Shame on Leaf, and Haliey “Hawk Tuah” Welch
It is a great shame to see an iconic sports cards brand like Leaf, insert Haliey Welch into their 2024 Pop Century, and Metal set. The woman known as “Hawk Tuah” took the internet by storm 3 months ago, with her catch phrase “gotta hawk tuah, and spit on that thang”.
Since this time, Welch has thousands of follows on Tik Tok, Instagram, and other platforms. She has released a clothing line, launched a podcast (under a media company owned by Jake Paul), and even threw out the first pitch at a NY Mets game.
Leaf saw an opportunity to capitalize on the now social media queen, and should have just left it alone. I understand the need to be relevant, to go after celebrities that have made an impact in todays society, but all she has done…is come up with a catch phrase.
Should leaf have influencers in their product? Absolutely, but know your audience.
This hobby needs the next generation to collect. This hobby needs the excitement of ripping packs, pulling your favorite athlete, movie star, influencer and etc.
How does a parent explain to their 8 year old boy or girl who is walking down the aisle of their favorite sports card shop…stop and look at a Hawk Tuah autographed card. This is no longer a conversation of “who is the greatest hitter of all time” or “how many touchdowns did he throw”, or even “what is the greatest movie this person has even been in”. It is a whole different kind of conversation, one that I personally don’t want to have with my child.
Leaf, you can do better.
Hawk Tuah girl, go get your money, but the sports cards hobby is not the place to be.
