Tariffs are slapping the tabletop and TCG industry, sending costs skyrocketing.
It’s official: the trading card game (TCG) industry has a new final boss to battle – and it’s not a shiny Charizard or a secret rare Luffy. It’s Donald J. Trump’s 2025 tariffs, which have hit imports from just about everywhere like a ton of bricks. These tariffs are raising costs on everything from groceries to gadgets, and our beloved card games are caught in the crossfire.
Manufacturers: Gotta Print ’Em All… But Not in China Anymore?
For the companies that print and produce TCG cards, Trump’s trade war is the equivalent of a bad draw from the deck. The U.S. has slapped a blanket 10% tariff on all imports and then piled on extra duties for certain countries. China – a major hub for printing games – went from a 54% tariff to a whopping 104% virtually overnight. Yes, you read that right: more than double the cost for anything coming from China. And it’s not just China in the penalty box. Countries with big trade surpluses to the U.S. got hit too: Japan is facing a 24% tariff on its goods (ouch for the One Piece card game if those are printed in Tokyo), and the EU is looking at about 20% (sorry, Lorcana – even Mickey Mouse cards from Germany aren’t spared). Basically, unless these cards are being printed on Mars, there’s no escape from the tariff man.
The immediate result? Production costs are shooting up like a damage counter on a weak Pokémon. The Game Manufacturers Association (GAMA) warned that the latest tariffs are “dire news” for an industry that relies on overseas production, predicting “devastating consequences”. Trading card makers are looking at similar pain. “As much as $5 million in extra expenses this year” is what one major publisher estimated when tariffs were 54% – now it’s 104%, so you can imagine the financial carnage. 😬 Talk about pulling no punches.
Could card companies simply shift manufacturing to avoid the tariffs? In theory yes, but in practice it’s like trying to turn a Magikarp into Gyarados overnight. Many TCG publishers had already started diversifying away from China to places like Poland, India, and Vietnam – only to find those countries got slapped with tariffs too. Even domestic printing isn’t a simple solution. Jamey Stegmaier, who runs Stonemaier Games, wrote that even if a company wanted to build new factories in the U.S., the short-term losses from tariffs would eat their cash before they ever succeed. In short, moving all your card printing stateside isn’t as easy as summoning Exodia – it takes time and $$, which tariffs are actively draining.
On top of cost, shipping and distribution are a headache. If a company does print in the U.S. (fun fact: Pokémon actually acquired its own U.S. printing facility in 2022 to boost production), selling those cards overseas just got trickier. Retaliatory tariffs are coming from the other side: China struck back with an 84% tariff on U.S. exports and countries like Canada are considering tariffs on American goods too. Steve Charendoff, president of trading card maker Rittenhouse Archives, said he’s “concerned about anything that’s going to impact our costs… but I’d be more concerned right now about the ability to move our finished product”. The bottom line: TCG manufacturers are caught in a global crossfire, juggling higher print costs, potential delays, and pressure to maybe relocate factories. (Anyone know if Wakanda has a card-printing industry? Asking for a friend 🤔.)
Collectors: Panic Grading, Hoarding, or Just Riding It Out?
Finally, let’s talk about collectors – the folks buying, selling, and obsessing over these cards. How are they reacting? In a word: chaotically. The community is split between “the sky is falling” and “this too shall pass,” but there’s no denying that these tariffs have caused big waves in collector behavior.
First off, there’s a rush to grade and trade cards before things get worse. When news of the tariffs hit, some savvy collectors immediately thought, “Oh no, grading prices and shipping are gonna spike – better submit now!” There was essentially a panic grading phenomenon domestically, with people sending in cards in late March to beat the April tariff rollouts. Now that PSA cut off direct international submissions, we have overseas collectors desperately looking for U.S. middlemen to get their cards graded, and others just throwing their hands up. Some are choosing to wait it out, hoping this trade war cools off quickly, but others are shifting strategies in the meantime.
One noticeable trend: collectors are refocusing on domestic cards and markets to avoid import hassles. If you’re an American who loves Japanese Pokémon cards, well… this might be a good time to appreciate English prints for a while. With Japan now whacked with a 24% tariff, those exclusive Japanese promo cards or booster boxes are suddenly a lot pricier to get into the States. All in all, collectors are learning a crash course in global supply chains, and many are temporarily becoming homebodies in their collecting habits.
