By now, Pokémon has accumulated a great deal of merchandise from its more than a quarter-century of existence. Much of the merchandise is common and/or easily filled in by similar items from that collective. However, there is also no doubt that some of the merchandise have gotten exceedingly rare that it would take special (and I mean very special) connections - not to mention possibly a lot of money - to obtain them. Based on the things that have transpired, I've gathered a few items of Pokémon merchandise that have the potential to be classified as the rarest of their kind.
While anything (primarily cards) from the TCG realm still rightly fits within that realm, once the item becomes out of play for the longest time, it is practically an item of merchandise rather than a usable item. Some of the most expensive cards are some of the oldest cards and therefore the rarest as well; at that point, they're treated more like merchandise (given requisite protection, sold individually, and so on) instead of a game item. More recent cards can also be rare and valuable as well, though the matter of playing with them becomes questionable with such qualities.
If a merchandise item is no longer being made or sold, they predictably become rarer with time. Such would be the case for ex-NYC Pokémon Center Statue of Liberty Pikachu plush dolls, which are no longer sold after its transition to Nintendo World, and thus it now has a guaranteed incredible rarity about it. For those who were fortunate to have picked it up, they might not have thought about how it would become rare in the future, but with this being the case today, it becomes rather apparent that the rarity is considerable and the item has to be maintained to keep that rarity.
Even rarer are items that are exclusive to a single occasion and/or groups of people.
That is the case with an item that unexpectedly happened into my possession recently:
The packaging says it all - this is a pin for competitors for the World Championships of four years ago, and that speaks of its exclusivity as well, as this would truly belong to someone who competed there... or was to compete, since this is still in its packaging. As such, this makes it perhaps the rarest Pokémon merchandise item I've ever possessed and this is certain to be one of the rarest out there.
Many more Pokémon merchandise items may exist out there that can qualify as very rare Pokémon merchandise, but if anything, these should be quite representative of the lot. The continued existence of Pokémon will assuredly mean more and yet more items down the road that can become very rare and therefore valuable, so this is an "evolving" topic as time progresses. In any case, the burgeoning collective of Pokémon merchandise ought to be an indicator that some things will continue to gain rarity, and that's something that collectors like me ought to consider.
One year ago: Dream Pokémon Food from Café Remix
Two years ago: On Pokémon Who Talk and Speak
Three years ago: The Fate of (Monthly) Go Fest and Safari Zones
Four years ago: Localized TCG (Not Quite) Taking Off
Five years ago: Pokémon Go Community Day, 8/11/2018 and 8/12/2018
Six years ago: Cosplay: DANOBU 4
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