eFX Darth Vader A NEW HOPE Helmet!

[wofford29]

precisely my point...I am just happy 114 of us weren't randomly excluded...

No one would have been randomly excluded. Every order has a time stamp on it. The excuse given is that because of the servers lagging it allowed 114 extra orders to come in and to be fair they all get one because there is no way to tell who actually pressed their order button fastest at home. The thing is, it shouldn't matter, laggy servers happen all the time on everyone's site with a limited item. All they had to do was look at the time stamps of the orders and the first 250 orders should have been the ones getting the item. The extra 114 should have been sent an email that said "sorry, our servers weren't up to snuff and 250 people ordered this before you, it was only a glitch that enabled you to place an order, here is your deposit money back." But why do that when you can pocket an extra $100k.

 

[automaton]

do you not think e-fx could have offered an edition size of 114 extra helmets and have sold out? 500? 800? we live on a planet where fuel costs are unsubstantiatedly soaring and people are worrying about 114 extra Vader helmets out there?

 

[wofford29]

Amazing thing the human mind. Capable of thinking and worrying about all kinds of things at the same time.

 

[GreatFire]

Wofford's frustrations are valid. You may not agree, but how can you not understand where his POV is coming from? I share his anger, but I accept the fact that some are happy with the news, despite being in disagreement with it. But thanks for letting us know what we should and shouldn't worry about, Auto.

 

[ambasah]

everyone is entitled to their opinion, but to be upset that another 100 or so people get to have this awesome helmet in their collection is beyond me.

if the edition size was say 500 from the beginning , would you have not ordered?

 

[IrishJedi]

everyone is entitled to their opinion, but to be upset that another 100 or so people get to have this awesome helmet in their collection is beyond me.

if the edition size was say 500 from the beginning , would you have not ordered?

Same may not have. I'm convinced a few people bought it with a future flip in mind more than anything. That's their prerogative, of course. But at the end of the day I'm thrilled to have mine secured and also glad that 300 or so others will have it as well.

 

[GreatFire]

We're upset because of the trade off. Yes, another 114 people will now have this item, but at the expense of a huge increase in edition size, thus reducing the desirability and future appreciation of this item. Of course, this is all relative, but a fact nonetheless.

Starting with an edition size of 500 is far different than beginning at 250, and then because of eFx's inability to control their website, balloon up to 364. Totally different.

 

[icruise]

I do think that if they had said it was limited to, say, 375 from the very beginning that nobody would have said a thing.

It's the fact that it's changed from what they originally said that is leading to this perceived loss in value.

 

[GreatFire]

It's only percieved at the moment. Once these hit the market, 114 people who might've otherwise sought these out will no longer have to. The pool of potential buyers has lost 114 members. That and how it transpired, to me, is upsetting. Call me greedy, call me insensitive, but at the end of the day, with all considerations even, I want to see my stuff climb in price rather than dip. If eFx was unsure of their ability to handle an abundance of requests on their site, which was a no-brainer considering the grail-status of this item, then they should've provided a disclaimer describing the posibility of an increase in edition size prior to the sale going live.

 

[icruise]

No, I agree with what you're saying. It probably has lost some future value, compared to it being limited to 250. But we have no way of telling how much.

 

[IrishJedi]

The Legend helmet is not going to "dip" in value. Sure, an ES of 250 would hold a tad more value than 364, but in the big picture it's likely minuscule. And there is no way the value of the Legend helmet is going to drop, ever.

Even the Limited (with 1,000 pieces) sold out in less than a week, and it doesn't have nearly the same grail factor as a piece.

I bet you could pre-sell your Legend right now for more than the $1000 retail price.

Also, the "pool of potential buyers" is the same as it was before this revelation anyway, since all 364 owners assumed they were among an Edition Size of 250. It's not like they opened it up to the Wait Listers or something. And eFX has a Wait List of 100 people for the Legend helmet. And they had to freeze the Wait List and take no more 2 days after the item Sold Out. There are still a ton of people who want one of these who don't have one on pre-order.

 

[gibby]

The Legend helmet is not going to dip in value. Even the Limited (with 1,000 pieces) sold out in less than a week, and it doesn't have nearly the same grail factor as a piece.

I bet you could pre-sell your Legend right now for more than the $1000 retail price.

