I own internet retailer Untapped Games. We sell Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon, and Cardfight Vanguard trading cards through our web site, eBay, Amazon, and other sales venues!

Ask me anything about what it's like to own an online TCG shop (and a physical one too), products we sell, industry questions, etc...

I'm not sure if Reddit will have questions, but I'm hoping you do!

I also added this page to the site for proof.

Update 8:32 PM EST: There are actually a lot of questions pertaining to our local tournament center in Pawtucket, RI so I just wanted to point out that we have a MTG TCG Player Bronze Qualifier there this upcoming Saturday at 2:00 PM.

Update 10:55 PM EST: I'm going to call it a night! Thanks for all the support! Maybe I will do another one of these in the future! I tried to answer most questions, but there are still more I would have liked to!

Update 1:12 AM EST: Wow, I still see questions going up. I'm going to respond to a few more before I head to bed. Thank you!

Comments: 209 • Responses: 50  • Date: 

dasbif18 karma

What do you, as a card retailer, wish we consumers knew or did differently?

Nate64231 karma

1) I wish more people would buy directly from our site so we can avoid fees that are usually around 10% to 15% of the purchase. Our prices on our site are thus typically lower and we also almost constantly have coupons to save more. We really pass most of the savings on to the customer in the hopes of future direct business! A lot of people do switch to buying direct from us, but even some big buyers don't. Some repeat eBay buyers could have saved hundreds over time if not more just buying direct from us.

2) Pricing. Sometimes people get upset if something is more than retail. We value collectables in real time. Just like any normal person we aren't going to sell a box of Modern Masters for $168. It's especially frustrating because most of our prices are so much lower than retail. We charge only $87.95 for a Magic 2014 booster box pre-order currently when the retail is like $144. Those hot products that go above retail are really how MTG shops make their money to stay in business today. Pricing is determined by the internet.

bradinphx16 karma

Have you thought about putting a post card in with the orders with a coupon directing them to the site? I did this and it has been wonderful.

Nate64218 karma

Thanks for the suggestion! We do include coupons with every order though :)

Aszolus4 karma

If we went directly to your site to buy singles, we would almost always be paying more than if we were to go to TCGplayer.com and buy from the lowest price on their (which is sometimes you guys).

Nate6423 karma

We love selling on TCGPlayer and I think it is a great place to shop especially if you are buying a lot of rarer cards that we might not have every one in stock of.

Our prices on TCGPlayer are already higher than our direct prices though! Plus, we almost always have 10% off coupons that work for standard MTG sets and recent sets from other games! If you enjoy shopping on TCGPlayer though definitely don't stop! Great deals can be found!

Current Untapped Games Coupons good until 7/16/13:

M14PREORDER - Save 10% on an order containing only MTG singles with at least one M14 single.

NUMBER10 - Save 10% on an order containing only YuGiOh singles with at least one Number Hunters single.

TreyWalker12 karma

What is my Fog of Gnats card worth?

Nate64215 karma

Lol

peasoupanderson12 karma

I have a small cache of Magic and Pokemon cards in my attic. 1995-2000 highlights like (a few) dual lands, Mox Diamonds, and cards of similar caliber. I also have some non-Charizard 1st edition foils. What's your recommendation on liquidating these and still doing my childhood justice?

Nate64217 karma

I agree with Beerblebrox's post below! MTG is enjoyable at any age! If you really don't plan to play ever again though I personally keep a couple of my favorite items from each era of my childhood and that has worked out well! That said I meet a lot of MTG players who play the game quit and then play again. Buying cards and then selling them back to the shop just to buy them again is not good for your wallet!

master135011 karma

1: can you hook me up with some free yugioh cards?

2: How do u deal with potential scammer? Ex: They got the card but say they didnt, card was damaged, etc.

3: How big of a staff do you keep?

4: What do you think about the future of TCG's?

Nate64215 karma

1: We do give away some free stuff on our monthly facebook contest. There are usually only a couple hundred entrants so you odds are pretty good!

2: It's always a challenge. Large orders have signature confirmation which is usually adequate proof. Large international orders go registered with a physical return receipt. Once things are signed for we are usually fine. Smaller orders we refund sometimes, but if we think it is fraud we will blacklist the buyer.

3: There are currently 10 of us including myself. I usually add a couple people before the holidays.

