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Pokémon fans, this is your cue to shuffle your decks and mark your calendars. The Poké Court, the cult-favorite NYC card shop known for its viral red envelopes and cramped-but-charming second-story hideaway, is leveling up. On November 1, the store will debut a brand-new, 2,000-square-foot flagship in Chelsea, less than five minutes from Chelsea Market and not far from their current tiny location.
The glow-up is well-earned: what began as a living-room side hustle in late 2023 quickly grew into one of the city’s most popular destinations for collectors. A short-lived SoHo pop-up with Shopify last year drew over 4,000 visitors in three days. Now, The Poké Court is expanding into a permanent home designed as a haven for fans—and, this time, you won’t be elbow-to-elbow while ripping your packs.
The new space, designed by GAMPworks, will feature dedicated zones like a Pack Bar, where a “Packtender” will help you pick and open new products, and a Ripping Corner, complete with penny sleeves so your prized pulls stay pristine. Expect walls of single cards, graded slabs and merch—including new Poké Court totes and hats—as well as a VIP Lounge for collectors and creators (yes, you'll even get to host your own ripping party here).
The grand opening weekend, November 1–2, will be a full-on Poké-palooza in collaboration with sponsor Collectr. Activations will include vintage box breaks (like an original 1999 Base Set) streamed live on Whatnot, giveaways, special-edition patches for early visitors and a claw machine filled with rare packs and merch courtesy of Partea. Expect appearances from community favorites like Powdr, Alcremie Sundae, MeesterKeem, Scott’s PC and Yunaverse.
For the diehards, the evening of November 1 brings Poké Court Palooza, a limited-capacity celebration featuring a Pokémon Spelling Bee, a Pikachu Hunt, creator-led activities and plenty of food and drinks.
“We’ve poured so much into this new space to create an awesome experience for all of you,” said an official The Poké Court team member in a statement. “Come check us out and help us celebrate the next chapter of The Poké Court!”
More details—and a look at the finished design—will be revealed soon on Instagram and on The Poke Court’s website. For now, get ready to catch ‘em all… in style.