I Hit ‘Jackpot’ By Pulling A One Piece Trading Card Worth $1,200, But The Card Devalued Quickly By 30% In A Week

When my friend and I first discovered the trading card market, we were immediately drawn in by the potential for profit. 

We realised that some rare cards from popular series could sell for over a thousand dollars, and this seemed like a lucrative opportunity.  

We started off buying standard packs, and the initial excitement of opening each one was thrilling. However, it soon became clear that the chances of pulling a rare card were much lower than we anticipated, as the system was designed to make rare cards quite elusive.  

To improve our odds, we decided to invest in an entire carton of cards (1728 cards in total), which cost us $600, hoping it would increase our chances of landing a rare card that could fetch over $1,000.  

To our surprise, we hit the jackpot with the very first case we bought, pulling a rare card initially priced at $1,200. Unfortunately, the price quickly dropped to $800 within a week, as supply for that particular card increased and demand waned. The card also featured a character that wasn’t very popular, so despite the initial excitement, it became difficult to sell.  

During this whole time, we are also actively tracking the cost of the card in the Singapore market versus the Japanese market. We eventually planned to sell it to Japanese retailers during a trip to Japan, as there is a higher demand there.  

On our second attempt, we managed to pull another rare card, but it also sold for a lower price than we had hoped.  

This taught me a valuable lesson: if you want to make a profit, it’s often best to sell a rare card as soon as it hits the market, while demand is still high.  

Interestingly, there was one instance where I sold a card for $290, only to see its value appreciate afterwards. While that experience was frustrating, it reinforced that focusing too much on profit can take away from the real joy of card collecting—the excitement of the hunt and the thrill of opening each pack.  

Ultimately, if profit is the main goal, it’s probably more advisable to approach the business as a supplier. 

This article is part of TSS Confessions, a weekly column where we delve into personal finance topics that are unscripted and genuine real accounts from people.