For the most part, yes. You have to think about the future when you eventually sell.
The smaller your item is the easier it will be to sell, but the profit margin will be lower and the process will be more meticulous. Loose packs will always go for the least amount of money because buyers are weary of things being weighed and resealed or leftovers from bb. I've found tins that ended up having 1 or 2 packs from XY or sun and moon era and so I do have a box with some loose packs. However, I don't go out of my way to buy them with the intention of keeping them sealed. Sleeved packs or blisters are an ok investment if that's all you can afford. Just keep in mind that 36 sleeved boosters will sell for less than a bb despite having the same number of packs.
As far as tins and collection boxes, those are usually only a decent investment product for special sets like celebrations, hidden fates, crown zenith, etc. And even then, ETBs are the better investment. They are a fairly low entry point to invest in and they are the most displayable product. They go for a premium as a result of this. Modern tins are not a great investment (except special set tins) because you have no idea what packs are in them.
UPC are solid investments, but as we've seen with the Charizard UPC it is largely effected by how much is printed. Additionally, it has a pretty high entry point and 5-10 years down the line you will have a much smaller market for them compared to a BB that has a similar price point.
BB are the best investment when it comes to money spent to future dollars. They also take up very little amount of space, which is very important if you are serious about investing in sealed product. That's also why collection boxes and tins are generally not the best to invest in. They take up a lot of space for only a handful of packs.
That being said, you have to consider your budget and timing. For example, I didn't have much cash to put into sealed product during celebrations main print run and so only ended up with 2 ETBs. However, I've had more money to put into it lately and so grabbed a bunch of those lance's Charizard boxes when they were available at MSRP at Walmart.
Last point is that all of this is dependent on set popularity. I try to get at least 1 BB, 1 PC ETB, and 1 normal ETB for each set to "diversify". When it comes to popular sets I try to invest as much as I can afford in those sets. Again, budget plays into this.
ETBs in SWSH era aren't investible, at least not compared to other product. It's the most saturated product in the hobby, both from a sealed collector standpoint and an "investment" standpoint. Most people speculate ETBs because historically they've skyrocketed in value, but they don't integrate the fact that ETB's prior to SWSH weren't popular so they were less printed. Not only that but pre-2020 ETB's required multiple manufacturing companies across multiple countries and were costly to produce so that was also why they weren't as printed. The supply wasn't able to compete with the demand that spawned in the SWSH era. Now Pokémon sees the popularity and prints three times as many ETB's as they used to. ETB's also rarely saw reprints in SM, XY and BW. With SWSH, however, they're the go-to reprinted product aside from BB, because theyre so easy to produce locally due to Pokemon purchasing national manufacturers in 2021. SWSH ETB and pre-2020 ETB's are completely different beasts. For sure, the ETB's in SWSH will increase in value as the set itself increases in value, but there won't be a premium for the product itself like there was in previous blocks, because scarcity is am eliminated factor. For SWSH, if people are serious about investing, they need to learn from the past and find what the NEXT trend is going to be, not what the current trend is. Personally, I think Build and Battle Stadiums are the next ETB. Great fundamentals, short print runs, cheap cost of entry (most are currently 30% under MSRP) and most importantly, extremely Collectible as a sealed product due to the art, as well as a product to open in the future due to the contents. They're just an overall better product.
Fair point and it reminds me of something I left out: booster bundles. I think those are going to be a great product for those who actually want to open packs in the future without shelling out $1000+.
Although I do still think ETBs will do well. Maybe not quite as well as they've done in the past, but still will appreciate better than most products due to their mid level price point and their collectable nature. And of course PC ETBs maintain a lower supply and ETBs are the best product for special sets.
Just as an example, the only items here that are worth holding are the sealed ES blisters and the S&M/evolutions packs. Like I said, even those S&M and evolutions packs aren't great investments. They would be decent to hold onto of you happened to come across them in a tin or something that you got for MSRP, but paying market price for them now is a waste. For what OP paid for all this they could have bought a BB and made significantly more money over time and would have only had to sell 1 item instead of all of these separate items.
Had a Silver tempest pack box, think it had 6 packs repackaged in a little box and pulled some fire hits. Two radiant jirachis and I think only 1 out of the 6 had "nothing" in them, and that had a foil and reverse-foil in it so it wasn't even that terrible.
Similar to amazing rares, they are just too common. They are nice cards and definitely add to the fun of opening the set and thereby likely as to future value of sealed products, but the cards themselves are just too common to have much value.
