I agree the market is for the US & Asia, but it always has been. They have a hand in hand relationship, the films and media have been sourced from us here in the US, save for a bit of anime that your Asian markets love, and will pay top dollar for physical representations of.
Asia comes to us for the big likeness rights and studios contracts, Europe was never really apart of that conversation, plus with all of the import fees, VAT, taxes, conversion rates, that goes on in Europe it’s not a very good place to do business, the collector community is also very minuscule there.
Currently a $1k- $2k 1:6 figure isn’t an issue, you don’t have to buy it, those that complain about it are the equivalent to those who complain about luxury vehicles, watches, clothes. It’s out of your willpower what someone makes, and another feels is worth buying, it’s an open market where things will get made, and things will get purchased. We’re dealing with massive inflation everywhere we turn, every 1:6 figure is going up, I just forked out almost $3k for Moducases with a heavy $700 shipping fee attached, that’s ridiculous to me for something not made from glass, but it’s the best looking and convenient option we have.
My suggestion is for people to just stay picky on what lines they want and have quality boundaries, if a figure isn’t top quality, or can’t be customized into top quality, then allocate funds elsewhere and don’t look back. I have six DF120s on order and will not fill them to the brim to where they’re completely cluttered like Justin’s collection. If I want something new after I collect things in my current plans, something old has to go.