Is new pricing keeping you away?

[ssjgoku22]

Originally Posted by Dark Rage

http://www.cybertron.ca/boards/showt...548#post858548

I mean, historically, most of the MPMs have gone on clearance at TRU.

With the new TRU owner though, they may be ordering less (or even other stores too), since the profit margins on MPMs are lower, and the real estate space (large boxes) are high (and takes up space in the warehouse).

I don't see a lot of the newer merchants carrying MPs, they're quite expensive, I don't blame them.

I'm passing on it. Most MPM's get ko'd and these ko's specifically are always better then the officials. Better paint and sometimes even improvements on the design.

[Omegatron]

New prices aren't keeping me away but are forcing me to prioritize. Take the new upcoming Titan's Cybertron Metroplex, a minor character at a major price. No way I'm paying the reported $299. Half of that would be reasonable for what it is but I'm still not interested in the character so I'll probably still pass.

I actually really hope some kind of future reckoning isn't coming where choice will decline. I honestly can see the metroplex killing the Titan's line where it sells so badly that Habsro (incorrectly) assumes that collectors are no longer interested in Titan's class figures. It may also kill any hope of any Titan's class figure that isn't G1 and I still want my Titan Animated Omega Supreme.

Oh well, I'm definitely part of the problem because I'm buying the new Motormaster despite having all the Combiner wars combiners. This may well tell Hasbro (correctly) that they can keep pumping out G1 characters, and some of us anyway, will keep buying them.

[Skorpulator]

I don't think my TRU has sold a single MPM Prime ever since it came out. Imagine Blackout...

[Digibasherx]

I've been buying a lot of stuff on sale, and second hand. But I've cut back a lot in the past year.

[SignalLancR]

The last toys I bought new were Power of the Primes Battleslash and Roadtrap. I save my pennies all year for TFcon but I have it easy.



I've never been into Masterpiece, I usually prefer my Classics and Universe 2008 toys over their newer counterparts, and I only by old third party stuff. I've only bought two third party toys in the past decade, come to think of it.


That said, the cyclic nature of modern Transformers releases can play in the favour of low second hand prices. I grabbed a Siege Ultra Magnus for $30 mint complete in the box last year at TFcon. As others have said, exclusives are another story though. Scalpers have just gone bananas.

[prime]

Originally Posted by Napseeker

And.... more price increases...

https://torontosun.com/business/mone...00m-russia-hit

Hasbro plans to further hike prices of toys, warns of $100M Russia hit

What gets me is that even once the war is over and shipments resume, the price hike is likely going to stay.

[ssjgoku22]

Originally Posted by prime

What gets me is that even once the war is over and shipments resume, the price hike is likely going to stay.

Regardless of the War or Covid, these price increases were going to happen regardless. Hasbro's just using these situations as an excuse to justify their greed. Like you said, after all this is over, the prices will stay or probably increase more.

[RNSrobot]

Originally Posted by ssjgoku22

Regardless of the War or Covid, these price increases were going to happen regardless. Hasbro's just using these situations as an excuse to justify their greed. Like you said, after all this is over, the prices will stay or probably increase more.

Deluxes jumped from 19.99 to 29.99 long before Covid hit.

[Sun Swipe Prime]

Originally Posted by prime

What gets me is that even once the war is over and shipments resume, the price hike is likely going to stay.

The only way to win is not to play.

[Goaliebot]

These price hikes were inevitable, because toy sales are falling more and more every year, yet Hasbro's management team must deliver higher and higher profits every quarter or be fired by the Board of Directors, who would be following the orders of the largest shareholders.

But it's hitting the tipping point where profit growth will start to drop no matter what the management team does (again, toy sales fall every year) and they'll get canned (with golden parachutes so boo-hoo). A new team will be brought in with the mandate and promise of restoring profit growth. There will be much fanfare, blah blah blah. Staff will be cut, and drastic toy changes will be made (options are lower quality, even higher prices, and/or cutting lines and variety massively).

But the new team will fail too, because people buy fewer toys year after year.

Either at the second team's failure or maybe a third team failing, the big investors will bail. Stock price will tank and Hasbro will become a much smaller company. At that point they either become a niche supplier of collectibles or they just make toddler toys (the only toy demo left by the end).

Basically, we are entering the endgame of the old toy market. These repeated steep hikes are the first major sign it's begun.