Author Topic: The Street Date Debate  (Read 27699 times)

Offline Rob

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Re: The Street Date Debate
« Reply #105 on: August 8, 2010, 08:00 PM »
I really wonder why Walmart is always trashed and Target is always relatively neat.  Not just the toys section, but the general condition of all the merchandise in the whole store.

You really wonder?

The clientele and employees give a **** at Target.  That's the difference.

Offline snuffx

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Re: The Street Date Debate
« Reply #106 on: August 8, 2010, 11:00 PM »
WM is really failing in their toy section. My local WM had put out one case of vintage and one case of clone wars and then they just stopped. When I saw a store associate I swear they ran from me. I was going to asked her when they would finish putting the figures out. 

Offline Pete_Fett

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Re: The Street Date Debate
« Reply #107 on: August 9, 2010, 12:12 AM »
I went to my local WM tonight right before closing hoping to see a case of Jabba on one of the pallets in the Toy Dept.

There were cases of the Vintage Wave, Clone Wars Wave 1, Vehicles and Transformers and that was it.

While I was looking through the pallets, two WM employees were looking at me wondering what I was up to. I kept hoping that they would ask me what I was up to so I could point at one of the boxes with the August 6th street date and just say "I think you're running late".

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Offline Nathan

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Re: The Street Date Debate
« Reply #108 on: August 9, 2010, 12:52 PM »
If it was truely inflation, the 25cents comic book in 1977 should cost 87cents now but for some reason they are $3.99.


Production values and cost of materials, I think. Comics today are on glossy paper instead of the pulpy newsprint they used in the 70s, the ink is higher quality and much more detailed, etc.
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Offline Phrubruh

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Re: The Street Date Debate
« Reply #109 on: August 10, 2010, 09:29 AM »
If it was truely inflation, the 25cents comic book in 1977 should cost 87cents now but for some reason they are $3.99.


Production values and cost of materials, I think. Comics today are on glossy paper instead of the pulpy newsprint they used in the 70s, the ink is higher quality and much more detailed, etc.

So glossy paper and ink is 78% of the cost increase? I don't think so.
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Offline JediJman

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Re: The Street Date Debate
« Reply #110 on: August 10, 2010, 10:36 AM »
I think there is obviously some cost increase due to material costs.  You have to figure that artist salaries have increased, so that also factors in.  I couldn't find the article, but I remember reading a while back that circulation per issue is also just a fraction of what it was in the late 80's and 90's when comics were booming.  If they are selling considerably less then Econ 101 says you have to drive up the price to maintain profit levels and offset overhead costs.

All that said, I'm sure that the profit margin per comic book has increased over time.  Most successful manufacturers have internal stated goals to grow profit margins.  Not just the penny profit, but the actual percentage of the item price.  If Marvel and DC were making 20% margin a few decades ago, it wouldn't surprise me to find that margins have doubled or tripled since then.  20% of $.25 is just $.05 an issue, whereas 50% of a $3 book is $1.50.  That's a huge difference.

Things like better coloring, more durable materials, etc. do add something to the comics, but  that tactic seems very similar to the pack-ins for Hasbro figures.  Hasbro throws in a droid part or a figure stand or a coin as something of a bonus or improvement versus just selling the figure, then increases the cost by $1 as partial justification.  They would have raised the price somewhat anyway, but by adding something of minimal value, consumers feel like they're actually getting something for the added cost.  I'd bet improved comic materials are a relatively small increase in cost, but work the same way in helping consumers feel like they're getting something extra to justify cost increases.

Personally, I was buying comics back when they were $.45 to $.50 and remember my frustration when they increased to $.75 and $1.00. Decades later, $2.99 doesn't feel too bad to me, but I have a lot more disposable income now than I used to. 

I will say that I've dropped a few titles that recently moved to $3.99.  When the cost is starting to approach the price of a novel or a DVD then I really have to question the value of something I'm typically done with in ten minutes.
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