Van Gogh Museum Reportedly Dismissed Multiple Employees Over Pokémon Collaboration Chaos [IGN]

Multiple employees of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam reportedly lost their jobs in relation to the chaos caused by the collaboration with The Pokémon Company.

As reported by Eurogamer, anonymous sources told Dutch publication Het Parool that four employees were suspended due to misconduct and will not return to the museum. One staff member allegedly lost their job for embezzling a box of Pokémon cards, presumably of the incredibly rare Pikachu which sent scalpers into a frenzy.

The collaboration — which saw various Pokémon drawn in the Van Gogh style and portrayed in the famous museum — began in September 2023 and offered fans a free Van Gogh Pikachu Pokémon card for purchasing any merchandise in the gift shop. What perhaps should have been a wholesome incentive for children to visit the museum immediately turned into chaos, however, as scalpers flooded the store and fought over bits of merchandise. The Pikachu card was later sold online for hundreds of dollars and the museum removed it from sale.

Echt zin in een dagje Van Gogh museum om Pokémon te kijken 😎😎😎 pic.twitter.com/txMKLKxzk4

— monkeloidtv (@monkeloidtv) September 28, 2023

Alongside the employee who allegedly embezzled a box of these cards, another employee allegedly informed visitors when they could purchase tickets for the exhibit and therefore get a head start on obtaining the rare merchandise.

Both security guards and public service employees were dismissed for not adhering to proper procedures and staff codes of conducts, the Van Gogh Museum confirmed, though it didn’t comment on exact numbers.

Pokémon cards are as popular as ever, evidenced, among other things, by the number of people trying to steal them.

Tokyo police reported an unprecedented number of trading card thefts in the latter half of 2022, while an independent gaming store in Minnesota reportedly had around $250,000 worth of Pokémon merchandise stolen in February 2022. One month later, again in Tokyo, a man was arrested for allegedly launching a literal heist in order to steal the treasured cards.

Also in March, a Georgia man didn’t steal Pokémon cards directly but instead misused money from the government to buy one, using a COVID-19 relief payment to buy a rare, shiny Charizard.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter. He’ll talk about The Witcher all day.