CEO David Perez

From Law Enforcement to Leading the Collectibles Market with CMB The Show

My name is David Perez, and I’m the CEO/owner of CMB the Show and DJ Rez Customs. I’m also the co-owner of Bully Con with my partner, Juan Monteon. Additionally, I’m the creator of CVC – Central Valley Cards and Collectibles.

My passion for collecting began at the age of 10, starting with sports cards, comics, and toys. I’m passionate about all sorts of things, including sports like football, baseball, basketball, hockey, skateboarding, surfing, WWF wrestling, breakdancing, music of all genres, soccer, and NASCAR. I’m also an artist with experience in hand drawing, painting, airbrushing, sculpting, molding, and decoration design. I play guitar and enjoy punk, heavy metal, and rock music. I even played punk with my childhood friends in a band called Slander. Growing up, I didn’t have money to buy the things I wanted, but when I got a real job, my collecting took off. I was able to became heavily involved in card collecting until the early 2000s as an young adult.

In 1996, I began my law enforcement career with the Tulare County Probation’s Juvenile Electronic Monitoring Program. I worked 8-5, Monday through Friday, while attending the police academy at the College of the Sequoias in Visalia, CA. The academy was a year-long program, with classes on Fridays from 7 PM to 10 PM and 12-hour days on Saturdays and Sundays. The weekend academy followed the same schedule as the college. COS demanded an 80% passing grade for all students, in addition to the academy requirements. I graduated in the top 5% of my class. My last day with probation was on a Friday, and I started with the Tulare County Sheriff’s Department the following Monday.

The Sheriff’s Department was the best job I ever had, but the pay and insurance didn’t match the work we did daily. I worked for Tulare County for approximately 12 years. In 2007, my second child was born, and I needed a change. I started another career with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) at Pleasant Valley State Prison in Coalinga, CA.

In 2008, I became a range safety officer for the PVSP’s In-Service Training (IST) department. I became an instructor in alarm response, baton use, and use of force. In 2016, I became a rangemaster and was promoted to sergeant. I am the last certified Glock instructor in the state and have worked at PVSP for the past 17 years.

In 2019, COVID-19 hit, and the world stopped, except for the sports card hobby. People had to stay home, and online shopping surged. In 2020-21, I met my then-partner, who wanted to get back into the hobby and start a sports card show. I was given a month to get the show off the ground. At the time, I was a vendor for multiple shows, such as my friend Pete’s show, The Weekend Blender, here in Fresno, CA. I gained experience vending at these shows and learned the ins and outs. I had no experience running shows but knew I could get it going and attract the necessary vendors.

The show started to take off as multiple vendors signed up, but COVID-19 presented challenges. We were able to run the show even when bars and local shops couldn’t operate because the venue was at the Wyndham Hotel across from Yosemite Airport in Fresno. We followed state mandates, providing hand sanitizer and checking the temperature of every attendee.

I still needed to secure special guests. Two weeks before the show, I received a call inviting me to be a vendor at a show in Las Vegas. I accepted, and my son Sebastian and I headed for Vegas. For the first time, I saw an actual card show and how it was run. It was a blessing in disguise, as I met legends like Hall of Famer Greg “The Hammer” Valentine, UFC fighter Cody Stamann, and several other Hall of Fame football, basketball, and baseball players. I was able to introduce myself and hire them for our show.

The week of the show, we had sold out all the vendor spots and had the special guests locked in. Thanks to God, we received another blessing; we were able to get local Fresno State Bulldogs football player Kenny Wiggins as a special guest. Then, I received a call from someone who wanted to be a vendor. I signed him up, and when I asked his name, he said, “Tommy Mendonca.” We hung up, and I was sitting in my car when I realized I knew that name. I quickly called him back and asked if he was the Tommy Mendonca, the Fresno State baseball 2008 College World Series MVP. He said yes. I told him he wasn’t going to be a vendor; he was going to be our special guest and make money signing autographs. The rest was history. The show was a success.

Since then, I have brought to Fresno stars like WWF Hall of Famer Rikishi, AEW superstar Brian Cage and his wife, AEW/Lucha Libre announcer/model Melissa Santos, NFL star and local Fresno State alumni Stephan Paige, 49er Dexter Carter, 49er superstar and future Hall of Famer Roger Craig, UFC/Bare Knuckle champion Lavar Johnson, UFC 559 fighter and triple champion Angelica “Tatted Moda” Pimentel, Pittsburgh Steelers star Rob Golden, AEW female wrestler Mighty Myra, UFC star Alex Perez, black belt master and movie star John Ozuna (who trained Keanu Reeves and Tom Hardy for movies like John Wick and Venom), the Central Valley’s cleanest comedian Lonnie Pelley, and many more.

I’m launching my newest cards and collectibles show, CMB the Show, coming soon. I will announce the details on my website for this show and Bully Con.

DJ Rez Customs is the name for my custom, one-of-a-kind figures. I customize basic figures like WWF/WWE retail figures, sports figures, and more. I custom mold, sculpt, hand paint, airbrush, etc. During WrestleMania 30, WWE ran a contest with five categories. The rules were that everyone who entered had to dress as one of the Superstar wrestler entrances from WrestleMania 30, including Triple H, Sting, Roman Reigns, etc. You would dress in one of the categories and take a photo to qualify. I wasn’t about to dress up, and there weren’t any figures made for WrestleMania 30 yet. I ended up creating a one-of-one Triple H Terminator figure and submitted the photo. I hadn’t heard anything for a month when one day, I received a huge yellow envelope from WWE. I opened it, and there was a letter and all sorts of WWE memorabilia, including a WWE Shop gift card for $200. The letter stated that I didn’t qualify for the Triple H entrance contest because it had to be a human dressed up, but then it said, “After further consideration, we here at WWE stated it was too badass; we made you the winner from the millions of submissions.” I ended up winning the contest, and my son reaped the benefits (lol). I sold that figure to a guy in New York for $600.

I will include photos and videos of some of my biggest hits in sports cards, my top-selling figures, and my artistic talents in many forms, such as decoupage, paper mache, Halloween decorations, and oil painting.

My partner Juan and I created Bully Con, a dog show featuring bulldogs (American and English), Frenchies, and King Corsos. We started our shows in Madera and will soon branch out to other cities. Juan also breeds Frenchies to be sold privately and at our shows to benefit and generate income to make Bully Con bigger and better. Bully Con is the first of its kind in the Central Valley, bringing together dogs, anime, cosplay, cards and collectibles, Funko Pops, and much more in one show. Bully Con has been a huge success, and we continue to grow.

CMB the Show and Bully Con will be the biggest shows in the Central Valley. We support Fresno State athletics, Valley Children’s Hospital, and local charities like Wish Upon a Star and Fresno Skateboard Salvage. There will be an online auction in November for Pleasant Valley State Prison, auctioning off skateboard decks custom painted by inmates and staff. My board will be featured in this auction as well.

We are always looking for collaborations with local and worldwide charities, so if you are interested in collaborating, please contact [email protected]. We welcome sponsorships and investors, as well as special guests interested in signing autographs and helping the community while making money for their time.

We strive to create an environment where kids and adults can meet their favorite superstars and celebrities. The impact a special guest can have on kids who otherwise could never meet their favorite stars is unwavering and plants the seed for them to grow up and have the determination to be great. We bring in the most humble and down-to-earth special guests, as this is crucial to the experience a child can have. A kid will remember the experience they had when they met their favorite star, and sometimes it can be their worst experience. We ensure that adults and children alike don’t have that experience at our shows. Everyone is welcome.