4: I think the future looks great. It really depends on the game. Right now MTG, Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon, and Cardfight are all going strong.

lFinnyl10 karma

[deleted]

Nate64211 karma

To buy Magic: The Gathering product you need to have a brick and mortar store and a sales permit.

Sittin_n_Shittin9 karma

How did you get started in the business?

Nate6425 karma

It's hard to say what was really the starting point. It's like a lot of things coming together. My interest in MTG started as early as elementary school and I played (incorrectly) on and off until high school. I used to sometimes sell some cards on eBay and it kind of just grew from there!

Cat-juggler2 karma

I'm considering a career change from kitchens and have been toying with the idea of starting an online re-selling business around one of my hobbies. I considered MTG, lately been revolving around Lego, both being products I'm familiar with. My plan at this stage is to just buy a few sets each of the next release (Lego), sell them individually through eBay and other local online classifieds, then re-invest the proceeds into more sets, using the first few batches to determine how feasible this will be and to not sink too much money into a pipe dream.

My questions are 1), Once you focused on this as a business and viable income how long was it before it grew into your full time job

2) My plan's deliberately simple, are there any obvious complications you think I should add now with benifit of hindsight? Things such as a homepage/branding etc.

3) I'm slightly OCD when it comes to collectables, always thought that if I were in the Magic business I'd keep one of each card that passed through my hands, keep the first black lotus, sell the second on. How extensive is your personal collection?

Thanks for your time, I scanned for if my questions were repeats but couldn't see. Have a goodun!

Nate6425 karma

1) I pretty much started my business in high school selling cards I traded for. I just did it on eBay and it was profitable immediately, but it was pretty much just like a small allowance of $10 or $20 per week.

2) If you plan to just sell on Ebay I think it is pretty easy if you can compete on pricing. I know that it would be very difficult for me to start my business as it is today. For MTG you need to have a brick and mortar store to buy from wholesalers, so I think you would have to stick with legos if you are considering just selling new product. It might be difficult to compete too. I'm able to buy product for good prices from distributors because I buy a large volume. They also know I'm likely to do future business since I have a history of selling the types of items I do. I don't think someone would be able to offer to buy the same volume and get the same price without that history.

3) That's a dangerous attitude to have lol. You want to make sure you sell the product that runs your business. I don't have any personal collection except my decks which I sell back to my business when I'm done with them.

CANOODLING_SOCIOPATH8 karma

As a retailer how do you feel about the reserved list for mtg?

Nate64211 karma

We don't have large numbers of older cards, but I think it is a good idea. I don't know if a particular list is required. I just hope that Wizards refrains from reprinting too much. It's really easy to make a massive amount of money quick with good reprints (Modern Masters), but I'm not so sure it is good for the long term.

Yu-Gi-Oh seems to reprint everything and they kind of encourage a culture where vendors can't hold onto product for long because it will devalue. I know vendors who have stopped selling YuGiOh because their inventory would just be constantly devalued and when there are less vendors there are less places to play the game.

muttmonster6 karma

I don't know if a particular list is required. I just hope that Wizards refrains from reprinting too much

Don't mention this over at /r/MagicTCG. That subreddit tends to want everything to be reprinted so every card is insanely cheap.

Nate64211 karma

I'm not sure if they realize what the impact would be. If a card is valuable that card's value is held by the players and stores who own those cards. When they reprint something those cards all go down in value and the value of the reprint mostly just goes to the manufacturer.

I'm not doubting players would like MTG to be more affordable. Lowering the price on everything is certainly not what any company is going to want to do though. If Wizards of the Coast pursued an aggressive reprinting policy what would happen is you would have cards at least as expensive as you do now when new sets come out. Then once everyone bought those who could months later they would reprint them and destroy the value of that investment. Personally, I don't think standard is difficult to keep up with if you do some smart trading and play any type of limited format even semi-frequently.

HuhDude7 karma

What is the worst example of you being burnt by speculative investment in a MTG card?

What set has been the most popular of all time for you?

Which card has been the most popular?

Have you ever been lucky with a speculative investment in a card/set? How much did you make?

Thanks, this is really interesting!

Nate6429 karma

1) I can't really say we have made any investments in a particular card that turned out so poorly I remember it. MTG is usually pretty safe, but card values obviously fluctuate.

