RAPID CITY, SD — Pokémon, Magic: The Gathering, and Topps – though they may not share the same audiences, they each represent a juggernaut within the greater hobby of trading cards.
For years, stories have been shared in the corners of each. Stories of high-value cards: of First Edition Charizard, Black Lotus, and 1952 Mickey Mantle, traveling almost like legends of collectors who have hit it big from rare finds and lucky pulls. However, a spike in overall card value in recent years has led to a contrasting tale. A tale of parents seeking gifts for eager young fans, players excited to see a new set, and collectors waiting in line hoping to get a lucky pull, finding the shelves emptied by scalpers by the time they get their chance.
Black Hills Card Shop, a new downtown venue focused on the trading card hobby, hopes to address the mixed bag of the current card market.
While Tommy Patton, an owner of the shop, is excited by the market spike and increased interest that comes with it, he found himself a bit frustrated trying to navigate the material situation. “Rapid City is pretty well-behaved, as far as that goes,” said Patton, who definitely had his fair share of horror stories as well, saying, “Kids aren’t getting Pokémon because the parents would have to go wait in all these lines.”
For many, cards are a sort of investment, which, though an especially risky one, can be alluring, especially in the face of some especially rare cases that have seen cards not only sold for thousands, but millions of dollars. However, for collectors looking to capture some nostalgia or find a specific single, local card venues are a bit few and far between, and prices online can be demanding. For players looking to test their luck, it might be hard to find packs at a reasonable price, given how quickly cards can be snatched up by those looking to make some quick cash off of the demand.
The mission of Black Hills Card Shop is simple. Drawing on personal collections, they hope to buy and sell single cards at market prices, establishing a background to eventually contact distributors in order to bring more packs to players and collectors at MSRP, expanding local availability, and hopefully deterring scalpers.
Patton says he hopes the store can become a community space as well, establishing friendly relationships with nearby Heroes & Villains early into the inception of the shop, and planning on hosting nights for kids and adults to get into collecting and playing these games. “One guy came in and bought a pack of Pokémon, and he pulled a $900 card out of it, and those are the kind of moments we’re hoping to create here,” said Patton.
While the shop has had what Tommy calls a “soft opening,” a grand opening event is scheduled for May 9th.
