I Built My Dream Pokémon Set: Was It Worth It?

The speaker describes executing a major card deal over the weekend, acquiring a BGS 10 Charizard to complete his first edition Pokémon base set by trading his BGS 9 version plus cash. He explains that he is a set collector, not a reseller, and has accumulated significant paper profits through this hobby. The speaker invested approximately $14,500 in a stack of Pokémon cards purchased in February 2025 from a dealer met at an airport hotel, which are now valued at around $80,000. He applied dollar-cost averaging methodology, purchasing cards gradually over months rather than all at once, to avoid trying to time the market perfectly. His second major stack, purchased similarly over time, shows investments of $36,000 growing to approximately $74,000 in value. Combined, these two stacks represent $54,000 invested becoming $154,000 in current value—a $100,000 gain from patience and strategy. Individual card examples demonstrate impressive returns: a Wartortle purchased for $1,500 sold for $25,000; a Bulbasaur from $2,000 to $15,000; a Venusaur from $3,200 to $8,000; and a Mewtwo from $3,200 to $10,000. The speaker emphasizes this approach generates returns difficult to achieve in stocks or private equity. His complete first edition set would now be valued at approximately 9.25 rating quality, and he estimates spending $75,000-$100,000 total on the set, which he plans to pass to his son rather than sell. He notes the Charizard has jumped to approximately $1 million value. The speaker concludes with lessons on patience, focus, direction, and the principle that completing full sets of even lower-graded cards (like sixes) will appreciate over time, drawing parallels to classic card collecting like 1986 Fleer basketball cards.