2) Innistrad was extremely popular or at least supply was constrained enough where it was difficult to keep in stock.

3) Black Lotus seems to be the most well known MTG card, but for what is selling it is often based on our supply. Popular cards from new sets can be hard to keep in stock. We sold out of our pre-order allocation for Archangel of Thune. We were pre-selling them for $13.95 originally and now we sold out, but they were up to $29.95.

4) Every new set is a speculative investment! A lot of the time you have to order product before it is fully revealed. Yu-Gi-Oh is more volatile than MTG. Some sets you make thousands of dollars in profit and other sets you lose thousands of dollars!

SteroidSandwich5 karma

What us the most expensive purchase someone has made on your site?

Nate6423 karma

I'm not sure the most expensive purchase, but we regularly have people who buy about $1000 worth of cards when a new set comes out. It is especially true for YuGiOh where we have a lot of Japanese customers. I suspect they are probably vendors who sell the cards themselves in Japan.

highcastle4 karma

How do you feel about some of the best card games out right now (Netrunner, AGOT, Star Wars) being LCGs. Do you think the living format is the future of card games and have you seen a shift in costumers from big money games like mtg to fixed priced games?

Nate6425 karma

I thing CCGs are here to stay. I haven't noticed anyone who has quit MTG, YuGiOh, Pokemon, or Cardfight Vanguard specifically to instead play an LCG. I definitely think there is a place in the market for them especially on a less hardcore level.

I think that the formula for CCG's is more profitable for manufacturers. I can't imagine any LCG bringing in the revenue per player to have the development budget that MTG has. I also think the luck aspect of opening boosters and the ability to trade cards has appeal to many players especially younger ones.

binci884 karma

Hows business?

Nate6429 karma

Business is good this year! MTG, Yu-Gi-Oh, Cardfight, and Pokemon are all doing fantastic.

Elo294 karma

  1. Why is Solar Flare Dragon the greatest Yu-Gi-Oh card ever?

  2. Why is Mr. Mime the best Pokemon ever, yet I don't own his card anymore. Actually, I'm going to jump into that story. My father, step-mother, friend and I were traveling to Kansas City. My friend felt sick and my dad said there was a rest stop in five miles. Friend didn't make it five miles and vomited into my bag containing 1,000+ Pokemon cards. I was sad.

  3. What's your favorite of the TCGs?

  4. How have profits changed in the last decade? Has the popularity dwindled as much as I expect or am I just getting old?

Nate6423 karma

1) Everyone has a favorite!

2) I would be sad even if that happened to me today as an adult!

3) I enjoy Magic: The Gathering the best. It is what I played during my childhood and what I still play today. I have played some Pokemon TCG and Yu-Gi-Oh as well and they are both enjoyable games.

4) A decade ago, I was beginning college and only doing this part time. I didn't realize how good it was. Margins are lower today, but the market is tremendously larger! I think it is much tougher to get into this market than it was years ago and I wouldn't be able to build up to what i have if I had started later (or at least not as easily). If you want to retire early you might want to look for a more profitable career lol. I just love what I do! I don't know why you perceive the popularity as declining. Game popularity changes, but overall the market is strong. Obviously, Pokemon was a fad many years back and it is no where near what it was, but even it is doing solid.

rezaziel3 karma

What are your thoughts on the World of Warcraft TCG? You don't claim to carry it, so I'm curious if there's a reason or something.

Nate6422 karma

I played it a bit and think it is a fine game, but it definitely does not have an extremely large hardcore following and its popularity seems to be directly derived from how well the video game is doing.

The card game was initially very popular when it came out, but even then people were buying it for code cards to unlock stuff in the video game primarily. Now, there are many unlockables in WoW through different means, so there is not as much interest in buying packs of the TCG for codes. Since Cryptozoic has taken over the game they seem to be trying to build a strong gaming community so perhaps that will help, but for now we are at max capacity selling other games.

Xunk3 karma

Do you have / have you ever considered a "deck-building" feature on your website where customers can build a deck made of singles and then be given a quote on the price for it? I always felt like that would be useful when I played TCG's some 7 or 8 years ago.

Nate6423 karma

That sounds like a great idea! We have a feature called deck builder which essentially lets you search a list of cards, but it doesn't automatically give you a total for all of them. I may check and see if we could implement a feature that does!

kaltorak3 karma

You guys run a fun weekly draft, just wanted to say thanks.

