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Post by ~ Cymru ~ on Mar 26, 2017 16:47:13 GMT -5
Well Smyths is a toy store and Walmart is a grocery/department store. We have more options like Target and Walgreens and Gamestop. Also Toys R Us. Dont forget we get exclusives they dont and figures are cheaper here. Look on the bright side of things. Not to mention we (in the UK) cant shop online for figures without being financially raped by 1) Shipping cost from outside the UK, last time I checked on having something sent from the US it was 7 quid just for a damn letter! 2) Fee's from buying from the US 3) Insane prices from online retailers I guess they know that scalpers will buy all the figures from stores and sell em online, so they can justify asking 16 quid plus for a basic figure cause thats still cheaper than what scalpy mcscalperson is asking for on ebay 4) Even some UK based places charge a small fortune for postage, a standard basic figure will set you back 10 quid in a shop, you're looking at an extra 5-6 quid from some places just for postage which only should cost like 2.80 / 3.20 especially when they just bung it in a jiffy bag with little to no protection. I wont buy online anymore, just out of principle. Smyths is the only decent place we have, Asda and Tesco used to sell figures but the last time I tried to buy figures from tesco they werent on their database so I couldnt get em? and Asda still has those grey packaging figures (grey undertaker, jericho with the screen, Sin cara?) and other figures. And TRU is generally shelf warming Cena's Ortons etc EDIT: Case in Point: Smyths is the only shop we can get figures at a decent price, and thats if the scalpers havent been in, if theres not a smyths near you then you have a lengthy drive, or have to pay through the nose online.
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Deleted
Joined on: Apr 25, 2024 22:41:48 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2017 17:15:15 GMT -5
Well Smyths is a toy store and Walmart is a grocery/department store. We have more options like Target and Walgreens and Gamestop. Also Toys R Us. Dont forget we get exclusives they dont and figures are cheaper here. Look on the bright side of things. Not to mention we (in the UK) cant shop online for figures without being financially raped by 1) Shipping cost from outside the UK, last time I checked on having something sent from the US it was 7 quid just for a damn letter! 2) Fee's from buying from the US 3) Insane prices from online retailers I guess they know that scalpers will buy all the figures from stores and sell em online, so they can justify asking 16 quid plus for a basic figure cause thats still cheaper than what scalpy mcscalperson is asking for on ebay 4) Even some UK based places charge a small fortune for postage, a standard basic figure will set you back 10 quid in a shop, you're looking at an extra 5-6 quid from some places just for postage which only should cost like 2.80 / 3.20 especially when they just bung it in a jiffy bag with little to no protection. I wont buy online anymore, just out of principle. Smyths is the only decent place we have, Asda and Tesco used to sell figures but the last time I tried to buy figures from tesco they werent on their database so I couldnt get em? and Asda still has those grey packaging figures (grey undertaker, jericho with the screen, Sin cara?) and other figures. And TRU is generally shelf warming Cena's Ortons etc EDIT: Case in Point: Smyths is the only shop we can get figures at a decent price, and thats if the scalpers havent been in, if theres not a smyths near you then you have a lengthy drive, or have to pay through the nose online. What's sad is that in the United States, there is an abundance of toy stores and awful selection. While in the U.K. You have basically one great store that has good stock, but you're limited to one great store. You would think that since the United States has a lot more toy stores, than there would be the stock that smyths has. Either way, retailers need to get their act together and Mattel could possibly talk to these retailers and figure out why they aren't up to date with current lines and skipping lines.
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Post by kgchampion on Mar 26, 2017 17:19:23 GMT -5
It's probably harder to move stuff in the US because the country is so spread out. England is much smaller with less atores that sell WWE, so they probably have more WWE customers per store than we do.
But that's just a guess. I could be 100% wrong. I live in Seattle where the stores here either get nothing ever or it rots on the shelf for years. The stores outside of the city seem to get better product (that sometimes rots).
