The Energon Pub

[Genocide G2.0]

KAPOW TOYS
Tis a sad day at Kapow Toys, after much deliberation and thought we have decided to withdraw from the 3rd party toy market and greatly reduce the amount of companies we deal with.

Over the last few years the amount of companies / individuals with an idea has increased in such number its become nigh on impossible for many retailers to keep up with it all let alone successfully sell the items for the prices demanded, in turn quality has slipped, interest has withered and the only winners are the people manufacturing the products themselves. In many cases they would rather tell a blogger or product photographer more than those funding their business and selling their items, this is not a healthy working relationship and one that causes many day to day problems on our side of the fence costing money and business in the short and long terms.

With many companies it has now reached the point of having to basically beg to sell an item or even establish a decent line of communication, when your throwing thousands of £'s at people wanting to purchase stock it is a bizarre set of circumstances and one we can no longer put the effort or finance into supporting, imagine if you emailed Kapow Toys wanting to purchase a £100 of figures and we couldn't be bothered to respond to you ? I'm sure we would soon be out of business or at least find our audience drying up.

Over the next week many open pre-orders will begin to close and after we have fulfilled the items on release will no longer re-stock or add new items in that category. Certain companies will remain unchanged as they have been easy to deal with and supported the European market and fans from the beginning but it would be unfair to name them here on Facebook as it would give an indication there is a specific problem with specific companies which is not the case, there is no malice or vindictiveness in our announcement its simply not working on some fronts and we have to draw a line in the sand.

This is by no means the end completely and we will still continue to bring the 3p news via our Facebook page and sell small quantities of new items but on a first come, first serve basis without a re-stock and often without a pre-order.

I hope you understand the predicament we find ourselves in and thank you for your understanding, the positive flip side of this is we will have more money to improve our already large range of Hasbro and Takara Transformers, figures and accessories.

Thanks for reading

Andy & The Kapow Toys Team.

[Mkall]

I know Kapow ha had difficulties in the past with a couple 3rd Parties. I suspected something like this was going to happen.

I say 'good'.

There's been too much poor quality coming from some companies, and even less communication. I'm not surprised that they're not communicating well. The mantra 'for fans, by fans' often doesn't include the much-needed footnote, 'sold by companies'.

I would hope that this opens the eyes of 3rd parties that if they want to play against HasTak, then they need to play like HasTak which includes vendor communications.

I do feel sympathetic to our UK crowd though as I think Kapow was a main dealer for that area.

[Va'al]

I do feel sympathetic to our UK crowd though as I think Kapow was a main dealer for that area.

THE main dealer. There are a handful of others, but nothing like Andy's set-up.

That said, I like their decision, there's definitely issues on the communication front and lack thereof, and they've clearly been thinking about it hard at Kapow! Toys. I'm sure the business will keep up with the official releases and imports, but it might hit them a bit to start off with.

[mooncake623]

Can't say I'm surprised. I feel bad for our neighbors across the pond though =/

[Syn_13]

Can't say I'm surprised. I feel bad for our neighbors across the pond though =/

Yeah, it sucks. Not only are we paying more we also have a harder time getting hold of figures.

It's a brave but understandable decision by them and I will continue to support their business as they've always been great to deal with.

I wonder if any other UK vendors will follow suit.

[Agamemnon]

Can't say I'm surprised. I feel bad for our neighbors across the pond though =/

Yeah, it sucks. Not only are we paying more we also have a harder time getting hold of figures.

It's a brave but understandable decision by them and I will continue to support their business as they've always been great to deal with.

I wonder if any other UK vendors will follow suit.

I wonder if any US vendors will follow suit. *peers at BBTS*

[Rated X]

So basically they went "kapow" ?

I never understood why this company was such a big deal to the euro crowd ? If I can import stuff from china here in the US, they should be able to as well. I suggest all of you european collectors buy from chimungmung. He has all the good stuff. Screw kapow...

[Tsutsukakushi]

KAPOW TOYS
Over the last few years the amount of companies / individuals with an idea has increased in such number its become nigh on impossible for many retailers to keep up with it all let alone successfully sell the items for the prices demanded, in turn quality has slipped, interest has withered and the only winners are the people manufacturing the products themselves.

