Pokémon TCG: Sword and Shield—Brilliant Stars

Starting a Card Shop

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Blitzkrieg916

New Member
Sorry if this is the wrong place to post this, but I didn't know where else it would go.

My friends and I are contemplating starting up a Card Shop. We'll be branching out to other TCGs, not just Pokemon, but my question here is about Pokemon.
I hope this doesn't sound like a dumb question, but does the Pokemon Company deal directly with card shop merchants?
(i.e. Would we be able to buy supplies (cards, decks, etc.) directly from TPCi? Would the prices be better than if we were to buy from a distributor? etc.)

Thanks!
 
I don't know, but I bet asking customer service would be a great place to start finding out!
 
Card shops go through distributors, and the distributors deal with TPCI.
A lot of card/game shops go through Alliance Games.

Hope that helps. (Worked at a card shop)
 
Blitzkrieg916 said:
Sorry if this is the wrong place to post this, but I didn't know where else it would go.

My friends and I are contemplating starting up a Card Shop. We'll be branching out to other TCGs, not just Pokemon, but my question here is about Pokemon.
I hope this doesn't sound like a dumb question, but does the Pokemon Company deal directly with card shop merchants?
(i.e. Would we be able to buy supplies (cards, decks, etc.) directly from TPCi? Would the prices be better than if we were to buy from a distributor? etc.)

Thanks!
Click to expand...

Contemplate hard on this as it's no easy picnic. Supplies are best bought from a distributor. I like considering a distributor that lives relatively close in your area. You'll be paying shipping costs, so it'll be slightly cheaper on freight charges. Assuming you want to expand to MTG at the distributor level, you'll need to meet specific requirements, particularly a physical brick and mortar store.

But before that, you'll need to get the proper licenses for your state and/or county, the tax accounts from the IRS, and establish a resale certificate. On top of that, consider your accounting options and methods which is probably the most time consuming. I also recommend a budget and a business plan.

I've been operating my online front officially for around 7 months now, and that's after 2 full years of planning, and I still don't have it down 100%. My best advice is to not rush into things before fully planning every option. You'll run into pitfalls eventaully like all companies, but if you plan them ahead of time, they'll be less stressful on your end.
 
@pokemonforever

Ya I know it's going to be a long process. We're not trying to rush into anything, we're just trying to get some information and trying to see what all our options are.
I've been doing a bit of research on getting the proper licences (I live in Montreal, Quebec) and it doesn't seem to be that big of a problem. Still doing research on it though. Our biggest problem so far is finding the right location. But again, we're just at the brainstorming phase of everything.

Thanks for the advice though :)
 
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