Bantha Skull have written an open to letter to Hasbro,it makes interesting reading ...
SDCC Not A Time for the “Collector Pullback” Message
Posted by Chris on 07/12 at 04:51 PM
The annual San Diego Comic Con is a mere week away at this point. As we eagerly await preview night on the 20th and the slideshow presentation on the 22nd, we have a slight knot on our collective stomachs about the elephant in the room. We can all see that the Vintage Collection has been faltering since Christmas time. This is despite a sale rate that surprised even this hardened collector in the months leading up to the holidays. Stores were selling through a majority of the inventory at a jaw dropping pace.
So while we look forward to the slideshow presentation, we’re worried that we might hear a familiar refrain: a shaky economy and collector pullback have caused the line to under perform.
Hasbro, if you read this, here is caution number one:
Blaming your customers this time around would be a colossal misstep.
What may well have been a contributing factor in 2009 does not enter the equation this time around. We have been supporting the line. Brick and mortar retail stores simply are unable or unwilling to replenish their stock. At the time of this article, my local Target has 11 figures on the pegs and has not received a single new case of Vintage Collection figures since December! By the time SDCC rolls around it will have been seven months since this store received new product aside from a few Empire wave duds that were rotated in from another store by a collector turned vigilante Hasbro rep.
Caution number two:
Don’t deflect the collector anger by urging people to order via e-tail.
The retail experience is part of the thrill for many collectors. So while e-tail is nice as a reserve chute, it will only keep collector interest afloat for short bursts and isn’t a viable long term solution (read 7+ months). Plus, the case assortments don’t exactly inspire bulk purchases. More on that will follow. So let us rewind the tape a little and give you our wholly amateur take on the situation.
The sell through rate becomes a curse
So while stores were cranking through cases and cases of Vintage Collection they were also starting to pile up some slow selling inventory. Depending on the level of collector interest this may have started with the Empire Strikes Back wave. For every awesome all new Luke Bespin that appealed to the whole spectrum of consumers, stores were also saddled with a re-release of 4-LOM which has a more niche collector appeal that was largely sated during the Thirtieth Anniversary Collection. So while stores were replenishing and selling through dozens of cases of the Empire Strikes Back wave, their inventory turnover engines were also getting gunked up with dozens of 4-LOM figures. Conclusion: Figures with broad spectrum appeal need to be shipped at least 2:1 to re-release figures with only niche appeal. Things were about to get worse.
Learn what makes a legit army builder
Specific troopers that only appear in small squads and have been in constant rotation for years, such as the Sandtrooper, do not make good army builders. This figure had some initial appeal because of the card, and was actually a good seller at first for that reason. But that was almost the limit of the appeal. Then there is the all white ROTS clone. Troopers who barely appear on film, if at all, and ship with missing paint apps, discolored accessories AND are available concurrently in the less expensive Saga Legend line are a dreadful army builder. They should be viewed every bit as niche as the aforementioned 4-LOM.
So for every awesome all new Darth Sidious that stores would sell through quickly, they were forced to also take on a niche appeal Sandtrooper and a defective niche appeal Clone Trooper. Yes, the green helmets are a defect. Something that some collector sites (raises hand) tried to warn you about and even submitted samples from their personal collections. It was either the responsibility of Hasbro or the retail partners to defect those items out of the system. But it got worse. Those same niche and defective figures were carried forward into the Return of the Jedi cases. So during the holidays while the Jedi wave was selling at a blistering pace, stores were also accumulating Sandtroopers and green helmeted clones at the same blistering pace. But it got even worse. After stores couldn’t replenish the Jedi wave fast enough, the Revenge of the Sith wave made a frankly unneeded retail resurrection. This time without the awesome all new Darth Sidous. Conclusion: Only figures that actually appear in on screen armies (not squads) and are not defective and have not had been overly served in recent years should be given the heavy carry forward army builder treatment.
Side note: Army builders without helmets and distinctive facial hair are not good army builders either. If we can see the human face or head of the trooper, it needs to be generic enough so that displaying multiples of them doesn’t look like the Kaminoans second attempt at a clone army. Or pack them with extra swappable heads (this would be a big win).
So now stores were mired in virtually worthless inventory. “Virtually worthless” is hardly hyperbole as can be seen by the online e-tailer Big Bad Toy Store’s prices for new figures vs. repacks. They charge $110 for complete cases, but are now charging $90 for the six new figures by themselves. This isn’t a case of gouging. This is economics. The balance of the figures represents such poor sellers that they are forced to recover most of their money from the desirable figures.
The noose tightens almost completely
So up to the holidays stores were accumulating inventory that would either sell very slowly or, in the case of clearly discolored product, will never sell. Spread across rows of pegs, it was a bit of punch line or like a really offensive smell. Sure it stinks, but you laugh at how much it stinks. Then the post holiday reset came and the pegs were knocked down by a third to half. Now that poor selling inventory started to become a dominating presence at retail. We were eagerly awaiting the Attack of the Clones case with many sure fire sellers, but like a flower amongst too many weeds, it was effectively choked out. Computerized inventory systems presumably recognized what our eyes could see. Stores had plenty of Vintage Collection stock on hand relative to the available floor space, but they were generating almost no cash register sales. The system resets the aisles again. Now Vintage Collection is relegated to four pegs or fewer in most cases and the toxic stock has effectively sounded the death knell on any new product hitting our stores. Conclusion: Hasbro, you customers didn’t cause this problem and they need your help.
SDCC is a time for an upbeat message
Hasbro, we collectors are as bothered by the slow sales of Vintage Collection as you are. Give us hope that you recognize the problems and don’t deflect them onto your customers. Tell us you’re going to work with the retail partners to expand the Vintage Collection footprint at retail to give the line some room to breathe and get the sales volume cranking again. Tell us you’re going to enact a mini TARP and collect those figures that may never sell from retail. Tell us you realize you’ve made missteps in the case assortments, but have a better gauge of the demand for specific figures. Tell us these things and we will do our part to support the Vintage Collection line and get it back to being the impressive success it started out as.