Disagree with things written here.

Customers and Sites buying interest has increased not withered.

Think quality has gone up not down.

It's not 3rd parties fault you and your workers lack the skills and programs necessary to keep track of inventory.

3rd party prices keep going down not up.

Most USA sites are making enough profit to be deemed winners.

Buyers are deemed winners as they get a product HasTak hasn't made.

[Lord Raze]

So basically they went "kapow" ?

I never understood why this company was such a big deal to the euro crowd ? If I can import stuff from china here in the US, they should be able to as well. I suggest all of you european collectors buy from chimungmung. He has all the good stuff. Screw kapow...

Because believe it or not I don't enjoy getting hit for customs charges every time I order something from overseas.

[Burn]

It's not 3rd parties fault you and your workers lack the skills and programs necessary to keep track of inventory.

Most USA sites are making enough profit to be deemed winners.

You have intimate knowledge of Kapow's business practices do you? You also have access to US stores financials?

Care to back those two statements up with facts?

[robotmel]

There arnt any dedicated stores here in the U.K., that I know of, that stock Transformers and 3rd Party figures and accessories the way Kapow Toys do, so for the folk that use Kapow as their main 'go to' store this will be a disapointment.

I have bought from Kapow only a few times and found their service to be okay, but being in that position where there isnt any U.K. based competition, they tend to price up a lot of new items, both official and unofficial, partly I would assume due to various import costs, but also as I said due to the lack of any competition. Good for their business.

As the 3rd Party market gets larger and larger, with the majority of factories/items being produced over in the East (depending on which direction your facing!) this may end up being the only place to order, either direct or via an certain auction website?

I am happy to order via stores like Chimungmung, Aces, SirToys and Ebay as they all tend to offer the items I need, often for a lot less money.

[Lord Raze]

From Kapow

Just to clarify, Kapow will still sell 3p but we're going to work with companies that give a good product and actually give enough of a crap to work with us which limits things to about 4 of them but that's going to work for us in the long run, it is a shame but we can't keep dropping chunks of company money on stock which either doesn't sell or stinks up the warehouse to meet crazy MOQ's or take a chance on a 3d render that might never see the light of day or is delayed by a year etc etc etc

Takara have really upped the game with MP's of late, that's where sales are at the moment, thats where we'll be concentrating on things, back to the old skool as they say doubt we will be the last

[Rated X]

KAPOW TOYS
Over the last few years the amount of companies / individuals with an idea has increased in such number its become nigh on impossible for many retailers to keep up with it all let alone successfully sell the items for the prices demanded, in turn quality has slipped, interest has withered and the only winners are the people manufacturing the products themselves.

Disagree with things written here.

Customers and Sites buying interest has increased not withered.

Think quality has gone up not down.

It's not 3rd parties fault you and your workers lack the skills and programs necessary to keep track of inventory.

3rd party prices keep going down not up.

Most USA sites are making enough profit to be deemed winners.

Buyers are deemed winners as they get a product HasTak hasn't made.

This is a rare instance where I agree with you. Not because I have any facts to back up your claims, but because the recent boom in 3rd party products here in the US signals a huge money making enterprise. BBTS and TF Source are the powerhouses of the business. Smaller retailers are the equivalent of "mom and pop" stores that often cant compete and go out of business. Its all about money in the end so basically its survival of the fittest.

[Rated X]

So basically they went "kapow" ?

I never understood why this company was such a big deal to the euro crowd ? If I can import stuff from china here in the US, they should be able to as well. I suggest all of you european collectors buy from chimungmung. He has all the good stuff. Screw kapow...

Because believe it or not I don't enjoy getting hit for customs charges every time I order something from overseas.

A problem US buyers dont face, or at least not for purchases that are only a few hundred dollars or less. Every government has its way of milking cash from its citizens through pointless taxes. Customs fees must be thr UKs cash cow. Somebody has to pay those fees. Obviously kapow wasnt working with enough money to pay them and still turn a profit on smaller less in demand items. They dont want to gamble. They rather focus on Hasbro and Takara stuff because they see it as their safety zone.

