Pokemon Surging Sparks Orders Cancelled. Will Change the Hobby Forever

[@pokene_pokemon]

We are NOT cancelling orders. For those without the attention span to last 5 minutes *pricing in video subject to change after upload* ➡ Shop Pokemon & One Piece: www.pokene.com ➡ Become a Channel Member for Exclusive Discounts on PokeNE.com and More kzbin.info/door/msaaIoiGBvvt22HELiqlfAjoin ➡ Get $10+ (Up to $250) On Drip Shop Live. International Shipping, Giveaways, and More! join.dripshop.live/PokeNE

[@216youknow]

@@pokene_pokemon just charging more for future sets so you don’t miss out on those free tendies 💰 💰 as Rudy would say.

[@pokene_pokemon]

@@216youknow cant be a Timmy!

[@lKINGl]

Lmao I realized why you’re one of my favorites. Although price point isn’t for me. The fact you don’t hold back on speaking truth is amazing. No hand holding over here for dummies 🤣

[@lKINGl]

@@UnovaChampioncry some more 🤡 nothing about either are misleading. Guess you’ve consumed too much brain rot so I’ll give you a pass.

[@pokene_pokemon]

If you’re attention span is shorter than the 1 second it takes to read a thumbnail, my wife is a 6th grade teacher and can give you some pointers

[@marcesparza3696]

Don't matter if the box went to 140. If the shop cancels my pre order. Me "LOANING" THEM MONEY FOR 2 MONTHS ILL NEVER ORDER FROM THEM AGAIN I PRE ORDERED MY 3 CASES FOR 550 EACH OF SS

[@Top_Loaded_JRGS77]

I hope you get them cases.

[@marcesparza3696]

@Top_Loaded_JRGS77 ya I already received the tracking on them thanks man

[@lKINGl]

Same fingers crossed as I got mine for $90 per box. I don’t understand how a company could be so greedy and not realize they’ll lose more than they’ll gain pulling stunts like those

[@ThePatrickmcrae71]

@@marcesparza3696 0% interest loan

[@georgeallen4007]

My local card shop told me from the get go surging sparks booster boxes weren’t going to be anywhere near $110 … they’re selling them for $140

[@TheScott2theextreme]

Let's put it this way I will never do business with someone who cancels and raises and would even go out of my way to let everyone know what they did.

[@RLucas-dc9yq]

It is the “risk” of doing pre orders, one may get tons of sales or “loose” if market prices fluctuates. But if I pre ordered something and got cancelled for no other reason other than seller wants to earn a bit more… I would probably not do repeat orders on that seller. But hey it’s me, been in the selling side of things before so I know the feeling of loosing sometimes.

[@2Balendin2]

oh totally for me, its pretty scummy, they're making a profit and honestly, using my own money to use the scummy tactic.

[@Top_Loaded_JRGS77]

Trust me customers cancel pre orders too when boxes start selling for less then their pre order price. Yes businesses like POKENE lose money on boxes that way as well. Now he is losing money because the box is selling for more. This never happens but now it has. New territory here.

[@2Balendin2]

@@Top_Loaded_JRGS77 they don't lose money on boxes. they simply could have made more, theres a MASSIVE difference. if businesses sold things at a loss, they'd simply have no business. customers are going to cancel boxes, but its going to be a small number and you can always sell them down the line. this happens but again, its rare. it happens a lot, just generally not in the card business.

[@Socherbal]

They are losing by choosing to sell a product at a price that will guarantee a certain level of profit? Nah, that isn’t a “loss”. The seller takes a risk of the product being worth more by the time it releases just like the buyer does. If it never pays off for the buyer, but the seller reserves the right to cancel preorders when it doesn’t go their way, then the seller deserves to never get another preorder ever again. The seller should just lock in their guaranteed profits, take it as a learning opportunity, and price the next set higher. It is their mistake to eat, and it isn’t like they are losing money

[@mattsmi8806]

You should be happy you get to sell the product at a price you were comfortable with. Imagine if the set bombed and you had to sit on hundreds of boxes and decrease the price. Essentially you’re not taking a loss. You’re just not able to capitalize off of the hype.

[@user-qy8tu2bk9m]

So basically, nobody is actually losing money resellers are just mad they can't scalp you for even more money because you already bought it at the original price and profit that they were comfortable with

[@luckerooni1153]

yep

[@Evolution-Collection]

As a shop owner, yes, it’s a bit of a bummer (I own Evolution Collection, a shop in Highland, CA), but as a collector, I’m genuinely happy that people were able to get booster boxes at affordable prices. We offered a preorder bundle deal of an ETB and a booster for $135 online, and I’m glad people had the chance to take advantage of it! I won’t cancel orders, and we’re still planning to sell boxes at $115 in the shop during release week. Why? Because as a collector at heart, I love seeing people get a great deal and enjoy the release weekend. In the end, by prioritizing players and collectors, everything will work out well for the shop.

[@aikenpatriot3380]

You will be among those who do as expected during the bull market and be in position to survive bear that will come. Good for you

[@TravelerTaylor007]

Your awesome man! We need more people like you in the industry

[@bond465]

the going rate for surging boxes a month ago was $100-110. The fact that they are now $140+ a month later has nothing to do with it. That's like selling a stock at $100 a share 1 month ago, and now it's $170 a share and feeling sick for the people who bought your shares at $100. What a terrible take.

