[Jmacq1]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheBlueMarvel

You've shifted the conversation slightly. I was not suggesting that the market was "untapped" for producers of toys, it was the retailers to whom I was referring.

The market is untapped for a retailer by virtue of the fact that adults are buying these toys in venues other than "brick-and-mortar" (store fronts). From a retail-marketing perspective: if it's selling "anywhere", then it can sell "here". The non-traditional modes of purchase you alluded to represent potential dollars for any traditional retail franchise. The major challenge for retailers becomes one of how to direct traffic through their doors.

There are a number of methods retailers can (and do ) employ to achieve this feat. Collectors are already well familiar with store exclusives, so that's one tried-and-true technique. Retailers could win back some online shoppers with clever pricing incentives to off-set what online shoppers may pay in shipping/handling fees (not to mention most items cost the same or more on sites like eBay - online isn't cheaper in most situations as it pertains to collectable figures) and the convenience of not having to wait for delivery is an obvious boon to business. Thinking out of the box; retailers might approach some of these successful Kickstarter campaigns and negotiate second runs with limited numbers (a spin on the exclusive concept). Update/Edit (added bits)Although it wasn't a Kickstarter, I'd like to see a re-run of Four Horsemen Studio's initial Gothitropolis line. The Gothitropolis Ravens line, which was a Kickstarter, wasn't really my cup of tea. I wasn't aware of Gothitropolis Scarabus until it was too late, missing out on getting a number of figures that I'd like to own from that line (Anubos, Horos, Thothos, and Nergall). In this scenario, I'd actually represent new business for both the producer and any retailer that could work out a deal of this nature.Update/Edit(end) There are ways all of this could work. It just takes a little thought and a little understanding of how the field has changed.....

All that said, I'm an pretty unlikely advocate for retail since I buy almost everything online.

Here's the thing though: Retail, and particularly mass retail is a much different beast. There has to be a certain minimum of overall sales expected before retailers like Wal-Mart or Target are going to buy in, and many of the smaller/indie/collector-oriented companies simply don't have the capital to shift to that level of mass production.

There used to be considerably more outlets for adult-oriented collectibles, just as they used to have a higher presence in mass retail markets. But there are reasons that many of those outlets have disappeared and the toy shelves are starting to be laden with blatantly kid-oriented product while collector-friendly material gets shunted off to the corner.

I get what you're trying to say, Hell, I've even fantasized about hitting one of those big lotteries and opening up a "geek paradise" type megastore that sold all this kinda stuff at decent prices without even having to worry about whether or not the business was making or losing money. But I tend to believe it would, in fact, lose money.

A "one stop collector shop" might seem like a good idea on the surface, but unless you managed nationwide coverage right out of the gate, it's not going to do much to discourage scalpers and it's not likely to "grow the market."

If you're not talking about nationwide coverage, then basically you're opening a slightly specialized version of the local comic shop...and those certainly don't seem to have mitigated the scalper problem.