Hi there. This is more a news post than a Pokemon TCG post. According to Pokebeach.com select Gamestop stores in the United States are beginning to buy and sell graded Pokemon trading cards from customers.
It looks like Gamestop is testing out the Pokemon TCG market and is leveraging its brand to compete against the local card stores. In the news article Gamestop is initially accepting PSA 8 graded cards or higher. Cards valued at 500 USD or more are not accepted.
Gamestop is also selling Pokemon single cards (non-graded) in their stores. Holographic cards and reverse holos to be priced at 1USD each.
My Opinion
This move by Gamestop is interesting. Gamestop entering the Pokemon TCG market will likely provide competition to local card stores. As Gamestop does have a big brand and more buying power than the local card stores I am somewhat worried about some sort of Walmart effect. That is a large franchise taking up a lot of market share from the local businesses driving the local businesses out.
It is unknown how Gamestop will price their cards for buying and selling. In Gamestop Canada I know that they generally price their sealed Pokemon TCG products around 10 to 20% higher than the local card stores. Also how will they sell their single cards and limit theft? Will Gamestop host Pokemon tournaments in their stores too? Time will tell.
Gamestop being a large retailer and committing more into selling Pokemon cards is good for the Pokemon Company. A large retailer selling Pokemon cards increases exposure and reach to more regions. If this pilot project goes well it is possible for Gamestop to expand buy and selling Pokemon TCG cards outside of the United States.
From the consumer perspective this could be good. Not everyone has access to a local card store and some card stores may not have competitive pricing nor availability. A nearby Gamestop may be more accessible than a local card store.
For the local card stores I think that they should not worry to much about Gamestop in the market. Local card stores tend to sell other TCGs like Magic The Gathering, One Piece, Yugioh, Digimon TCG, etc., provide friendlier service and have competitive pricing.
