Buying Pokemon Elite Trainer Boxes

Who knew that buying Pokemon ETBs (Elite Trainer Boxes), would be so stressful!  For any parent/carer of a child who is heavily into collecting Pokeman Cards, they will know trying to purchase the latest season's trainer box is a sport all in itself! 

Searching for Pokemon Cards

My go-to places to purchase Pokemon cards (which I have to admit I don't do often, this tends to be the hubby's job, as there are way too many sets for me to remember!)  I tend to be bricks and mortar shops.  

I feel, if I can go to a shop I have more chance of buying a Celebration, Lost Origin or even Brilliant Stars box set, than online.  The usual fandom, collectable stores such as HMV and Game may have Pokemon sets, but are more likely just to have the booster packs and than the ETBs.

Most of the time the shops in town will sell out on the day of release and I never know when this is.  There will often be a queue outside of these shops before the shops open and even with a limit of 1 box per person will sell out within minutes!

This is why it's such a huge shock if we manage to find coveted ETBs in town.

Where to buy Pokemon Online

The biggest doubt I have when purchasing online from places such as eBay and Amazon is the authenticity of the cards and I personally do not use these sites.  I am not sure if the cards are genuine, and even if they are, sellers on Amazon have been known to take out the rare cards in booster packs and ETB boxes and replace with more common Pokemon cards!

My son has been asking for the Evolving Skies ETB, which is out of stock everywhere I've been, and when searching online, at places I mentioned above that do have them in stock, they are charging double the recommended retail price!

This is when I came across a site called Magic Madhouse which sells Pokemon card sets, pop culture fashion accessories, Pop! Vinyl figures, D&D, RPG books, and more.  As I had never used Magic Madhouse before, I was a bit dubious about placing an order.  Especially as other online stores were taking orders and then cancelling them the next day - in particular - Smyths Toystore had this issue.

I decided to take a risk and place my order for the coveted Evolving Skies and waited.  I placed the order on my credit card "just in case" and I never told my partner what I'd done, to avoid disappointment.  To my great surprise, I got a confirmation email, then a tracking email and then this:

I am so pleased I've found this website and the smooth delivery of my son's Christmas present!  It will be one of the main sources for me to use now, as well as online stores such as Game, HMV and Argos where I can click and collect.

Happy Hunting and good luck catching 'em all.