[@RellosPhone]

He only feels sick as he was the stock market in this analogy 😅 He’s the one who didn’t realize that $13k while he’s happy for us who collectively made the money. He’s sick he could’ve realized more than he did. All in all we’re all up, he bought them and sold them for a small profit and we’re all up a small amount before receiving said product.

[@bboygenetics9882]

This video wasn't made for us. It's just a rant to himself to justify squeezing as much money as possible from his customers the next time around. He's giving a warning that for the next hype sets, no one is going to get a good deal 🤣

[@too·fkn·busy]

​@@bboygenetics9882exactly 💯

[@happycamperproducts]

"Some people think I'm a big baller...." Flashback to Vice video with you and your wife in a hottub flashin money XD

[@brandonpratt2371]

this post is greed on display

[@momojanaimo]

Why should we buy from this guy? He seems like a jerk

[@thederpster2911]

The boxes also could’ve gone down to $95,- and you sold for $110,- It is what it is, you never know before hand, only thing you can do is no (or limited) pre orders but that’s also a gamble

[@TropicalMint808]

yep, they could just, you know, wait until it releases and sell it at market vs taking the free loan and lowering their risk and cost basis. Everyone is gambling and don't cry if you lose, nobody likes crybabies.

[@collectiblesnow1212]

crazy mindset. I am just a guy outside looking in. This is my take on it. Owner DID NOT LOSE any money. The Owner made money and sold out. (which should be very grateful). I always hate the word could have, should have, would have, in business bc its all speculating. NO ONE WILL EVER KNOW if things would go their way. If it was like that everyone would been rich. But the owner is wrong for raising the price on the next set due to this set doing well. But say IF SS did not do well. He would probably would not raise the price or even speak about this. I did not order any booster case from you btw. There are tons of other websites to choose from. But if people like the owner change prices on the next set, you can kiss them goodbye. If the price is very similar I probably choose a chain to buy from. They hardly cancel and they DO NOT care if the price of it goes up on secondary market.

[@pokene_pokemon]

Watch the video again, I never said I lost money…

[@JohnAIDoe]

Cancel my order = negative feedback and never buy from that seller again. This is the reason why I don't touch Pokemon in 2020.

[@xunsungwar77]

just because of that you don touch pokemon? LOL I am touching pokemon NO MATTER WHAT!

[@JohnAIDoe]

@@xunsungwar77 I'm not feeding the scalper.

[@luckerooni1153]

@@xunsungwar77 Relax Typhlosion, at least get consent

[@maze-nc1ut]

Well said man, I’m getting out right now as well. I like a hyped set, but I don’t like overhyped investor times. I’m a collector so I just stay away from the sheep behavior until the next Bear market which their eventually will be.

[@beezo-f5p]

@@JohnAIDoe same

[@RyanOrWelshy]

I can’t really understand the logic of sellers cancelling orders unless the wholesale price has increased such that the seller is making less margin. If a seller gets boxes at a wholesale price of $70/80 a booster box and sells for $110, why would they cancel the orders? I think phrasing this as “losing money” because they could sell the boxes for $130/140 is inaccurate. They are missing out on higher profits but they aren’t actually losing money.

[@pokene_pokemon]

Fair points but jsyk LONG gone are the days of $70-$80 boxes at distro. Most people are paying $90-$95 … I get them for $88 but only because I buy 500+

[@RyanOrWelshy]

@@pokene_pokemonthanks for the reply. That’s helpful context. At $88 a booster box, I can understand why you’d want to increase from the $110 sale price if that’s possible. Given the demand, and as you’ve said, from Surging Sparks onwards that’s clearly possible meaning $125 + per booster box will become the norm.

[@2Balendin2]

@@RyanOrWelshy its a supply and demand business, but its also a community, if people start cancelling, they're done, its over. all those customers that once used them will swear not to do it again. The business of Pokemon is already on pretty thin waters with people weighting packs these days to get the best ones etc, reputation is pretty high on the list of things. i also don't understand this "lost money" mindset, if you make a good profit, its good profit, sure you might have made more if you'd not put the prices cheap, but if the set failed to meet expectations and you put them at a high price intitially you could very much end up making a massive loss.

[@RyanOrWelshy]

@@2Balendin2 I agree on the community point, I think it is a question of which sellers also buy into that mindset over being completely profit driven and wanting to make the biggest margin possible.

[@2Balendin2]

@RyanOrWelshy I think sadly it's going to be a lot of them, certainly those that run these kind of stores/websites. Most of them will see it solely as a way to make money rather than as a community and that will soon spell trouble for them.

[@Radiant_Rips_TCG]

This set was hyped up. Not every set will be the same going forward. I know the loss of potential profit hurts but you’ll be ok.

[@monumentray]

I’ve preordered 4 cases all under $100 a box. If the seller is willing to lose a customer and receive negative feedback over a few hundred dollars, they are greedy, short-sighted, and insanely foolish.

[@Top_Loaded_JRGS77]

Its business. Retail is $161 a box so they are always losing profits so if they cancel its to be expected. Sad part of business especially if you are so used to slim margins its too tempting to get them massive gains you rarely see. My distro has not offered pre orders cause they must have seen this coming.

[@monumentray]

It’s bad business. Your distributor handled it correctly. Once money has changed hands, a contract is in place. Then there’s the moral obligation to keep your word. When I pay a seller for product, I’m counting on delivery and stop looking for product. If he cancels the deal, I am left without and have, in reality, loaned him money without interest.

