Hey, everyone, just a quick question about collecting sealed product.
Since I started collecting, I have been buying one of every ETB to keep sealed, and I’ve also been keeping some other stuff sealed (SWSH Ultra Premium Collection, Japanese Triple VMAX Starter Deck, couple boxes each of Shiny Star V and Tag Team All Stars). I’m realizing, however, that I get far more enjoyment looking at my binders and graded cards, and I don’t really care that much about the sealed product I have sitting around.
I’m thinking about, from now on, only keeping one of each booster pack style as my sealed product collection. My question is, do you think I’ll regret doing this years from now? I understand that sealed product appreciates in value, because the supply is in almost constant decline, and I also understand that keeping sealed product guarantees that at some point in the future, I could open it for the sake of nostalgia. Right now, however, having this sealed product on hand just feels like having more clutter.
I’d appreciate any insight you have. Do you regret not buying as much sealed product as you would like to have, or do you regret spending money on sealed product that you could have spent on individual cards?
Sealed product has always been a cruel mistress for me. I don’t really collect it because I can’t keep it sealed. It seduces me.
Something about the unknown potential inside just sitting there on my shelf is maddening. I have no self-control and I usually eventually open it or sell it so I no longer have the choice.
I think it’s some dimension of OCD probably. I prefer collecting just cards because their identity is apparent and definite. There’s a weird psychological comfort in that certainty.
That said, I do pick up some of the new modern Japanese sets, but I’m not as hyped up about the hits inside, so it’s easier to forget about. I like sets like Shiny V because they’re nice and compact, like you said some product is clunky.
If sealed product is what you collect, then it can make sense. If its just to get it for the sake of having it, but it doesnt bring you any good collector vibes, then it tends to just build up and take space in my experience. I collect decks, sealed decks arent required but it keeps everything more contained and orderly for me so I prefer them sealed, it also helps that there arent usually any surprises lurking in them so I dont have to worry what could be. When I started collecting them I wasnt sure what I wanted so it was a hodgepodge. Now, I for sure regret not buying more sealed ones especially that values jumped and some continue to be difficult to find, but had I thought about my collection goals I would have transitioned to a sealed preference much earlier. Overall, it depends on the type of collection goals you have and what the collection means to you.
I’m the same way and don’t like displaying my sealed stuff so I store them in a safe. Keeps my space clean and makes them feel like gold when I handle them.
If it feels like clutter while also acknowledging its future monetary/nostalgic value, store it somewhere out of sight and treat it like a time capsule.
A big reason I collect sealed is just so I can open it years later for fun haha. Collect sealed product that you think looks cool or that you want to open later imo.