(You are the ones in Providence RI, right?)

Nate6422 karma

Technically, our tournament area is right over the border in Pawtucket! We do run weekly Thursday night drafts at 7:00 PM though!

fanboy_killer3 karma

Do you feel like there are more Magic players nowadays than ever before? I've been a casual player for the past 5 years and rarely go into a store anymore but I read the other day that the number of MTG players tripled since Shards of Alara. Do you feel like it?

Nate6426 karma

The growth has been incredible. I'm not sure how to measure the number of MTG players there are, but I wouldn't be surprised if tournament attendance was at least 3 times what it was during Shards of Alara. Our online sales have definitely at least doubled in the past 3 years.

In my local area; I moved to Providence, RI in 2006 and there were no shops I could find that had tournaments in the immediate local area. Now my shop exists and there are at least 4 other MTG retailers running tournaments within 10 miles.

OppaWumboStyle2 karma

Do you ever open any of the packs yourself and what kind of cards do you collect personally?

Nate6421 karma

When new sets come out it can be pretty busy and I often help open packs myself! I play MTG, but don't really have a separate collection from my store inventory.

Belialol2 karma

When selling booster packs, do you do any tricks to figure out what's in them (look at them through bright light, analyzing the pack/booster box product id, etc.) to figure out if it has an expensive rare?

Nate6425 karma

No. That would just result in negative feedback and unhappy customers. We are in the business for the long term and aren't shutting down our site to make a new one or remaking eBay accounts every month. When we have cards we don't need from new sets we make booster box repacks...

YuGiOh Lord of Tachyon Galaxy Booster Box Repack

MTG Avacyn Restored Booster Box Repack

Although you aren't going to get any $10 cards in these they are popular, especially for MTG where you can use them to draft for less than $3 per person (depending on the set).

Cmoore40992 karma

What is the single most expensive card you have sold?

Nate6423 karma

We don't carry many of the older extremely valuable MTG cards, but we do sometimes acquire and sell cards in the $200 to $300 range.

boner_macgee2 karma

Could you take a guess at what most of your buyers are like? Do you see more younger or older people, male vs. female?

Nate6426 karma

It really depends on the game. Being a seller specifically of TCG's we probably reach a different audience than say Walmart does when they sell cards. YuGiOh and Pokemon both have tournaments scenes that even attract a lot of college aged adults. Obviously, a lot of our sales for those two games are to kids as well. Most MTG players we see in our shop are adults in their 20s or older, but there are still a lot of kids who come play that too! MTG has just been around a while and people have stuck with it over the years!

Most players in tournaments are male, but I think people often underestimate the number of female gamers. They just tend to not come to tournaments as much.

name_not_relevant2 karma

How is your relationship with other MTG retailers? Are you a large TO as well?

Nate6422 karma

Although we are all competitors I think most MTG retailers get along pretty well. I do a lot of business with other vendors, so we certainly help each other as well as compete.

On a local level, the Providence, RI area has a great TCG gaming scene and I think a lot of that has to do with the wide selection of shops. There really is a place for gamers of every type! I think all the events and happenings have really led to growth in the gaming scene in the area. I don't know how much better or worse it would be for us if our competition wasn't there. However, I do believe the gaming scene would be much smaller.

We aren't a large TO presently, but maybe one day! Our core business is currently online and just revenue wise it is hard to imagine our physical location could ever come close. Our online site sells all over the world! That said our physical store might be expanding soon!

formerlybamftopus2 karma

What's the best way to get back into MTG? I've been out of the scene for about 9 years, and it seems like it's changed drastically since then.

Nate6424 karma

The core game is still the same! It depends on what format you want to play and how much you know, but the Duals of the Planeswalkers 2014 video game has an excellent tutorial on how to play!

Other than that you can easily find out about recent happenings on different forums like MTG Salvation, Wizards of the Coast's own forums, and even here on Reddit!

If you want physical product, the upcoming M14 Core Set that releases on July 19th is probably a simple start. I personally think something like a M14 fat pack is a good choice because you get some basic lands, a life counter, and a nice box to put some cards/decks in.

b_fellow2 karma

Has anyone tried to buy a bulk amount of seemingly bad cards like Wood Elemental? How about Tibalt?

