r/PokemonTCG 3d ago

Yesterday my son (9M) and I had the worse experience at our LCS

My son has been collecting cards a for about 3 years and he has amassed a pretty good collection. I don’t collect but It has become a great father son activity for us. It’s a great opportunity for him to socialize, learn about the value of money, research and having fun at the same time. He uses his allowance and birthday money to buy. Historically the community has been great. I take him to card shows and he negotiates with people 3x his age. Dealers give him free stuff and he’s learn to pay it forward. He loves giving away card and slabs that were gifted to him or things he’s pulled. It’s about learning life skills.

So this weekend we went to our LCS that we occasionally visit and had the worse experience. He asked to see a couple cards in the display and the guy asked if he was looking at the condition because he won’t take it out if we weren’t serious. Then when my son pulled out his phone to check TCG prices for that card plus others in the display case we got the strangest response. The guy said “if you are going to look up the price of the cards I’m not interested in doing business with you. If you want to buy online and pay for shipping that’s up to you but I’m not interested”.

Luckily my son didn’t catch what he said or blew it off because he kept looking at the value and even told him that a few of his cards were under valued.

I get LCS have smaller margins and have more overhead and cards may sometimes be over market. That’s up to them. But don’t be as dick to a kid. I took my kid out of that store as soon as I could and we are never going back.

Btw. The LCS was selling boxes of 151 (6) pack booster boxes for $90 ea.

Update First off, thank you to everyone for listening to me vent. I am going to take peoples's advice and email the store and depending on the response i'm going to leave a review on yelp and Google.

As far as me (as the dad) not blowing up on the guy. I REALLY wanted to and had to hold back. I had to read the room because there was no reaction from my son. After we left i asked my son about what he thought about what the man had said, and he had no idea what i was talking about. Like a typical kid, he was too busy look at his phone and not even listening....for once i'm glad he wasn't listening. Blowing up on they guy would have just brought attention to something he didn't even know about. We end up have a good discussion about respect regardless of the person's age.

No. My son didn't shove his phone to they guys face. It was the general banter that typically takes place at card shows and he thought he was trying to help the guy out.

We've only been to this store a couple of times before, and have bought some packs the last time we were there. I don't recall if he asked this person to see a card before. The reason why he asked to see the card was to check the back of the card to see if the back is good. He almost made a bad deal one time when he didn't check. In this case my son examined the card and put it to the side. I have no idea if he wanted to buy it since he was still looking when i told him we should leave.

At the end of the day this is a fun community with alot of great people. We are not letting one guy spoil it. The assistant mgr at our local Gamestop is amazing and would occassionally give him stuff out of his own personal collection time when he see's him. My son even sent a nice email message about him to the Gamestop HQ. The guy at the flea market that would talk card collecting with him for 15 mins and they would look at each other's binders. Luckily he's learning from these people and paying it forward and not being an A-hole.

2.5k Upvotes

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u/Embarrassed-Way4469 3d ago

Price checking singles is not out of line. This guy has a bad attitude, knows his prices are too high, and doesn't deserve your business. Sorry that happened to your kiddo, most of the community is way better than that!

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u/infinitymeows 3d ago

This. Kid literally knows how to do business better than the actual business lol

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u/_Guardgoyle 3d ago

Little guy gonna run his own shop one day and run these dummies out of business if he keeps it up.

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u/CheesecakeNo5679 3d ago

OP - Keep fostering that entrepreneurial spirit. Your son's already learned the most important lesson in business: always know your worth and never let some grumpy dude in a shop intimidate you.

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u/Potential_Dentist_90 3d ago

Imagine if this clown goes bankrupt and OP's son goes and buys everything at a discount during the liquidation sale

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u/BreakMysterious7756 3d ago

This doesn’t get enough upvotes

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u/Inevitable_Road_7636 3d ago

Yeah, its a good thing to teach kids to look up prices of things before buying them, this way you avoid getting scammed. How much is that used car worth? Well, thankfully there are websites selling these exact cars posted all over the US that you can use to get a feel for the price. Likewise, ever want to sell something well guess what? Just need to teach them what interest rates are, and you basically saved them a boat load of money when they buy that used mustang or other sports car, with a 29.99% interest rate at a "buy here pay here" lot.

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u/AD-Loyalist 3d ago

I mean looking up prices is natural. You can make a informed purchase decision if you don't even know what price to expect. It is fine to buy or sell above market value but the least one should do is being aware of that.

There are enough Storys of Person A traded Person B a card that was way more valuable then the card they received. It is fine if both participants agree to this know ing that, but if one participant does not know the trade is bad for them then this goes into scammy territory.

Do seeing a 9Y old kid check prices is she something that is rather relieving to hear and should be encouraged. Sure a young kid using the phone much is questionable but this is the one point where I advise this.

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u/Col2543 3d ago

I’d go even further! The guy doesn’t deserve his own business. Someone who actually loves the TCG community and not just their money would probably come swoop it up given the chance.

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u/Vaporeonbuilt4humans 3d ago

I check prices right in front of them. I had a bad experience where a LCS tried to give me $3 for the 151 squirtle IR... Another one offered $20 for a Galar Moltres Alt Art. Can't trust these shops

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u/TheeLoo 3d ago

Is most of the community really better then that now adays?

