Blake Martinez enjoyed a successful seven-year playing career in the NFL. Yet he walked away from it all in 2022 to pursue his passion: selling Pokémon cards.
Sounds hard to believe, but Martinez is not second-guessing his decision. because he’s made millions selling the cards.
Martinez, a fourth-round pick by the Green Bay Packers in 2016, started 78 games at linebacker with the Packers, New York Giants, and Las Vegas Raiders. He even co-led the NFL in tackles in 2017. He earned more than $28 million during his pro football career.
A torn ACL in 2021 sidetracked his career, however, and a year later, while rehabbing the injury, he found himself at a crossroads. Martinez told CNBC.com he’d begun selling Pokémon cards during the Covid pandemic.
Incredibly, Martinez chose Pokémon cards as his new career. He formed a company, Blake’s Breaks, hired more than a dozen contract employees, and went to work.
He told CNBC he’s made more than $5 million in revenue in the last seven months.
“Every single day when I wake up, my shoulder doesn’t hurt and my back doesn’t hurt anymore,” Martinez told CNBC.com. “When all that hurts are my fingers from opening, like, 1,000 packs of cards per day, I think, ‘I’m going to keep doing this.’”
Despite the quick success, Martinez is just getting started on his goals. He eventually wants to expand into comic books and other collectibles and reach $25 million in annual sales.
“I used to be like the quarterback of the defense, I was calling plays,” Martinez said. “When I started this business, it felt like running a team again.”
[CNBC.com]
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.