Nate6424 karma

Our site has a maximum quantity people are allowed to buy of any particular card, but it is not uncommon for people to amass collections of one bad card as a hobby or because they like the artist. I have met many players who just pick a card and try to get as many copies of it as they can!

iopghj1 karma

How much do you take out of you booster box repacks?

they look like a good deal but i wouldn't want to purchase one and get nothing but 50 cent or lower cards.

Nate6422 karma

You get a lot of great commons, uncommons, and bulk rares from the set of the repack! However, you probably aren't going to find many if much if anything worth more than $1. That is what you should assume you will receive. However, we do make most of the repacks when the sets come out so if cards change in value later it might be possible to snag some good cards. I know we had some Craterhoof Behemoths in the Avacyn Restored booster box repacks because it wasn't a valuable card when the set came out, but then it skyrocketed to over $20 for a little while before coming back down. That kind of price movement is uncommon though and you shouldn't buy expecting to receive anything like that.

Beerblebrox1 karma

  1. Are you moving a lot of Modern staples right now (fetch lands, Dark Confidant, Tarmogoyf, Vendilion Clique, Thoughtseize, etc.)? How does the demand for these staples compare with prior years?

  2. How has the release of Modern Masters impacted your business?

Nate6421 karma

1) Those cards all sell out pretty quick when we get them in. I would say Modern as a format is more popular than ever and that the release of Modern Masters really boosted it.

2) Modern Masters is extremely popular, but was tightly allocated. We didn't receive an extremely large amount. However, I'm sure our return on our investment is higher than any other MTG new release. It's intense popularly I think did reduce demand for Dragon's Maze and possibly M14 though.

ImaCarrot1 karma

Is your staff local based or do you hire people online as well?

Nate6422 karma

All of my staff is local, but we do utilize many services from other companies that have employees elsewhere. It is certainly possible for us to hire a non-locally based employee, but for coordination and communication it's a lot easier to have everyone in one place. I have noticed even when people have jobs that can be done at home it is still good to have everyone in one place. This way if our e-mail customer service rep finds out someone needs a refund they can just say 'Hey, John Doe needs a refund' directly to the person in charge of refunds and etc.

9991341 karma

Worst customer you have ever had to deal with? Are all your orders in the US, I live in the uk and have barely seen card games existing.

Nate6422 karma

The worst customers don't always have the biggest problems. It's really how they interact with my people.

Recently, we had one guy buy a bunch of YuGiOh packs and before they got there he requested to return them. We told him that was fine as long as they were still sealed. He ended up opening the packs though and then still wanted to return them, which obviously is a no go in a collectable card game with cards of different values and rarities. These types of problems happen every so often, but it was really how he was just screaming and swearing at my employee for not wanting to take back his open product. If people treat my people badly I'm less inclined to help them out.

We sell all over the world. We definitely ship some orders to the UK, but most of of our customers are in the United States. We don't send enough shipments there to have a set idea of how big a market it is.

ISeeBreadPeoples1 karma

How do you see the recent developments in online card games? Magic 2014, Blizzard's Heartstone to name the one's I know. The free to play model works extremely well for them and their execution is AAA. Do think they will impact your business negatively? Are you preparing to move into online trading?

Nate6423 karma

I actually was initially worried that these types of games would eat into our business, but it turned out to be the opposite. A lot of people play games like Duals of the Planeswalkers 2014 and then start playing MTG for real. I think DotP 2014 is a great way to learn the game, but being in a room with real people I think that is social experience that online TCG's can't replicate yet and I don't see them doing in my future as a vendor. Online TCGs keep getting better, but they have been around for years and the physical TCG industry has continued to grow tremendously. As someone mentioned below MTG just had their biggest tournament yet! Even with Hearthstone, when it was revealed our limited remaining inventory of World of Warcraft card sales skyrocketed.

There is certainly a market for online trading and we have thought about it, but haven't taken any action yet.

liableAccount1 karma

Personally, do you love the pokemon games?

Nate6423 karma

I do enjoy the Pokemon games. I played a ton of Pokemon Blue & Red years ago. I feel like they continue to refine them, but they don't hold my interest as long anymore. I played a bit of Pokemon Black & White, but the formula just isn't as fresh and exciting as it was to me back in Blue & Red.