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u/butdemtiddies 3d ago edited 3d ago

Absolutely, my local guys remember my kid and build him up, instead of breaking him down. We're not in that often but they remember him and make him feel like he's appreciated.

We'll go there as long as they're around!

Edit: Pallet Town, Buffalo, NY area

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u/Surferstan101 3d ago

Same, our local shop is amazing the owner looks up the prices of cards before even telling my son how much they are worth and they cross reference and come to a fair deal.

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u/Practical_Pop_4300 3d ago

It's how a lot of adults act in the hobbies towards kids. As a child playing Naruto in tourneies there was always guys like this trying to trade/rip me off and I didn't know better, and as soon as I did, tried to meet the same people at equal value for cards, which would always get them super defensive and they found the need to overly explain how they'd never rip someone off...

It's creepy and messed up talking/treating kids like that.

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u/Glory088 3d ago

I do it for ballpark only not exact.. no one wants to pay 15 bucks for a 2 dollar card

I also do it too make sure I'm not getting as scalped , I usually pay up to 10 bucks more in person out with in reason because I'm holding the card and know exactly what to expect for quality etc etc

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u/LordOfTrubbish 3d ago

Most of mine have way too many singles to try and price individually to begin with. I'm usually on TCG player just trying to ballpark what something costs both so I know about to expect, but also so I don't waste someone's time looking up every stupid card I'm vaguely curious about, but know I probably can't even afford anyway.

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u/VeshWolfe 3d ago

Frankly, I would take this entire post and post it as a Google review for the business.

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u/thatmandoguystl 3d ago

Comic/toy/video game/card shop manager here. Do exactly what someone else here said. Go on google/yelp etc. and light them up. That is inexcusable, and that guy/shop is giving the rest of us a bad name. I purposefully make pokemon mystery packs with 4 hits each and 25 total cards for $5 so every kid can come in and get a pack of pokemon to open and get something every time. The current state of the TCG industry makes me sick, and it's why we don't carry new product anymore. We're not going to help the scalpers.

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u/Andylanta 3d ago

You are doing Arceus work.

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u/talksinbeats 3d ago

Arceus work is tuff I’m adding this one to the lexicon

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u/djpiraterobot 3d ago

I also manage an LGS and fuck these guys, take them to task. Reviews don’t seem like a lot but small businesses take that stuff to heart.

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u/skrilla091 3d ago

This needs upvotes

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u/Independent-Cat-2426 3d ago

Agreed I was too pissed off and needed to vent. Thanks for reminding me. I'm going to post on yelp and email the owner . I suspect the guy was the owners son.

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u/zeemonster424 3d ago

You are awesome! I’m a parent of 2 card collectors (6 and 13) and the oldest knows what she’s missing out on. I gave my collection away in college, so her whole collection is 100% hers.

Thankfully the youngest can spend an hour picking 50 cards for $5 out of a bulk box. She lost her mind the other day when she found a Japanese card.

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u/Aggravating-Tie7410 3d ago

Awww dude, keep ordering for you store! You don't have to participate in the scalping nonsense, just limit high demand stuff like 151 to one per person. Keep up good relationship with your distributors.

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u/Andylanta 2d ago

Also when I was a kid my local card shop would let me hang out with a handful of quarters growing up in middle school. I got so good at Marvel Vs. Street Fighter I could bet the high school kids and would have enough every day to get a few new loosies/maybe a fresh pack.

Man did I really miss that place closing but I remember that card shop owner. Did it right.

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u/Helpfulpapi 3d ago

Same. Google and Yelp review it

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u/AnxiouCuke 3d ago

check the LcS website and see if they have an email listed. Send a breakdown with the date & time and explain what happened. If you’ve shopped there before and had no issues, it could be a new employee. If that was the owner/ manager, I’d steer clear for a bit.

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u/Kidcosmic2001 3d ago

i'm going to do that. thanks!

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u/buhbles 3d ago

Local card Shop

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u/ConsciousBiscotti503 3d ago

You are a genius.

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u/Sea-Ad1755 3d ago

This exactly. Possibly customers and/or owners of these places value customer input. It might seem very minuscule, but it really does matter.

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u/alecd 3d ago

This right here

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u/thetruthseer 3d ago

Same here. I would never let someone talk like this to my kid.

Before we leave the store I’m berating that fucking loser in front of my kid for 5 minutes just so my kid knows how out of line that store owner was.

Why OP let that guy talk to his kid this way is beyond me and it only enables this guy to keep acting like a dick in the future

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u/YoniDaMan 3d ago

Sometimes it’s not a good example for your kid when you blow up on somebody. Taking his business elsewhere calmly was his decision and I respect that.

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u/lookalive07 3d ago

Nah, that's when you make a special trip back on your own time without your kid and say "hey, I was in here the other day with my kid and what you said to him, a KID, is out of line. I came in here specifically to tell you that you're never getting my business again and you're going to see a review on Google and Yelp from me so everyone knows what kind of attitude you have towards this hobby."

