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Aliens Vs. Marines Army Dump


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IMO, pre-orders are okay, but in recent years pre-orders have turned into something you do 6 months to a year out. Again, IMO, thats too much time passage. I don't pre-order until around a month or two of expected release.

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IMO, pre-orders are okay, but in recent years pre-orders have turned into something you do 6 months to a year out. Again, IMO, thats too much time passage. I don't pre-order until around a month or two of expected release.

The only problem is....the release keeps getting pushed back. So your 1 month out preorder turns into being 6 months out.

(not specifically talking about this line or minimates, just pre-orders in general)

Edited by Ninja Mate
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IMO, pre-orders are okay, but in recent years pre-orders have turned into something you do 6 months to a year out. Again, IMO, thats too much time passage. I don't pre-order until around a month or two of expected release.

The only problem is....the release keeps getting pushed back. So your 1 month out preorder turns into being 6 months out.

(not specifically talking about this line or minimates, just pre-orders in general)

Understood. This is something that reinforces my point of view. If I pre-order with one month out, likely the item will be available on time, but if it gets pushed another month, maybe two, then I am still only left waiting for two to three months opposed to over half a year (or over a year!).

I do in fact occasionally break down and pre-order when I will likely wait six months or even a year. I occasionally do it with Sideshow and their lovely Hulk statues, but it is a rarity for me and almost forced if I want their exclusive version.

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It's pretty rare that I pre-order something months in advance and it's always for budgetary rasons. This was one of those rare times when I knew I had to have this product and wanted to make sure I got it. Having it get pushed back so many times is frustrating but it's forcing me to watch my wallet. I tend to be too spontaneous, especially in times of Minimates drought, so I'm trying to find a silver lining to this.

God bless Luke because this SKU is holding up a few other items I'd ordered and wanted to save on shipping.

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I tend to only pre-order when I have to. So, with custom figures where it's the only way of getting them for "retail" price, some Sideshow stuff, the Takara Masterpiece Transformers (otherwise you end up paying about 50% more to get them in the U.S.). With Minimates, it's really rare that something sells out quickly, so once they're in stock I'll usually go after what I want. Reason being, tastes and priorities change, and there is definitely time for that to happen in 6 months or whatever. I would rather not be locked in if I don't have to be.

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Preorders help retailers & manufacturers guage interest. If there aren't a certain amount of preorders (which varies by retailer) then the product might be deemed not worth the retailer continuing to offer it or the manufacturer to make more. Take this Aliens dump case for example. If preorders weren't high enough then retailers would be hesitant to order any future product like the Alien 4-pack or the (hopefully) forthcoming 2-packs making it harder for DST to branch out into these other properties. That's why I try to preorder whenever there is something I know for sure I want. Its all about supporting the brands/retailers/manufacturers you love.

And I second the desire to see some pictures of these from Zach.

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Preorders help retailers & manufacturers guage interest. If there aren't a certain amount of preorders (which varies by retailer) then the product might be deemed not worth the retailer continuing to offer it or the manufacturer to make more. Take this Aliens dump case for example. If preorders weren't high enough then retailers would be hesitant to order any future product like the Alien 4-pack or the (hopefully) forthcoming 2-packs making it harder for DST to branch out into these other properties. That's why I try to preorder whenever there is something I know for sure I want. Its all about supporting the brands/retailers/manufacturers you love.

And I second the desire to see some pictures of these from Zach.

I understand this, but think its a weak argument. If the products merit or profitability is of that serious an issue, then it probably should not have made it to solicitation in the first place. Just my opinion. Regardless, my point was not against pre-orders, it was against long spans between pre-ordering and product release, delays aside,

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Sadly, DST has used the pre-order levels to determine whether a product should be produced or canceled in the past. But my own pre-ordering behavior isn't dictated by those needs of retailers and producers unless, well, they force me to (like Sideshow with their exclusives).

Regarding the Alien 4 pack example, I suspect that much of what Stranger says is true. But on the other hand, a relative handful of collectors aren't going to make the difference in whether something is produced or not in this way. But if there is a large enough audience for something, then general pre-order levels plus the other variables these companies use to estimate production levels will usually inform producers of this fact. And I think that's an important point. These guys have to make estimates based on past consumer behavior, and the behavior of those who don't pre-order is factored in.

Edited by karamazov80
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Preorders help retailers & manufacturers guage interest. If there aren't a certain amount of preorders (which varies by retailer) then the product might be deemed not worth the retailer continuing to offer it or the manufacturer to make more. Take this Aliens dump case for example. If preorders weren't high enough then retailers would be hesitant to order any future product like the Alien 4-pack or the (hopefully) forthcoming 2-packs making it harder for DST to branch out into these other properties. That's why I try to preorder whenever there is something I know for sure I want. Its all about supporting the brands/retailers/manufacturers you love.

And I second the desire to see some pictures of these from Zach.

I understand this, but think its a weak argument. If the products merit or profitability is of that serious an issue, then it probably should not have made it to solicitation in the first place. Just my opinion. Regardless, my point was not against pre-orders, it was against long spans between pre-ordering and product release, delays aside,

Half of the things people ask for on this board raise serious questions of merit and profitability. smile.png But seriously, we certainly have canceled items based on low orders, and many of the orders we receive from primarily online retailers are probably dictated at least in part by customer pre-orders. (I would think pre-orders play less of a part in orders for brick-and-mortar retailers.) So not pre-ordering theoretically could have an effect on production, but it would need to be pretty widespread to truly indicate a general lack of interest.

Sadly, DST has used the pre-order levels to determine whether a product should be produced or canceled in the past. But my own pre-ordering behavior isn't dictated by those needs of retailers and producers unless, well, they force me to (like Sideshow with their exclusives).

Regarding the Alien 4 pack example, I suspect that much of what Stranger says is true. But on the other hand, a relative handful of collectors aren't going to make the difference in whether something is produced or not in this way. But if there is a large enough audience for something, then general pre-order levels plus the other variables these companies use to estimate production levels will usually inform producers of this fact. And I think that's an important point. These guys have to make estimates based on past consumer behavior, and the behavior of those who don't pre-order is factored in.

We do look at how similar products, or the products of previous licensees of a property, have performed in the past before we move ahead with a license. And when revisiting products or characters in a license we already have, we do look at orders and sell-through for earlier releases. Obviously, things change, and products are not the same, but you work with the data you have.

I'm pretty sure DST would see a spike in pre-orders for the Alien 4-pack if they announced a follow-up that completed the crew of the Nostromo.

I'm sure we would see additional orders on the first set, but not necessarily a dramatic increase. And the orders on the second set would have to be as good as the first set, while lacking Ripley and an Alien. Would we get the same number of orders for Dallas, Brett, Lambert and Ash? I like to think so, but I have no idea.

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Edited by DSTZach
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I'm pretty sure DST would see a spike in pre-orders for the Alien 4-pack if they announced a follow-up that completed the crew of the Nostromo.

I'm sure we would see additional orders on the first set, but not necessarily a dramatic increase. And the orders on the second set would have to be as good as the first set, while lacking Ripley and an Alien. Would we get the same number of orders for Dallas, Brett, Lambert and Ash? I like to think so, but I have no idea.

Let's find out. :D Seriously, this has to be one of the safer bets DST's ever taken.

And nice pics, as usual. Thanks for sharing.

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