The Pokemon franchise originated in a Japanese gaming magazine in the 1980s. Satoshi Tajiri and Ken Sugimori, the writer and illustrator respectively, then took Pokemon to the next level through role-playing games, published by Nintendo. Next came the Pokemon trading cards, in 1996 – under a year into the release of the first game. What happened next? Well, the popularity of Pokemon spread far and wide! However, it felt like the hype around the franchise diminished in the early 00s, with our games and Pokemon card binders being pushed to the back of cupboards or hidden in the darkest corners of our attics.
But then something happened. The interest in Pokemon cards reignited, with eBay reporting an increase in sales by 574% from 2019 to 2020. We then saw Gary Vaynerchuk (GaryVee), Logic and Logan Paul push the trend mainstream, leading to individual cards selling for over $200,000! To investigate this further, we talked to experts like Randolph and the average Joe on the street, to discover how Pokemon cards are becoming more valuable than diamonds, gold or platinum.
Whether it’s a PSA 10 or a PSA 9 Charizard, Blastoise, Pikachu or something more niche like a Gengar, we try and understand why this hobby and collectable has become huge over the last few months.
This is taking Pokemon out to the public in London. This is opening a 1999 Fossil Pokemon card pack worth £200. This is our investigation into what all the hype is about. This is The Goat Agency investigates Pokemon cards.
