Sam’s Club Pokémon Launch Falls Flat
Fans anticipated long lines at Sam’s Club on Tuesday morning for the release of a highly sought-after product from the Pokémon trading card game. What they didn’t foresee was the blatant disregard for purchasing limits, with some locations seemingly failing to enforce them.
The event was centered around Ascended Heroes, a Pokémon TCG collection known for its stunning artwork that has surged in popularity since its debut in January 2026. The demand for Ascended Heroes has fueled a fierce resale market, with scalpers inflating prices by as much as 450% over the suggested retail price. Securing any Pokémon cards has become a challenge, and finding Ascended Heroes at a fair price is nearly impossible.
It’s no wonder that lines began forming at Sam’s Club over the weekend. The Ascended Heroes Focused Fighter Collection, featuring 15 booster packs for just $55.98, offers an incredible value at under $4 per pack. Management at Sam’s Club anticipated high demand, as indicated by an internal memo shared with employees. This memo stated that the retailer’s systems had been upgraded to limit customers to two boxes per membership.
Employees were encouraged to communicate these limits to customers who might try to exploit loopholes. The memo specifically warned that some customers might attempt to buy multiple memberships to acquire more boxes. Staff were asked to remain vigilant to ensure fairness. This notice, combined with leaked allocation numbers suggesting ample stock at key locations, gave customers a false sense of security about the release.
By Tuesday morning, however, many locations were overwhelmed with long lines forming hours before the stores opened. These lines wrapped around the building and spilled into the parking lot, with customers bringing everything from chairs to camping gear to endure the wait.
While some drops went off without a hitch, numerous reports indicated that many Pokémon releases at Sam’s Club were problematic. At one location, an employee claimed that management had struck a deal with the first few customers who had multiple memberships, allowing them to purchase as many boxes as they wanted. A Reddit thread discussing this incident garnered multiple responses from workers reporting similar experiences at other stores.
“288 boxes available today,” one employee noted. “The first 5 people cleared the first pallet. Only about 35 folks got boxes when we had enough for the entire line.”
Similar accounts flooded social media, with images of customers blatantly ignoring the purchase limits going viral.
At another Sam’s Club, a customer reported that tickets were distributed to ensure the ability to buy boxes. However, despite being near the front of the line and holding tickets, they were told the store had already sold out.
While some incidents of apparent favoritism occurred during the Pokémon release, not all went without consequences.
“We had an associate get written up for taking her lunch right when we opened so she could cut in front of all the members waiting outside,” one employee shared. “Needless to say, she no longer works there.”
Sam’s Club members still have a chance to purchase the Ascended Heroes box on Tuesday evening when it goes on sale online—at least, in theory. Like other retailers, online Pokémon releases are often plagued by bots that snatch up inventory in seconds.
Some Target locations are reportedly tearing open Pokémon box seals before purchase.
