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Post by Deleted on Jul 30, 2011 14:05:29 GMT -5
A good buddy of mine from high school recently contacted me for my input as a toy collector. He has worked up through the ranks at Walgreens corporate and now heads up their toy merchandising.
July 21 at 11:16am Report
Are you still into collecting action figs? .
July 21 at 9:34pm Yessum. .
July 30 at 10:12am Report
OK, so I am the new toy buyer for Walgreens. Like to get your opinion on what's hot with collectors right now. .
July 31 at 2:56am Very cool, I mainly know a lot about wrestling. Stay away from Jakks Pacific Impact (TNA) Wrestling and UFC. They are warming shelves/on final clearance everywhere. Unless, and I mean unless, you are able to continue the Ruthless Impact (style of action figure) that was exclusive to Walgreens last year around Christmas. It seems as though they did fairly well with you guys. Collectors want the RI style, scale with Jakks former WWE figures. No one likes the new style DI (Deluxe Impact) One cool thing would be to stock up on Mattel WWE figures, perhaps even a Walgreens exclusive line, not necessarily exclusive characters, but different repaints, title belts, etc., they do it for Walmart, Target, TRU, etc. It will get collector's in your store.
Also, I know personally I was very excited about the Walgreens exclusive Charlie Brown Christmas merchandise last year. Christmas Story, Rudolph is oversaturated.
I also collect Dr. Seuss merchandise, I know Kohl's has exclusive large plush, I have never seen an action figure series of Seuss. Seuss is a growing niche for collectors.
Everything old is new again: Transformers continue to be white hot, Smurfs are now hitting store pegs, I don't know Disney's merchandising plan for the new Muppet movie fourth quarter, but Muppet figures run high on the secondary market. It would be a great time to relaunch an action figure/plush line. I am proud to say I own one of the world's largest Waldorf and Statler collections. Also Electric Mayhem.
I pretty much gave up on STWR a long time ago, because the market has been oversaturated with them since '95. But being STWR they will always be popular with youngsters.
Would love to hear more about your new position, very cool. Hope this has given you some insight into the mind of a collector.
Because your price points are high, collectors generally go to Walgreens for promotions (B1G1 WWE Mattel was hot last spring) or store exclusives. Give them a reason to go down the toy aisle. hugs and kisses, T2H .
July 31 at 3:01am Report
The exlcusive Charlie Brown merchandise was actually set up by me last year. We are doing Christmas Story this year because it is trending high for us, but we'll still have some Peanuts stuff as well. Seuss is hard to get on board. They are pretty elusive. I am getting more into exclusives as well. Bringing in McFarlane Halo and will get an exclusive there soon. I have some WWE Mattel ads coming up around the holidays as well and I am working with the WWE to do some exclusive stuff as well. Thanks for the input! I will probably be requesting your ear quite a bit! .
July 31 at 3:02am Very cool man, glad to help brother.
If there's anything you want me to relate to him, I will.
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Post by Chewdeezy on Jul 30, 2011 14:20:43 GMT -5
I think McFarlane Football figures due well and I know Walgreens had some last year.
Should try to get the Marvel 3.75 line, they kinda sell pretty good.
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Post by The Boondock Syxx on Jul 30, 2011 14:31:06 GMT -5
you really should speak for yourself man because i hate ruthless aggression/impact and deluxe is all i buy and i havnt play with my figures in 15 yrs i like how deluxe look so dont group all collectors under liking ruthless impact
and idk what your talking about but tna figures are sold out everywhere around except for like jarrett and mattel is on shelves everywhere
i will agree with you on ufc not selling and charlie brown being awesome
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Post by Deleted on Jul 30, 2011 14:36:37 GMT -5
July 31 at 3:04am Report
Also - good to know I made the right decision on Jakks. I pulled them this year. WWE is selling much better. .
July 31 at 3:10am Jakks is hitting a brick wall very quickly w/TNA. Your exclusive series was actually pretty cool because it was the only line that the had them to the scale that collectors wanted and they were pretty inexpensive. There has been a huge backlash against Jakks for their scaling issues. .
July 31 at 3:11am Report
What's collector scale? 6"? .