Joystick_Hero1 karma

Which TCG is your favorite?

Nate6423 karma

I enjoy Magic: The Gathering. It is the game I grew up playing!

Joystick_Hero1 karma

Do you feel like video games an online games based off TCGs have or could have a threat toward the sale of the physical product?

Nate6422 karma

Someone below had a similar question... Here is my response from that...

I actually was initially worried that these types of games would eat into our business, but it turned out to be the opposite. A lot of people play games like Duals of the Planeswalkers 2014 and then start playing MTG for real. I think DotP 2014 is a great way to learn the game, but being in a room with real people I think that is social experience that online TCG's can't replicate yet and I don't see them doing in my future as a vendor. Online TCGs keep getting better, but they have been around for years and the physical TCG industry has continued to grow tremendously. As someone mentioned below MTG just had their biggest tournament yet! Even with Hearthstone, when it was revealed our limited remaining inventory of World of Warcraft card sales skyrocketed.

syntaxsmurf1 karma

Do you have a buy list and do you buy bulk cards, i got yu-gi-oh cards i wanna unload, the coolest card is properly an original left arm of the forbidden one, and most of the cards are first edition if that matters?

Nate6421 karma

Our buy list is here. We do buy bulk cards! We mostly concentrate on newer sets though for singles!

anirrelevantquestion1 karma

Do girls look hotter in yoga pants or jeans?

Nate6423 karma

I think it depends on the girl!

blazedd1 karma

Did you ever sell mechwarrior clicks? I LOVED the game, but it didn't catch on very well :(

Nate6421 karma

Sorry, we pretty much concentrate on trading card games! I dabbled in some Warhammer minis a few years ago and we do sell a small amount of HeroClix.

Faythezeal1 karma

Asking from the other thread:

What do you use a method for updating prices on the website? (This is where everyone mentions the SCG controls the market debate).

Along those lines, how often do you update the website? Over the last couple of years that have been insane spikes in prices that happen quicker than overnight. I always wonder how often websites update their pricing to match the increase/decrease.

Nate6422 karma

We use a combination of methods to update pricing! Our software actually monitors the price in different places and provides us with the average selling price, a low price, and a high price for each card. However, it isn't always fast enough. It's not always possible to catch every spike or plummet in each price. We try to always be aware of when a ban/restricted list is being released, whenever a new set is spoiled, or whenever a big tournament happens. Big price changes often occur in those situations. Our software is also pretty good at telling us how fast a card is selling so we can raise the price if it has unusually high volume. I have 4 people who work at least part time updating prices.

graingert1 karma

Magic the gathering online exchange (mtgox) switched to Bitcoin a few years ago, and have made millions. Are you miffed that you didn't get into Bitcoin too?

Nate6422 karma

Lol, I actually didn't know that. I don't know near enough about bit coins to have done anything like that and I'm certainly not miffed! It's great that they had the foresight to see that opportunity!

nodealyo1 karma

I have read that a brick-and-mortar storefront is a requirement of ordering booster boxes at wholesale prices. How do you operate around this?

Nate6423 karma

You can't! We have a brick and mortar store! Come visit us! Learn about our store HERE!

shade_of_freud1 karma

(1) Is there any sort of format that you can see being "the future of card games" ? For instance, since Magic was the first game, it seems we're moving away from power creep to a more balanced card game, but is there going to be another progression from this?

(2) Do you think more games like The Penny-Arcade board/card games will ever take over sales due to their cheaper price?

(3) Is there any card game that you loved and wanted to see successful? I miss Magination, personally.

Nate6421 karma

1) I think the internet and game communities are shaping the future heavily and will continue to do so. I wouldn't be surprised if MTG picks up more officially supported formats like EDH as people create new ideas.

2) I think there is a place in the market for these, but I don't think people are going to quit MTG to play them and MTG is not really difficult or expensive to get into on a casual level. I also think MTG's huge revenue at this point gives it a very healthy development budget that keeps the game continually fresh,exciting, and balanced.

3) I pretty much grew up playing MTG so it is the game I like. As a kid I used to enjoy Overpower and I'm kind of sad that didn't work out. I haven't played as an adult, but I'm guessing it wasn't as strong of a TCG.