Also, the "pool of potential buyers" is the same as it was before this revelation anyway, since all 364 owners assumed they were among an Edition Size of 250. It's not like they opened it up to the Wait Listers or something. And eFX has a Wait List of 100 people for the Legend helmet. And they had to freeze the Wait List and take no more 2 days after the item Sold Out. There are still a ton of people who want one of these who don't have one on pre-order.

 

[icruise]

Well, it's true that the number hasn't really changed -- we just didn't know what the situation was. But there is a difference between them actually selling 250 as they said and selling 364 as they ended up doing. In the former case there would presumably be more people in the market for the piece. But it's all hypothetical since these won't be actually available for months.

I think it's likely that it'll still be very sought after either way, although the existence of the Limited version does make it trickier to make predictions. A lot of people who couldn't get the Legend will probably settle for the Limited rather than pay a premium for the Legend.

 

[GreatFire]

You're right, there is no way of telling how much. Ever.

 

[GreatFire]

In the marketplace, I'd much rather have a group of 214 want my item than 100. It will be desirable for sure, but the fact of the matter is that there will now be 364 floating around rather than 250.

 

[demorathis]

It's only percieved at the moment. Once these hit the market, 114 people who might've otherwise sought these out will no longer have to. The pool of potential buyers has lost 114 members. That and how it transpired, to me, is upsetting. Call me greedy, call me insensitive, but at the end of the day, with all considerations even, I want to see my stuff climb in price rather than dip. If eFx was unsure of their ability to handle an abundance of requests on their site, which was a no-brainer considering the grail-status of this item, then they should've provided a disclaimer describing the posibility of an increase in edition size prior to the sale going live.

114 people who now have this is no great loss to demand as every year there are millions of star wars fans who are made --
esp with the kind of Marketing Lucasfilm does, new fans are born everyday (I'm not talking about infants)

look at the MR ROTS helmet --- STILL selling at more than 1,000 (pf course many of these were sold to retailers) But it's still in demand...Why is anything valuable? because the AVAILABLE SUPPLY is depleted or very low...

sure they made 364, but the supply is GONE...they are all spoken for,
if they made 200 or 500, they are gone - sold directly to the end market - the collector -- this was NOT sold wholesale to retailers(maybe some prospectors, but they paid full retail)
but I guarantee secondary market will be higher.

as long as Star Wars still has fans, the value of this helmet will NEVER dip below the retail...

just my 25 cents

 

[demorathis]

In the marketplace, I'd much rather have a group of 214 want my item than 100. It will be desirable for sure, but the fact of the matter is that there will now be 364 floating around rather than 250.

They will not all be floating around ... they are SOLD to the end consumer - (or at the very least prospectors paid Full retail.)

They are only floating around if they are on the market... but many of us intend to keep it.

How easily can you track down and pay for a mint Don Post ESB? they made 1,000 of those, but I don't see 1,000 floating around...

I was able to find only ONE mint one since they sold out, and it was from an employee of Don Post.

 

[GreatFire]

I'm not concerned with this helmet dipping below retail, as I, too, don't believe it will in my lifetime. My concern is simply one of supply and demand being manipulated by eFx in what I deem an irresponsible move. I'm in the minority, I know. I'm in favor an unchanged, rock-solid edition size. Period.

When I write "floating around" I'm suggesting "total pieces in the marketplace."

Star Wars fans may be born each day, but Star Wars fans willing to spend upwards of $1,000.00 on a helmet are not.

 

[IrishJedi]

I'm not concerned with this helmet dipping below retail, as I, too, don't believe it will in my lifetime. My concern is simply one of supply and demand being manipulated by eFx in what I deem an irresponsible move. I'm in the minority, I know. I'm in favor an unchanged, rock-solid edition size. Period.

But here's the problem: that "period" can not be accurately quantified due to the technical issues. They've already said that due to the server lag and time-stamping issues that there was no way to know for sure who the first 250 purchasers really were. And I tend to believe them knowing how funky online data entry/integration can be as a PM. So, if they were to tell 114 folks that there order was cancelled they would have basically had to pick 114 at random. Kind of like a reverse lottery, if you will. Had that happened you very likely would be in this same thread with a completely different complaint: that your order was canceled.

Yes, they screwed up... by not having a reliable online ordering system secured before-hand. But given the situation this was absolutely the most fair and acceptable outcome for all.

 

[icruise]

What I want to know is what steps they're taking to upgrade their site so this won't happen again.