Our Story

TCG Machines started as an idle comment made by an ex-roommate. Company founder, Graeme Gordon, had just completed an exhaustive multi-day sort of his Magic cards, and his good buddy (we'll call him Schmundy) casually remarked, "Why not design a machine to do that?" Instead of having a laugh and moving on, Graeme took this request seriously and began researching whether there was a need for such a machine. It turned out there was.

Graeme, a professional mechanical engineer, and Schmundy, a professional electrical engineer, then began producing a series of proof-of-concept prototypes. As the project looked more and more promising, Graeme founded TCG Machines and offered to partner with his friend on the venture. Foolishly, his buddy decided to take a job at some company called "Google" because it could “actually pay him money” – biggest mistake of your life, Schmundy!

Now composed of an all-star team of engineers and software developers, TCG Machines stands firmly atop a growing mountain of experience: tens of thousands of hours of product development, years of field testing, millions of cards sorted, and many happy shop owners and staff finally in control of their card business. Looking ahead, we will continue working tirelessly with local games stores to ensure our machines and software are providing them with the means they need to succeed.

TCG Machines professional company photo with machine and staff

Our Mission

We will provide relief and support to local game stores by supplying tools to increase the speed and efficiency with which they can manage their card inventories. Our technology will eliminate the headaches associated with buying and selling trading cards and allow LGS staff to focus on what they do best: serving their local community.

Our Vision

Running a successful LGS is difficult and watching as establishments – both community staples and new ventures – permanently close their doors is a gut-wrenching experience for their patrons. We would like to reverse this trend and work alongside LGS owners and staff worldwide to help their businesses thrive. We see a future in which card players and collectors always have a local game store open to them, and the tabletop trading card community remains strong.

Our Team

Graeme Gordon, P.Eng.

President & CEO

Graeme is an avid Magic player with a background in mechanical engineering and machine automation. In 2015, after taking several days to manually sort through his personal card collection, he said to himself, "Never again!", and TCG Machines was born.

Dan Kusler, P.Eng.

CPO

Dan Kusler has over 17 years of experience in Alberta’s manufacturing sector. He has built and lead diverse teams for SME firms specializing in manufacturing and automation. As TCG Machines' CPO, Dan directs development of hardware improvements and new product offerings.

Colton Paquette

Head of Development

Colton is a computer science graduate who is interested in computer vision, deep learning, and software architecture and design. When he's not staring at a computer screen you'll find him playing MTG's Commander format, board games, or disc golf (when it's not freezing cold).

John Webster

Operations Manager

If there’s a job out there John has probably done it at some point. Bringing over 20 year of sales and IT experience, at TCG he wears a towering pillar of hats. Of late, he's pursuing a coding career, and is here to make your customer experience as smooth as possible!

Stephen Baker

Senior Full Stack Developer

Stephen has been working as a developer for over 14 years and is responsible for all things technical at TCG Machines. He is passionate about UI performance and creating the best user experiences possible. He also enjoys playing Lorcana in tournaments, as well as with his 2 children.

Ramin Asadpour

Mechanical Engineer

Ramin has joined the team as Mechanical Engineer, where he spends his days sketching, performing quality control, and acquiring new SolidWorks skills and techniques from working alongside the TCG design team. During his free time, he takes trips, flies drones outside, and photographs parties in the woods.

Denis Clarke

Production Coordinator

Denis is a Mechanical Engineering Technologist that loves to tinker, design, and troubleshoot problems whenever they may arise. When he’s not concerning himself with the PhyzBatch-9000, you can find him watching Star Wars, building Lego, or taking his dog on hikes.

Craig Carswell

Production Foreman

Craig is the production foreman at TCG, bringing to the team 20 years experience as a Heavy Duty Mechanic, Partsman and Sound Engineer. When Craig isn’t building the PhyzBatch he can be found hanging out with his son, recording bands in his studio or singing for one of his 4 bands.

Matt French

Public Relations Strategist

Matt French is an experienced Social Media Strategist and PR Practitioner with years of experience in the card and board game industry. When not assisting with operations, he's often creating marketing collateral, managing our social media channels, or chatting with the media.

Joseph Shaheen

Big Boss

Passionate about the intersection of technology and creativity, Joseph is a versatile problem solver with a keen eye for innovation. A true collaborator, Joseph thrives in team environments, fostering open communication and driving collective success.

Nathan Day

Sales & Marketing Manager

Nathan is a Digital Marketer who's worked with clients ranging from ophthalmologists to music festivals and organic skincare. He's delighted to be a part of the TCG Machines team - and that he didn't listen when he was told "playing MTG wasn't a career-building activity".

Antoine Fecteau

Inventory Manager

Antoine has worked as a journalist and e-Learning content creator. Proficient in copyright law and technical writing, he enjoys making content for all ages. When not behind a camera, he works on his board game, or creates ridiculous Commander decks that will never see the light of day.

Cruz Miraback

Senior Full Stack Developer

With a strong focus on implementing comprehensive solutions, Cruz demonstrates a natural curiosity that drives him to explore complex problems thoroughly. In his free time you can catch him in the mountains rock climbing or on his PC pwning noobs in CS2 and WC3.

Kirill Teslenko

Financial Controller

Kirill is excited to play an integral role at TCG Machines. He brings a positive, go-getter attitude to his work, alongside a strong foundation of financial experience. Outside the office, Kirill enjoys spending time with his family and working around the house. Kirill is pursuing his CPA designation.

Isaac Poirier

Embedded Systems Designer

With a passion for robotics, and a love of solving problems and creating innovative solutions, Isaac supports TCG’s embedded systems design utilizing his degrees in electrical engineering and computer science. When they’re not working, Isaac is likely playing DnD or board games.

Ghaiyur Ahmad

Data Scientist

Ghaiyur is a Machine Learning and Data Engineer with 6 years of experience wrangling wild data and predicting the future (better than Magic 8-Balls). When not whispering SQL queries to databases, he sorts trading cards while wondering why his models can't help him draw better hands in MTG:A

Dani

Production Goblin

Helping out with general tinkering and mayhem, Dani’s background consists of a vast beauty industry career. She decided to spice things up in the dungeon, helping the Production Team and with general shenanigans! When she's not busy with work, she enjoys the gym and hanging out with her Trekkie cat, Wesley.

Joseph Moore

Robotics Assembler

Joe Moore is a Robotics Assembler, bringing a diverse background as a computing systems engineering technologist with experience ranging from IT to pipefitting. In his free time Joe can be found writing piano compositions, practicing Jiu-Jitsu, and rock climbing.

Jesse Mahajan

Production Crew

Jesse is amazed at how technology keeps getting better, from small gadgets to big innovations—it shows where the future is heading. He loves building and taking things apart, especially computers and cameras, just to see how they work. Jesse also enjoys art, photography, the gym, and hiking.

Dan Cruz

Logistics Aficionado

A jack of all trades, Dan has experience in Sales, 3D printing, and modelling. He hopes to bring new ideas and innovations to the TCG community and through TCG Machines. Outside work, Dan enjoys spending time with family watching Star Wars and Marvel films and playing Pokémon and Star Wars TCGs.

CJ Wong

Customer Care Specialist

With a background in beverage manufacturing ops and systems mapping, CJ is all business when it comes to managing your card stock. His mission at TCG Machines is to understand your unique business needs and help you spend less time sorting, and more time being a badass business operator!