From sports items to toys, Sly has it all Egidio amasses memorabilia of all kinds
By Cary Shuman
If you want a Ted Williams baseball card or a Tom Brady teddy bear, you’ll want to contact East Boston resident Sylvester “Sly” Egidio.
The 41-year-old owner of Beantown Collectibles in East Boston, Egidio has one of the largest collections of sports memorabilia in New England. He also has military, historical, and pop-culture collections from the 1970s and 1980s.
“The big three in toys from those years are Star Wars, GI Joe, and Transformers,” said Egidio.
Sly is a 1995 graduate of East Boston High School who enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and served from 1996 to 2004. He returned to serve in the U.S. Army National Guard in 2014.
He began collecting sports items in high school and used to work for noted memorabilia collector, Phil Castinetti, owner of Sportsworld.
“I learned a lot from Phil and I always looked up to him in this field,” said Egidio. “He encouraged me to branch out and to succeed in this business.”
He launched Beantown Collectibles in 2004. And Egidio has branched out, expanding to mostly non-sports items. He is now considered an expert in pop-culture items and toys, having appeared on a panel of toy aficionados at Boston Comic Con last August.
“On pop culture and 1970s and 1980s toys, I do consider myself an expert,” said Egidio. “I played with these toys when I was a kid. I can tell which toys are authentic.”
What was the biggest sports memorabilia sale item of his career?
“I brokered a deal of a Babe Ruth-autographed baseball for $100,000,” said Egidio.
The most popular Boston athlete today, according to Egidio, is Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, also known as the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time).
“An autographed Tom Brady jersey sells for $2,000,” he said.
One former athlete that still draws tons of memorabilia inquiries is Red Sox slugger Tony Conigliaro, who started his career in the East Boston Little League. Though Egidio does not consider himself a collector but a seller of collectibles, he keeps a Tony C.-autographed baseball on his desk.
“I do this seven days a week,” said Egidio. “We’re growing so fast as a company. We open pop-up stores during the holiday season, but my goal is to have a destination store where parents can bring their children and their days are made brighter by visiting us.”
Sly Egidio’s memorabilia items and classic toys can be accessed at two Ebay stores, an Amazon store, and on his Web site: www.beantowncollectibles.com.
“Our motto is: If it exists, we will find it,” said Egidio.
Yawkey Way Report
Red Sox fans visiting Fenway Park have seen Egidio’s other business endeavor, Yawkey Way Report (YWR) magazine, in action.
Egidio’s employees sell YWR baseball magazines for $1 apiece outside the ballpark before Sox home games.
“We also have the best give-aways with the magazines: sheets of Red Sox baseball cards, pennants, key chains, and pins,” said Egidio.
(People interested in joining the Yawkey Way Report team in a part-time position can contact Sly Egidio at www.yawkeywayreport.com).