Okay, I've been wondering. Should I start using the B word?
Our sales on game cards has more or less doubled, and they had increased dramatically for the previous years as well. We're selling out our allocations. The prices are increasing with every set and there are lots of people in the game.
So you can't keep exponentially growing for long. People's incomes aren't doubling and doubling.
The allocations are happening because everyone is trying to get a piece of the pie.
We went all in on Final Fantasy Magic. I thought it would be a bit of gamble, but it paid off. However, I was hesitant to go that deep on the next two waves: Spider-man and Avatar.
I needn't have worried. My allocations are much smaller, so I can only do what I can do.
So should I be using the B word? I didn't have enough information. TCG cards are a sideline for us. As an example, it too me way too long to understand that actual players were focusing on Commander Decks. I was ordering very little of that. Nor did I understand how Collector boosters had supplanted Play boosters as the main focus of collecting.
Well, this morning I listened to a podcast by a big game store guy. And it was like reliving the the sports card market of the late eighties/early nineties. I mean, almost word for word, what this guy was saying was the same kind of thing I was saying back then.
He revealed information I just didn't have. And the conclusion was pretty clear.
We are in Bubble.
Thank God I'm not that guy. Thank God TCG's are a sideline and not the main focus of our store.
I'll need to be careful, and I can't avoid running some risk. The Bubble is only about 50% inflated in my estimation, which is a wild guess. But that means there is only about 20% left in the bubble to be doing things the same old way.
I'll need to watch carefully and not wait too long.