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Post by kgchampion on Mar 26, 2017 17:26:04 GMT -5
This is a joke. It is not hard to find WWE figures in the US. If you want e47 Ringside has most all of them for less than retail. I havnt seen e47.5 at retail and RS I got them for $18 shipped. Good luck doing that in UK. We were able to get Target HOF for pretty huge discounts. Walmart has e48. Cactus Jack is not hard to find. Dont always assume the grass is greener from pics. We have more options to get figures and more of them because of US based exclusives. This is all relative. Not everyone got HOF 4 in their area yet (only 1 Target I've been to got it during that coupon and I was the lucky one getting their first. Whoever came later got no Sting or Lawler). I haven't seen E48 yet at either Walmart closer to me. I live on the otherside of the country to RSC, so shipping is much more expensive then when I lived on the east coast.
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Post by HHH316 on Mar 26, 2017 17:50:14 GMT -5
I get where the OP is coming from. Photos of Smyths look the way I remember TRU or KB Toys looking during the BCA days. The pegs were almost always packed, and you would dig through to find out what was new or find the figure you missed. Our TRU had almost a full isle of WWF figures, and stocked multiple cases of new releases very similar to what it looks like Smyths is doing. You didn't have to be there the very second they put the series out to get every figure from the set. Literally, exactly what I was thinking when I saw the photo. In the peak days of 1998-2000, TRU's in my area had an entire isle dedicated to wrestling and stocked to the ceiling. But there weren't really ways to order online then. Today, a figure is a click of a button away from you. Back then, the only way's to find figures were to go out and search, or someone picked it up for you. Man, do I feel like one of those old timers. But the photo was a nice walk down memory lane.
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Deleted
Joined on: Apr 25, 2024 22:41:48 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2017 17:56:37 GMT -5
Cool story
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Post by stc13 on Mar 26, 2017 18:10:09 GMT -5
It's probably harder to move stuff in the US because the country is so spread out. England is much smaller with less atores that sell WWE, so they probably have more WWE customers per store than we do. But that's just a guess. I could be 100% wrong. I live in Seattle where the stores here either get nothing ever or it rots on the shelf for years. The stores outside of the city seem to get better product (that sometimes rots). Good point. I guess that gets further diluted in the US by the sheer number of stores that get built in one area. My parents have 3 Wal Marts and 2 Targets within 15-20 minutes of them, all on the same road.
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The Real Chillary
Main Eventer
Chillary since day one ish
Joined on: Aug 23, 2016 15:32:38 GMT -5
Posts: 1,182
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Post by The Real Chillary on Mar 26, 2017 18:16:27 GMT -5
I went figure hunting in NYC last month. Granted I didn't find Toys R Us, but I went to Target and Walgreens among other stores. I'll be honest, the WWE selection in all shops was AWFUL.
Viva La Smyths. Truly the best toyshop in the world.
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Post by stc13 on Mar 26, 2017 18:19:40 GMT -5
I get where the OP is coming from. Photos of Smyths look the way I remember TRU or KB Toys looking during the BCA days. The pegs were almost always packed, and you would dig through to find out what was new or find the figure you missed. Our TRU had almost a full isle of WWF figures, and stocked multiple cases of new releases very similar to what it looks like Smyths is doing. You didn't have to be there the very second they put the series out to get every figure from the set. Literally, exactly what I was thinking when I saw the photo. In the peak days of 1998-2000, TRU's in my area had an entire isle dedicated to wrestling and stocked to the ceiling. But there weren't really ways to order online then. Today, a figure is a click of a button away from you. Back then, the only way's to find figures were to go out and search, or someone picked it up for you. Man, do I feel like one of those old timers. But the photo was a nice walk down memory lane. A ton has changed when it comes to retail. Heck, that's why KB is out of business and all the TRU stores near me are 50% baby items. But it does bum me out a little that my kids will never have that same feeling of walking into a toy store and feeling like you just walked into the North Pole. Next thing you know I'll be screaming for kids to get off my lawn... I do like shopping local whenever possible to support the local economy. As much as I love my Prime account, if all things were equal I'd rather buy in store. But that's just personal preference.