[@BcottStudios]

Thats a good way to lose customers. Id never do business with scammers like that.

[@ejq8630]

Talk about greed? If sellers on the next set boost their prices to $130-140, your customers will just search elsewhere. At that point, I'd just buy directly from PC and pay the premium.

[@BryanRodriguesSanchez]

So, basically you made a poor decision making by underpricing a product who already makes you profit, and by beeing greed you're going to increase based on you want more money . And I think you're already seeing people on comments showing you how poor decision you're making by justifying like you're a victim, that doesn't make any sense.

[@216youknow]

@@BryanRodriguesSanchez I knew I wasn’t the only one who saw the GREED come out of this guy in this video. 💪

[@thekingscardboard]

I mean if you are getting them for $90 a box from distro, he was selling for $110 on his site. With taxes, shipping, cost of supplies, time, and fees that’s not much profit per box. Idk where you all are seeing the greed thing coming in. A business wanting to profit to stay in business, and make this a full time thing, imagine that. 😂. He didn’t cancel anyone’s orders.

[@BryanRodriguesSanchez]

@ Then again he made a poor decision by pricing underprofit , i don’t care if he puts the prices higher , but the way he is justifying I personally don’t agree because is just based on greed.

[@thekingscardboard]

@@BryanRodriguesSanchez He’s standing by the decision he made to initially sell at $110 a box for those that pre-ordered at that price regardless of how much he would like to profit more money. Making a good decision to honor your word despite temptation of profit is not greed, it’s integrity. If he wasn’t so transparent and didn’t mention he was kicking himself for losing out on money, we would be saying how great he was for not cancelling orders and offering the boxes at such a fair price with the current market. It’s our actions that define us, not our thoughts or impulses.

[@thekingscardboard]

@@BryanRodriguesSanchez to be clear I don’t know this guy. I don’t even know why I’m sitting here in the comments section writing this. Maybe I’m wrong, but based on this video, I saw someone who would have liked to maximize profit, but won’t do this at the cost of breaking integrity with his customers.

[@XxDeathsEnemyxX]

Problem is amount of preorders will decrease if you charge $140, which will cause a whole new mess.

[@pokene_pokemon]

True

[@Kalibers_Corner]

There will be resellers seeing a market for huge pre-sales if larger folks like yourself have high prices for pre-orders. Do you think a distributor is going to give a bunch of product to someone who waits to order? That could really upset the Apple cart.

[@comoplaysdestiny5106]

“It makes me sick” “it hurts” are you serious!? This was your decision and the margins you were looking for in the first place. Plus I assume you are already pretty wealthy off of this business. What a joke 😂

[@bboygenetics9882]

Dudes coping hard and this video isn't even for us. He's giving himself a pep talk so he can mark up prices more next time 😂

[@comoplaysdestiny5106]

@@bboygenetics9882 pretty much lol

[@1lilspit3]

But it's no longer your product after you sell it? It's the customers. You know it has a high possibility of going up or down in price. That's the market you chose to sell in, especially pre orders. How would you feel if it went down in price before it launched? Would you want to refund the customer the diffrence? You didn't "lose any money." Pre orders determine how much you're going to try request on your next order. Your getting a bit to greedy and people tend to stop their regular business at those type of shops. You don't want to be the last shop people look at the prices.

[@pokene_pokemon]

You heard the part where I said we weren’t cancelling orders right ?

[@vsolcarv]

Okay? And your point? You really think businesses care about your fairy tail?

[@pokene_pokemon]

Also I never claimed I lost money. Watch again I say “of opportunity “

[@luckerooni1153]

@@pokene_pokemon That opportunity was to exploit people who couldn't get boxes, though. Not every opportunity is something you should necessarily aim for, and you should also ask what the actual cost-benefit analysis of it instead of just looking at the glimmering golden box price. I said this in another comment, but to avoid this, literally do what Walmart and Target do and just release your product in batches. Being able to say you are one of the sites that do post reasonable box prices is worth so much more in reputation than the $10 "opportunity loss" per box.

[@1lilspit3]

@pokene_pokemon Your whole video is about lack of profit margins and missed proffit opertunities, how you're not going to do it again. Great, you didn't cancel orders. You're trying to make it look good that you didn't turn to shifty business practices. With this mindset, it definitely comes off like you're tempted. As a business owner, you want to stand out from the rest. I'm a small business myself. The transparency is great, but you're using it as justification to be a bit greedy. I'm honestly not going to tell you how to run your business. But in my business, I don't grab for more cash just because the opertunity presents itself. I'm comfortable with delivery quality service at a fair price.

[@PogoLindenRyu]

Don’t forget about the risk free interest free loan that any store that takes preorders receives. If you assume a 12% interest rate and preorders at $600 per case, you are saving $12 during that 2 month time frame where you get to use that cash from customers to operate the business. Stores shouldn’t think one dimensional here.

[@The_Card_Father]

The bottom line is you don't cancel ppls orders just because you sold them the product at a lower price point than said product is currently selling for. It's despicable and will cost you far more in the long run. Honest business is how you create repeat customers.

