Pokémon Booster Box Prices Over the Years - An Investment Analysis
Every box has beaten the S&P 500... yes, you read that correctly.
“Why Not Me? by Jarrylew” is an e-commerce and investment newsletter that focuses around the idea of using efficient income to become self-employed and financially free.
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What you’re about to read might be extremely confusing if you haven’t read any posts on my Substack before.
I don’t just talk about e-commerce, I also talk investing.
I strongly encourage you to read this post that starts off with explaining why I invest in collectibles like sealed collectible trading cards.
It will make way more sense once you do.
Before we get into this, click the heart button for me please. It really helps with the discoverability of my content.
Underappreciated and Overlooked
Sealed booster boxes of modern Pokémon cards have been fantastic investments over the past couple decades.
This shouldn’t be surprising to anyone who reads this Substack. However, I don’t think people understand just how good of an investment they’ve been.
Well, I did a little bit of simple math to paint the picture.
It will be straightforward, simple, and to the point.
The Math
I took a look at the prices of every single booster box that is out of print, dating all the way back to 2014.
Now, I would have went back further but the liquidity on boxes from before then make it hard to get a grasp on the true market value.
The result was what I had expected, but the results will likely shock some who weren’t aware.
Average Yearly Gain (if out of print): 104.29%!
Average Overall Gain (if out of print): 546.50%!
Worst Performer: Crimson Invasion - 28% yearly gain - 122% overall gain
Best Performer: Flashfire - 411.06% yearly gain - 3233% overall gain
This means that EVERY booster box on this list that is out of print outperformed the S&P 500, even Crimson Invasion (85% overall vs. 122% overall).
The key to these type of returns is like any other investment: time in the market beats timing the market.
It’s About Having Fun, Too
Now do you understand why I’m always talking about this kind of stuff?
I could talk about the incredible returns crypto has had over the same period like everyone else… but that’s exactly why I won’t.
I like to invest in underappreciated areas that have little to no attention on them.
It’s important to mention as well that investing in booster boxes does come with drawbacks. While they aren’t crippling, they should be kept in mind:
Boxes of cards are far less liquid than stocks, they take time to sell
You must box them up and ship them when you sell
You will likely have to pay 10-15% in fees on every sale
Even with this in mind, they are one of the best performing assets in the past 20 years by a landslide.
If they weren’t, I would still be investing in them because at the end of the day investing in what you enjoy is just as important as the potential growth.
Looking Forward
Just because these gains have happened over the past couple decades, does not mean they will continue.
That is important to recognize.
If the Pokémon company decides to do what sports card companies did in the ‘90s and start printing too many of them, they won’t be great investments anymore.
Past performances are not indicative of future results, but they do show what the trend is.
Right now, the trend is that they cannot make enough cards to satisfy demand.
I will continue buying new boxes of cards, prior to them going out of print until this trend changes.
If you want to follow along with my 6 figure+ sealed trading card portfolio to see how much money I’m making or losing by investing in them, sign up for a paid subscription below.
As always, these posts are not financial or investment advice.
They are made for entertainment purposes only by a bum who gave up his job as a prestigious Aerospace Engineer to talk about parking money in things like sealed trading cards.