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Post by POOR-ly Cuyler on Mar 26, 2017 18:26:37 GMT -5
This is a joke. It is not hard to find WWE figures in the US. If you want e47 Ringside has most all of them for less than retail. I havnt seen e47.5 at retail and RS I got them for $18 shipped. Good luck doing that in UK. We were able to get Target HOF for pretty huge discounts. Walmart has e48. Cactus Jack is not hard to find. Dont always assume the grass is greener from pics. We have more options to get figures and more of them because of US based exclusives. This is all relative. Not everyone got HOF 4 in their area yet (only 1 Target I've been to got it during that coupon and I was the lucky one getting their first. Whoever came later got no Sting or Lawler). I haven't seen E48 yet at either Walmart closer to me. I live on the otherside of the country to RSC, so shipping is much more expensive then when I lived on the east coast. All relative...like how UK customers pay even more for Ringside shipping, and how theyll only get HoF figures after we do if Smyths or TRU gets them. This hobby is NOT as hard as people are making it to be.
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Post by ~ Cymru ~ on Mar 26, 2017 18:43:34 GMT -5
Not to mention we (in the UK) cant shop online for figures without being financially raped by 1) Shipping cost from outside the UK, last time I checked on having something sent from the US it was 7 quid just for a damn letter! 2) Fee's from buying from the US 3) Insane prices from online retailers I guess they know that scalpers will buy all the figures from stores and sell em online, so they can justify asking 16 quid plus for a basic figure cause thats still cheaper than what scalpy mcscalperson is asking for on ebay 4) Even some UK based places charge a small fortune for postage, a standard basic figure will set you back 10 quid in a shop, you're looking at an extra 5-6 quid from some places just for postage which only should cost like 2.80 / 3.20 especially when they just bung it in a jiffy bag with little to no protection. I wont buy online anymore, just out of principle. Smyths is the only decent place we have, Asda and Tesco used to sell figures but the last time I tried to buy figures from tesco they werent on their database so I couldnt get em? and Asda still has those grey packaging figures (grey undertaker, jericho with the screen, Sin cara?) and other figures. And TRU is generally shelf warming Cena's Ortons etc EDIT: Case in Point: Smyths is the only shop we can get figures at a decent price, and thats if the scalpers havent been in, if theres not a smyths near you then you have a lengthy drive, or have to pay through the nose online. What's sad is that in the United States, there is an abundance of toy stores and awful selection. While in the U.K. You have basically one great store that has good stock, but you're limited to one great store. You would think that since the United States has a lot more toy stores, than there would be the stock that smyths has. Either way, retailers need to get their act together and Mattel could possibly talk to these retailers and figure out why they aren't up to date with current lines and skipping lines. I guess retailers dont know whats gonna sell best they dont know one character from the next in terms of popularity etc, some series are quite weak other have multiple first time in the line figures or new and updated head scans not all smyths are like the one pictured, my one sucks their selection is quite poor mainly due to scalpers, and a 2 hour drive to the next store is a bit much to ask.
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killerkapowski
Superstar
Switched from Motorola to a PrimeCo phone...
Joined on: May 31, 2014 22:32:55 GMT -5
Posts: 713
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Post by killerkapowski on Mar 26, 2017 20:01:45 GMT -5
Ever since all the TRUs near me (50 mile radius) got stuck on E41, I seldom go out to hunt for figures. Online has been my go to.
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mattelfein1231
Mid-Carder
Joined on: Mar 21, 2016 22:16:38 GMT -5
Posts: 463
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Post by mattelfein1231 on Mar 26, 2017 20:22:09 GMT -5
Me and my buddy talk about Smyth's all the time. I feel like they would thrive in the us. For one, Wwe Mattel is thee number one purchased, sold over the Internet, and sought-after action figure period. Now i live in nj, hunt frequently and can tell you all over the state figures are slim to find due to scalpers. So a Smyths would make them more affordable as well as more obtainable. 75 to 80 percent of those figures would fly off shelves. Not including the commons, n multiple pieces in shipments. But it prooves that Wwe mattel sell n no place would hurt having a huge selection like that.