[@the_gengar_master]

I wouldn't say your losing money though. Your just not gaining the premium off of this wave 1 demand that's flooding in for Surging Sparks. You say that behaviors are gonna change for future sets, but if shops do away with preorders in fear of a rising price then when a set does come along and flops hard, your kinda screwing yourself by not locking in deals early. It's pandemic lessons all over again haha. Idk, That just seems like a bad take.

[@pokene_pokemon]

I say “of opportunity” for a reason Everything else I agree is possible tho

[@_maghetweten]

Feels like fomo on the seller part. Newsflash: you decide on the sticker price you ask from buyers. If that sticker price is 110, but you would want to have 140 in the first place.. Write down 140 in the first place! As a buyer it is not my problem your fear of missing out on extra margin is alive and kicking. A sale is a sale, honor it or be bankrupt. Now I did not preorder, simply because I don't like the crown jewel design. But if I did and receive a cancelation: you won't be getting any more money when team rocket comes around. Penny wise, pound foolish. I will look to a different store which does honor the sale. So respect you honor the deals as Pokene. As it should be.

[@aikenpatriot3380]

This mindset will hurt the recent growth gained in Pokémon. Pre-release costs could be more or less expensive based on several factors. I am new to the hobby, started with Brilliant Stars, but I am also understand supply and demand. Guess it's ok when LGS are winning and not the savy investors who buy pre-release, risking paying $10-20 more a box that flops after release

[@pixeltrainerf7012]

It's a tale as old as time. You sell a box higher, it gives room for competition, new blood, to undercut.

[@LKNDIY]

Precisely

[@poipoi9203]

The only problem with that when it comes to pokemon tcg is the scammers and re-sealers. New competition has to create its credibility and when selling at a lower price than all the rest it tends to generate a certain amount of suspicion that will put some people off.

[@pixeltrainerf7012]

Of course, new competition isn't the only competition.

[@12dhuang]

this is the greed of the seller. This guy is so BS. It's not like he paid more for the boxes but he is talking about making more money on people and colluding to jack up prices in the future when his cost basis didn't even gone up yet.

[@bboygenetics9882]

Yeah this vid is just a pep talk to himself for next time. He's already making good money but he's all butthurt just cause he couldn't scalp another $13k from his customers

[@paolo8665]

Dude I don't know why this guy made this video, such a bad advertising for his business, I get it, transparency is a good thing, but too much of it only shows who you are to the public, and the question is: what kind of person are you?

[@12dhuang]

@@paolo8665I respected the guy until he posted this. His opportunity was only lost because the distributor not his customer. Somehow, distributors cut his supply and he thinks he will just forced it down his customers throats. Plus preorder you got the funds upfront and you’re not even using your own cash. For someone that brag about millions of revenue, show your true nature.

[@12dhuang]

@ like the grinch unveiled himself before christmas. Sad but the truth. It’s all about business at his customers expense. price gouging at its finest.

[@BaldMattDamon]

I don’t understand the sentiment of losing the money when what you sold them at is what you were going to sell them for anyways. Do you perceive a gain in money if you sell boxes at your normal price and the set bombs and sells for less than what you normally sell for?

[@luckerooni1153]

Ikr. What about the "opportunity cost" of holding all the boxes for 3 years before selling? It's all nonsense. Bro sold product before it even hit his shelf. Congratulations on your successful merchanting business, you did the hardest thing, liquidating your entire stock for a price you're happy with before you even have to hold it. It's like a fucking achievement, but this guy treats it like he made a mistake.

[@lKINGl]

I got 14 booster boxes at $90 from force and fire. They have yet to cancel my order so fingers crossed they won’t 🤞🏽

[@RaulRojas09]

I ordered 4 booster boxes from them and with shipping and taxes came out to $418.63 total so approx $104.66 per box. Haven't seen anything of them cancelling on me. Fingers crossed as well!

[@vashthefunker]

Coming from the perspective from someone who had to deal with this a lot as a buyer of mtg over decades, I know the stores that never cancled on me if the value of a preorder product goes up before it ships. I will always make it up to them, by buying product that isnt great. I think everyone who ever has canceled on a preorder doesn't realuze this is a relationship. Something happened a few years back, a set of decks were pre-ordering at 700$ they jump up to 1500$ before shipment and they cancel on me. Turns out hasbro produced more, and those decks drop from 1500 to 400$, and they are stuck with them to this day. As a buyer like if your offering a preoder, we have already agreed on the sale, I am pre-ordering to make sure i get the products i want and I don't have to deal with the secondary market.

[@_The_Jerk_Store]

When it comes to opportunity cost just remember canceling an order and burning a customer is also a future opportunity cost. Question though - why don’t most card shops prerelease in tiers? Let’s say your minimum margin gets you to $100/box. Why not list a 1/3 of your preorders at $100, plan the 2nd tier at $110 if tier 1 sells quickly, and then tier 3 at an even higher price if tier 2 sells quickly. Is that just too much work on the pricing front? That route would give a shop the ability to capture upside

[@MrGuitarfreak132]

The thing is this is a classic supply and demand scenario. The affordable $100 preorder prices selling quickly led to less and less available preorder supply which quickly shot the few remaining boxes up to $140. If however the boxes had started at $140, less people would buy them, and tons of preorder supply would be available leading to price decreases. Maybe it would level out at $120 a box and it ends up being a wash anyway between the boxes stores sold early on at $100 and the boxes they sold later at $140. Bottom line is $140 isn’t really the price of each of those boxes. It’s the price of the remaining boxes. This is the classic market cap concept where the market cap is really a theoretical max and not the actual value of everything in the market. Because for instance if Moonbrean PSA 10 has a market cap of $15.4 million with each copy being about $1400. That price only works due to so few being on the market compared to demand. If all 11k copies all got dumped onto the market at the same time the price would fall hard. It’s the same thing here. Surging sparks preorders probably aren’t actually worth $140 per box across every box available. They only got that way because at this point there is not enough supply left and so that drives the price up.