Of course, where there’s turbulence, there’s also opportunism. Some collectors and investors are in full speculation mode, anticipating scarcity and price spikes. If new product shipments are delayed or hit with heavy fees, that could drive up prices of whatever stock is already out. We’ve already seen prices climbing on some sealed products.
It’s not lost on people that if Lorcana’s next wave of Disney cards gets stuck in port or costs 20% more to import, the limited supply on shelves becomes instantly more valuable. Cue the hoarders: there are reports of individuals and even local game stores stockpiling booster boxes now, essentially hoarding inventory bought at pre-tariff costs, betting they can sell them later at a premium. It’s the TCG version of filling your garage with toilet paper before a lockdown 😅 (Honestly, not a bad idea if you have the funds.) We’re also seeing what you might call “panic buying” on certain singles – if a card is only available from Japanese sellers, U.S. buyers are grabbing them now just in case future orders become cost-prohibitive.
Not every collector is running around like a Doduo with its heads cut off, though. Some are staying calm, adopting a “wait-and-see” approach. They remember previous trade spats that blew over or spared hobby items. (There’s talk that maybe trading cards could get classified under “toys” or some niche category that might get exempted, but given how broad these 2025 tariffs are, that feels like a long shot). These calm collectors are continuing with their collections, albeit with a bit more caution. The overall vibe in the community is a mix of anxiety and dark humor. When real quotes like “tariffs will all but eliminate our wholesale business” and “immediate consequences… felt by everyone from the hobbyist to the retail store owner” are coming from industry leaders, it’s hard not to be a little nervous as a collector. But if nothing else, TCG folks are resilient – we survived the great scalper boom of 2020, the grading backlogs, the print shortages, and we’ll adapt to this too (albeit while grumbling and rolling our eyes).
In Conclusion: The Trade War Boss Fight Continues…
To put it bluntly, Trump’s 2025 tariffs have become the ultimate wildcard in the TCG world. They’ve jacked up manufacturing costs, snarled shipping, forced grading companies into defensive mode, and left collectors rethinking their moves. The TCG industry thrives on global collaboration (artists in Japan, printers in Europe, players and collectors everywhere), and these tariffs are throwing a big, fat wrench in the works. As a result, your booster box of Pokémon or One Piece might cost more, your PSA submission from abroad is on hold, and that shiny Disney Lorcana card of Elsa might be stuck in customs letting it go (sorry, couldn’t resist 😜).
Will this tariff saga blow over soon or are we in for a long haul? It’s tough to say. Some optimistic souls hope for a quick resolution – perhaps enough economic pain on all sides will lead to negotiations and rollbacks. Others fear this could drag on, fundamentally changing how and where TCG products are made and traded. In the meantime, the best we can do as fans and collectors is stay informed, be patient, and adapt. Maybe you focus on completing some domestic sets you’ve been procrastinating on, or use the pause in the frenzy to actually play the games more (novel idea, right?). If you’re a seller, be transparent with buyers about possible delays or surcharges. If you’re a buyer, don’t be shocked if that box from overseas carries an extra fee or gets canceled – it’s the tariff monster at work, not the seller’s fault. And please, for the love of Arceus, don’t feed scalpers with outrageous prices unless you absolutely must – the last thing we need is another frenzy.
In times like these, a little humor goes a long way. So, picture this: Pikachu in a suit testifying to Congress about tariff impacts on the Lightning type, or Luffy negotiating free trade for the Grand Line, or Mickey Mouse lobbying for a tariff exemption on magical ink cards. It’s absurd – but so is reality right now. The TCG community has always been good at coming together in absurd moments. This is no different. We’ll trade tips on avoiding fees, share shipping hacks, and commiserate over tariff-fueled price hikes. Trade wars are no fun, especially when our fun and games are the collateral damage. But if we have to weather this storm, at least we can do it with a bit of irreverence and solidarity. After all, if we can survive packs weighed by scalpers and $100+ MSRP elite trainer boxes, we can survive a tariff or two… hopefully.
So hang in there, folks. Keep collecting, keep playing, and keep an eye on those news updates. Who knows – maybe next month we’ll be writing about a truce and dropping prices. Until then, may your pulls be great, your grades be 10s, and may all your trades be tariff-free! 😅