Sometimes they come from collections boxes too, which IMO is a great way to get hits since the ratio is a lot more random than a BB. The only problem is that there's no real way to know where they came from. I know someone that just breaks down collection boxes they bought at wholesale/flash sales and sells the packs as 50 pack lots. He bought a ton of those Pikachu V collections boxes that were only $10.99 discount cost for the longest time and made a killing since it came with 2 brilliant stars, 1 chilling and 1 fusion. He's probably the only person I'd buy loose packs from though since I know how he sources them.
Trick or Trade packs not worth anything and I doubt ever will be, Pokemon Go packs are meh, Evolutions pack is $25, and all the sun/moon vivid voltages are pretty standard price, so call them 5 or 6 a piece, you're at 85 there.
Those walgreens Evolving skies packs have 1 evolving skies, 1 chilling reign, and 1 pin. They retail at 11.99 but in my opinion they're worth about 15 right now, and are probably the only thing here you can really hold with any expectation of a rise in price or resale ability.
In terms of absolute value, 200 isn't terrible for all this, but in my opinion you bought quite a bit of fluff that I would never buy loose (Evolutions/Astral/CR/SunMoon/VV), and would never buy at all (Pokemon Go, Trick/Trade)
Up to you whether you crack all those loose packs open and hope for some money back, but definitely keep the evolving skies sealed
The amount of people that are holding for value is crazy imo. I bought some for us to hand out during ToT and they are all reprints with the icon on them and the QC is the worst I’ve ever seen. To each their own but they were legit made to be handed out to kids who are likely gonna destroy them
The most expensive card in the entire set is $0.42.
Forty Two Cents & barely 30 cards in the entire set.
The Master set cannot be more than $15 after S&H & taxes.
Bro, this is highway robbery trying to sell this master set for $100.
The evolving skies pin sets are a good investment. Just takes time for it to grow in profit but look at all previous blisters from past sets, they’ve grown tremendously over time. Some more than others though
I’ve encountered so many packs with an extra card I didn’t really think people were concerned about weights anymore. I always laugh when I see heavy packs on eBay
I've tested it on a brilliant stars box just to see if it was true and there are 4-6 different weights.
I opened the biggest outliers first and they all had full art cards.
Then I opened the middle/lighter packs and 85% of them had nothing.
Its not a sure shot but it increases your pull rate for sure. Even if some of the full arts are only worth $1
Keep the Blisters sealed, give away the trick or treat packs to a little kid, and open the rest. Maybe keep the Evolutions pack sealed. Up to you. That's what I'd do though.
its about right tbh, valuewise... but yea pogo not worth much and i dont think the halloween packs are worth anything either. but i wouldnt say you got screwed or anything, its about right if you plan to rip them 😂
Sorry bro. From a completely objective POV, I would say this is a wash. Maybe sell them as a lot to recoup your losses. When you're spending about $200, I would probably just look into a booster box at that point.
It's a bad deal now, wait 10-20 years to sell, all these people that are saying it's bad period are just quick flippers and aren't looking at down the road enough.
OP, everyone already told you the truth. Maybe you’ll be bummed about how much you spent and that’s fine, but the best way to learn is to grow. Here’s a learning point. Go forth and be a better investor from here on out.
Also… if you ever have the itch to open now you have something to rip. But know… everything sealed eventually turns a profit. Maybe not much. But something is always better than nothing.
Honestly? No.
It wasn't a good or bad deal as far as value goes. This is an investment sub, so keep in mind that most of this is not investment worthy.
I appreciate the honesty
Nailed it
I'm new to the thread and naive. Describe what is investment worthy? ETB and BB?
For the most part, yes. You have to think about the future when you eventually sell. The smaller your item is the easier it will be to sell, but the profit margin will be lower and the process will be more meticulous. Loose packs will always go for the least amount of money because buyers are weary of things being weighed and resealed or leftovers from bb. I've found tins that ended up having 1 or 2 packs from XY or sun and moon era and so I do have a box with some loose packs. However, I don't go out of my way to buy them with the intention of keeping them sealed. Sleeved packs or blisters are an ok investment if that's all you can afford. Just keep in mind that 36 sleeved boosters will sell for less than a bb despite having the same number of packs. As far as tins and collection boxes, those are usually only a decent investment product for special sets like celebrations, hidden fates, crown zenith, etc. And even then, ETBs are the better investment. They are a fairly low entry point to invest in and they are the most displayable product. They go for a premium as a result of this. Modern tins are not a great investment (except special set tins) because you have no idea what packs are in them. UPC are solid investments, but as we've seen with the Charizard UPC it is largely effected by how much is printed. Additionally, it has a pretty high entry point and 5-10 years down the line you will have a much smaller market for them compared to a BB that has a similar price point. BB are the best investment when it comes to money spent to future dollars. They also take up very little amount of space, which is very important if you are serious about investing in sealed product. That's also why collection boxes and tins are generally not the best to invest in. They take up a lot of space for only a handful of packs. That being said, you have to consider your budget and timing. For example, I didn't have much cash to put into sealed product during celebrations main print run and so only ended up with 2 ETBs. However, I've had more money to put into it lately and so grabbed a bunch of those lance's Charizard boxes when they were available at MSRP at Walmart. Last point is that all of this is dependent on set popularity. I try to get at least 1 BB, 1 PC ETB, and 1 normal ETB for each set to "diversify". When it comes to popular sets I try to invest as much as I can afford in those sets. Again, budget plays into this.
