Budget Stark - 10 Facts about Secret Base, Hot Toys and Pricing

[Budget Stark]

10 Facts about Secret Base, Hot Toys and Pricing.

Thanks for watching.

 

[McHaleyArt]

Great video/info. Thanks for sharing!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[LipSmack]

Another great addition to your info series, thank you for all the explanations

 

[krec9]

Great video .

 

[IMerxI]

Thanks for the info!

 

[VintijDroidGutzz]

Thanks for the info Mr Stark, & can you recommend anyone in Australia?

 

[Budget Stark]

Hi Vintij

What do you mean "can you recommend anyone in Australia?", I dont understand your question?

 

[VintijDroidGutzz]

You mentioned a few UK / US brick & mortar stores, e-Tailers etc.

Just wondering if you were familiar with any Aussie places that I haven't discovered yet.

 

[evenflow]

Thanks for the info. Enjoy your videos and as always, love the display.

 

[Budget Stark]

No sorry, I don't know any Australian companies. Maybe ask some Australian collectors

 

[Mike86]

A lot of good information. I know the popular thing to do around the boards is to complain about pricing and just chalk it up to Hot Toys being greedy. The reality is operating a business and providing products doesn't always come at a low cost despite what consumers would like to believe. I get that items being higher priced may prohibit how many figures people are able to purchase but you can't fault a business for covering their own expenses and trying to make a profit at the same time otherwise most businesses would fail.

 

[screamingmetal]

Here's the one fact about Hot Toys and prices that you should know, They've always been overpriced in comparison with other 1:6 companies. Back when I first started buying HT figures in 2001, most 1:6 figures by Dragon, Blue Box, and Sideshow cost about $40 here in the US, a similarly equipped and outfitted military figure by Hot Toys cost about $100. People at the time said the same things they say today, HT figures are overpriced. It's unfortunate that a lot of the other 1:6 companies have now priced their figures the same as current HT figures since HT has set a precedent.
I'm not complaining, you either buy them for what they're asking or not, and I still buy HT figures, just far fewer and only the ones I really have to own.

 

[Bo Shrek]

I'm generally OK with HT prices even when they slightly go up. The one figure that I cannot wrap my head around is BD Robocop. No sound feature, no Diecast, same price. Sure you can argue head sculpt and likeness rights but is the head sculpt equal to four mouths, two helmets, two armor chest? Pound for Pound it has a overall overpriced feeling.

 

[Darklord Dave]

Some good information but perhaps we should clarify what "scalping" is. That is when a horrible evil person buys a item solely with the intention of depriving that item from someone that actually wants the item for their collection. Then selling the item for far more than the collector would have been able to buy it for if the scalper didn't exist.

Now once an item has been released and collectors have them in hand and new collectors come along and want an older figure, then the "market value" of the item goes up. It would be foolish for a collector to sell the item at MSRP when the demand has driven the "market value" up.

Granted, this is not much of an issue in 1:6 anymore. It's more about the scum that run into Walmarts when the toy shelves are restocked and buy up the Transformers, and then turn around and sell it for twice the price at Frank & Sons that weekend.

Release dates Sideshow provides are what Hot Toys tell them. I guess they could take the date given and add 3 months - but then if it's delivered on time collectors will be mad they weren't able to budget for it properly.

 

[VintijDroidGutzz]

No sorry, I don't know any Australian companies. Maybe ask some Australian collectors

Nah - I'm fine. Like I said I just thought I'd ask in case.

 

[Lee in MI]

Some good information but perhaps we should clarify what "scalping" is. That is when a horrible evil person buys a item solely with the intention of depriving that item from someone that actually wants the item for their collection. Then selling the item for far more than the collector would have been able to buy it for if the scalper didn't exist.

Now once an item has been released and collectors have them in hand and new collectors come along and want an older figure, then the "market value" of the item goes up. It would be foolish for a collector to sell the item at MSRP when the demand has driven the "market value" up.

Granted, this is not much of an issue in 1:6 anymore. It's more about the scum that run into Walmarts when the toy shelves are restocked and buy up the Transformers, and then turn around and sell it for twice the price at Frank & Sons that weekend.

Release dates Sideshow provides are what Hot Toys tell them. I guess they could take the date given and add 3 months - but then if it's delivered on time collectors will be mad they weren't able to budget for it properly.

Great Video B-Stark! Always nice to get more info so we don't have to speculate the causes and effects of certain things.

Now, can you ask the QC guys a question the next time you are in Secret Base; What the hell happened to the ED-209 dome?!?!? Mine is fine but if you see other guy's figure, ie Optibotimus', it is completely f|_|cked! Those who own it are wondering if theirs will be the next one to crack all to he||!

Thanks

 

[BadMuthaDude]

I understand that figures are not and should not be the same price they were 5 years ago, but I can't see inflation accounting for the bigger leaps in price over the past year alone. Something else is going on. Who's it coming from, HT or Sideshow? Is there an increasing gap between the Secret Base and Sideshow prices?

 

[Budget Stark]

I understand that figures are not and should not be the same price they were 5 years ago, but I can't see inflation accounting for the bigger leaps in price over the past year alone. Something else is going on. Who's it coming from, HT or Sideshow? Is there an increasing gap between the Secret Base and Sideshow prices?

Which leaps in prices over the past year are you talking about in particular?

 

[Budget Stark]

Some good information but perhaps we should clarify what "scalping" is. That is when a horrible evil person buys a item solely with the intention of depriving that item from someone that actually wants the item for their collection. Then selling the item for far more than the collector would have been able to buy it for if the scalper didn't exist.

Now once an item has been released and collectors have them in hand and new collectors come along and want an older figure, then the "market value" of the item goes up. It would be foolish for a collector to sell the item at MSRP when the demand has driven the "market value" up.

Granted, this is not much of an issue in 1:6 anymore. It's more about the scum that run into Walmarts when the toy shelves are restocked and buy up the Transformers, and then turn around and sell it for twice the price at Frank & Sons that weekend.

Release dates Sideshow provides are what Hot Toys tell them. I guess they could take the date given and add 3 months - but then if it's delivered on time collectors will be mad they weren't able to budget for it properly.

From looking at all the release dates that I have seen from Sideshow, I dont believe that a single one of the delivery dates have been met. It is obvious that SSC are giving false info to collectors to increase PO. If they changed this sales tactic, then SSC would almost be a perfect collector distributor in the USA for USA collectors only.

 

[Darklord Dave]

From looking at all the release dates that I have seen from Sideshow, I dont believe that a single one of the delivery dates have been met. It is obvious that SSC are giving false info to collectors to increase PO. If they changed this sales tactic, then SSC would almost be a perfect collector distributor in the USA for USA collectors only.

This seems like speculation. But it's easy enough to prove - you're in HK - let's look at what the release dates are from Secret Base and then see what Sideshow's release dates are.