I Was WRONG About TCGPlayer | Is TCGPlayer still relevant in 2026 for a small TCG business?

Buy trading cards: https://getdkc.com | Buy 10 Get 2 Cards $1-$3, Free Shipping over $50, & 10% off your first order -- OFFICIAL LINKS Join the Discord:   / discord   -- OFFICIAL PARTNERS Sell your bulk, or trade for sealed | Some of the best bulk-buying rates in the country | Visit https://avatcg.com and use the code ~ dkc ~ to tell them I sent you. -- Affiliate Links Buy SortSwift: https://www.sortswift.com/?ref=deadki... Get free store credit when you join Misprint: https://www.misprint.com/u/deadkingco... I may receive commission when you purchase through these links. -- IMPORTANT NOTES I'm seeking wholesale distribution partnerships for Sorcery, Union Arena, Kayou, CyberCel, VaultX, BCW, Ultra Pro, and Obsidian Supplies. If you are looking for wholesale customers to purchase these items, let's connect. To reach me, fill out the contact form at https://www.getdkc.com -- I said TCG Player wasn't worth it. I was wrong. Here's the full breakdown of why I'm coming back, and why I think every TCG seller needs at least some presence there heading into 2026. Topics covered: the structural reasons TCG Player remains the dominant trading card marketplace, from its unmatched game selection and seller base to its Direct program and investment in seller tools like the Roca sifter; why I originally left over seller protection failures, and why TCG Player fixing that brought me back; my prediction that hard times are coming for the TCG market as Pokémon's 30th anniversary hype fades and mass automation floods it with bulk cards, breaking the artificial scarcity behind bulk pricing; why alliances and partnerships, including my new bulk-out deal with Ava at The Card Gallery, will separate the sellers who survive from the ones who don't; and the changes I'm making to my TCG Player strategy, including no longer listing everything, narrowing my assortment to high-velocity Pokémon singles, and using SortSwift's auto-pricing to its fullest. -- 00:00 Intro: Why I'm Coming Back to TCG Player 01:22 Recap: Why TCG Player Still Dominates, From Selection to Budget 12:26 Building a Moat: Roca Sifters and Future Paywalled Tools 14:19 Why I Left: USPS Mail Losses and My "TCG Player Brain" 17:39 Realizing I Was a Level 1 Entrepreneur, Not Just a Level 4 Seller 19:19 It's Irresponsible Not to Have a Presence on TCG Player 20:02 The Seller Protection Fix That Brought Me Back 23:02 Future Tools, Paywalls, and $1,000-a-Month Subscriptions 29:34 Why TCG Player Will Shrink Slowly, Not Collapse 32:47 The Biggest Reason: Hard Times Are Coming for the Whole Market 36:52 Why Pokémon's 30th Anniversary Is an Unrepeatable Peak 46:52 The Coming Flood: Mass Automation and Power Scaling 53:11 Bulk's Artificial Scarcity Is About to Break Permanently 55:58 Sponsor: My Bulk-Out Deal With Ava at The Card Gallery 57:50 Why Alliances Are the Only Way to Survive, and Liquidating 23,000 Cards 1:01:22 My Real Skills Are Marketing, Sales, and Local Networking 1:03:33 New Alliances: A Grading Deal, Carl, and Office Hours Growth 1:10:23 Getting TCG Player Exposure Without Your Own Store, and Planning for the 35th 1:16:15 My Actual Strategy: Niching Down to Pokémon Only 1:17:30 Step One: Why I'm No Longer Listing Everything 1:23:31 The Brutal Math: 500,000 Cards to Clear $100K a Year 1:28:20 No, I'm Not Leaving the TCG Business 1:29:45 Why Pokémon: Maximum Liquidity, and SortSwift's Auto-Pricing Power 1:37:35 Narrowing My Assortment to High-Velocity Cards Only 1:44:17 No More Cross-Listing to TCG Player 1:46:00 Where Different Price Tiers Belong, and New Buying Incentives 1:54:35 My Real Vision: A Multicultural Hub for Collectors 1:58:03 Conclusion: Build a Presence, But Stay Flexible 2:02:53 Announcements: Discord Overhaul and Office Hours Growth -- Dead King Collection Dead King Collection (DKC) sells trading cards, accessories, manga, books, and collectibles to collectors in the United States, curating a specialized collection for fans of collectible art and foreign languages. Website: https://getdkc.com #tcgbusiness #tradingcardbusiness #tcgseller