The conference centre at Bingemans was covered in some of the best cards, toys, and memorabilia in Waterloo region.

The Kitchener Collectibles Expo came to town and featured a one-of-one autographed Mitch Marner card worth about $1,000 from TML Locker Room.

Owner Damien Wronski says some cards can jump in value by as much as three to four times their original worth.

"We're exploding, especially with the way the Leafs have been playing as of late," said Wronski. "Pandemic definitely made it jump a lot. You've got a lot of people buying, selling, and trading."

He adds it's an industry that saw great growth during the pandemic and is still going strong.

"It was more a niche," said Wronski. "It was people that were really into it. It didn't have as much of a mainstream appeal as it does now. Pandemic hit, everybody was stuck inside, so they wanted some way to subsidize their income or something to do as a hobby."

More than 190 vendors were set up at the event.