At this point, some Pokemon fans have all but given up on finding Pokemon TCG cards in stock at local retailers. Each new drop seems to be bought up immediately, even at more obscure locations like Aldi. However, for those keeping the hope alive, it looks like the planned March 28th release of Pokemon Scarlet & Violet – Journey Together has hit shelves early at some locations. In fact, this isn’t even the first time retailers have accidentally stocked the next Pokemon TCG set early, with GameStop reportedly stocking the booster bundles earlier this week. Now, Target and Walmart have joined the fray as the latest retailers selling Journey Together items early.
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Officially, the Journey Together release, which brings back Trainer’s Pokemon, isn’t set to arrive until March 28th. However, with many retailers struggling to keep Pokemon TCG in stock, it seems like the temptation to refill those empty shelves might be a bit too much for some locations. Today, some shoppers have reported spotting Journey Together items, including Booster Boxes, Bundles, and individual booster packs. The r/PokemonTCG subreddit has dozens of posts with collectors urging fans to check their local Walmart locations for early stock of Journey Together.
As has become tradition, few posts include specific locations for where the restocks are found, instead indicating the retail chain in general. The number of people posting about Walmart restocks suggests that there are likely quite a few Walmart locations that have already shelved the Journey Together items. Not only that, but it does appear that customers have been able to successfully purchase the items a day ahead of the official on-sale date, if these haul photos are to be believed. And Walmart isn’t the only place selling these Pokemon cards early.
Target’s Latest Pokemon TCG Restock Includes New Journey Together Packs A Day Early
Along with Walmart, it appears that Target locations have also started shelving the items ahead of the March 28th on-sale date. Most reports reference individual booster packs specifically, suggesting these cards may have slipped in alongside other restocks, including Surging Sparks. That said, some collectors have reported spotting the Booster Boxes on shelves as well, so it’s possible that your local Target may have several Journey Together items on shelves – if you’re quick enough to catch them.
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Journey Together is the first new Pokemon TCG set in a while to offer individual packs as well as larger bundles, and it will be interesting to see how that plays out against demand compared with more exclusive releases like Prismatic Evolutions. If locations put “2-per customer” limits on these items as they have done for other big Pokemon TCG releases lately, the sheer volume of individual booster packs compared to larger sets could see shelves staying full for longer.
That said, it’s clear from the excited posts about the restocks that customers are still operating under a bit of a scarcity mindset. Most folks who share pictures of Pokemon TCG restocks are snagging multiple packs at once when they can. At that rate, the shelves will quite possibly empty of these early Journey Together items before the official March 28th release date even arrives.
