The problem of scalpers being rude, aggressive, or even violent in their quest to acquire Pokemon trading cards from retail stores has raised its head again. Many fans are once again shocked to see how scalpers are willing to behave if it gets them to the Pokemon TCG section of one Walmart a little faster.
Instagram user tcg_grassi captured a video of people swarming into a Pennsylvania Walmart still selling Pokemon cards in-store the second it opened its doors at 7:00 a.m., and descending upon the retailer's supply of Pokemon cards. The customers are shown running in the aisles, shoving each other, and dumping entire armfuls of card boxes into their shopping carts. The video was picked up and shared on Twitter by user bigbcards30, where it has received a significant amount of attention.
The Instagram user, who buys and sells Pokemon, Yu-gi-oh!, and sports trading cards on TCGplayer, reports the incident was not a normal occurrence, even among early-morning Pokemon TCG buyers. It was probably spurred on by a few people who began running, prompting the rest of the crowd to race after them, cameraman included. As a whole, the situation was nowhere near as severe or dangerous as the violent incident which led Target to stop selling Pokemon cards in-store, but it's worth taking note of.
The Pokemon franchise has been exploding in popularity of late, particularly the Pokemon TCG, which is great news for trading card enthusiasts and scalpers who buy cards to inflate their prices. Even a global pandemic contributing to a shortage of Pokemon cards hasn't beenenough to dampen scalpers' enthusiasm, and customers seem to keep ending up in close-quarters combat with each other.
Some Pokemon TCG fans are trying to avoid the risk of these altercations by using FandomSpot's new Pokemon Card Hunters service, which matches collectors with hunters who can earn $60 an hour searching for specific cards. This allows buyers to avoid the crush in retail outlets, though it may provoke more competition on the card hunters' end.
According to tcg_grassi, the Walmart staff were taken aback by the sudden rush for trading cards. This isn't the first time scalpers have spooked retail employees or damaged store property. As part of Pokemon's 25th anniversary, the brand partnered up with General Mills so Pokemon cards could be found in select cereal boxes. Soon, scalpers began ripping open cereal boxes to get at the Pokemon cards inside without paying. The damaged boxes couldn't be sold, leaving retailers to figure out what to do with them.
Source: Kotaku