Pokémon Card Game Faces Scalping Crisis, Fans Warn
Pokémon Card Shortage: Scalpers Drive Prices Sky-High, Frustrating Fans
Looking to buy Pokémon cards? You’ll need some serious luck.
“It’s rough right now,” says Jake Wagman, a 23-year-old Pokémon card collector from Toronto. “I blinked, and the product is impossible to find. It’s just gone.”
Not long ago, Wagman could walk into a big-box store or hobby shop and easily grab a few packs. But over the past few months, Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG) fans have been battling scalpers who clear out store shelves and flip packs online at double or even triple the retail price.
“People are seeing the Pokémon brand and just buying whatever they can, even if they don’t know what it is, because they think it’ll be valuable,” Wagman explains. “They’re doing it to make 20 or 50 bucks, and it’s ruining it for people who actually want to collect and play.”
A Growing Concern for Collectors and Kids
Fans worry that if the scalping trend continues, it could damage the hobby—especially for the kids who make up Pokémon’s next generation of players.
The Pokémon TCG first launched in North America in 1998 as part of the massively popular Japanese franchise, which includes video games, TV shows, and toys. Players take on the role of trainers who catch, trade, and battle with Pokémon creatures.
One of the most legendary cards, Charizard, now sells for thousands of dollars on the resale market. Back in 1998, packs of 11 cards were easy to find for just $4. But today, Pokémon has exploded into a billion-dollar industry, with The Pokémon Company reporting $10.8 billion USD (over $15 billion CAD) in retail sales in 2023.
“The Pokémon Company keeps releasing amazing products,” says Charlene Sutherland, a Toronto-based investment associate. “Pokémon is a classic—many of us grew up with the shows, collected the cards, or played the games. There’s just something timeless about it.”
A New Surge in Demand
The latest Pokémon TCG shortage began in November with the release of Surging Sparks, a set featuring a rare Pikachu card that quickly shot up in value—selling for over $1,000 CAD on resale sites like eBay. Then, January’s Prismatic Evolutions set pushed demand even higher, with some cards reselling for over $5,000 CAD.
Sebastian Bilodeau, assistant store manager at Exor Games in Charlottetown, saw the frenzy firsthand. “When Prismatic Evolutions launched, we had a lineup of 50 to 60 people wrapped around the building,” he says.
“And this was in January—people waited outside for two or three hours in the freezing cold.”
Now, Pokémon cards from any set—old or new—are nearly impossible to find. Some Canadian stores have even reported break-ins, with thieves specifically targeting the Pokémon card aisle.
Déjà Vu—But Worse
This isn’t the first Pokémon card boom. During the COVID-19 pandemic, nostalgia brought many collectors back into the hobby, overwhelming supply chains. But this time, rampant scalping is making the situation even worse.
For longtime collectors and kids who just want to play, the Pokémon TCG has become harder—and more expensive—than ever to enjoy.