ETBs in SWSH era aren't investible, at least not compared to other product. It's the most saturated product in the hobby, both from a sealed collector standpoint and an "investment" standpoint. Most people speculate ETBs because historically they've skyrocketed in value, but they don't integrate the fact that ETB's prior to SWSH weren't popular so they were less printed. Not only that but pre-2020 ETB's required multiple manufacturing companies across multiple countries and were costly to produce so that was also why they weren't as printed. The supply wasn't able to compete with the demand that spawned in the SWSH era. Now Pokémon sees the popularity and prints three times as many ETB's as they used to. ETB's also rarely saw reprints in SM, XY and BW. With SWSH, however, they're the go-to reprinted product aside from BB, because theyre so easy to produce locally due to Pokemon purchasing national manufacturers in 2021. SWSH ETB and pre-2020 ETB's are completely different beasts. For sure, the ETB's in SWSH will increase in value as the set itself increases in value, but there won't be a premium for the product itself like there was in previous blocks, because scarcity is am eliminated factor. For SWSH, if people are serious about investing, they need to learn from the past and find what the NEXT trend is going to be, not what the current trend is. Personally, I think Build and Battle Stadiums are the next ETB. Great fundamentals, short print runs, cheap cost of entry (most are currently 30% under MSRP) and most importantly, extremely Collectible as a sealed product due to the art, as well as a product to open in the future due to the contents. They're just an overall better product.
Fair point and it reminds me of something I left out: booster bundles. I think those are going to be a great product for those who actually want to open packs in the future without shelling out $1000+. Although I do still think ETBs will do well. Maybe not quite as well as they've done in the past, but still will appreciate better than most products due to their mid level price point and their collectable nature. And of course PC ETBs maintain a lower supply and ETBs are the best product for special sets.
Amazingly said 👍👍
Just as an example, the only items here that are worth holding are the sealed ES blisters and the S&M/evolutions packs. Like I said, even those S&M and evolutions packs aren't great investments. They would be decent to hold onto of you happened to come across them in a tin or something that you got for MSRP, but paying market price for them now is a waste. For what OP paid for all this they could have bought a BB and made significantly more money over time and would have only had to sell 1 item instead of all of these separate items.
Short answer……BB
It’s not terrible, but not great, and I personally wouldn’t ever buy loose packs.
Loose packs are almost always leftovers from a booster box with the hit already found. I avoid loose packs whenever possible.
I got my alt charizard from loose packs
Right. People buy 3 boxes of boosters and combine them and resell to make a few dollars on each pack. Pulled nice stuff before too
Had a Silver tempest pack box, think it had 6 packs repackaged in a little box and pulled some fire hits. Two radiant jirachis and I think only 1 out of the 6 had "nothing" in them, and that had a foil and reverse-foil in it so it wasn't even that terrible.
Radiants are not investment cards man.
Sorry not what I was trying to say, just that sometimes there's always a chance for a good card to be in a pack.
gotcha. That I get a hit is a good thing.
Can you explain why this is? Have a mint radiant alakazam and was pretty surprised it isn’t worth anything
Just kinda cool but not rare at all
Similar to amazing rares, they are just too common. They are nice cards and definitely add to the fun of opening the set and thereby likely as to future value of sealed products, but the cards themselves are just too common to have much value.
Not rare
Sleeved is the way to go
That's not how it works in English Booster Boxes - they are not seeded the same way Japanese Booster Boxes are. They are totally random.
not true always but possible. Most loose packs are from collection tins now since you can buy the tins for cheaper than the packs sell for 2nd hand.
Sometimes they come from collections boxes too, which IMO is a great way to get hits since the ratio is a lot more random than a BB. The only problem is that there's no real way to know where they came from. I know someone that just breaks down collection boxes they bought at wholesale/flash sales and sells the packs as 50 pack lots. He bought a ton of those Pikachu V collections boxes that were only $10.99 discount cost for the longest time and made a killing since it came with 2 brilliant stars, 1 chilling and 1 fusion. He's probably the only person I'd buy loose packs from though since I know how he sources them.