July 31 at 3:22am That's a good ? I'll try to break it down. The TNA Ruthless Impact Series 1 that was exclusive to you was comparable to the last couple years of WWE Jakks ranging from 6" to 8". The Ruthless Impact are an inch or two taller, but also, points of articulation were an issue for collectors. There were petitions about keeping the Ruthless (RI) style when Jakks lost the WWE account and took over the TNA license. Perhaps the series they did for you as an exclusive was just using old Ruthless parts. Maybe be a case of too little too late though, because most collectors jumped ship when Jakks went against the tidal wave of request and made their line Deluxe (DI), not Ruthless. When collectors jumped off the Jakks Titanic, we have taken a great liking to the scale Mattel offers with WWE. I am not so sure how the WWE Rumblers line is going for Mattel. 3"?) They are kid friendly but are on clearance a lot of WM and Target, so I dunno. Maybe try to get the Rumblers to be exclusive to Walgreens? There is definately a niche market for them. .
July 31 at 3:24am Report
Interesting! Thanks! - Send me your mail address on here. You know. Just in case.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 30, 2011 14:38:09 GMT -5
you really should speak for yourself man because i hate ruthless aggression/impact and deluxe is all i buy and i havnt play with my figures in 15 yrs i like how deluxe look so dont group all collectors under liking ruthless impact and idk what your talking about but tna figures are sold out everywhere around except for like jarrett and mattel is on shelves everywhere i will agree with you on ufc not selling and charlie brown being awesome I thought it was pretty clear I was speaking for myself since this was a private thread between two friends. TNA aren't sold out everywhere, dipstick. Stores are clearancing them and not reordering. Big dummy. |
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Post by comintogetcha on Jul 30, 2011 14:54:10 GMT -5
Did you ever considet that maybe this "friend" of your might not want you publically posting private conversations between the two of you? I know I'd be pretty pissed about it.
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Post by The Boondock Syxx on Jul 30, 2011 14:56:21 GMT -5
you really should speak for yourself man because i hate ruthless aggression/impact and deluxe is all i buy and i havnt play with my figures in 15 yrs i like how deluxe look so dont group all collectors under liking ruthless impact and idk what your talking about but tna figures are sold out everywhere around except for like jarrett and mattel is on shelves everywhere i will agree with you on ufc not selling and charlie brown being awesome I thought it was pretty clear I was speaking for myself since this was a private thread between two friends. TNA aren't sold out everywhere, dipstick. Stores are clearancing them and not reordering. Big dummy. ok i didnt call names but now i will, TNA is sold out where i am moron, i would know because I AM IN MY AREA and mattel crap clogs all the shelves |
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Post by sunglassessteve on Jul 30, 2011 14:57:04 GMT -5
you really should speak for yourself man because i hate ruthless aggression/impact and deluxe is all i buy and i havnt play with my figures in 15 yrs i like how deluxe look so dont group all collectors under liking ruthless impact and idk what your talking about but tna figures are sold out everywhere around except for like jarrett and mattel is on shelves everywhere i will agree with you on ufc not selling and charlie brown being awesome I thought it was pretty clear I was speaking for myself since this was a private thread between two friends. TNA aren't sold out everywhere, dipstick. Stores are clearancing them and not reordering. Big dummy. Not really! i gotta agree with the guy up top you were speakin on behalf of everyone when you said Oh Collectors want this and that. ha and i know a ton of ppl who would rather collect the TNA line just because they love and support the company over WWE. I prefer Mattel's WWE line myself over any, but the kid did make a point. Those are your suggestions not everyone elses. And as another person said, McFarlane Sports Figures area always HOT!! Walmart is always sold out and so is a few of my sports shops. its very hard to get ahold of certain ones, especially the Variants of players. Same with Marvel or DC. Got alot of comic book fans out there and the movies are just dropping left and right this year including X Men, Thor, Green Lantern, New Spiderman is too come and the Avengers i heard. You can never go wrong with comic book heroes for kids. The Rumblers.. Eh i dont think there doin so hot, as yeah some ppl are starting to try them out, but there very basic and cartoonish and warming up pegs everywhere i see. and I personally as well dont like the RI line and dont ever care too see it back honestly. Im totally fine with Mattel Elites, Basics, Legends in stores, along with some of the ring playsets and such. Cars or Hot Wheels are always a big thing amongst the kids and even some grown men collectors these days. Also UFC is not bad i mean they do an amazing job on there figures. And everywhere i go i can barely get my hands on any and im from PA. Went too NYC last summer around when Deluxe 6 dropped i think it was and i could not find Rampage or Thiago Alves at Times Square Toys R Us. They were real slim pickins on those. Sure some of the beginning earlier sets are still warming pegs but i think its more of an Overstock, over produced issue rather then no one is buying them. You were right about one thing though too whatever was old is new now. Transformers are Hot!! basically any Sports Figures, or Movies about to drop are figures that are going too sell quite well. Oh and also look into Mezco Family Guy! Those things are sellin fast too, along with Futurama figs. ppl love those shows and figures, and i see they just re released all the old south park characters yet again. The first series is Kyle, Stan, Kenny, Cartman, and Butters. Prob would wanna check those out too as ppl LOVE south park and there hard to get your hands on back in the day too as i am sure they will be this time as well with the season about too end and matt and trey are not even sure they are signing a deal for anymore seasons past 15. Oh yeah Beavis and Butt head are coming back on air too. Might be a good idea too try scooping some figures or merch up from them as well for in store shelves as they are going too be VERY popular again |
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Post by micco on Jul 30, 2011 14:57:09 GMT -5
if you actually knew a buyer for walgreens (which i doubt you do) i would hope he wouldnt make any buying decisions based on the opinion of one very uninformed person like yourself. maybe he'd want to try using something like, i don't know, how about market research data. why would a buyer ask one ignorant kid to speculate on sales figures when they could easily contact mattel in order to get a much more accurate number.
