A bizarre sequence of events has taken place in New York, after a particular Pokemon card shop got robbed for valuable cards, they are being forced to rebrand by Nintendo itself. The shop named Poke Court became the victim of armed robbery back in January during a particular event.
Cameras seem to have caught footage of the actual robbery when it happened. Several local fans and customers online came out with messages of support that brought more attention to the store, including the eyes of Nintendo officials.
Instead of providing any sort of support, Nintendo’s first reaction was to scrutinize the shop for using trademarked logo design and name. Representatives of the shop came out on social media platforms to bring the situation to light, confirming that they are going to rebrand.
Social media reaction towards the whole situation
The Pokecourt was using a logo that looked very similar to a Poké Ball, with the same red and white color schemes. Ideally, it should be natural for a company to have its brand identity be based on what it is selling. But Nintendo had other plans in mind, which led to a slew of new social media memes.
This is not the first time that Nintendo fans have had to point fingers at the company for being viciously corporate outside of the fun-loving exterior of its games. Gamers took to social media to criticize Nintendo’s behavior.
Fans all over social media made jokes by creating made-up scenarios that would also put them in a similar cease-and-desist situation from the company.
While others took this moment to criticize the popularization of Pokémon card trading culture through mainstream social media personalities and TikTok, Instagram cultures.
Rebranding the shop due to concerns from Nintendo
In the social media post from the card shop, the owners confirmed that Nintendo reached out to them concerning the logo and brand name. Simultaneously, they have confirmed that they will be moving forward with the rebranding. “This means we’re evolving!” The message reads on the post.
Poke Court has now changed its name to The Trainer Court with new colour schemes vaguely resembling the older logo. Fans came in support of this change, assuring that they will continue to be customers.
The shop also made heartfelt posts addressing all the fan support in the aftermath of the incident. “We’re so thankful for and overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from the community, both near and far. It means so much to us that you all want us to stay open so people can share their love for Pokémon.” The post read.
