The Legendary Brand Begins a New Chapter with Premium Music and Pop Culture Trading Cards
NEW YORK, July 29, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Exhibit Supply Company (ESCO), the legendary trading card brand founded in 1901 and credited with helping invent the modern trading card, officially returns today, ushering one of the hobby’s most historic names into a new era.
Originally based in Chicago, the Exhibit Supply Company brand was considered one of the earliest producers of collectible picture cards featuring entertainers, athletes and cultural icons, including Charlie Chaplin, Babe Ruth, Marilyn Monroe, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. ESCO was also the first company to release trading cards independently of other consumer products such as tobacco or gum, helping define the category as it exists today.
More than 125 years after its founding, the iconic ESCO brand returns for a new era, with a renewed focus on premium music and pop culture collectibles. Honoring its rich heritage while embracing the future of collecting, the ESCO Trading Cards brand will feature innovative products celebrating the world’s most influential artists and cultural icons.
Beginning in 2026, ESCO Trading Cards will find themselves distributed into mass retail and specialty hobby stores. The brand will introduce premium boxed collections featuring some of the world’s biggest music artists, including authentic autographs and relic cards containing stage-worn items, continuing ESCO’s legacy of innovation while setting a new standard for music and pop culture collectibles.
“The Exhibit Supply Company brand helped shape the history of trading cards more than a century ago, and we’re honored to build on that legacy for today’s generation of collectors,” said Robert Thomsen, CEO of ESCO Trading Cards. “Music and pop culture deserve a dedicated home in the hobby, and the ESCO moniker gives us the opportunity to create premium collectibles that honor artists, resonate with fans and continue pushing the category forward.”
With its return, ESCO Trading Cards stands as the only premium trading card brand dedicated exclusively to music and pop culture, bridging more than a century of collecting history with the future of the hobby.
For more information, visit: escotradingcards.com and follow @escotradingcards on Instagram and TikTok and @escotrdingcards on X .
Exhibit Supply Company (ESCO), is the legendary collectibles brand founded in 1901 and credited with helping invent the modern trading card. Exhibit Supply Company was among the earliest producers of collectible picture cards featuring entertainers, athletes and cultural icons, including Charlie Chaplin, Babe Ruth, Marilyn Monroe, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones as well as the first company to release trading cards independently of other consumer products such as tobacco or gum. ESCO Trading Cards stands as the only premium trading card brand dedicated exclusively to music and pop culture, bridging more than a century of collecting history with the future of the hobby.