[@poipoi9203]

Seems like a very strange strategy I don't think any other hobby kinda does. With popularity and demand the solution is to double the price and price out most of that interest. It'l reap rewards now and in the near future but its going to create disinterest in future releases the longer that kinda thing happens surely? This is a crazy hobby I'm getting myself in to where 90% of the product never touches a shop floor, you can't find it worth a damn because everyone wants to hold it and sell it later for double to triple the price several months down the line and now apparently, even before it releases by cancelling pre-orders. Das crasy.

[@luckerooni1153]

Let's not be ridiculous, most of the product hits the floor. There's nothing Tiktokers and KZbinrs can do to push out Sam's Club, Costco, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, GameStop, etc from getting the exact product they intend to get. The difference is those companies are both massive and not Pokemon focused, so they just put it on the shelf in waves so that Pokemon keeps existing in their store, they don't care about maximizing margins, they just want Pokemon brand to bring people to the store, their goals and their strategies are way deeper than resellers. That's how people end up finding the deals they find, and guess what, those big stores are perfectly manipulating the consumers and doing a much better job than the resellers. In the end, do you see people taking screenshots and videos of them buying out an online store that "poorly priced" products that "had risen in the secondary market?" No, because those guys don't get it. They don't get how to make consumers want to buy stuff from them on a higher level. So in the end just deal with the person who gives you the best box price and not think too much about it because they certainly aren't thinking beyond selling the box.

[@poipoi9203]

@@luckerooni1153 I was talking in a more hyperbolic sense with regards to online vendors. Everything including the pokemon center itself sells out within hours or days which is akin to it not hitting the shop floor when it comes to your average to uninformed buyer. I'm also in the UK so I have none of that, by the time I find a retailer that has pokemon stuff like the 151 its already sold out and I'm usually learning about it second hand from people that went and baught it out. I think we have far less retailers than the US, I'd like to be proven wrong though. My store I Work at has had some pokemon stuff come in, in the past but its very rare and when it does there are people camping the opening time to come sweep it off the shelves because some how they know about it even before I do and I'm an employee xD

[@poipoi9203]

​@@luckerooni1153 I was talking in more hyperbolic terms when I said about them not hitting the shop floor. It was more directed also at the online market where retailers and even the pokemon center sells out within hours to days for selling at 'retail price'. The fact that 'retail price' is considered a 'find' when compared to 'market price' on a brand new box already indicates a fairly problematic issue as well. I live in the UK also, so there isn't really that big series of vendors I have access to, I don't really even know the ones that do, i'd like to be enlightened, especially if I can get a heads-up on when they're stocked lmao. Every so often the store I work in even gets some pokemon product however its so rare and when it does there's usually people camping the opening time to sweep it off the shelves because some how they tend to know its there before even I do and I'm an employee.

[@martinbeaubien440]

That would be a scum bag move to cancel on people who preordered. If the price went down would we get a refund? Hell no.

[@SuperSpecial740]

Thank God, i don't buy pokemon cards anymore. Sellers like this guy are leeches..."I'm cooked" "by Xmas it'll be $180" in other words buy from me fast before prices go up!

[@pokene_pokemon]

Big homie, you don’t have the attention span to watch a video? Brain rot lol tiktok it killing you. I don’t have more- that was the entire point - like literally the entire point of the video. You can’t get more

[@djunior105]

Rip&ship guys are charging anywhere from $150 - $180 a box

[@GioDudeTV]

Think about it this way…. You lost on potential profits but at least you aren’t cancelling people’s orders and upsetting them to the point of going to another competitor of yours and you lose their business forever.

[@smokes2423]

I don’t fully agree with this.. there wasn’t enough of this printed.. as long as u get your allocation you shouldn’t be thinking about putting prices up due to demand, you should just be happy a set has come out and you sell out fast. Ofc it’s a miss of opportunity to make more money per unit but when the lack luster sets come out what ur gona drop price again.. will just mess up the market as a whole

[@pokene_pokemon]

Reading this, I’m not sure you understand supply and demand. If not enough are printed, there is less supply. If demand stays high, the price goes up. Even at $140, you’re still $25 under the Pokémon center .

[@smokes2423]

@ I said I don’t fully agree.. I said if u get your full allocation you shouldn’t up prices.. and I’m pretty sure you didn’t? I’m saying moving forward to upcoming sets if you get as much as u want to order then you shouldn’t put prices up.. in this case I understand prices going up due to higher demand than supply but to just up the price on all sets moving forward doesn’t seem right

[@pokene_pokemon]

Oh, future allocations for future sets … true-er to an extent but stores have a limit. I don’t know a single store that’s gotten more than 2500 boxes of any set

[@smokes2423]

@@pokene_pokemon yeah I get that but as you’ll know yourself all stores need an opportunity to make money if 1 guy could buy 50+ % of all stock wouldn’t be fair on the rest of the store owners.. but dw I get your point I wasn’t tryna dig you out or anything

[@luckerooni1153]

@@pokene_pokemon Okay, but I'm not going to buy from Pokemon Center, I'm just going to go to a different pre-order website that offers better prices than you. Pokemon Center isn't a pre-order website and it's disingenuous to compare them. You don't compete with PC, you compete with Fire and Forge, Rare Candy, etc.

