Walmart & Target Pulled Pokemon Cards from Shelves over ‘Safety Concerns
In separate announcements, reps for Walmart and Target revealed they’re suspending sales of Pokemon, MLB, NFL and NBA trading cards starting Friday May 14, 2021.
A spokeswoman for Target says executives made the decision in an effort “to ensure the safety of our guests and team members.” A statement from Walmart says the company decided to stop selling trading cards “due to inappropriate customer behavior and increased demand.”
In recent weeks, a renewed interest in trading cards — especially those that feature Pokemon characters — has led to an uptick in thefts and violence as people scramble to add to their collections. Last month, $20,000 worth of cards were stolen in Maine, and one customer pulled a gun on another at a Wisconsin Target in a dispute over Pokemon cards.
From VICE.com:
People have gotten really into trading and collecting Pokémon cards since the pandemic started. The surge in sales forced Target to restrict the purchase of card related items to one per customer to be sold first come first serve at 8am on Fridays. On May 7 at 8:20 am, a customer left a Wisconsin Target after buying sports cards and was assaulted by four men. He pulled a gun to defend himself.
Now Target, which had previously threatened to call the police on rowdy card customers, is removing the trading cards from its stores entirely.
“The safety of our guests and our team is our top priority. Out of an abundance of caution, we’ve decided to temporarily suspend the sale of MLB, NFL, NBA and Pokémon trading cards within our stores, effective May 14,” Target told Motherboard in an email. “Guests can continue to shop these cards online at Target.com.”
Forbes Magazine says General Mills is facing a cereal shortage after placing Pokemon cards inside various cereals to celebrate Pokemon’s 25th anniversary. Many cereals are completely sold out because Pokemon fans have been trying to collect all of the cards. Some resellers have listed the cards for sale on eBay for hundreds of dollars.
The cereal shortage has affected Golden Grahams, Cocoa Puffs, Trix, Lucky Charms, and Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
Susan Saunders 5/14/21