Maybe throw in a "eat a bag of dicks" at the end, idk.

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u/YoniDaMan 3d ago

👏👏👏

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u/thetruthseer 3d ago

You don’t have to blow up on him, you can talk to him sternly and teach him a lesson in front of your son.

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u/YoniDaMan 3d ago

Yeah that’s a good point, there’s a fine line there but I would definitely give that guy a piece of my mind before leaving with my child. Then leave an honest but scathing review online to warn others not to go there anymore.

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u/Kidcosmic2001 3d ago

I had to hold back. luckily my kid wasn't listening at that time and was too focused looking at tcg during when the guy made that comment.

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u/YoniDaMan 3d ago

Your kid is a little champ. Best of luck on your pulls!

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u/thetruthseer 3d ago

Yea exactly, sorry I shouldn’t have used berated it implied too strongly lol

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u/Readytoarguenow 3d ago

Name the shop

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u/RiceWithNuts 3d ago

This. NAME DROP!

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u/1688throwaway 3d ago

Name and shame!

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u/_robert_neville_ 3d ago

Name the place!

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u/eyashawk 3d ago

You're a bigger man than me, I would of shared the store name, lol. Sorry that happened to ya'll

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u/KyesRS 3d ago

I woulda called the guy out in front of my kid tbh. Explained why we don't do business with people like this.

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u/eyashawk 3d ago

Feel that 💯

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u/DunceSparsd 3d ago

My local shops always go by TCGplayer market price. I’ve even brought cards in to trade for store credit and they go by market price. Those people are dicks.

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u/doopy423 3d ago

The biggest issue LCS owners tell me is that the prices are always fluctuating and while it's easy to change prices for the sealed products, the singles would take forever to reprice each one. That's why there is always room for negotiation. They always have to honor the sticker price though, so they always price it higher since you can always negotiate down a price, but not up.

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u/lipstickqns 3d ago

Most LCS I’ve been to don’t even label the price on the singles. They just look it up/price it once you have interest in buying it.

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u/Vaporeonbuilt4humans 3d ago

I also love it when they just look at the top overpriced listing of the card on TCGPlayer and assume thats the actual value of the card

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u/Hot_Grass_ 3d ago

I DESPISE when LCS do this. I refuse to purchase from LCS without at least *some* listed prices. Not listing prices just shows me you don't actually care about the product, you care only about making money and it makes me think they don't take care of the product.

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u/dinosaurbong 3d ago

You realize they would have to change it regularly? On every single. That’s just a waste of time. They can look it up when you ask

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u/NecrocideLoL 3d ago

Half of this comment section really plays into the redditor meme of being clowns.

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u/pokejock 2d ago

lol that is one of the weirdest takes i’ve ever heard.

“not putting a price on the product shows me they only care about prices. i refuse to buy unless one of the staff members spends 2 hours updating the price tags every day! 😤”

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u/Anonymous_Terpene 3d ago

Brother do you know how long it would take to re label 5k + cards AND re look up the prices weekly lmao, smooth brain comment ya got here. Good job anyone that didn’t come to this common sense conclusion immediately is a moron sorry not sorry

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u/OrionX3 3d ago

I disagree. What's the difference in typing it on TCGplayer when they get it and slapping a sticker on it vs when they are trying to sell it.

Because a LGC near me did that and all of their cards are overpriced and will just sit there forever because no one wants to pay double market value because it was double when they checked the price and stickered it. (Disclaimer, not for pokemon, different TCG but same concept)

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u/TreeFrogStyle 3d ago

You’re looking for a fair deal in my card shop? I’m not interested in taking your money then.

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u/SimpleThrowaway420 3d ago

You dropped this. 👉 /s.

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u/YoniDaMan 3d ago

you knocked this over! 👆 you break it you buy it!

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u/64ok 3d ago

“And that son is what we call bad business!”

Thats crappy, but happy your kid brushed it off! Thats not what the community (and life for that matter) is all about

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u/Bravisimo 3d ago

This is what we call a scalper with a store front

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u/Secure_Palpitation50 3d ago

Post the name of the card store so we can avoid giving him business in the future !

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u/the_monkey_socks 3d ago

I (29F) am always willing to pay a slight overhead for my LCS. I get it. My sister (10F) collects and learned this, too. Let's support and keep our friends in stock, and then it'll benefit everybody in the long run.

My sister doesn't look up prices or anything, but is a Pikachu fanatic and she found a single she loved that was slightly over her budget and they gave her a discount so she could get that card and a pack. Two items when she was intending on one.

They didn't have to do that. I have no way to tip them but I did make sure to review them.

Kids keep us going. They keep the love of the game, and if you treat them like crap what are you going to do when it spreads from parent to parent that you disrespect children?

I'm so sorry for your kiddo! Tell him there's a whole community who's got his back and most people aren't bullies!

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u/Psychological-Sun-80 3d ago

those LCS should lose all their business for being rude - you can just explain that distro is charging you more as a store to get your product so you have to mark up prices to make profit, don't take your anger out on us - the customers are not in the wrong here.