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Post by CampCornette on Mar 26, 2017 20:25:53 GMT -5
UK only has Smyths and no exclusives. We have RSC, Amazon, Gamestop, FYE, Walgreens, Big Lots, Target, TRU, Walmart, Sears, AND EXCLUSIVES. STOP COMPLAINING. I stopped collecting because my area was crap with figures. You name all the places that figures are available and then you say you stopped because no one has any? Your responses are trash
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Post by kgchampion on Mar 26, 2017 21:10:17 GMT -5
The funny thing is, WWE sells fast in my area, as long as they don't overstock on one specific set. When new stock comes in, it goes pretty fast. But the stores either order too many of one set (TRU having boxes and boxes of that Lita series) or Target ordering new stuff every 6 months (the one I work at hasn't gotten battlepacks in since before xmas).
But on the rare occassion they actually order new stuff in a sane amount, it moves fast. And it'd move faster if it wasn't such a crap show. I imagine a lot of people like me get discouraged and stop hunting. Even their websites stock poorly. I would and have bought from them online before and would do again, but it takes forever to get decent product on their.
RSC is too expensive for me currently, but in the future I'll probably just preorder from them to avoid the trouble. Amazon is the most viable option and I get free shipping with Prime (which not everyone has), but Amazon used to suck for toys a few years ago and still can suck sometimes.
The point is, enough customers want to shop in retail stores, but they consistently fail us by not giving us the opportunity to buy from them. It's been that way since I was a kid. Even during the boom of the Monday Night Wars, it was hard to find good stuff. The only place I visited that had excellent stock was a TRU in VA where the rich DC commuters lived and a TRU in a rich suburb of Raleigh (notice the pattern?).
US distribution has always sucked and will always suck. I'm not smart enough to know why.
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maske2g
Main Eventer
Joined on: Jan 31, 2011 7:00:54 GMT -5
Posts: 2,972
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Post by maske2g on Mar 26, 2017 22:10:31 GMT -5
Hilarious to compare Walmart and Smyths.
Smyths has 100 stores covering 60 million people.
Walmart has 6000 stores covering 300 m
If they were stocked like Smyths you would need a new name for shelf warming.
Every recent figure has been available online in the US 25% cheaper than smyths.
Target 2 and 4 packs TNF 1 and 2 and the 3 packs Rsc exclusives
All cost double the price to buy in the uk.
Your problem is economies of scale. It make no sense to stack shops high with figuresbecause you have so many stores.
Theoretically every Walmart has 50000 customers.
Every smyths has 650000!!!!
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Hitman Bono
Main Eventer
WF 10 Year Member
The Sunday Jeff of it all...
Joined on: Apr 2, 2002 23:16:46 GMT -5
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Post by Hitman Bono on Mar 26, 2017 22:13:49 GMT -5
Wayneyb posted a pic on a different thread of smyths in the U.K. And their toy aisles at smyths are flooded with elites and basics I can only dream of seeing at crapmart, I mean Walmart. What's the issues with the United States retail stores not having a selection like this? imgur.com/YXuVoIWWait, are you THE Danimal?
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Post by Cassa Nova Kid on Mar 26, 2017 22:23:03 GMT -5
If it makes you feel better, here in Canada , we have Toya r us and Walmart and they never have anything we haven't had a elite since elite 40, then we got slammed with legends and have nothing again, the only thing it seems we always have consistently is battle packs.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2017 22:39:52 GMT -5
Wayneyb posted a pic on a different thread of smyths in the U.K. And their toy aisles at smyths are flooded with elites and basics I can only dream of seeing at crapmart, I mean Walmart. What's the issues with the United States retail stores not having a selection like this? imgur.com/YXuVoIWWait, are you THE Danimal? Dan Hampton
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 26, 2017 22:41:38 GMT -5
Hilarious to compare Walmart and Smyths. Smyths has 100 stores covering 60 million people. Walmart has 6000 stores covering 300 m If they were stocked like Smyths you would need a new name for shelf warming. Every recent figure has been available online in the US 25% cheaper than smyths. Target 2 and 4 packs TNF 1 and 2 and the 3 packs Rsc exclusives All cost double the price to buy in the uk. Your problem is economies of scale. It make no sense to stack shops high with figuresbecause you have so many stores. Theoretically every Walmart has 50000 customers. Every smyths has 650000!!!! I understand what you're saying, and it makes sense but, toys r us stores that focus on toys don't have squat for wrestling figures. If they do, it's a bunch of network spotlights that have been there for months.
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