[@BigRevs92]

People said the same thing with vivid and battle styles on how preorders would change. Let’s talk about the reverse of when you’ve sold boxes at $110 and on release day they were $95.

[@Liablekarma5]

Sounds to me like businesses are all going to start selling at msrp then drop the price if need be after release

[@bng333]

people don't understand that even a booster box at 130-145 is under msrp. anything under msrp is a deal!

[@heyokaempathtraversingcontrari]

Pre-ordering a product built off of fomo, that will be in print for a few years makes anyone part of that process a very silly goose! Pokemon definately has the game on lock managing the market, selling hype and releasing product on a special shedule to make sure they sell there products! Also seems they are dislocating a bit from small buisness to go direct to big box retailers with products! Stonks baby stonks🎉!!! Toooooo da moooooon!!!

[@92livethedream]

I have had multiple orders with you and I always check your prices and products when shopping around. You're very trustworthy and run a great company.

[@aikenpatriot3380]

I've been here 3 years. Unless the Pokémon community wants to go back to pre 2020 numbers, I'd suggest chill and not get butt hurt over making less a profit on one set. Set your standards in a bull market and you will be waking up the bears

[@justnikscom]

I did a preorder 1 year before release at a big LGS in Belgium. They cancelled the order a week after release. 2 weeks later I received a notification it is back available at double the price. I stopped dealing with them and preorders. They are part of the market manipulation.

[@scott1489]

Ive pre ordered every set since Vivid Voltage from my local card shop. If they cancel my pre order they will lose me as a customer. And yes this matters because I know I wouldn’t be the only person to do this.

[@JasonR-m5k]

Definitely don’t think you’re looking at it the right way. I think initially the people who preordered at the price YOU were happy selling it at should be honored. The way you were looking at it before in terms of hitting your margin % is the right way to look at this. From the moment you start looking at things as “oh man, I could have made X more money customers who have been loyal to you will slowly start to rethink if Brian has the customers best interest at heart. If you need to make your 20% or 25% margin stick with that and as the price goes up just raise the price as you’ve been doing. The reason why I buy from you is because you’re credible and trustworthy. If that goes away I’ll go away as well.

[@blongsin]

It’s crazy how ppl always put it this way. We all know if there wasn’t a hype then we all will still be happy the way it is. I know there is opportunity to make more but we shouldn’t see it that way because we never know which set will get hype. Profit is profit the way I see it and you will also need to push out the old products before the next set comes out to make more room. If you are selling and making profit shouldn’t that be a good thing instead of being selfish and greedy of canceling orders. I hope they do remember why ppl are true to their LCS for their reputations. That’s why LCS makes pre-order for a reason for those who don’t mind taking a profit or loss. Overall, being true to your shop is the best. Best of luck! Ppl will always support the one that is legit. :)

[@Evans_Pokestop]

Another positive to keeping an order in the customer’s favor is repeat business and referrals. I was thrilled to get one at 110 and told several friends about your site and channel. Was also planning to shout you out as I open it on camera (not a lot of views there but it’s the thought that counts). Totally understand why it won’t happen again but it’s one of the reasons people trust you and listen to what you have to say

[@DegenCollector]

If you want to make higher profit, don't do pre-orders and take the actual risk. It's actually very simple, but "stores" want to make sure they have money coming in from pre-orders. If you want that free loan, then you aren't going to be able to push profits. Take the risk, don't do pre-orders, and reap the rewards. Its not like distribution is charging you more for that 100k of product you ordered...

[@Dengkee]

I get what you're saying, but isn’t your profit margin the same as with previous Pokémon sets? If so, you didn’t actually lose any money-you just missed out on potential gains. I think there’s a balance between leveraging supply and demand and avoiding the perception of greed by capitalizing too much on people’s excitement to invest in a good set. That said, I don’t think you're wrong for wanting to raise prices based on demand. My only concern as a consumer is that each time prices rise, these boxes feel a little less accessible for the average buyer. Overall, great content and solid video man, as always keep up the good work!

[@whatevervideos3716]

Yeah, im done. If the new price is gonna be more than 110, it's ridiculous im selling everything and finding a new hobby this is starting to piss me off.

[@pokene_pokemon]

Even at $130 it’s $35 under msrp and under what the official pokemon site charges. Not so bad if we’re being honest

[@Deeperdetecting]

This hobby is full of twats 😂

[@zl8731]

I’ll buy what you got for 50% market 😂😂

[@GIC2023]

​@@pokene_pokemonI'm sure if whatevervideos has a good collection KetchumAllCollectibles would be glad to purchase.

[@Deeperdetecting]

@@zl8731 I’ll buy for 4% market and you pay for shipping

[@aikenpatriot3380]

I'm not saying I won't watch your content or ever buy from you, but for now I will be unsubscribing. You aren't canceling orders because of the reasons you outlined. But if you could do it over again, having the ability to call the market exactly, would charge more, well that isn't how it works. Let there be a Madam President, and watch your $110 box go to $85 real quick, pikachu or not

[@pokene_pokemon]

Yes. If I could charge more I would and if you could pay less you would. That’s supply and demand lol. You said you understood it. Nobody on either side would do the opposite for the sake of “morals?” Or whatever people are prescribing. Not a complicated concept on either end of the coin

[@midnight_vw]

Pokemon has every incentive to reprint the hell out if this set.