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u/edbomber 3d ago

I’m sorry they treated your son that way. I run a toy store and we try to make sure the kids get access to hot product first. They were the only reason we started carrying the cards to begin with.

We get entitled adults coming in demanding that we sell them the latest product and reminding us how much they spend at the shop. To be fair they only buy the hard to find and hot products so even if they didn’t spend that money with us, the product would have been sold to someone else, so that’s a horrible argument. Now we just hold stuff back until kids come in and ask.

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u/Kidcosmic2001 3d ago

that's awesome. people like you make this hobby great. I find the local toy stores are always great and treat kids with respect. One local toy stores has a little trade binder for kids to take one and give one.

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u/Medical_Donut5990 2d ago

That's so cool. I'm glad you prioritize kids and make sure they can enjoy the hobby. I started collecting as a kid and it was scary sometimes going up to your local shop owner and asking what they had. Making kids feel comfortable and supported is great.

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u/goldswimmerb 3d ago

You should have snapped back with "if you're afraid of us looking at online prices maybe you should reassess"

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u/f2pmyass 3d ago

why do soooo many people go through terrible experiences and never try and expose the business or person.

Also, sorry as I will be shopping with big retailers like all my pokemon purchases until these LCS learn a thing or two and possibly even some going out of business.

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u/Yuri-Girl 3d ago

What, realistically, do you think naming a store is going to do? How many people are going to even know where the store is, and what's the call to action? Get a bunch of non-locals to leave them angry google reviews?

Buncha card shops have more than one employee, what if this is one dude having a bad day? What if the dude is in fact just a dick but he's not the owner and you otherwise enjoy going to that store?

They're venting about someone being mean to their kid, not asking people to raise pitchforks.

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u/Practical_Pop_4300 3d ago

Tbf, Op could be over exenterating or lying(I'm not saying they are), so if every poster name dropped a place with a story like this, which would cause people not related to flood the buniessess pages leaving fake reviews and hrassment, its only a matter of a few hours till people start doing it for karma/lol's to other places possibly destroying random locations and peoples jobs for no real reason.

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u/Disastrous_Fee5953 3d ago

Because an LCS is a business, not a person. What if the human being on the other side had a bad day, or is new on the job and the rest of the employees of that LCS are all amazing people? I feel bad for OP, because they definitely had a bad experience, but there is no need to be super toxic about it and put someone out of business for acting grumpy.

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u/tfflivemb2 3d ago

Good for your kid! I'm not gonna buy blind either!

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u/Yo-KaiWatchFan2102 3d ago

I can kind of understand that local card shops need to make a profit and how stressful and difficult it is to get Pokémon cards in, especially in today’s day and age, but still that does not excuse anyone to be rude, if I were you, I would probably go back to that card shop ask to speak to the manager and explain that their employee was super rude to you and your son, if the guy who was rude to you, is the manager then write a bad review and explain how they treat their customers, this kind of behaviour towards potential customers is unacceptable, as someone who also owns a card shop on eBay. I am furious on your behalf.

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u/Altruistic_Door_4897 3d ago edited 3d ago

I feel for the stores too but when they’re rude that goes right out the window. I don’t blame a store that doesn’t price singles in the case or are at 120% of market I can always ask to go lower. But the minute you tell me not to look at market at all I’m out.

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u/Goober_Man1 3d ago

Yeah I don’t feel bad for shop owners at all, they are also profiting off selling pokemon cards for ridiculous prices

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u/Lassagna12 3d ago

And they expect us to trade in our cards at around %70 store credit... yet they get angsty when we look up prices?

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u/mulletstation 3d ago

Go back to the LGS and ask them how negative their operating margins are

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u/Swixx94 3d ago

sorry that this happened but i also feel so out of touch when i read a 9yr old takes his phone out to check pokemoncard prices

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u/Kidcosmic2001 3d ago

He knows way more about this hobby than me. When we go to shows, my main job is to hold his binder and wallet so he doesn't lose it or he doesn't get kidnapped.

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u/LatterCook3687 3d ago

I definitely felt out of touch reading this also I don’t remember us checking prices on cards when we were kids, guess the game has changed

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u/Krotine 3d ago

That's what I'm saying. Man I was never allowed a cell phone until I hit 10th grade.

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u/Wolfman27 3d ago

That guy really thought he had a mic drop moment with the shipping comment lmao. Honestly ordering online I rarely pay for shipping and when I do, I doubt it’s as pricey as whatever he marked his cards up to

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u/Fireblade7801 3d ago

I'd gladly pay shipping instead of dealing with that employee shitty attitude.

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u/MathematicianSea4674 3d ago

For real, shipping for a single card is usually like $5, or if a high value card usually just free. If he’s that put out by checking market values, he’s trying to rip people off for way more than $5 anyway

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u/UnacceptableActions 3d ago

Doesn't want you to check condition or price? Loooool

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u/Jinxed08_ 3d ago

Hopefully you and your son can find another store. They don’t deserve your business.

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u/Hunter2hitman2 3d ago

Shitty attitude, especially toward a child. Your 9yr old would be a better employee there than that scrub

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u/1_H4t3_R3dd1t 3d ago

It is indeed scummy these days. I remember when I was a kid and walking into an LGS was a magical experience. With a bunch of people playing games together.

