Hello Goodbuy brings collectibles and more to downtown Wetumpka

Everyone has seen it in the old movies. Some may recall doing it.

Putting baseball cards in the spokes of bicycle tires.

Gary Fisher does and regrets it.

“I was seven years old on my banana seat high-handle bars bicycle,” Fisher said. “In my front tire I had a 1952 Mickey Mantle rookie card inside the spoke. Back then it was worth $15-20. In the back tire I had a 1941-2 Babe Ruth in the back.”

Fisher said he won many a race as a seven year old kid in the early 70s with that combination.

“Mine supposedly sounded louder,” Fisher.

Fisher now knows the ways of his mistake. In poor condition the Mantle card is worth about $20,000. In even poorer condition the Babe Ruth card is worth about $50,000.

“I get sick to my stomach,” Fisher said. “I destroyed those cards. It’s disturbing.”

In addition Fisher said his mother threw away his baseball cards from his childhood.

Almost 50 years later, Fisher is still collecting baseball cards and more. Co-owners and husband and wife Fisher and Annette He and his wife Annette Lineberry have brought their love of collectibles and memorabilia to downtown Wetumpka with Hello Goodbuy.

“Hello is to greet you, we have everything,” Fisher said. “Goodbuy, we have good deals.

We are not a flea market. We specialize in vintage — cards, coins, games and other collectibles.”

In the Company Street store old bottles, vintage games, neon, coins from collections the husband and wife have acquired, picked and inherited over the years can be found along side Fisher’s favorites — baseball cards. Fisher is the owner often greeting customers. Lineberry is there too though her speciality is more in finding the vintage collectables.

At the Friday grand opening he showed off a rookie Nolan Ryan card and cards from Topps featuring parts of bats from Lou Ghering and Babe Ruth. 

Fisher played baseball and was good as a pitcher, fielder and batter. He said he turned down a MLB contract playing other professional baseball to pursue music.

“I really liked music,” Fisher said. “I couldn’t do it with the MLB and all the games.”

Along the way he never left baseball as he coached some and worked in the card industry with Beckett. 

“I was an authenticator,” Fisher said.

The couple landed in Wetumpka to be near his family and continue in thier online business of buying and selling collectibles. 

“I look for immediate stuff, things that I can sell right away,” Fisher said.

But the couple wanted a store front.

“We have all this stuff in storage,” Fisher said. “What you see in the store is a mere fraction of it.” 

There is jewelry too. Rings designed and made by Fisher. It’s a craft he started when he was 12. Linberry's wedding rings we designed and crafted by Fisher.

It’s all available at the downtown Wetumpka store on Company Street.

The couple has visions for growth and wants to build a couple booths inside the store near the bicycles, neon signs and glass insulators. 

“I think I will put game consoles and let people play by the hour on a big screen television,” Fisher said. “I can see parties. In a booth I want to do live auctions and box openings online. I just hope we can do everything we want.”