That's a ridiculous assumption. I typically buy yugioh theme decks since a $9 price tag isn't too far off from the $6 online charges. However, just because a store is local, doesn't mean I'll automatically support it.
Would you support a new and local grocery store that charges $8 for a dozen of eggs if you can get it for cheaper? Of course not. It's bullshit, and in all honesty no one should pay more if there's a less expensive version of it. I'll buy singles and certain products such as sleeves or theme decks, but nothing more.
You are basically supporting whoever makes you spend the least amount of cash, and there is nothing wrong with that. I do it too, but only out of convenience, and not because I want to keep a store afloat.
There are a few factors as to what stores I support. Price and distance. I never buy online because after the exchange rate, and duty taxes and all that stuff, buying online costs more than buying locally. Another reason is I like to see what I buy before I buy it. I am picky about how damaged the packaging is.
I can see both sides of the argument here.
If you are in financial trouble, you shouldn't try to support any store who is charging too much. You shouldn't have to sacrifice yourself financially just to keep a struggling store afloat.
If you are loaded, and you decide to not support a local store, because they do not charge the lowest prices out of every single store out there, then you are just being a miser, skinflint, um, er, cheap.
Boosters cost $4, theme decks cost $14, elite trainer boxes cost $40, and that is only the base price. A $4.50 booster pack is reasonable to me. A $5 booster pack is stretching it. $5.50 is too expensive and not worth it. If a booster pack is $3, then cool, but I will not go out of my way to find a store that sells booster packs for $3 or less.
I understand if you don't support a store that sells $5 booster packs, but if you are buying online because they sell $3 booster packs, and your local store sells $4 booster packs, then that is another story.
MTG and Yugioh have this policy where online retailers are not allowed to sell sealed product outside the country, so an Australian cannot make use of the fact that buying online from an American retailer saves them money compared to buying them locally. I personally hate this policy, only because I only buy online from American retailers because they have old sealed product that my local game stores do not have.
There is nothing wrong in being cheap. It's just your spending habits. Likewise, should a person live in a certain city because the state or province does not charge tax? Should someone not drive their car and wait and speculate whether gas prices will go down, and won't fill the tank because 89 cents per litre is still too expensive? Should someone buy necessities in bulk from a foreign country just because it is cheaper to get it there? A person will spend $8 for eggs if it means that they do not have to spend a lot on gas, or go through hoops just to get eggs for a cheaper price. If there are competing stores nearby, they will go to the place that charges less. If the $8 for eggs store is the only store, then they will bite the bullet and pay $8. People from Hong Kong pay a lot for milk, compared to what people pay for in America, so that high price is pretty normal to them.
If you have many local game stores close to one another, it doesn't really matter if you support one or not, but if you have a local game store that is isolated, but needs to charge a lot just to keep the store afloat, if the store goes under, so does all the local players' interest in the Pokemon TCG.
What I am really trying to say is, you should support your local game store. You shouldn't always not support your local game store. Nobody should pour all their cash to one local game store. Buy a few things here and there, don't buy everything from that store regardless of price. If the price is reasonable, don't be cheap and buy online just because the prices are the lowest.
I went to my LGS and I wanted the shining legends elite trainer box, and my LGS charges $55 CDN for it. Normally I would go, "aw hell no", but I wanted it badly, and I was already there, so I bit the bullet and bought it. I also didn't feel like driving to every store, or go cross town just to get it for cheap.
Speaking of rip off, I had to pay $190 CDN for AHL Live, for a team pass. They normally charge $200 USD, but I paid $150 USD for early bird sale, and that translates to $190 CDN. NHL game centre costs $200 USD for full season pass, and the NHL is higher level hockey over AHL, but I want to watch the stream of my local AHL team online. Only way to watch it is to let $200 CDN leak out of my wallet. I had to cheap out on everything. I used to buy elite trainer boxes for each set, and some booster packs here and there, but because watching my local AHL team online is more important, my cash is now only allocated to preconstructed decks, because that is what I like to buy. I don't need to pay for NHL game centre because I can watch my local NHL team's games on TV, and besides, the local NHL team's games are blacked out on NHL game centre, because of regional restrictions.
My local pro independent baseball team charges $25 for the best seats. Other teams in the league charge $15 for similar seats. It sucks, but it is better to just be ripped off and keep the team, rather than have no team. I'm so cheap that I'd rather watch the free streams online rather than attend a game...unless the ballpark has recliners rather than seats, and it is located next door to where I live. Ah whatever, they are well off anyway, compared to those southern teams that come and go each season.
There is a reason why I hate that stupid battle arena deck price increase.