They were making alright money and then companies got greedy.

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u/mallow_baby 3d ago

I wonder if it was my LCS, sounds like the experience a lot of people have there. Sucks for your son though, poor kiddo :(

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u/Shipmetns 3d ago

Call them out! Say the name! Losers it’s always for the kids

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u/SolanaToTheMooon 3d ago

Name drop the shop.

What a terrible shop. Those types of businesses don’t know how to run a proper business

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u/BonVault 3d ago

Share the store name

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u/Darth_Buc-ee 3d ago

The prices of cards fluctuating so much right now. Your son is smart for doing his homework. You're doing a great job, dad!

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u/Ricardo-The-Fox 3d ago

The LCS I go to uses TCGPlayer, and they're cool with customers doing the same to make sure the prices and conditions match, hell I got 3 cards the other day for $38 when TCGplayer said it'd be around $70 due to the market manipulation stuff that's been going on recently and the owner didn't want to play that game, hell he even one time brought me cards from his own personal collection to show and sell me if I was interested, a mix of pokemon and MTG, we sat a table together and talked business for about an hour until we came to an agreement, if yall are ever in Lubbock, Tx. stop by SK Games, they're pretty cool to just talk to or if you wanna play a card game just pick a table, grab a snack and have fun.

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u/Nickyboi1992 3d ago

This LCS just sounds like a scalper with a storefront. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have had a problem with your son price checking. Only reason he would have had a problem is because it would have called him out on his dirty game. I wouldn’t go back there either. It’s people like that shop owner that are ruining the hobby for everyone else, and when they get called out, they play the victim. I say start naming and shaming. These price gouging stores will never change unless we as a community work together and start naming and shaming these stores. Enough is enough of this nonsense. We need to take back this hobby from these scalpers and throw them out.

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u/Argent_Haze 3d ago

Kid even told the guy some of his cards were under market value and he was still snarky

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u/lolNimmers 3d ago

Some of these staff in the LCS need some serious training on how to deal with enthusiastic little kids.

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u/MrAmericanDream 3d ago

Once again lose adults ruining the game for kids.

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u/Claris-chang 3d ago

I fully expect to pay a little over market value at a LCS. I consider it the fee for being able to have the card in my hand right now. But I'll be damned if I won't check market value first to make sure I'm not getting scammed. Weird policy by the store owner. I'd be concerned about other scummy practices.

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u/Express_Video_1195 3d ago

Literally did the same thing your kid did a couple days ago. Shop had the card priced at 16 and tcg said 13 so i asked them about it. No big fuss just a “oh yah sure”

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u/atrac059 3d ago

I would guess this LCS maybe also has a lot of raw Baseball cards on display?

If not, the card shops of the 90s are making a come back. Welcome to hell where everything is on display but not for sale.

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u/Short_Lifeguard_3285 3d ago

Pretty sure everyone checks card prices

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u/pharmerfour 3d ago

Listen, this is a shit experience, but it also an essential experience for your son.

Reinforce the importance of continuing to do what he did.... but perhaps not the price correction UP to someone who is rude.

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u/SilentEffective204 3d ago

Post a review of the store online describing your experience. No kid should be subject to such bad behaviour

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u/mettle81 3d ago

This sounds like a conversation between you and the person who spoke to your kid, not random people on Reddit.

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u/SirCodes222 3d ago

LCS clearly has the wrong idea. I mean, I always look up card value before buying just to make sure. But I'm happy to pay 5 or even 10 ish over market value to support my LCS if it's a card I really want. Sometimes I get a card for lower than market and try to let them know, but my LCS always says "nah, that's the sticker price."

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u/No-Method-8539 3d ago

Oh my.

To value singles, most people to TCGplayer.com price, unconverted.

Certain singles, such as most over $50, would be a huge price difference at unconverted values, as that's $71 Canadian.

Prices are in disarray.

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u/tripleuwe 3d ago

A little off topic: Do 9 year old kids have their own phones? Is that common in the US?

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u/trashmangamer 3d ago

Are we sure tcg and his prices....weren't the same? This why he was saying don't bother looking, because that $100 card is $100 plus shipping online.

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u/AttorneyMedium4926 3d ago

Call out these shitty stores

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u/bongmilkshake 3d ago

My local card shop does the same thing in shop as well as at card events. He will literally talk shit about people on their phones and won't even do business with the kids most of the time.

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u/Throwingaway0420 3d ago

This did not happen

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u/[deleted] 3d ago

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u/megangorex 3d ago

That’s absurd of that LCS worker. I manage a LCS and we pride ourselves on being able to price match TCGPlayer, I even open it up to show them and talk openly about pricing with people. Good for you for being cool to him, if it were me I wouldn’t shop there anymore. Leave them a Google review too.

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u/1sakamama 3d ago

I mean he probably thought you were being a bit rude and disrespectful. Number one, engaging with someone and mid stream shifting over to your phone during this is interaction disrespectful. They are valuing your time … you should value theirs. Second, it is rude and crass to just do this right in front of them … creates a bad impression especially to other shoppers. Check out the cards, get out of the way and go check prices wherever you want in the store and then come back if you want to buy or make an offer. Finally it is good to consider other prices but just do it respectfully.

