Post by BØRNS on Dec 31, 2009 22:22:47 GMT -5
I was thinking a lot about the prices of Mattel, and everyone points out how the prices appear so much worse than Jakks. I was mind-boggled because the prices were about the same as Jakks, and then I caught it! I know why it appears the prices are so much higher! It's an illusion. We think that the prices are much higher. I'll explain:
Basics are RA counterparts. Now, they are the same exact price. $9.99 each. So we know for a fact that these are the same price. No surprises.
Now, the 2-packs and AD are the same price as well, $16. AD set's prices have increased the past few years and they are now just as much as Mattel.
Elites are $15, and DA are $15 after tax. So, really, the only price difference between these two is tax. Not that bad, considering tax is less than ten cents on the dollar. I think these are the most-complained about price, so this explains partially.
Entrance Greats are the first of their kind, but can be somewhat matched up with UMF or MaxA. Those figures were upwards of $20 before they flopped and had to be clearanced at all stores.
Lastly, there is a lack of "gimmick" figures that we have from Mattel, such as Ring Giants, Unmatched Fury, Vinyl Aggression, Micro Aggression, Build N Brawl, and Maximum Aggression (wow, there's a lot of extraneous lines from Jakks!). With the absence of these kid-targeted lines, Mattel can focus on providing quality figures that are all compatible with eachother.
I mean, look at how many sizes Jakks had:
-RA 7"
-DA 8"
-BNB 4"
-MA 2"
-MaxA 12"
-VA 3"
-UMF 10"
ALL of Mattel are compatible, they're all the same size!
My last piece of convincing evidence is that most of us are going into stores and buying not 1 or 2 figures at a time, but buying tons of figures. It adds up. Many of us have purchased complete series Basic/Elite/etc. Going in and buying 1 RA for $10 is different than buying all six Basics for $70+.
The volume at which we care buying these figures makes the prices look even higher. Do you know what I mean? We have gotten used to Jakks' skimpiness and have purchased as few as possible of figures, maybe a handful a month, and now we are overwhelmed with new product that costs about the same, but since we are buying so much more at a time, it exaggerates the prices are the register.
Basics are RA counterparts. Now, they are the same exact price. $9.99 each. So we know for a fact that these are the same price. No surprises.
Now, the 2-packs and AD are the same price as well, $16. AD set's prices have increased the past few years and they are now just as much as Mattel.
Elites are $15, and DA are $15 after tax. So, really, the only price difference between these two is tax. Not that bad, considering tax is less than ten cents on the dollar. I think these are the most-complained about price, so this explains partially.
Entrance Greats are the first of their kind, but can be somewhat matched up with UMF or MaxA. Those figures were upwards of $20 before they flopped and had to be clearanced at all stores.
Lastly, there is a lack of "gimmick" figures that we have from Mattel, such as Ring Giants, Unmatched Fury, Vinyl Aggression, Micro Aggression, Build N Brawl, and Maximum Aggression (wow, there's a lot of extraneous lines from Jakks!). With the absence of these kid-targeted lines, Mattel can focus on providing quality figures that are all compatible with eachother.
I mean, look at how many sizes Jakks had:
-RA 7"
-DA 8"
-BNB 4"
-MA 2"
-MaxA 12"
-VA 3"
-UMF 10"
ALL of Mattel are compatible, they're all the same size!
My last piece of convincing evidence is that most of us are going into stores and buying not 1 or 2 figures at a time, but buying tons of figures. It adds up. Many of us have purchased complete series Basic/Elite/etc. Going in and buying 1 RA for $10 is different than buying all six Basics for $70+.
The volume at which we care buying these figures makes the prices look even higher. Do you know what I mean? We have gotten used to Jakks' skimpiness and have purchased as few as possible of figures, maybe a handful a month, and now we are overwhelmed with new product that costs about the same, but since we are buying so much more at a time, it exaggerates the prices are the register.
