There are football merchandise collections and then there are REAL, football merchandise collections. You know the ones. The duvets, the curtains, the mugs, the glasses, the badges, the figures, the programmes, the flags... Well, as far as Arsenal 'collections' go... This might just be, the greatest!
When Josh Steeples, (the man behind @astorelike94 ) started to post about the collection, we simply had to reach out to speak to him about it, such is its size and quality. Here's what we found out about it.
CK: So come on, what's the oldest piece in the collection?
JS: Probably an immaculate 1934 Newspaper celebrating Arsenal's third consecutive league title.
CK: How many items are there in the whole collection?
JS: There is approx three hundred plus items in the whole collection ranging from 1934 to 2004 which I would say is about 90% originals. Ranging from newspapers, books, mugs, scarfs, rosettes, pennants, toys, shirts, jewellery, records, plates, hats, mirrors, bedding, lampshades, programs glass wear and more.
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CK: There's got to be a tough one to let go of?
JS: I mean, I've been buying and selling for longer than I can remember so everything has a price and I never get too precious with things. I'm more addicted to hunting than selling at the moment tho which is becoming dangerous. But I have started organising all my finds from the last 18 months and definitely plan to start a vintage section on my website, for all those obscure bits of memorabilia that you didn't know you needed in your life.
CK: What are your favourite piece(s) in the collection?
JS: It's quite a lot to take in, even though Ive been through three or four times but I would say I never get old of seeing boxed power play figures from the 90s especially this one of Dennis Bergkamp with interchangeable Tony Adams head.
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There's also a nice Nwankwo Kanu glass that I've since found out is a reproduction but definitely holding onto that and it's always great to find dead-stock bits which there are a few nice examples of like some Arsenal bathroom sets and some 98 scarfs. Just the weird and obscure bits appeal to me the most.
CK: Is there a single piece you can't bare to see go?
JS: Not really as i'm not an Arsenal fan myself but...the 70's I think Arsenal belt is talking to me.
CK: Have you seen/do you know of any other collections like this?
JS: Crazily this is actually the second part to a collection I found in 2021 which the seller had stored in his attic. So, I've been through this exact scenario before. But apart from this double header I have only had three or four in the past.
One that especially sticks out and kind of sent me on the path I'm on today really is unearthing an old sports shop in Leicester that me and my friend found in 2015. It was branded as a knitwear shop but one day when we were walking past we noticed a life size washed out David Beckham Adidas Predators cardboard cutout in the window so decided to venture in.
Once we were inside at first we didn't notice much as the shop was quite cluttered and dark but after about 5 minutes and finding a few Adidas bits my eyes started working and I couldn't quite believe what I saw.
Underneath all of the knitwear was bags and bags of dead stock football shirts. And this is no lie, there were around 100s of shirts and some of the most iconic of today's vintage collectors scene. Arsenal 1991 home and bruised bananas, USA 94 home and away shirts, Liverpool 1992 candy shirts, Manchester United 1991 and more. Top this off with a ton of tracksuits and other miscellaneous bits. I played it cool and went back a day later and bought up the whole shop without hesitating for a very reasonable price. I still regret not buying the David cardboard cut out or documenting any of it all to this day.
CK: Ever thought about just dedicating a room to it all – 90's bedroom style?
JS: I already have, my home studio is bursting at the seams with tat that Ive collected around the globe over the last ten years. But as I said before i'm in the process of tidying it all up and hopefully creating my of an archive so watch this space.
CK: What do you value the overall collection at?
JS: I mean this varies, If i was to re-sell it all individually your looking at six thousand plus and that's just averaging most items at £20 on eBay etc but realistically most items are worth 30-60+ so it could be a lot more. I'm currently looking to re-home it for a lot less than that but as one collection. I'm a real believer in not just cashing in and making sure especially vintage items fall into the right hands and hopefully this means in a way where more people will get to see it.
CK: Have you been approached by many Arsenal club merch collector's?
JS: I've had a handful of collectors show interest but it's quite a commitment..just to home it but what I'm really hoping is Arsenal the club itself might be interested as i'm sure it could be great for some future advertisements and as you said to use for that classic bedroom shoot for one of their many shirt releases.
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