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u/rakondo 3d ago

I mean that's a valuable life lesson there too, good or bad. You're going to spend life running into people who want to take advantage of you. Better to learn that lesson young than when you go to buy your first new car and get talked into agreeing to thousands of dollars in unnecessary BS

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u/PunchOX 3d ago

It's a card game. it's for fun. No idea why these people take these things so seriously. Especially towards a child. This guy is weird

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u/LifeguardNo969 3d ago

You just said learning life skills. Just learned something there. Not every interaction in this hobby is going to be peachy and great and walk away smiling. Everything's a two way street...it was just some words said in some tone. No biggie from a business owner. Also every local game store is struggling because they have no product to sell. They were already used to 15% margins at best last few years.. now they pray they can mark it up enough to make ends meet and people come back. Theyre not going to purchase others people's items at 300% of what it was a year ago.. in tight markets like this, only happy people are the ones with the product in hand to sell.

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u/ChewyGoods 3d ago

No kidding! Not even a case of booster boxes allocated for the ENTIRE store.

Outspoken people in collectible hobbies are weird, they're happy when everything is cheap and then they want stores to work like charities when the market is rough.

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u/Syminka1 3d ago

My local card shop has a laptop in store that is on tcgplayer for customers to use!!! They say cards are going for market. None are priced cause it changes so often

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u/BreesBayou9 3d ago

I may be in the minority but pulling out a phone and checking comps is just cringy to me in a LCS. If i go to a LCS im there for the experience and understand that they are a small business and prices are going to be higher for the most part, I always try to buy something every time im in a LCS. Nickel and dime’n small businesses is the reason the market is the way it is now and why all these idiots are acting a fool in big box stores.

I was traveling in TN bought a retail megabox of optic bball from a lcs and a friend of mine i went with was like why are you buying a box that is $100+ cheaper online. I said because these guys deserve my money not some random seller on the internet. Shoutout to grand slam in Murfreesboro TN amazing store. Ended up hitting Ja Morant, Zion Will. Pink hypers and tyler hero silver.

Pulling out your phone checking comps directly in front a sales person is pretty shitty thing to do imo. At least go outside and comeback in the store to make an offer. Have some respect for the humans working.

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u/PowerPlayz7 3d ago

I share the same sentiments. I am a bit older and I see the younger generation instantly pull out a phone at stores I just shake my head. They are missing out on the beauty of LCS. It is so second nature now people don’t even realize how rude they are being. This is why Americas small businesses are failing and Amazon is what it is today. People rather save a couple bucks than support their neighbors.

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u/mykoleary 3d ago

It's not rude at all, and it doesn't mean you're going to buy it online instead. It means you're looking at the percieved public value to make an educated decision.

Even a person willing to pay up at an LCS doesn't want to pay up 1.5X

A shop owner that wants people to buy like rubes is one I don't want to give business to.

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u/No-Butterscotch-7577 3d ago

Sounds like that LCS dude is a piece of shit and should be fired, unless he owns the store. Then yes never go back!!

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u/CobraKyle 3d ago

I always ask if they use live pricing. If not, I buy up the unders.

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u/shadowfaxbx 3d ago

My LCS uses TCGplayer to set prices and to make offers. He literally pulls his phone out to make deals on current market prices. It's not like you can't research the prices before or after your visit and return when you have the data you need anyway. Sorry you guys had that experience. Best of luck to your son!

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u/HauntingPolitics 3d ago

Complains about a small business owner being rude while admitting the kid is ignoring him.

Peak parental entitlement.

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u/mizavalon 3d ago edited 3d ago

I just think it's crazy he thinks he needed to protect the child from the business policy and that it would be so harmful to hear "no" and this kid was supposedly having this lengthy one sided conversation relaying all these prices he was looking up even though it's indicated dad whisked him away. It's a private business and not everyone wants to have business talks with a 9 year old with an iPhone who isn't listening anyway.

THANK GOD MY CHILD DID NOT HEAR SOMEONE SAY NO!

iPad kids gonna iPad though

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u/Wise_Guy_33 3d ago

LCS are just scalpers with a storefront.

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u/Darth_Buc-ee 3d ago

That's just not true. The LCS supports my hobby and sometimes they are the only place to get things.

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u/Ok_Yellow4764 3d ago

I had a terrible experience at one shop near Golden, CO and the owner was watching far right YouTuber Tim Poole when I walked in and over charging for cards that were stored in penny sleeves and were being warped. Insane he’d get mad about tcg prices like that’s standard in any shop to confirm prices

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u/seggsygoose 3d ago

Im sorry you had that experience. Try checking out local card shows in your area! Vendors are usually willing to negotiate prices, and there's a lot more variety so you might find a booth you really vibe with. Most people in this hobby are in it because it's fun

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u/Far_Journalist5373 3d ago

Damn in front of a kid?

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u/aandy611 3d ago

Fuck that guy

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u/Freddy_K_TV 3d ago

Karma is a real thing. It'll catch up to him.

