Pokémon cards price soars during pandemic

The price of Pokémon cards is growing during the pandemic. Recently, two forgotten boxes of these cards were sold for more than £19,000 or Rp379,000,000 via auction in St. Ives, United Kingdom.

The boxes, which were bought around 21 years ago, were discovered by the owner during a house move. He and his wife used to open a shop where they sold the cards, but after the store was closed, the remaining boxes were forgotten. After he researched the market, he found out that the cards are now sought at exorbitant prices as more serious collectors are fueled by the lockdown.

The two sealed boxes were auctioned by Hansons Auctioneers in Derbyshire. One is a box of Pokémon Fossil first edition Booster Box that sold for £10,000 (Rp199,000,000). The other one, the Pokémon Neo Discovery Unlimited Booster Box, was sold for £9,400 (Rp187,740,000).

Pokémon cards are collectible cards originally made for children to collect and trade among themselves. They used to be sold for about $3 (Rp43,000) each. However, the expanding Pokémon fandom drives the value of these cards. A 1st Edition Holographic Charizard card in December 2020 was sold for $369,000 (Rp328,450,000). This card is considerably rare for being one of the earliest cards, as the holograph does not drop shadow over the art or the text. This small difference is a big reason why it is so sought after.

However, the most expensive Pokémon card turns out to be a promotional card. A near mint 1998 Japanese Illustrator Pokémon Promo Card of Pikachu was sold for $375,000 in February. These types of cards were made to be given during three art competitions in Japan, where contestants made their own Pokémon cards. The winners get custom prints of their design as well as the Pokémon Illustrator Pikachu as a trophy. According to PWCC, a big marketplace for trading cards, there are only 40 of these cards ever released.