And they are part of a community- They know each other, some like each other, some don't. They end up at the same swap meets with the same stuff. The one's I knew saw it as a game, and they liked to be better at it than the others. A couple of them used to have a store near me, but it closed up a few years ago. It was kind of nice, because I could drop in and see what had hit, and often find out when and where. Hot Wheels, Beanie babies, sport cards, pokemon, it was whatever could make a buck. I don't think they collected any of it for themselves.
I had posted this story in another thread, but it bears repeating here.
I went into Walmart the other day when they opened. As I was going back to SW, a guy with an armload of cars saw where I was headed and followed me back there. There was nothing on the pegs, but he says "I forgot about those silver stand figures, I have to remember to keep those on the list."
So there it is for Hasbro. Mission accomplished, the buzz is back in the line.