[Lord Raze]

So basically they went "kapow" ?

I never understood why this company was such a big deal to the euro crowd ? If I can import stuff from china here in the US, they should be able to as well. I suggest all of you european collectors buy from chimungmung. He has all the good stuff. Screw kapow...

Because believe it or not I don't enjoy getting hit for customs charges every time I order something from overseas.

A problem US buyers dont face, or at least not for purchases that are only a few hundred dollars or less. Every government has its way of milking cash from its citizens through pointless taxes. Customs fees must be thr UKs cash cow. Somebody has to pay those fees. Obviously kapow wasnt working with enough money to pay them and still turn a profit on smaller less in demand items. They dont want to gamble. They rather focus on Hasbro and Takara stuff because they see it as their safety zone.

Kapow are seriously handicapped by uk/european taxes but still they've been trying to supply the demand over here. They're official outlets for some of the bigger 3p companies but they never seem to get any exclusives offered their/our way. They're constantly playing second fiddle to the bigger market (bbts/tfs) who have their orders filled first and everyone else comes second. As such the 3p companies are starting to set unreasonable demands with regards to minimum order quantities which makes sense for them but doesn't for the retailer if he knows he can't sell that many.
He offered the example of Utopia, it's costing them £290/$490 per unit which they're selling at £310/$525. BBTS are selling Utopia at $400.
They also stated previously that the early bird pricing on not-motormaster made their margins so small it would have been better to not stock them at all.
There's also warbotron who are only accepting a minimum order of £50000/$85000.

[Rated X]

So basically they went "kapow" ?

I never understood why this company was such a big deal to the euro crowd ? If I can import stuff from china here in the US, they should be able to as well. I suggest all of you european collectors buy from chimungmung. He has all the good stuff. Screw kapow...

Because believe it or not I don't enjoy getting hit for customs charges every time I order something from overseas.

A problem US buyers dont face, or at least not for purchases that are only a few hundred dollars or less. Every government has its way of milking cash from its citizens through pointless taxes. Customs fees must be thr UKs cash cow. Somebody has to pay those fees. Obviously kapow wasnt working with enough money to pay them and still turn a profit on smaller less in demand items. They dont want to gamble. They rather focus on Hasbro and Takara stuff because they see it as their safety zone.

Kapow are seriously handicapped by uk/european taxes but still they've been trying to supply the demand over here. They're official outlets for some of the bigger 3p companies but they never seem to get any exclusives offered their/our way. They're constantly playing second fiddle to the bigger market (bbts/tfs) who have their orders filled first and everyone else comes second. As such the 3p companies are starting to set unreasonable demands with regards to minimum order quantities which makes sense for them but doesn't for the retailer if he knows he can't sell that many.
He offered the example of Utopia, it's costing them £290/$490 per unit which they're selling at £310/$525. BBTS are selling Utopia at $400.
They also stated previously that the early bird pricing on not-motormaster made their margins so small it would have been better to not stock them at all.
There's also warbotron who are only accepting a minimum order of £50000/$85000.

I see your point. Well the old saying goes "you gotta slend money to make money" holds true. Smaller retailers run by fans probably arent the most financially equipped people to launch a business successfuy in this particular venture.

[Gauntlet101010]

It sounds like some of the 3rd party groups just don't want to get the realities of dealing with online stores. The most worrying part of the statement is that of communication.

[ScottyP]

I won't pretend to know any facts about this stuff, but it just sounds to me like these third parties don't have the capital to support production of enough stock to send to dozens upon dozens of retailers. Again, I have no facts here but that's what it smells of.

I don't think it's any ill-will on anyone's part, just likely a reality of what these companies can realistically produce with existing capital.

[leakin' lubricant]

Speaking as a UK buyer, I have never used Kapow, mainly because I have always been able to find better prices on eBay, and as of yet not been stung for crazy import charges. Having said that I think its a shame they feel they have to take this stance, I know plenty of UK buyes used Kapow as a "safe" way to buy limited edition/3rd party imports. Funnily enough I was looking to order Maina King off there as it was one of the rare occasions where it was cheaper than eBay.

