Retail

Target Hosts Pokémon 30th Anniversary Give-Away

Is this a celebration uniting fans of every age or a reseller feeding frenzy leaving kids empty-handed?

SEP 27·Updated SEP 28

Target Hosts Pokémon 30th Anniversary Give-Away

Story

Above: A Pokémon card display at Target in Los Angeles, on May 14, 2021. Image credit: Chris Delmas/Getty Images

The Facts

Target held a nationwide Pokémon 30th Anniversary event Sunday in the U.S. from noon to 4 p.m. local time at participating stores, with activities, themed photo opportunities and giveaways available.
Mashable
Fox5Sandiego
Reno Gazette Journal
Participating locations hosted a draw-your-own Pokémon trading card station that comes with a plastic cover resembling a graded collectible, while select stores offered playable demos of Pokémon Pokopia on the Nintendo Switch 2.
Polygon
Mashable
Fox5Sandiego
More than 200 Target stores in California took part, including over a dozen in San Diego County. Of the 268 participating stores in the U.S., 50 were in the Bay Area, spanning cities such as San Jose, Fremont and Santa Rosa.
KRON4
Fox5Sandiego
Reports suggested that roughly the first 98 attendees in line received a goodie bag containing a Mewtwo promo card and an event ticket that could be redeemed to buy two 30th Celebration tins, each holding five packs of cards.
Polygon
Mashable
The new 30th-anniversary card set, which launched Sept. 16, includes illustrated rare cards, foil finishes and cards from the game's classic collection. Mizuho analysts said boxes sold out online "almost immediately."
Mashable
Market Watch
Mizuho analysts also estimate that trading cards account for roughly 1-2% of Target's total revenue and put the U.S. trading-card market at close to $10-20 billion. Target shares rose 3.3% Thursday and are up more than 63% this year.
Polygon
Market Watch

Sources Split

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The Spin

Narrative A

Pokemon's 30th anniversary at Target is a win for everybody: nostalgic millennials, new fans and a retailer finally giving people a reason to walk through the doors. Exclusive collaborations, in-game perks and a booming collectibles category prove fandom is a legitimate business. Celebrating three decades of the game this way builds excitement and celebrates fan communities.

Market Watch

Pokémon

Narrative B

A children's card game has been turned into a speculative asset class, and the result is empty shelves and kids going home with nothing. Treating sealed boxes like a retirement portfolio only works if someone else gets shut out, which makes scarcity the whole point. An anniversary celebration aimed at families deserves better than parking-lot resellers cosplaying as fans and ripping off children.