Man sells son’s forgotten Pokemon cards for $2M

A retired decorator in the UK has become a millionaire after selling a collection of Pokemon cards for nearly $2.1 million, having kept them in his attic for 15 years.

The man, who lives in Woking, Surrey, had purchased the cards in the late 1990s after his son became interested in the Pokemon trading card game.

However, he had no idea how valuable the collection had become until reading about another Pokemon card selling for more than $8,000 in his local newspaper.

After discovering their potential value, he brought the collection to auction house Ewbank's, where all 42 sets were sold on October 21 for a combined $2.1 million.

Forgotten Pokemon card collection sells for record-breaking amount

According to the BBC, the man began purchasing Pokemon cards after watching his son collect and trade them with classmates in the late 1990s.

"When my son was young, in the late 1990s, he started getting cards and swapping them at school," he explained.

"I thought they looked nice and wondered whether they might be a good investment. He had his own cards, but he never got to touch these, I'm glad to say."

The man purchased several complete sets through eBay, including some from a seller in Malaysia. One collection that originally cost him just $400 ended up selling for more than $100,000 at the auction.

After his son lost interest in Pokemon, he put the cards in custom binders and stored them in the attic, where they sat untouched for 15 years.

"I know people always talk about finding treasure in the attic, but in my case that is literally true," the anonymous seller said.

The collection included numerous rare cards, with the most expensive lot being a Legendary Collection Complete Master Set featuring a near-mint Charizard card.

That set alone sold for approximately $134,000, significantly exceeding its original estimated value of $20,000 to $27,000.

James Spooner, Ewbank's head of trading cards, said staff were stunned when the seller first brought in his collection.

"When we saw what he had – all in mint condition – we couldn't believe it," he said.

Ewbank's described the auction as its most successful sale in more than 30 years of business, claiming it was the most valuable trading card auction ever held in the UK and potentially a European record.

The total also surpassed a previous UK record set on October 9, when an auction at Stanley Gibbons in London generated approximately $1.17 million in sales, according to Ewbank's.

Andrew Ewbank, who conducted the auction himself, said collectors from around the world participated in the bidding.

"The buzz was incredible, especially because the collectors could not believe how good this collection was – extensive, untouched, complete, and with just about every rarity you could hope for," he said.

Ewbank also attributed the growing demand for Pokemon cards to nostalgia, explaining that fans who grew up with the franchise now have more disposable income to spend on collectibles.

"Nostalgia is a big of part of it," he said. "It's about bringing back those memories of childhood."

Following the sale, Ewbank encouraged others to check whether they might have valuable collectibles stored away at home.

"If you buy something for your son, as happened in this case, and they don't want it, well, maybe pop it away because you never know what value it might have in the future," he said.