[craggy]

When I started off collecting seriously, Kapow was my go to place, because I felt that being UK based I'd be better off ordering from them than paying import fees and international shipping. I'm not overly keen on their website setup, even since the revamp. That, combined with their lack of a "stack" or "pile o loot" feature and their prices compared to some of the US sites, means that I tend to order from TFSource these days. I'll have a look if there's a sale, or something I really want that I've missed out on, and occasionally check their pre-owned stuff when I can be bothered scrolling through the dozens of out of stock older items, but for the most part don't see this affecting me too badly. Sad for those other collectors who do still choose to use them though. Seems like this new way of doing things will be more difficult for everyone involved.

[Genocide G2.0]

I use Kapow a lot especially for there Early bird offers so for me this news is very disappointing.

I do use Ebay i think Toysking is a recommendable ebay store , i got my MP SW from them unfortunately it was missing a finger and they were kind enough to send me a replacement which turned out to be a full fist

I Also shop at Chimungmung who is super fast at delivery i ordered Igear SS last friday and he already arrived today (i'll post some pic later) hopefully Warbo Brawl will be here tomorrow .

And finally there's Omegalock in the UK who i'm pretty new to but there prices seem very reasonable if not a little cheaper than Kapow . http://omegalock.co.uk/

So it's not that big of a deal really , still got some good places to buy from with good prices and delivery .

On customs the only time i get charged is when i order from Japan and The US and its always been around £15-20 . i learned my lesson

[craggy]

I get something from TFSource every few months usually, been charged twice or three times now. generally on the largest orders I place. I've noticed as well, it's on the ones I choose the quickest delivery on. May be a coincidence but maybe the posties just love **** with people who pay extra to get stuff quickly.

[Tsutsukakushi]

So basically they went "kapow" ?

I never understood why this company was such a big deal to the euro crowd ? If I can import stuff from china here in the US, they should be able to as well. I suggest all of you european collectors buy from chimungmung. He has all the good stuff. Screw kapow...

Because believe it or not I don't enjoy getting hit for customs charges every time I order something from overseas.

A problem US buyers dont face, or at least not for purchases that are only a few hundred dollars or less. Every government has its way of milking cash from its citizens through pointless taxes. Customs fees must be thr UKs cash cow. Somebody has to pay those fees. Obviously kapow wasnt working with enough money to pay them and still turn a profit on smaller less in demand items. They dont want to gamble. They rather focus on Hasbro and Takara stuff because they see it as their safety zone.

Kapow are seriously handicapped by uk/european taxes but still they've been trying to supply the demand over here. They're official outlets for some of the bigger 3p companies but they never seem to get any exclusives offered their/our way. They're constantly playing second fiddle to the bigger market (bbts/tfs) who have their orders filled first and everyone else comes second. As such the 3p companies are starting to set unreasonable demands with regards to minimum order quantities which makes sense for them but doesn't for the retailer if he knows he can't sell that many.
He offered the example of Utopia, it's costing them £290/$490 per unit which they're selling at £310/$525. BBTS are selling Utopia at $400.
They also stated previously that the early bird pricing on not-motormaster made their margins so small it would have been better to not stock them at all.
There's also warbotron who are only accepting a minimum order of £50000/$85000.

Only thing I can speculate. Is that perhaps 3rd parties are asking import sites to be locked in at higher ordering. So these 3rd party sites can pass the savings on to everyone. lower 3rd party ordering might mean these 3rd parties pay the factories more to create the toys. bigger orders probably get better deals at the factories.

[megatronus]

3D modeling skills don't necessarily translate to business acumen, clearly.

I wonder if this backlash will affect other retailers, UK-based or otherwise. From a business perspective, it's interesting to see the growth, saturation, and perhaps now stagnation of the 3rd Party marketplace. Between the glut of competition, retailer issues, and Hasbro stepping up official product, it's a pretty tight squeeze.

[Gauntlet101010]

According Rquiem at TFW Kapow is part of a group of like minded stores. (for what that's worth)

Also at TFW, from a while back, the guy who owns captured prey says Fansprojects is one of the worst companies he's ever had to deal with. Just to toss that in there.