The Warehouse Find That Wasn’t: The Star Co. Shop at Home Story
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In 1997, a series of late-night television broadcasts on the Shop at Home Network changed the Star Company market forever. Robert Levin, the founder of Star, claimed to have discovered a ‘warehouse find’ of original 1980s basketball cards. For years, collectors debated their authenticity—until the truth came out: these were unauthorized reprints made from original plates long after Star lost its NBA license.
The Sales Pitch – Don West Of Shop At Home
In the following video, Don West, a legendary Shop at Home TV host, touts a package of Star Olympic Basketball cards with Michael Jordan that it claims were produced in 1984. The unfortunate reality is that the cards were produced only shortly before that actual video aired.
Accompanying each purchase was a letter from Robert Levin explaining that the cards had been in a Star warehouse for over 10 years and that buyers were “capitalizing” on the release of these vintage gems. In truth, Levin was re-creating these cards to generate quick cash, preying on the growing Michael Jordan market.
The Smoking Gun: A prime example is the 1984-85 Bulls Shop At Home Arena set. While claimed to have been produced in 1985 under Star’s official NBA license, these cards were actually printed in 1997—over a decade after Star’s licensing agreement had expired.
Levin’s Legal Reality: The NBA Strikes Back
It is difficult to say what Levin truly hoped to accomplish. Common sense suggests these lies were concocted to realize massive profits from unsuspecting collectors. However, once the NBA caught wind of the operation, the scandal was broken wide open.
In July 1997, the NBA filed a lawsuit against Levin (owner of Star International) and the Shop at Home Network to halt the distribution of these cards.
The Star Cards are worthless counterfeit
NBA Lawsuit against star international in 1997
items that the Defendants have recently manufactured’
The NBA’s Argument:
- They alleged that Levin had “manufactured, sold, and distributed unlicensed Star basketball trading cards bearing counterfeits of the NBA Marks.”
- The NBA stated that Star had “falsely represented to the public and the trade” that these were authentic, licensed cards from years ago.
- Most damningly, the NBA declared: “The Star Cards are worthless counterfeit items that the Defendants have recently manufactured.”
The NBA listed the sets that were all a part of the Shop At Home network scandal in the lawsuit. We have created profiles on all of these sets to help collectors distinguish the unlicensed Shop At Home cards from the real, licensed issues.
What Happened To Levin And Star?
It is alleged that Levin and the NBA settled out of court and that Levin received very harsh warnings not to participate in any future card production. From an article by Babe Waxpack in 2006:
“The lawsuit was settled in our favor,” said the NBA’s Matt Bourne. “It was a civil litigation, and he ultimately agreed to turn over the cards for destruction.” The NBA reached an out-of- court settlement with Shop at Home. While Levin was licensed to make cards in the mid-1980s, there was no license for the second run that was produced in the mid-1990s. No one knows how many of those unlicensed cards made it into the secondary marketplace via SAH. The cards came in team bags.
The core issue here is that, despite the letters issued with the Shop At Home sets (claiming either 1000 or 1500 sets were produced for each set), it is unknown how many Shop At Home sets were actually produced. However, speaking from firsthand experience, it is likely that these sets did indeed have a limited circulation.
It’s unfortunate that this is the chapter that closed out the Star story. Levin deserves a lot of credit for creating some of the most significant sets in the history of basketball cards. Thankfully, the Star company is well remembered for the licensed sets produced from 1984 to 1986.
Are Shop At Home Star Cards Worth Anything?
For years, I’ve told collectors that Shop at Home cards were mostly worthless—best viewed as “collector’s items” rather than investments. However, as original licensed Star cards have surged in value, an underground group of collectors has emerged who support the Shop at Home issues.
These collectors are willing to look past the “counterfeit” label, viewing them instead as limited-run, affordable alternatives to the expensive 1984 originals.
A New Perspective on Grading: One company, Rare Air Collectibles, is now aiming to grade Shop at Home cards—a move PSA is unlikely to mirror. This helps collectors distinguish between three distinct categories:
- Original Star: Licensed (1983–1986)
- Shop at Home Star: Unlicensed/Reprint (1997)
- Star Fantasy Cards: Fakes/Counterfeits (To be avoided entirely)
While I cannot wholeheartedly recommend investing in Shop at Home cards, if they “scratch an itch” for your personal collection at a low price point, they remain a fascinating—if controversial—chapter of hobby history.
