This is the first in a series of blog posts discussing the trading card game Magic The Gathering (hereafter shortened to just “Magic”) and its connections to the world of sales.
Our first topic is primarily based on the secondary market of Magic cards. What’s the “secondary market” you might ask? Allow me to explain.
Magic cards are sold in “booster packs” of 15 randomized cards, each of varying rarity. These packs contain 11 “common” cards, 3 “uncommon” cards, and 1 “rare” or “mythic rare” card. Sometimes one of the commons is even replaced by a shiny “premium foil” card – Magic players love pulling the occasional bling from their packs.
Buying sealed booster packs of cards is what is considered the primary market. In this market, the maker of the game, Wizards of the Coast, directly sells sealed product to you, the player. Buying sealed booster packs of cards is certainly fun for both the casual player and the avid collector, but it does not guarantee that you will get any specific card you might be looking for. Depending on the rarity of a given card, you might open a hundred sealed booster packs without seeing a single copy. This is where the secondary market comes in.
The secondary market is made up of individuals and card stores selling single cards that they have either opened from packs themselves or have bought from other players who opened these cards first. The secondary market forms the true heartbeat of the Magic the Gathering market: it makes it possible for players and collectors to get their hands on specific cards they are searching for, without spending a small fortune on sealed booster packs. (As a player, collector, and seller myself, the secondary market is practically where I live and breathe, and I will more than happily discuss this more in my next post here.)
As anyone who has taken a Dr. Hendrickson economics course could tell you, supply and demand is everything. Supply and demand is really what sets the price of a single card on the secondary market. For example, commons that see lots of play and are from older sets can be more expensive than unplayed mythic rares from a current set. (You can read more on sets in my upcoming post about the Magic standard rotation here.)
In conclusion, the fluctuations of the secondary market form the foundation of most of Magic the Gathering’s financial value. Since most of my future posts will refer to the secondary market quite frequently, I wanted to use my first blog post to briefly explain what I mean when I use those words. I hope this was enlightening for you if you are new to the exciting world of trading card sales.
It is very interesting that sales in the secondary market could potentially be more profitable than the primary sales depending on the value of the card. If you are just getting into selling cards, how do you determine prices that are fair and competitive?
You seem to provide an excellent service to the secondary market! It was super smart to post this introduction to your series because I don’t know how many people would know what the secondary market is concerning cards. Great econ/sales lesson!
Looking forward to the rest of the articles, great way to introduce the secondary market!