Tom Bradyâs rapidly expanding sports card business is bringing some considerable star power along for its next stage.
CardVault by Tom Brady announced on August 13 that JAY-Z, New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge, Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid and UFC President and CEO Dana White are among the members of its first strategic investor group. But the company says the investment is about considerably more than attaching famous names to the brand.
CardVault plans to use the new capital for additional stores, new distribution channels, hiring, technology, supply-chain infrastructure and an improved customer experience as it works toward a long-term goal of more than 100 locations nationwide.
That makes Thursdayâs announcement particularly notable for collectors. Bradyâs company is attempting something much larger than opening another collection of local hobby shops: It is trying to create a recognizable national retail network around sports cards and collectibles.
JAY-Z, Aaron Judge Join Deep CardVault Investor Group
CardVaultâs investor list stretches well beyond athletes and entertainers.
In addition to JAY-Z, Judge, McDavid and White, the company named RedBird Capital founder Gerry Cardinale; Silver Lake co-CEOs Egon Durban and Greg Mondre; Addition founder Lee Fixel; Raising Caneâs founder Todd Graves; Boston Celtics co-owner Wyc Grousbeck; Fenway Sports Group principal owner John Henry; Boston Globe Media CEO Linda Henry; The Kraft Group; Entrata CEO Adam Edmunds; Brady manager Ben Rawitz; and creative studio Shadow Lion.
Sports Illustrated and other collectibles outlets quickly focused on the recognizable names in the group after the announcement.
CardVault co-founder Ed Kane, however, described the strategy as finding investors who could actually help build the business rather than simply supply capital.
âWe weren’t looking for passive investors, we wanted builders, people who genuinely understand what weâre creating and can help us scale it the right way,â Kane said in the company announcement.
That distinction matters because of the range represented in the group. CardVault now has investors tied to major professional sports organizations, institutional investment firms, media, technology, restaurants and entertainment as it looks for ways to grow both inside and outside traditional hobby retail.
Bradyâs CardVault Has Gone From 3 Stores to 17
The investment arrives during an already aggressive expansion.
Brady acquired a 50% ownership stake in CardVault in February 2025, when the business had three locations. The company said Thursday that it has grown to 17 locations nationwide in a little more than a year.
That trajectory has accelerated throughout 2026. CardVault announced its 12th location and first flagship store in San Francisco in February, describing itself at the time as the largest national U.S. retailer dedicated to sports cards, memorabilia and collectibles.
Heavy reported on August 6 that co-founder Chris Costa said every CardVault location was profitable to date, while a company spokesperson said revenue had grown 400% from 2025 to 2026. Costa also outlined a goal of reaching 40 stores by 2028 before eventually expanding to 100.
Thursdayâs announcement supplies another piece of that growth strategy.
Rather than relying solely on brick-and-mortar stores, CardVault says it intends to expand into automated retail, digital commerce, strategic partnerships and other distribution channels. Its CardVault Breaks operation also gives the company a live-streaming business through which customers can participate in real-time card openings.
Tom Brady Sees Collecting Becoming a Bigger Part of Sports Culture
Brady framed the investor group as evidence of a larger opportunity around the hobby.
âCollecting today is about much more than owning a card. It’s about the stories, the memories and the community that brings fans together,â Brady said in the announcement.
âThe caliber of this investor group reflects the opportunity we see to grow collecting into an even bigger part of sports culture.â
For CardVault, the next test is whether it can translate that cultural momentum into a retail model capable of working at national scale.
The company is already placing stores in high-traffic sports and entertainment destinations rather than following only the traditional neighborhood-card-shop model. Its footprint has included locations around venues and destination retail properties, a strategy designed to put cards in front of existing collectors and casual sports fans alike.
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