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sorry Hasbro. Thanks to you, I've dropped all intent to buy small transformers toys. Kind of too bad, but I've skipped legends, cyber verses, bot shots, the tf remote control stuff, and now deluxe figures, Cyber verse playset including the Maximus stuff (pretty bad imagination and quality). I am now very picky with most voyagers. Dreading was the only one I've picked up from toysrus ($26). With tax (almost $29), that's pretty expensive. Gonna stop that, too, pretty soon. Powerizer prime looks ok, but still deciding. Bumblebee looks like a piece of $$&$&it. Now, FOC? Jazz was the only one i bought (2). I always buy double. Shockwave is ok, but not good enough to spend 15 bucks. Prime looks very cheap (quality and plastic). I'm a crazy prime collector, but refuses to get him. Where does that leave me? Almost away from domestic releases.

With that I'm kimd of glad. Now I have money to buy what I want. Just preordered encore fortress Maximus, mp10 (2 of them), 2 Thundercracker, 2 amazon bruticus), and now considering mp's sideswipe, red alert, sound wave. It looks like I'm a hypocrite for spending all that money on these toys but complained about a few dollars in deluxe increases. Well, I am. I would not shell out even a few dollars more for pieces of crap toys that weigh les than a feather (generations Optimus). Sorry, exaggerating, but it felt like it. It hurts me but I am boycotting walmart target and toysrus prices on transformers toys…. Sorry, but higher prices for cheap quality toys is not the way I collect toys.

But for your reading enjoyment and ongoing discussions, here is something to think about.

Have we actually considered some other case scenarios of why prices have increased. Disregarding gas prices, production costs, etc. Here are some wild ones.

-since some of us complained that Hasbro toys shop do not have toys in stock and their prices (hasbro's own) are higher than other retail chains, they upped the price of other places so their prices look cheaper.
-Hasbro trying to prevent scalpers by making prices higher. Consumers will have already paid the higher prices, they won't pay any more for scalper's prices. Scalpers will see little benefit of continuing their business.
-retailers want to prove to Hasbro that even with toys as popular as transformer, poor marketing strategy will result in a lost of profits (unlike, since retailers would also lose money).

Wow, those prices are insane!

I'll have to check out what my local stores are charging...

Well, there are already tons of protocols in place for dealing with scalpers. All the major chain stores have agreements in print that they will try to ensure that customers-not employees-get first dibs on products. This also applies to emps who help certain buyers to "know" when a shipment just hit shelves. I've seen these written agreements during my long time in retail at 3 different major chains.

TRU, also has this. It's just that TRU and others are so relaxed about it that the rules are canned all the time because store managers usually only care that something is selling. I watched a youtube the other day where this guy walked into a TRU and recorded the scalpers coming in and meeting an employee who brought them whole cases of Ninja Turtles toys from the backroom on his phone!!

So the price hike isn't to defeat scalpers...

But in the end it certainly will, along with half the people who are actually interested in the hobby. The sorry value of our money will eventually(prolly around next Feb) hit those who aren't really concerned because they can still afford it at the moment as well.

I don't mean to depress you americans. But the FOC figures cost 25 euro's in The Netherlands.

25 euro's = 32,30500 Amerikaanse dollars

So quit complaining!!!

I am not complaining. I am merely illustrating what I think is causing for the price hike here in the sates. And that is devalued money. I still plan to pick up the toys I really, really want though.

hook line and sinker wrote:I am not complaining. I am merely illustrating what I think is causing for the price hike here in the sates. And that is devalued money. I still plan to pick up the toys I really, really want though.

I agree. And minimum wage in the US has risen dramatically in the past few years, that means more money in circulation, which means an increased cost of living and cost of everything in general due to increased inflation. Such is the nature of economics, and it's hitting everything else too, not just toys.

Hasbro (and other companies) have tried over the years to keep the prices as low as they were in the past, but eventually they have to hike the prices to make a profit. I just wish they weren't also sacrificing size and quality. That makes the sting of all this that much worse and is why Takara's getting more of my money than Hasbro these days. The figures are still smaller, but the quality and paint apps are there and import prices are closer these days to Hasbro's retail pricing.

I'm sure these particular cases of extreme price hikes are just for the holiday 'sales' however, and that pricing will return to what it was before that (though never back to $10 or whatever I'm sure, as that ship sailed with the current economic situation).

Protocols will always be protocol if not practiced. Can't complain. If I knew those guys who work there, I would ask too. However, me asking is not he same as employees saving caseload reserve for special individuals. That said, maybe I'll save the extra few bucks for a house in orange county, hehe

And we do have the right to voice our opinions. Sorry, the value of your euros is worth more than our dollars. You can't compaire like that. If that's the case, than a person from Vietnam will cry over these prices, since their monetary worth is 15,000-21,000 dong to a dollar . That means, for a $15 toy, they will pay about 300,000 Vietnamese dong. Damn, they're gonna cry.

xyl360 wrote:

hook line and sinker wrote:I am not complaining. I am merely illustrating what I think is causing for the price hike here in the sates. And that is devalued money. I still plan to pick up the toys I really, really want though.

I agree. And minimum wage in the US has risen dramatically in the past few years, that means more money in circulation, which means an increased cost of living and cost of everything in general due to increased inflation. Such is the nature of economics, and it's hitting everything else too, not just toys.

Hasbro (and other companies) have tried over the years to keep the prices as low as they were in the past, but eventually they have to hike the prices to make a profit. I just wish they weren't also sacrificing size and quality. That makes the sting of all this that much worse and is why Takara's getting more of my money than Hasbro these days. The figures are still smaller, but the quality and paint apps are there and import prices are closer these days to Hasbro's retail pricing.

I'm sure these particular cases of extreme price hikes are just for the holiday 'sales' however, and that pricing will return to what it was before that (though never back to $10 or whatever I'm sure, as that ship sailed with the current economic situation).

Well it sure is relieving to see someone else out there "knows the score", as Gerry Celente puts it when analyzing the inflation rate.

I think that I'd like to see Hasbro just open a website to everyone and sell the toys, at unlimited quantity right there. Heck, if they charge 19.00 a piece fro the deluxes, so be it, because they would be saving me the time and trouble and gas of constant retail disappointment and they would kill the scalpers overnight as long as the site stayed fully stocked on everything.

It would also end the BB madness forever once they got away from casepacks and just watched to see which toys everyone actually bought and therefore they had to make more of. If you take a trip around the fansites, including FMH, you will find countless fans talking about selling their collections and either trimming back dramatically or quitting the hobby altogether. More so than ever before. So if this hobby is to continue then something has to be done about distribution at least, and Hasbro could do it with a site to sell as mentioned above. Then we can pick up whatever figure we really want bad enough for the price at normal cost at any time. The prices will still continue to rise, but at least you could pick and chose your toys, without buying whole case assortments from BBTS just to get a good rate per figure and get the 2 new ones you actually want.

In fact, this is the only way I can see this hobby being able to hold it's supporters en mass at this point. But like I said, this would ONLY work if the site had a constant IN STOCK policy for each individual toy.

One thing which definitely exacerbates the problem is the online shops starting to act like like scalpers themselves, matching each other with prices which are quickly losing any form of justification. They seem to miss that if enough people stop collecting, Hasbro will stop marketing the types of figures they sell to the point that they may be(gasp!) in need of another job.

Double post!!

I simply like to complain about other people complaining.

I buy most transformers from ebay scalpers who overprice on shippingcosts anyway.

But dutch collectors are complaining about the 25 euro FOC deluxes, they be small, plastic quality/paint apps aren't high standard.