Collectibles > The Vintage Collection
Amazon Vintage Slave I w/Carbonite Block
Qui-Gon Jim:
Couldn't resist at that price.
Rob:
That is insane. I felt pretty good about this thing at $69.99... $34.99 is a no-brainer.
Jesse James:
Ya know, I'd love to see the numbers on this... How many sold at full price? How good/bad was the discounting of this?
In general the knee-jerk is that discounts = bad, but that's not necessarily true... Hasbro's claimed, in the past, things did well that were found at stores like TJ Maxx/Marshal's or elsewhere (AT-TE, for instance).
But there's a lot of complex accounting involved here... total number produced, what they're discounted for, what Hasbro was able to sell to mainstream retail and what they had to unload to secondary, profit margins, and so on.
Now, we see something the collecting world had a boner for since the AOTC set got leaked. The day that thing showed up, the immediate thought, and speculation, was that it would get a repaint for ESB colors, and fans were giddy... A big sculpt of a "fanboy" iconic ship. Something beloved by collectors for sure, and kids too I'd wager, but definitely the adult market is squarely targeted.
Then it shows up... And right away the price is "too much". This is from the crowd that messed its pants at just the THOUGHT of it being repainted a short time before because it had a Carbonite slab hideaway spot. Now though, it's too much...
And don't get me wrong, I agree it was too much, but that's to me... Someone not that into it for my own personal reasons. I'm not the guy that is the litmus test for something that should, even at an inflated price, have support from the collecting core that supposedly keeps the hobby afloat in the lean times.
I'm not saying I know something you don't know here. I'm just saying the evidence, to me, indicates Hasbro CANNOT count on collector dollars like people wish they could. Maybe they're ecstatic at Amazon with how it did? I don't know, and nobody really knows, but that saw a pretty damn steep discount... And it's one of those things I'm shocked saw any this year, given the hype and supposed demand floating about.
Diddly:
I think again, it all comes down to value. The AOTC Slave I came in a set with what, a Jedi Starfighter and 3-4 figures? All for $100. For the same price, the Amazon ship was just the ship in fancy retro packaging. It just reeked of greed, and should have been $70 to begin with, heck maybe even a few dollars lower. Or throw in a Boba Fett, a Stormtrooper, Bespin Guard... make it feel like we're getting more than just a repainted ship for $100, ya know?
Jesse James:
I don't necessarily disagree with that sentiment, however the prevailing thought of, "If you build it, they will come", shouldn't then require enticements like a pack-in or whatnot... That's all I'm thinking here.
To me, was it pricey? Sure. Was it something people spazzed about from day 1? Absolutely... From that first glimpse of the new sculpt people wanted this. Lots of the grandiose "I'll pay anything for a BMF Slave-I" talk as I recall... It didn't pan out. I think it just proves that collectors can't, nor should try to run this line, because it won't work.
I don't know if it's a fair value or not... Don't know how many were made, what Amazon paid per unit, margins, etc. So I'm not so sure $70 was unfair. I know TRU bought a LOT of that original set... Did Amazon buy as many of this? That type of stuff is a major factor in how fair a price that ultimately was, but it's tough to say.
I personally felt it looked like too much, but I don't know.
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