[@lolianz]

It's not going to matter in the end.

[@2Balendin2]

why? they've very much moved away from reprinting sets, if anything this set won't even match the buzz of 151.

[@nathanzondlo7393]

I see places doing waves of pre-orders. Over the months leading up to a release. This gives you a) a chance to adjust your prices based on the market rate b) great way to drive new organic traffic to your pages because word will get around that your first wave is cheaper than what other places are asking and they might buy something else c) the ability to do right by your regular customers. There will come a time when retailers start high and the demand has fizzled up so youre forced to follow the market price down and adjust, so the people that locked in a high price off the rip will feel jilted. Just better customer service experience imo. Let the early wave (maybe a conservative 10-20% of your stock) get rewarded and do the work posting your link all over the Internet. Win-win

[@Junkwax8694]

It will be interesting to see if the race to the bottom on prices of booster boxes truly halts or if this will just be temporary. MSRP is $161 and change. $130 is still a good discount. There are more sellers and buyers and while they can print more, the number of booster boxes available on release day is not infinite!

[@obiwon76]

I politely disagree. You cannot assume that you lost $15k because swings in prices. So if I paid $20 for a card and a month later it’s selling for $40 but I hold onto it did I lose $20? No, it still cost me $20.

[@homeslice677]

I’m going to start ordering from them for the simple fact that they kept their word. He/they are not canceling orders even after taking a 13-30k loss in profit. But in the long run they will make that with the clients they kept and new ones like me.

[@JSins6D9]

So you completely sold out of the product, which is what every business owner strives to do, didn’t take a loss like many did with the first few sets of S&V, made a very fast profit at market price that continued to increase yet you’re whining because you didn’t make more? I could definately see you being the type of person to cancel orders in the future because of greed.

[@pixeltrainerf7012]

Agreed.

[@TheSnackAttackingSnorlax]

I’d be shocked if he canceled orders, pokeNE is legit, he did right by all his Japanese 151 buyers, he even took a loss to fulfill all his orders.

[@pokene_pokemon]

You didn’t watch the whole video and it shows

[@pokene_pokemon]

You didn’t watch the whole video and it shows 💀💀

[@JSins6D9]

⁠@@pokene_pokemonNo I watched the entire video. There’s nothing at the end that differs from the beginning. You didn’t “Lose” money you just didn’t make as much as you could have and you’re whining about being “sick” even though you sold out before the set even released. Like holy crap you Won and you’re complaining about not making more? You act like you bought boxes for $120 and sold them for $110. It’s the greedy attitude in the video that makes me think you regret not canceling orders.

[@professorfloop2400]

Here is a question for a future video. As a small business owner with limited capital I'm always afraid to buy booster boxes that have been reduced because I feel like if Store A can't get rid of it, what hope do I have? Conversely if I buy at market price then I risk not making my money back. So how does a distributor-less retailer manage this?

[@gunnar_h1516]

I am sure the distributor I bought from, which can be a individual or gaming store, is getting the price they were told from the main distributor. Having the mindset of your "losing money" do to an increase of retail price is not the full picture. Your still going to make money. And if your helping other's make money in the process it comes back around. I am old enough to hear this same type of rant from many which were over leveraging their money thus went broke. Hope no one has put themself in that boat! As far as Rudy goes I heard him rant speak whatever. Most of it is for show to keep people coming back. Also no one that is successful ever tells everything without the "big fish" story being thrown in. Good luck everyone! God bless you all!

[@happyeggroll5267]

Good on you for not canceling. My biz model (Bandai) reselling 10% over cost but 7 months early with promis to not cancel. so $800 cases, selling for $950.. then OP hits $2000/case! But some Bandai cases dip to $500 on release. I'm happy with my 10% on all sets but if I had Rudy capital, I'd sit on every set and see what happens with 50% of my allocations.

[@itsmedxsa]

we've gone from generating FOMO in consumers to generating FOMO in store owners because there was one outlier set that is performing well during pre-release...? absolutely diabolical to cancel pre-orders and to suggest raising all future pre order prices without seeing any cards just because they "might be as hype"

[@Pr3lude9]

Well, if people preorder at $110, and they are now worth $140, I bet those stores and you wouldn’t feel bad if they’re preordered for $110, and dropping below that. Stores canceling orders for greed, knowing when the order was placed, it was only worth $110, and was a gamble either way, is dirty business.

[@maverickbonato8164]

Gotta say though, I appreciate the honesty. I'm no expert but for your branding, long term, I think it's going to be worth it :v

[@ClubEditing]

Can someone explain to me why this box is going for 140 before release? This isnt a cynical question, I'm being serious. Is it severely under printed or something?

[@len6482]

This dudes turning into a super saiyan right in front of our eyes

[@johnchan9392]

Looks like Surging Sparks will keep going up until release date, as Pokémon Centre has all Surging Sparks products as SOLD OUT. Buckle up.... this will be interesting. 🍿

[@djunior105]

Hey Brian quick question,I’ve been watching rip&ship guys open up packs of surging spark from the last weekend, How are they able to get products so early?

