Dec. 6, 2024

Card collectors: There’s about to be a new option in the Sioux Falls metro area.

Tata’s Trading Card Co. opens Saturday in a retail center in Brandon at 517 N. Splitrock Blvd.

It’s owned by the husband-and-wife team of Johnny Than and Jessica Eck, who also own Cheezy Noodlez Gourmet Mac & Cheeze food truck.

“Johnny has always had a love for cards,” Eck explained. “It started when Pokemon first came out, and he had an uncle who owned a collectible card and comic book shop.”

That store was in the Seattle area, where Than helped out his uncle as a child. Than and Eco now live on the east side of Sioux Falls and have a daughter in the Brandon Valley School District, so they gravitated toward Brandon when considering opening their own shop.

The plan is to carry new and collectible sports cards in addition to Pokemon, the One Piece series and Magic: The Gathering.

“We plan on hopefully setting up a particular day when sellers can come in and we’ll take a look and see if there’s anything we can get from them,” Eck said.

The concept for the store took root when their daughter, who is 7, began taking an interest in cards with her dad. They’ve sold for about 18 months online.

“With his passion for it, we see how popular it is, but everything is on the west side of town,” Eck said of Sioux Falls.

They have finished operating the food truck for the season and next year will focus on large events and festivals, allowing time to balance both businesses.

For now, the card shop is “just the two of us, but we hope once we get it up and going that we’ll be able to bring in staff and pass along duties,” Eck said.

The hope also is to add events and tournaments, she said.

“Our goal is to make it a family-friendly environment where parents can come with their kids and hang out and play card games and open cards and trade cards,” she said.

Hours will be noon to 7 p.m. weekdays and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday.