Here's a little insight for all you TRU complainers, for which i am one....loud and proud. An ex-girlfriend of mine was a manager of a HUGE TRU store here in Sydney, Australia. She informed me that TRU have no idea what they are getting in...it arrives on the loading dock from the warehouse, they unpack it and put it on the shelves and that's it...end of story. She, Nicole, always said to me that "we don't cater for collectors" and i have to admit that she is right on that. TRU cater to little Billy and Polly who come in with their parents.
It's true that TRU are missing the mark when it comes to us collectors who will spend the big $$$$$ to get the items we desire and TRU have no freaking idea of target markets or who their big spending customers are and with the current price hikes it amazes me how they have any god damn customers left. I probably buy from TRU at most i'd say 3 times a year....and that's being very generous too.
TRU are useless....sure, they may market themselves as "the worlds biggest toy store" BUT i feel you have to have quality product to really lay claim to that title.