Jonathan MarinCVAu, AVAA Certified Valuer

I'm Jonathan Marin, a collectibles grading and valuation expert based in Sydney and an AVAA Certified Valuer (CVAu). I run Carter Jones Group, the group behind TCG Grading, TCG Trading Card Grading and TCG Valuations, I co-own the collectibles retailer TAG Collectibles, and I work across trading cards, vintage toys, action figures, sealed collectibles and pop culture memorabilia.

Collectibles have been part of my working life for more than a decade, buying, selling, grading and authenticating them before I ever wrote a formal report. That hands-on time matters. Most of what makes one card worth ten times another is invisible in a photo, and you only learn to see it by handling a lot of them.

Alongside that, I've built a long executive career across banking, education and community services, and I founded Aslan Strategy, my strategy and customer experience consultancy. That side of my working life taught me governance, risk and how to write documents that regulators and decision makers can rely on. It's the same discipline I bring to every valuation.

Community services have been a thread through all of it. I've led customer and member services in disability, mental health and aged care organisations, I serve on a not-for-profit board, and I volunteer with QLife.

I also sit on the board of the Auctioneers and Valuers Association of Australia, where I focus on raising standards for how trading cards and collectibles are valued.

I've worked hands-on as a grader and authenticator since 2021, and I now lead TCG Grading, where cards go through a structured inspection covering centering, corners, edges and surface, with sub-grades and forensic-level technology. Grading tells you what a card is and what condition it's in. Valuation tells you what it's worth and why. Doing both means I know where one ends and the other begins.

What I assess

Trading cards

Pokémon, sports cards and other trading card games, raw or graded, single cards or whole collections.

Vintage toys and action figures

Including Star Wars Kenner carded figures, vehicles and playsets.

Sealed collectibles

Sealed Lego sets and sealed product, die cast models, model kits and video games.

Memorabilia

Pop culture memorabilia and baseball memorabilia, including signed bats and balls.

Who relies on my valuation reports

Insurers and brokers

Agreed values for policies, and evidence when a claim is made. A collection that has never been valued is often underinsured.

Family and estate lawyers

Property settlements and deceased estates. I have been appointed as a single expert in matters before the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.

Accountants and SMSF advisers

Capital gains tax events and self-managed super fund requirements, where an independent valuation supports the figures.

Collectors and families

Knowing what you have before you insure it, sell it or pass it on.

1. Condition comes first, on its own

   Items are assessed for condition and authenticity before any market research starts, so the price never shapes the assessment.

2. Evidence from real sales

   Values are based on verified realised prices from auction results, sold listings and established price databases. Asking prices don't count.

3. Effort matched to value

   High-value items get individual analysis. Lower-value items are grouped into lots, so large collections are valued properly without the fee getting out of hand.

4. Everything written down

   Assumptions, limitations and sources are recorded in the report, and formal engagements include a declaration of independence.

I founded Aslan Strategy to give organisations an outside perspective when they need to work out where to go next. The work covers business and customer strategy, customer experience design, change management, team performance, community engagement, and governance and risk frameworks. Clients range from people who work for themselves to large Australian organisations and government.

Through Aslan Strategy I led a specialist employee relations team within the NSW Department of Education's early childhood division. The work covered advice to government on complex industrial relations matters, data-driven models for improving pay and conditions across early childhood education and care, and the division's first union stakeholder engagement plan.

Before consulting, I held executive roles where customers were often among the most vulnerable people in the community:

• Executive General Manager, Customer Service, Lifestyle SolutionsServices for people with disability, and children and young people in out-of-home care, their families and communities.
• Executive Director, Member Services, Aged & Community Services AustraliaThe national peak body for not-for-profit, church and charitable aged care providers.
• Head of Customer Experience, New HorizonsDisability, mental health, youth, aged care and homelessness services.
• Earlier leadership roles at TAFE NSW and ANZSales, customer experience and regional management.

I'm a Prosci Certified Change Practitioner, and I've worked with regulators including the Fair Work Ombudsman and the Australian Taxation Office. Visit Aslan Strategy.

I talk to journalists about trading card and collectibles values, grading, counterfeits, insurance and tax. If you need a comment or a background briefing, email contact@jonathanmarin.com.au and include your deadline.

Short bio

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My commitment to community services goes well beyond my paid work. Much of my career has been spent in disability, mental health, child and family, and aged care services, and I still give time to organisations doing that work. I care about prevention, inclusion and making sure people who are often overlooked get support that actually fits their lives.

• Vice Chair and board member, Better Care DeliveredA not-for-profit delivering aged care and disability services in south-west Sydney. As Vice Chair I support the Chair and the board on governance and make sure the strategy is delivered.
• Volunteer, QLife with Twenty10QLife is Australia's national LGBTIQ+ peer support and referral service, and Twenty10 is its New South Wales partner. I volunteer as a peer supporter and help out at Twenty10 community events across NSW.
• Movember campaignerI've campaigned every year since 2024, raising money and awareness for men's mental health, suicide prevention and prostate cancer research. The TCG Grading team and our customers get behind it too. Support my Movember campaign.
• Administrator, Pokémon Card Valuations and Grading AdviceA Facebook community of more than 38,000 collectors discussing values, grading and condition.

What does an AVAA Certified Valuer do?

An AVAA Certified Valuer gives an independent, evidence-based opinion of what an item is worth, supported by a documented method and clear reporting. Certified valuers can use the CVAu post-nominal, which shows they meet the standards of the Auctioneers and Valuers Association of Australia.

When do I need a formal valuation for a trading card collection?

The common triggers are insuring a collection, a claim after loss or damage, a deceased estate, a family law property settlement, a capital gains tax event, and moving assets in or out of a self-managed super fund. In each case the figure has financial or legal consequences, so it needs to be documented and defensible.

Is a grade from a grading company the same as a valuation?

No. A grade describes the condition and authenticity of an item. A valuation estimates what the item is worth for a specific purpose, using evidence from real sales. Condition feeds into value, but the two are separate assessments.

Do you give tax, legal or financial advice?

No. A valuer determines value. Tax, legal and financial advice should come from your accountant, lawyer or adviser, who can rely on the valuation report in their work.

How do I request a valuation from Jonathan Marin?

Valuations are provided through TCG Valuations. Email service@tcgvaluations.com.au with a short description of the collection, photos of the key items and what the valuation is for, and you will receive a scope and quote.

Pick the route that fits what you need, and you'll reach the right inbox first time.