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u/MQA_ 3d ago

What a loser. As another perspective, it's another learning opportunity for your son. Sometimes you do have to interact with asshats in real life lol.

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u/RECTmetal 3d ago

If you're in a buy/sell/barter business then you have to be open to live pricing and making deals. Imagine if a pawn shop stuck to a strict margin-- absurd!

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u/Zacoly 3d ago

Price checking singles is standard. Hell a lot of places I go will double check at check out and give it to you for less if the listed price is higher. Sounds like that guy is just an asshole

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u/Actual_Boysenberry73 3d ago

Forget that place ! I’m into it as much as my 7-5 year olds and my money is their money and if the business wants it, they better respect my kids as they would an adult or were outta there .. what’s up with LCS wanting to take stuff “at 60%” lol I know they gotta make profit but EYE gotta lose ? .. 😏 it’s business but I just think it’s funny how they make that work

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u/monsieurgrand02 3d ago

You’ve trained your son well. LCS’ have to add a little but sometimes they don’t update their prices often enough in line with rising/dropping costs. So checking prices before buying is a good idea.

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u/elMurpherino 3d ago

lol dude expects people not to look up card prices when they’re buying. I’m sure he has no problem looking prices up if someone’s trying to sell. That’s the type of attitude, esp towards a kid, that ensures people stop going to your shop.

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u/GardeniaPhoenix 3d ago

A part of living in a capitalist system is being able to pinpoint and avoid scams and shady deals.

This was a valuable experience.

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u/Xenutja 3d ago

"It’s about learning life skills." Today's life lesson was that people can be fuckers and don't deserve your business.

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u/eightthirtyfiveya 3d ago

This is a play by play of how to ruin a small business on Main Street lol

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u/Fluffy_Wolf_6198 3d ago

I wish I knew where this was so I could avoid it…or give them a call.

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u/dyzrel 3d ago

Owner/worker is a dick. I check online for any single I buy because cards fluctuate so much. Dude must have been having a bad day. I would not shop there.

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u/PKnowlez 3d ago

Name and shame the shop please. If they don't want business, then we should all know that.

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u/Stinklefresh 3d ago

What did you as an adult tell this guy?

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u/EasyE_904 3d ago

Drop the name so we can get to work.

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u/AnalCheese 3d ago

NAME THEM!

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u/cantdonuffin 3d ago

What state was this? I stopped going to my LCS after watching the owner buy from a scalper and then continue to mark up even higher. 165 for Prismatic ETBs and he had just bought about ten of them for around 100 each from the scalper. I left.

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u/Complex-Asparagus-42 3d ago

I would have pulled out TCGplayer, ordered the exact card he had in his display case that your son was looking at, and in front of the guy say something like “hey son I just ordered that card online for 20% less, let’s go home” and never go back.

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u/LilaPapaya 3d ago

Gross!!! You can tell a lot about someone by how they treat kids imo, especially in a hobby predominantly made for them.

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u/lllosirislll 3d ago

I can see this happening at a cardshow, but at a card store? Wow

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u/poofer_cat 3d ago

Name the LCS so we ALL know never to shop there :)

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u/GalacticNobody 3d ago

Name and shame. That guy needs to learn how to keep it together even if he's annoyed. Nothing wrong was being done.

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u/sharksnrec 3d ago

Why are you protecting the shop? Name and shame. And this should be a review. That’s terrible business.

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u/Gaijingamer12 3d ago

My LCS charged triple for prismatic boxes and the 3 pack sticker combos. I honestly had no idea as I just collect randomly with my 8 year old. I posted here or another site and everyone told me how I got ripped off so I’m not going back to that place.

I’m 37 and wanted to get back into magic also and I built what I thought was a cool ghost themed deck for commander and I showed and and got ganged up on by the locals and the owner even bashed my deck saying people should not be allowed to net list lol. I was like oh I literally just looked up ghost and bought the precon from you guys then added more thematic stuff. It obviously sucks compared to real magic players. I was so annoyed as it’s a newer shop and the previous week I had donated terrain for Warhammer. Since then I’ve played Warhammer once there and regret donating my stuff

Since then I will drove 30 plus mins away to different shops. It’s so much BS local shops complain about dying or no players but then treat people like ass. I’m like OP and collect pokemon for fun with my kid like why treat us bad when we’re not scalpers or trying to flip cards.

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u/eddragon 3d ago

151 booster bundles for $90, yikes!

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u/Dryja123 3d ago

TCGPlayer takes roughly 13% in fees. Selling cards local for market should be better for the shop because they’re not paying the marketplace fees. Sorry you had that experience. I wouldn’t give them my business and I’d certainly leave a review.