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Post by Matt on Jul 30, 2011 15:07:48 GMT -5
I have seen the same TNA figures sitting on the shelves for the past year. More mattel at walgreens would be very cool.
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Post by The Assassin on Jul 30, 2011 15:11:17 GMT -5
thanks for the info. appreciate you passing along that the collectors want Ruthless style figures. (which, as you correctly say, is without-any-doubt what the VAST MAJORITY of collectors want). i'm sure Jakks will just continue to ignore this, but it's another attempt to get them to hear, and that's all we can do.
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Post by jfinnomore on Jul 30, 2011 15:27:46 GMT -5
you really should speak for yourself man because i hate ruthless aggression/impact and deluxe is all i buy and i havnt play with my figures in 15 yrs i like how deluxe look so dont group all collectors under liking ruthless impact and idk what your talking about but tna figures are sold out everywhere around except for like jarrett and mattel is on shelves everywhere i will agree with you on ufc not selling and charlie brown being awesome and most other areas still have DI1 or clearance them all out. i think he made a point that the RI line sold really well for Walgreens, i don't see them moving much of DI. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 30, 2011 15:32:05 GMT -5
if you actually knew a buyer for walgreens (which i doubt you do) i would hope he wouldnt make any buying decisions based on the opinion of one very uninformed person like yourself. maybe he'd want to try using something like, i don't know, how about market research data. why would a buyer ask one ignorant kid to speculate on sales figures when they could easily contact mattel in order to get a much more accurate number. Because he knows I am a serious adult collector in touch with the action figure community. Not an ignorant kid, but a 35-year-old man with a degree in communications. He was picking my brain, that's all. |
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Post by MachoManiac on Jul 30, 2011 18:38:19 GMT -5
no wonder why every walgreens is to wrestling figures like " ROB MYSTERIO" is to excellent workrate!
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Post by punksnotdead on Jul 30, 2011 18:51:40 GMT -5
Ah yes, Walgreens, the first place I go to fulfill all my action figure needs...
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5D's
Superstar
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Post by 5D's on Jul 30, 2011 19:22:04 GMT -5
TNA Deluxe Impact sell just fine. The only reason they clog shelves in some places is because stores are stuck with tons of series 1 & 2 when people want 3/4/5. Everywhere I've seen a case of series 4, it has completely sold within a week (excluding an occasional Desmond Wolfe).
Ruthless was cool back in the day, but a lot of people have moved on by now.
And Rumblers...? Please, no.
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Post by mrhoss on Jul 30, 2011 19:47:45 GMT -5
Ah yes, Walgreens, the first place I go to fulfill all my action figure needs... Every now and then Walgreens comes through with something good. But this is what's wrong with the toy business. Even though toys is a minor importance to Walgreens, they still gave the buyers job to a guy who knows jack about toys. I'm sure it's the same way at Walmart, Target, TRU, etc. When collectors bitch about Flexforce or action features or see 100 cases and overflowing pegs of beyblade instead of the latest WWE or DCUC point to the buyers. |
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Post by Sexy White Chocolate on Aug 2, 2011 20:51:15 GMT -5
I agree. I wont buy TNA figs because they are almost all DI. While you're at it can you see if he has any influence in Mattel making Super Powers style figures of the DC Universe like Kenner used to make. I still can't figure out why they never came back in that scale with internal action features
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