Over the last few years, the Pokemon card market has become increasingly frustrating for fans. A combination of card shortages and an increase in scalping has resulted in empty shelves where Pokemon TCG products once sat. From fights in Costco to prices well over MSRP at local card stores and GameStop, it’s been a wild time for the hobby of collecting Pokemon cards. In mid December 2025, a rumor suggested that The Pokemon Company was making a big move to increase production. The expansion of Millennium Print Group’s facilities has now been confirmed, but fans likely won’t see the impact for quite some time.
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The Pokemon Company has previously shared that it was printing cards at “maximum capacity” in an attempt to keep up with demand. But it didn’t seem to be enough. Cards continued to sell out almost instantly, partly due to low stock that simply couldn’t match demand. That’s only part of the issue, as the reseller market is a driving problem. Resellers with dollar signs in their eyes keep buying up cards as soon as they arrive in stores, with the hopes of turning a profit. And with so few cards out there, they’re able to charge a premium, which only encourages even more scalper behavior. It’s a cycle that can be hard to break, but acquiring a massive new printing campus is clearly an attempt by The Pokemon Company to improve its production capacity. But it might be too little too late.
New Expanded Pokemon Card Printing Facilities Won’t Be Complete Until 2028
As reported by PokeBeach, TCPI’s Millennium Print Group recently officially confirmed they are indeed the company that leased a massive manufacturing campus in North Carolina. In an official press email, Millennium Print Group confirmed that the newly acquired space will help support the company’s growth. In other words, it’s going to help them actually increase their output for the Pokemon TCG, along with other trading cards the company prints. However, the campus must be renovated and expanded before it can reach its full capacity. And that is apparently going to take some time.
The existing buildings will be upgraded to support Millennium’s needs starting this year. These renovations, along with the construction of a brand-new manufacturing facility, are estimated to be finished by 2027. However, “full-scale operations” at the new site aren’t expected to commence until “late 2028.” And that means it could be two more years before the Pokemon TCG feels the impact of this expanded printing capacity, at the earliest.
It’s possible that some partial usage of the new facilities could commence earlier than 2028. After all, renovating the existing space may take less time than the new construction. If that’s the case, Millennium may be able to slowly ramp up its Pokemon TCG production even ahead of the anticipated late 2028 date for getting things fully up and running. But even so, it’s likely that we won’t see an increase in supply for Pokemon cards until 2027 at the very earliest. And the market could take even longer to feel the effects of that increased supply. With patience already wearing thin, many Pokemon fans might have abandoned the Pokemon TCG by then.
Many Pokemon Fans Are Already Giving Up On Pokemon TCG Thanks to Shortages
Each time a new wave of Pokemon cards sells out, the same chorus sounds. Many Pokemon TCG fans on social media express their growing frustration with empty shelves and instant sellouts. Much of this frustration is aimed at resellers, aka scalpers, who often buy up product right away. Stores that carry Pokemon TCG have made strides in preventing scalpers from walking away with carts full of product. Most places limit customers to 1 or 2 items per person. And yet, product continues to sell out, often within the first few minutes of being put on shelves. And people are getting sick of it, leading many fans to give up the hobby, at least for now.
Walking to the former home of Pokemon TCG product to check the empty shelves has become a habit for many Pokemon fans. But how many times can we see those empty shelves before we stop checking? I know I still drift by when I’m in the neighborhood, but I think I’ve stopped expecting to actually see anything on the shelves. And I’m not the only one. Many people who once collected Pokemon cards with a passion are swearing off the hobby, at least for now. It’s nearly impossible for many people to get ahold of product at MSRP, and many see buying secondhand from resellers as encouraging bad behavior. Not to mention the upcharging.
It’s possible that those who’ve drifted away from the hobby will find new joy when and if Pokemon’s upscaled printing brings cards back to shelves. But if the shortages and issues with resellers continue until late 2028, it’s hard to imagine that many fans won’t give up the ghost entirely. With this being Pokemon’s 30th Anniversary, rumblings about new anniversary TCG sets have already begun. And those are very likely to be a target for scalpers, giving us yet another shiny new set of Pokemon cards that most people will never see in real life.
As long as demand outpaces supply, resellers will see Pokemon TCG as a solid investment. And that means that their interest in buying up cards, combined with already high interest from true collectors, is likely to keep shelves empty for some time. Hopefully, The Pokemon Company is able to ramp up production sooner than 2028. But until then, I worry more and more fans are going to stop even checking those empty shelves for Pokemon cards.
Are you still collecting Pokemon cards, or are you waiting for things to settle down? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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