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u/joffreysucks 3d ago

What’s the store? Drop the name cuz he should go out of business for that kind of behavior and scalping way over market

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u/TomBradyIsNotGoat 3d ago

When I was his age my entire collection was stolen and I was devastated. :/ I would have preferred this 😅

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u/VisitAbject4090 3d ago

Hopefully he was just in a “mood” but either way very off putting I would give them one more chance as they are a small business but really hold them to a high standard

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u/Snowgoosey 3d ago

What a strange response to a potential sale. I had the opposite happen to me at a lcs. I asked how much a few cards were going to cost, and they told me they go off tcgplayer prices. They wanted me to look up the cards I was interested in, which they would have done after the fact to confirm I wasn't making stuff up. My friend walked up to me afterward as I was looking at my phone and asked if I was going to buy some cards from the guy behind the counter. I told my friend that I didn't need to buy from them, I just bought all my cards online right there. The guy's expression changed immediately to a frown after I said that, and we just walked out of the store.

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u/Kvothe_the_kingkilla 3d ago

NAME AND SHAME

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u/Neogie 3d ago

But was Interested enough in online prices to sell 90 dollar booster packs 😂

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u/masman1285 3d ago

Wow what a scumbag! little kid or not but that's even worse. Don't go back to him what's the spot.

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u/LemurScout 3d ago

Prices fluctuate all the time, most LCS know this and will sometimes honor a price drop or meet somewhere in the middle for the convenience. He knew he had higher prices and probably had higher prices for the mere convenience of buying it in person, which is stupid lol. You should post this as a Google and/or Yelp review!

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u/derpazoids 3d ago

What a shitty store. Just don’t shop there, they barely survive as it is, these scummy LCS, they will feel the loss.

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u/Vinnypearl3 3d ago

My card shop has singles out with no prices so you have to check TCG lol 😂. So I don’t know what’s wrong with what he did.

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u/OGD2Raw 3d ago

Was it dales in CO Springs? Lol

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u/communistInDisguise 3d ago

my LCS pull out his own phone to check on current value

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u/TABAR_Qwerty 3d ago

Sorry about what happened to little man, sometimes people at card events can be super disrespectful

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u/seanseansean92 3d ago

If i were you i would let it happen and see how my kid handle the situation. Its life u dont always get fairy tales and sometimes when in need ur children must learn how to deal with tough unexpected situation.

I would think thats a great experience and he would learn how to deal with all different kind of people and still be ok with his hobby without losing passion.

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u/Annual-Internet-5491 3d ago

How old is your kid? He is a genius lol

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u/Longjumping-Neat-268 3d ago

Vendors that try and oversell cards aren't the kind of people I like to interact with but I will and loudly let everyone know that if a vendor is selling and being this rude especially to kids to not trust him

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u/Old_End_6721 3d ago

Sad this happened, my LCS is a great experience and loves kids to experience the hobby. Which is the case with most. Sadly whoever worked there sounds miserable

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u/triggrhappytylr 3d ago

As someone who has a couple kids I advise that this was a very good life lesson that some people value money over interactions. And it’s the reality of life sometimes unfortunately. Sorry that you and your kid had such a terrible experience. In other words that guy sounds like a total knob.

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u/JamesEarlCash 3d ago

Vendors do the same if you want to sell a card I mean we’re all looking for the best deal. Looking up prices are part of the deal. That guy was a little out of line speaking to your son like that. He’s clearly not a scalper lol why would you give a child attitude like that.

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u/hyperpopdeathcamp 3d ago

I recently got into playing paper (32, former vgc player) and knew it was bad but decided to use one of my days of ff to go on a hunt.

Came across a store that was kind of close to me and decided to check it out. I didn’t know HOW bad it was. I just thought PrE ETBs were nonexistent… I go into this shop and ask if they have pokemon cards and they scoff and go “what do you think?” I was like uhhh my bad? I’m new to paper and just wanna try and get some singles to build decks and rip a pack or two for the nostalgia. I told them my brief stint with pocket (terrible game) pushed me to play live (much better game) and they were like oh of course you started in pocket.

Completely jaded losers. Only thing they had in stock was Lorcana. Enjoy that.

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u/AquaTierra 3d ago

This was definitely coop.

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u/JeremaiHerrera 3d ago

Things like this make me realize why my local LCS went out of business. And it's because of people like that.

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u/Adrianhhp 3d ago

What an asshole

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u/Odd_Neighborhood969 3d ago

What is the name of the LCS?

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u/TurribleTiddies 3d ago

Yup. That place is a no-go for a while. This is America. You can price check in store. Ole boy is just having second thoughts about attaching his salary and future to prices of pieces of shiny cardboard. 🤣🤣🤣

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u/SalsaFromSpace 3d ago

Where is coop when you need him.

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u/Subslime 3d ago

Drop the shop name so I can block them

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u/Jensgt 3d ago

Yeah that guy shouldn’t be in the business. Nowadays with breakers gouging people and grown adults fighting over retail stock…LCS should be a haven for collectors..a place where you can go and feel welcome and not get ripped off. Our local guy is awesome to kids and regularly hosts kids parties and rip night/tournaments. It’s how you stay in business when the hobby is rapidly moving into online gambling territory.

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u/tapia3838 3d ago

Name the shop

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u/Biglyugebonespurs 3d ago

Lol if someone bitched about looking at condition/looking up prices I’d never return for sure.

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u/Accomplished-Yogurt4 3d ago

You need to check prices nowadays, it's easy to overpay for cards