[@roprezm]

My PokeNE pre orders are in! Now I just sit, relax and enjoy the Lofi

[@ravishingreptiles]

Sucks you missed out on some extra money, but you a real one for not cancelling your orders!!

[@cheaseeds6207]

Appreciate the honest perspective from a seller standpoint, do the best for you. We'll do the best for us.

[@UnwantedCommentary]

ITS FOR THE VIEWS BABY God damn I miss my 100 pre release BBs

[@co_snowy]

Fomo for sellers now 😂😂😂😂😂

[@ZagelMedia]

Just pre-ordered my 4 Surging Sparks P.C. ETBs yesterday and they just sold out. Going for $160 a piece on TCGplayer already... major win 😳

[@maximelao2136]

Got my boxes for $105! The only regret I have is wishing I ordered more. lol

[@BurtRhombus]

Do you think it will work in reverse from now on, sort of like a Dutch auction,pre-orders start at $140-$150 and if demand isn’t high, it drops until it finds its sweet spot?

[@pokene_pokemon]

Probably

[@evgaman4391]

Yep I got my case of surging sparks at 100$ a box. Preordered at my local card shop as soon as preorders went up. This card shop is huge and they get a ton of allocations of product.

[@TheScott2theextreme]

Ya but if you put them out at $160 do you think they will fly off the shelves and you'll make more money? At that point why not just buy from pomemon center?

[@BcottStudios]

Pokemon Center sells them for 160+

[@luckerooni1153]

@@BcottStudios Yea no shit, so if Joe Schmoe and the Pokemon Company themselves are selling the boxes at the same price, who would you trust with giving you a good product more? Resellers literally cannot compete with TPC, so if the price is the same, they have no business model.

[@josephbennett4465]

@@luckerooni1153 Pokemon centre literally can't even package a booster box properly lol

[@BcottStudios]

@@luckerooni1153 Go away. What you said is irrelevant to what I said and I dont care.

[@TheScott2theextreme]

@BcottStudios i think pokemon center would be the least likely to cancel your order then ask for more money

[@sosbrigaders]

Good info. If I preorder 2-3 months prior to release and they cancel my shit I’ll never order from them again Plus this the Pokémon company were talking about. They’ll reprint

[@beandip5222]

So what I am getting is that you want to just raise the prices of boxes because you have a "hunch" that just because the box MAY or MAY NOT rise as the months ago, it gives you the sound influence to raise the price for missing out on what it could be worth in the future? Yeah, no. Boxes are hit and misses and you mixing hunches with business logic isn't a great move.

[@Hans_Wermhat]

I couldn't imagine selling ANYTHING and doing that. Pokemon cards, Lego, plumbing parts ir the lint from my pocket.

[@georgeallen4007]

My local card shop is selling booster boxes for $130 … I used to get twilight masquerade for $100 flat

[@TazeKruu]

Super sound thinking. Appreciate your point of view. Thanks for the video!

[@jordanb2458]

I went to order 2 booster bundles and accidentally left them in the cart😅😅 just ordered a Twilight Masquerade ETB today since I was considering that money gone anyway

[@aikenpatriot3380]

Chat is unanimous it seems. This mindset could bring on the demise of LGS. There will always be some who base their pricing on costs of doing business plus fair profit. There is about to be a culling of sellers in the maket, and it won't be Costco or Sam’s Club

[@Roboskillz]

Yooo great vid dawg 💪💪

[@pme1967]

Probably should have had a better incremental $jump on boxes based on time & volume along with the intensity of hype being pushed by every influencer (why I had to pay more per box than normal). Things adjust and so will 'hype' prices. Curious to see how big the restock/reprint will be of Ssparks? All I know is if my legit pre-order gets cancelled (we all know why), then 0/5 review rating.

[@Nolu-Shizmat]

How much does shipping for a booster box US to US usually run?

[@achroous2]

This shit is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S!

[@ILCPokeAlex]

Do you get charged more for boxes from distributors in prerelease when there is "hype" for a set?

[@ItsFinigan]

I’m guessing distributors will be raising prices going forward.

[@lolianz]

This is how you secure your reputation! Big ups! I was only going to get two booster boxes but I decided to go all in and secured to cases before it started mooning/running out of stock.

[@PokeDinoo]

did u have to pay more for your orders u sold 110? like did pokemon change their price on u?

[@MieXuL]

This is why ebay is king for pre orders. The buyer doesn't get your money till 3 days after the delivery.

[@MrLocknet]

dont you mean the seller?

[@SuperMtgguy]

If you don’t want to get burned don’t do preorders

[@TCGPassion]

It’s not gonna be at $180. That’s laughable. There will be plenty of it to go around. The drama is unwarranted. Driving the price up one video at a time. 🤣🤣🤣

[@pokene_pokemon]

Where exactly is this extra stock going to magically come from? Cuz the 2 biggest distros are completely out lol

[@kmedina419]

This will crash back to $100 once release happens. Pre order FOMO 😂

[@pokene_pokemon]

Absolutely not

[@Blanc247]

U aint no gruru clwon ass 😂 there all only worth 120 tops stops robbin kids😂

[@pokene_pokemon]

Pokémon center is $40 more I’m usually not the grammar police but WOW BRO Kids aren’t buying these; it’s adults You don’t understand supply and demand. Go to tcgplayer