I remember as a kid, I used to find Pokémon everywhere, but now, I can’t find them anywhere. I have searched high and low in over six stores. I thought that I was the only one, but other students are struggling with finding Pokémon too. 

“Legit, the scalpers are taking all the Pokémon to resell them,” senior River Nielson said. 

Scalpers are individuals or entities that buy high-demand and low-supply items to resell at significantly higher prices. They often use automated bots to purchase inventory faster than consumers. Scalpers create artificial scarcity by buying out inventory, forcing the consumer to buy at higher prices rather than retail prices. 

“Scalpers just need to find a real job rather than taking away from kids who just love the game and cards,” senior Adam Cole said.

Even though high amounts of Pokémon are being sold for more than they were purchased for, you can still find some at decent prices. To do so, you have to go to the right spots or to stores right after they restock.

“I’ve been able to find them at Ace hardware or The Dollar Store,” sophomore Vitor Potenza said. 

“I’ve been able to find Pokémon cards for decent prices at card specialized stores. All you have to do is look up card shops and they should pull up,” junior Phineous Rupp said. 

You can find card shops almost anywhere in our area, especially in Salt Lake City. Salt Lake City is a treasure trove of specialized stores, including card shops. A great thing about card shops is their sense of community, whether it’s meeting people with the same interests or their game nights. Card shops aren’t just a place to find cards and games, but a place to find community. I hope you find Pokémon cards and friends wherever you go.