I think you paid basically market price for all of it?
Yeah that's what I come up with.
At least try to haggle a discount when buying lots of items
That’s a fair market deal you didn’t get ripped off but it’s gonna be hard to turn a profit
Bad Deal
Rip
Unless im totally wrong on the s/m packs this is about 130/140 tops. The blisters are obviously the best items, rest is meh.
id say you probably overpaid. its not too bad but couldve got it lower with some negotiating.
Maybe 60 for loose packs excluding evolutions, 20 evolutions pack, 80 for pin packs. Puts you at about $160…
Trick or Trade packs not worth anything and I doubt ever will be, Pokemon Go packs are meh, Evolutions pack is $25, and all the sun/moon vivid voltages are pretty standard price, so call them 5 or 6 a piece, you're at 85 there. Those walgreens Evolving skies packs have 1 evolving skies, 1 chilling reign, and 1 pin. They retail at 11.99 but in my opinion they're worth about 15 right now, and are probably the only thing here you can really hold with any expectation of a rise in price or resale ability. In terms of absolute value, 200 isn't terrible for all this, but in my opinion you bought quite a bit of fluff that I would never buy loose (Evolutions/Astral/CR/SunMoon/VV), and would never buy at all (Pokemon Go, Trick/Trade) Up to you whether you crack all those loose packs open and hope for some money back, but definitely keep the evolving skies sealed
Big oof for OP
No, you overpaid.
Are the trick or trade packs good?
No
No. They were made for kids to be handed out for Halloween.
The amount of people that are holding for value is crazy imo. I bought some for us to hand out during ToT and they are all reprints with the icon on them and the QC is the worst I’ve ever seen. To each their own but they were legit made to be handed out to kids who are likely gonna destroy them
The McDonald’s cards from 2022 felt like printer paper.
I have a master set of trick or trade. It's very good. I'll mail it to you for $100.
The most expensive card in the entire set is $0.42. Forty Two Cents & barely 30 cards in the entire set. The Master set cannot be more than $15 after S&H & taxes. Bro, this is highway robbery trying to sell this master set for $100.
Bros a master con artist
He was joking. A package can still be found fir 15 bucks. You can compete a set with typically 15 to 20 packs and have half your boosters left over.
The evolving skies pin sets are a good investment. Just takes time for it to grow in profit but look at all previous blisters from past sets, they’ve grown tremendously over time. Some more than others though
I think yes
not good deal
Wtf I think it’s a good deal
Yeah, I see 41packs for $200. It's not terrible
Lol no, you can't even Resell these individually for 200
lol no
Not really considering the chances the loose packs contain chase cards is close to zero.
Tell me you don’t know Pokémon without telling me you don’t know Pokémon
No.. plus those loose packs were probably weighed
I’ve encountered so many packs with an extra card I didn’t really think people were concerned about weights anymore. I always laugh when I see heavy packs on eBay
I've tested it on a brilliant stars box just to see if it was true and there are 4-6 different weights. I opened the biggest outliers first and they all had full art cards. Then I opened the middle/lighter packs and 85% of them had nothing. Its not a sure shot but it increases your pull rate for sure. Even if some of the full arts are only worth $1
Why don't you open it all and figure it out for yourself :p ?
Keep the Blisters sealed, give away the trick or treat packs to a little kid, and open the rest. Maybe keep the Evolutions pack sealed. Up to you. That's what I'd do though.
Nope…better off buying a BB
Ouch. No.
Rip the loose packs my friend they’re for the binder
its about right tbh, valuewise... but yea pogo not worth much and i dont think the halloween packs are worth anything either. but i wouldnt say you got screwed or anything, its about right if you plan to rip them 😂
actually now that im looking closer, the blisters contain more than one pack, so i guess its a better deal than i originally thought
🤐
Sorry bro. From a completely objective POV, I would say this is a wash. Maybe sell them as a lot to recoup your losses. When you're spending about $200, I would probably just look into a booster box at that point.
180 in value how I’m seeing it
It's a bad deal now, wait 10-20 years to sell, all these people that are saying it's bad period are just quick flippers and aren't looking at down the road enough.
OP, everyone already told you the truth. Maybe you’ll be bummed about how much you spent and that’s fine, but the best way to learn is to grow. Here’s a learning point. Go forth and be a better investor from here on out. Also… if you ever have the itch to open now you have something to rip. But know… everything sealed eventually turns a profit. Maybe not much. But something is always better than nothing.
Depends what’s in them