan in the ’90s recognizes those pads instantly. Having him sign them and pose with them makes that my favorite piece overall.”
And over the years, he has hosted numerous events with both hockey players and actors.
“I work with a golf course in Niagara that hosts celebrity golf days where fans get to meet athletes and actors. We sponsor the autograph side of the event and host private signings with the guests while they’re there. That’s how I met Christopher McDonald, who played Shooter McGavin in Happy Gilmore. I’ve worked with him four or five times, and he’s been fantastic. You might expect a big-time Hollywood actor with a 40- or 50-year career to act like he’s above everyone else, but he was incredibly genuine and happy to sign everything. He even recorded a few personalized shoutout videos with me. We also worked with Pat Roach, who plays Randy on Trailer Park Boys. He’s one of the best people to work with…he’s very humble, friendly…and is very easygoing,” Warburton said. “I found that working with actors is a lot of fun because millions of people worldwide recognize them, whereas hockey players appeal to specific fan bases. On the hockey side, we’ve done multiple signings with Doug Gilmour, Wendel Clark, Felix Potvin, Curtis Joseph, Darcy Tucker, and Mats Sundin. The core 1990s and early 2000s Leaf’s are the most popular, and many still live locally, making them accessible. It’s very cool working with the guys I grew up watching on TV.”
With the popularity of collecting growing, the memorabilia industry has its fair share of fraud, in which Warburton makes efforts to ensure customers have items that are authentic.
“Unfortunately, fake autographs are a huge issue, and machines that trace signatures make it easier for sketchy businesses to take advantage of uninformed buyers. For me, it’s all about building a brand based on trust. At every signing, I take 50 to 60 photos and videos as proof that each item was physically signed. When customers send in items from their personal collections for a signing, I always try to get a photo of the player signing their specific item before shipping it back. It adds a personal touch and gives the customer undisputed proof of authenticity,” he noted.
While he sells an array of unique memorabilia, people often request specific items for their collections.
“People reach out all the time looking for specific items. If a player is outside my budget to host for a solo signing, I’ll participate in multi-company group signings or scour the internet to track down rare items. Recently, a customer asked if I could find a Terry Fox autograph. I knew it would be extremely rare, but when I asked around, industry contacts told me they practically don’t exist. Coincidentally, a close friend of mine posted that he owns the only officially certified Terry Fox autograph in the world…and it happens to be located in Brampton…that narrowed my search down pretty quickly,” he recalled. “We also support charitable causes. For example, a coordinator who runs an annual Movember golf tournament reached out, and we brought in former Leafs captain Rick Vaive for his event. Rick gave a speech on men’s mental health, signed autographs, and we raffled off a round of golf with him. It’s rewarding to use our network to raise money for good causes while giving fans a chance to meet legendary players.”
However, after a short stint in Hamilton, the collector would move to Brantford and eventually build his business in the city.
“We moved out here about seven years ago from Hamilton. Hamilton was becoming too expensive to buy a home, so we looked further out and found a place in Brantford. And then about four years ago, I opened a small physical storefront. Getting the business out of my house gave us a dedicated space to display inventory and allowed local customers to drop off items for framing or upcoming signings,” he said.
Eventually, Warburton thought about creating an event that would appeal to the public.
“I’ve always wanted to organize a major sports memorabilia show….and running the Brantford Sports Expo felt like the best way to get involved with the community. People used to complain that there was nothing in town for sports collectors. Now, between my memorabilia shop and a couple of local card stores, the scene is growing. Hosting the Expo will bring local sports teams and fans together” he said. “I initially considered hosting one in Niagara through my golf connections, but doing it so far from my storefront didn’t make practical sense. Then I met James [Wright] through his Comic-Con events. He was looking to expand into sports events and offered to help me get started. We officially decided to move forward back in May or June. We looked at several locations and settled on the Marriott. They offered us a great deal on a beautiful space in exchange for a sponsorship package.”
For the upcoming Expo, Warburton has brought on aboard various hockey players including Mike Bullard, and Rick Vaive, and Lacrosse player Nick Rose.
“Having worked with Rick Vaive at charity golf events, like Doug Gilmour’s annual tournament, it was easy to reach out to him and get him to be part of the event. We also got Mike Bullard coming to the expo. He was more than happy to support the show…I’d never seen him do an autograph signing before, so I invited him. Since he lives locally in Caledonia and played for the Brantford Alexanders in the OHL back in the day. The community reaction has been extremely positive….people are sending in Mike’s 1980 OHL rookie cards to get signed! We also added David Ayres. He was the emergency backup goalie who famously won an NHL game for the Carolina Hurricanes against the Leafs’ seven years ago. He’s very down-to-earth and wanted to help our inaugural event grow. He’ll be signing autographs and bringing some of his game gear to sell,” he stated. “Lastly, we have Nick Rose, who’s the goaltender for the Toronto Rock lacrosse team…[and] who just won a championship. They’re bringing the championship trophy for photo opportunities. Nick is also an avid sports card collector himself, so he’s setting up his own vendor booth to trade cards and meet fans while signing autographs. It’s unique to have someone participating as both a celebrity guest and a card vendor.”
Warburton is looking forward to offering a diverse vendor list for the Brantford Sports Expo, which is slated for later this month.
“Most card shows feature 100 vendors all selling the exact same hockey cards. I wanted the Brantford Sports Expo to cover all aspects of sports. We have card vendors, card-grading services, sports artists, custom 3D-printing vendors, and sports organizations like the Toronto Rock and the Brantford Red Sox baseball team. We even have a lemonade/sweet treats stand run by a young girl from Kitchener. I saw a news story on CTV where someone called the city on her garage-sale lemonade stand for lacking a permit. I thought that was ridiculous [because] the kid was just trying to run a small business….so I called her family and offered her a vendor space at our show. We’re also giving free booth spaces to community charities. HB First Initiatives is participating to run raffles for local charities, and Autism Dog Services will be there with service dogs to demonstrate how they assist children with autism. It will give a chance to showcase these charities [and] give them a platform to highlight their incredible work,” he stated.
Going forward, Warburton is looking to grow both his memorabilia business and the expo.
“I want to keep growing the business. The sports market is always evolving with new draft classes and NHL team expansions, so there are endless opportunities. Eventually, I’d love to move into a larger retail storefront to serve Brantford even better. As for the Brantford Sports Expo, based on the overwhelming response so far, my goal is to double the size of the event next year,” he said.
