The rise in price of this one odd Pokémon box has shocked me.

The Japan Post Stamp Box, for those who weren’t around, was released in 2021 as a collaboration between The Pokémon Company and Japan Post. It could only be bought from Japan Post locations and retailed for about $35 USD.

This was a cheap product.

Today the boxes are reselling on eBay for as much as $1,699 USD.

The box didn’t consist of much: there isn’t a single booster pack to be found within it. Instead, it came with a Pokemon Card Game starter box (two very basic decks that parents can plan with their kids) some stickers, and a sheet of Pokémon-themed stamps (this is a post office product after all).

Oh, and promo cards.

Two exceptional promo cards: the Beauty Looking Back Pikachu and the Fishing Cramorant.

The artwork on both of these cards are inspired by classic pieces of Japanese art and are illustrated by the legendary Mitsuhiro Arita (the illustrator of the original base set Charizard card and many more).

These are gorgeous cards that reference important cultural artifacts from Japan’s rich artistic history. For example: the Pikachu is inspired by the famous Japanese artwork Beauty Looking Back.

These cards are the reason this box has become so expensive.

Sealed, these promos are selling for prices well over $1,400. Graded in a PSA 10, the Pikachu alone can sell for over $1,600, with the Cramorant selling for $300-$400.

Japanese Market Momentum is Growing

Since the English market boom kicked off in late 2024, the Japan Post box is the first Japanese product to show considerable price appreciation. I believe the the growing hype it represents is an important indicator for the Japanese market as a whole.

Because, while the English market has been in the Boom Phase, the Japanese market has continued to remain in the Dormant Phase: up until now we’ve only seen gradual price appreciation for Japanese products…

The dramatic rise of the Japan Post Stamp Box is the first sign of market momentum that has the potential to take the Japanese market into it’s next Boom Phase.

The timing feels about right.

During the pandemic, the English Pokémon market boomed from around Nov 2020 until the end of 2021. The Japanese market didn’t enter it’s boom until late 2022, and peaked in mid-2023. If the cycle follows this timing yet again, the Japanese market won’t boom until the end of the 2026.

However…

2026 is a very interesting year for Pokémon: it’s the 30th anniversary.

And the hype of this milestone could draw more attention to Pokémon sooner, kicking off the Boom Phase for the Japanese market earlier in 2026.

This is all my speculation, but the movements from the Japan Post Stamp Box line up.

And, as an early driver of attention on Japanese products, more and more collectors will become aware of the massive run up in prices, drawing even more attention, which could then spill over into the Japanese market in general.

This is how markets transition from the Dormant Phase to the Boom Phase.

As always,

Thank you so much for reading the TCG Buyers Club Newsletter. My name’s Grey, I buy cardboard, and I’m on a mission to make collecting and investing in Pokémon simple.

Cheers 🍻

P.S. I only have 2 of these boxes and I opened one of them to get the cards signed by Mitsuhiro Arita himself… Unfortunately, I didn’t get to the signing early enough, missed my chance, and have now opened one box for nothing 😤 The life of a sealed collector, eh?