Diabetesh1 karma

  1. What game is most profitable in single sales?

  2. Have you done anything with kaijudo (new version of duel masters)?

  3. Do you play yugioh?

Nate6422 karma

1) I wouldn't say there is a wide deviation between them typically as we buy single restocks on the secondary market using similar buy pricing. Each new set is a different story. For YuGiOh, I at least doubled our investment on Legendary Collection 2, but then I probably lost half of our investment if not more on Hidden Arsenal 5.

2) I have researched it quite a bit, but Cardfight Vanguard was getting big at the same time as Kaijudo was being pushed to me. Cardfight seemed like a better way to expand, so we decided to invest more in that instead. I don't notice much demand at our local physical shop for Kaijudo, but most of the kids who come in are 12+, while Kaijudo packs say 8+ on them.

3) I have played it to learn how to play. Honestly, I didn't expect it to be as deep, strategic, and fun as it was. However, I already am more of an MTG player and mostly stick to that.

GoldieSlvggs1 karma

What do you have to do in order to get MTG at wholesale?

Nate6421 karma

You need to have a brick and mortar store front and a sales permit. They will also want a good amount of proof.

El_Dubious_Mung1 karma

Do you feel that Legend of the Five Rings would be able to go toe-to-toe with the big boys (MTG, Yu-Gi-Oh, Pokemon) if retailers like yourself just put some marketing behind it? Very few retailers who sell the product even seem to care if they move their stock. They seem to just wait until they need room in their warehouse, and then have a sale on it.

Nate6423 karma

I actually don't know much about the Legends of the Five Rings game, so I can't make a judgement call completely, but I don't think the big boys prevent other games from arising. I think they help in general since thanks to their success there is a network of game shops open that people can learn about new games.

Cardfight Vanguard has gotten very popular and I don't think retailers put any degree of extra marketing effort behind it. However, it does have a TV show.

On the opposite end though, Redakai had a pretty big marketing push by retailers and it hasn't taken off.

timetopractice1 karma

If I'm looking to open my own Magic: The Gathering brick and mortar store in the near future, what are the most important variables to consider?

Also, what sort of funding is a good starting point? Is 25k-30k in the bank enough to begin with?

How important are online sales in keeping the doors to your store open?

Any other tips or things you had to learn the hard way when you first began?

Thanks :)

Nate6423 karma

Location and having a friendly sociable person at the counter are both extremely important. I think there is a lot of luck involved! How much money you need depends on how you live and probably where you are opening. I don't want to hypothesize on a number because we didn't really start from scratch since we had a strong online operation before opening our brick and mortar store.

Our online sales are absolutely vital to keeping our normal store open the way we have it set up now. However, there are many shops that have great tournament organizers and are quite profitable without online operations. Just my skill is really in the online market and I treat our store like a community establishment. I honestly don't try to make money off it. If it does make a lot of money one day that would be great, but I just want people to have a fun and comfortable place to play!

Signage is incredibly important!

xincwai1 karma

How do you feel about the slow shift to digital based TCG kind of like physical games - digital?

I know it's still mostly still "real life" tcg being the thing but with things like Scrolls (Ok not traditional TCG i know).. Upcoming "Hearthstone" .. MTG online etc becoming popular do you ever think it may eventually replace physical tcg

Nate6422 karma

I answered a similar question before so please look for it, but basically these games seem to help us right now. We get a lot of sales from people who become aware of our products due to the video games.

AdmiralAsskick1 karma

What advice would you have for someone who is looking to start playing Magic but has no idea how to play?

Nate6423 karma

Download Duels of the Planeswalkers 2014! It has a great tutorial!

Dodobirdlord0 karma

I noticed that you haven't updated prices on fetchlands in quite some time. But then, you also appear to be out of stock on them all. Were you caught unaware by the price spike, and was your stock bought out?

Nate6422 karma

There was no specific price spike that caught us by surprise. We just mostly concentrate on standard cards. The fetch lands are in sets that aren't on our buy list, so we don't get restocked. Most popular cards on our site would sell out within a couple weeks if were weren't constantly restocking them. We open hundreds of boxes per month and probably receive even more singles from people selling to us through our buy list! I'm hoping to expand our buy list into all modern sets very soon though!

[deleted]-9 karma

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Nate6423 karma

I apologize. My intention was to indicate that I sell Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh cards as well.