Entry #4 Pokémon Scalper turned Stalker
Some might remember the consumers’ craze to buy toilets, eggs, sanitizers, and baby products during the COVID pandemic. After that, some would find those reselling the product for a significant price hike. Otherwise known as scalping, the action of buying demanding products and selling for a profit. Vann Vicente, a How-To Geek article publisher, states, “Scalpers often take advantage of scarcity, purchasing items with limited availability and high demand.” This trend has been growing, especially in the Pokémon Trading Card Game community.
Those in the community have seen a surge in Pokémon sets going out of stock the second they are released. Making it difficult for those who were eagerly waiting to pick up the newest set. Many thought this hassle would have been alleviated with the introduction of the local vending machines that sold Pokémon card box sets. This, in turn, only made things worse as many would encounter scalpers buying up the entire stock and leaving nothing for the other waiting in line to use the machine. Though, as stated by Marc Deschamps, a ComicBook article writer, “The vending machines will have purchase limits, and now say that “machine product will be released periodically.” Showing that The Pokémon Company is trying methods to prevent resellers.
This issue has gotten so out of hand that some of the restockers of the vending machine have come out to say that they are being stalked. This came into light when a TikToker shared a live stream of a scalper who was confronted by an employee restocking the machine. Dexerto article writer Michael Gwilliam quotes the scalper who said, “I followed you out of the parking lot… Then I went straight to this [store], waited a couple of hours and let you do your thing. I’m not here for anything else besides some cardboard cards.” No matter in what way this is said, it is obvious that they were actively scouting out for the employee and then watched them restock the machine. Having no remorse whatsoever and making someone uncomfortable. In turn, this type of action might lead to stores removing the vending machine and yet again ruining something nice for everyone.
I've also seen videos on social media of people wanting to buy these pokemon cards at a vending machine and being frustrated because the person in front of them buys all of the stock, leaving none for the rest of the people in line. To me this is really dark, like nostalgia and community, a card game we grew up with, being commodified in a "dog eat dog" fashion. It's become less of a token of our childhoods and a past-time for fans, and more of a precious metal that is horded and pawned to those who aren't looking at it as a way to earn money for the next scalp.
ReplyDeleteWow, that's ridiculous that people go to such lengths to make money, especially with how blatantly they do it. They just do not care that they're sucking the fun out of it. I don't understand why everything has to be turned into a side hustle, people should just enjoy their hobbies instead of turning it into work. That's what's best for everyone. The same thing is happening with thrift stores, and now that reselling has become popular, thrifting is not thrifty anymore.
ReplyDeleteI think it really is sad that people with money are ruining the card game. It was never about prices but more the memories and all the fun Pokémon that everyone like and opening packs to get that specific card that you were wanting. But now, no one can play it because of people like it and many stores are stopping selling Pokémon cards causing further limitations. It is sad what it has become and hopefully it will be fixed or the problem solved so everyone can enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteIt's crazy how much these scalpers will go to for a children's card game. I have seen a lot of people who have been mocking them and telling people to just not buy from the scalpers. I think one solution is to just buy cards from your local game store and talk to them about putting a limit on the amount they could buy.
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