🃏 Target is slitting Pokémon card shrink wrap — a retail patch, not a cure

Pokémon cards have spent the last few years operating as a speculative asset: scalpers bulk-buy new releases, genuine collectors get nothing. Target now appears to have a corporate directive to cut the shrink wrap off boxes in-store and before online orders ship.

The logic is simple: a factory-sealed box is what commands the resale premium. Without the wrap, a flipper can't prove the rare pulls are untouched — secondary value drops. For a collector who wants the cards, the packaging is beside the point.

This is a friction measure at one retailer. Scalpers will likely shift to stores without the policy. The root imbalance stays intact: The Pokémon Company printed 10 billion cards last year and demand still outpaces supply. No official comment from Target yet, per IGN.