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Minimates price hike?


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With TRU out of the picture and no one to replace them yet, I was wondering if we could see an increase in the MSRP.

The factory might be counting on a certain number of units per year to keep costs low on materials. If DST can't move the same quantities, manufacturing could cost more. Add in the rise in fuel costs toward shipping expenses and we may be looking at another price hike.

What's your threshold for a 2-pack of 2-inch plastic crack? Personally I don't want to see it go higher than what it already is ($9.99) but if it's the difference between keeping the line going or letting it die... :confused:

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If it retains the quality, and the value added stuff, such as the alternate looks and cool accessories, then I’m okay with a minimal price hike to keep the brand viable. $11.00? Sure. $11.50? Yeah, okay. $12.00…I’ll think it over. But if they start trimming the fat from sets, and we get bare bones, then a price hike to keep it going would be highly unfavorable. Maybe we’ll start getting assortments of (3) 2-packs instead of 4.

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I already have a tough time pulling the trigger on boxsets at $24.99 though part of that is because it seems like an unnecessary (Does anyone but DST charge more when they pack more figures together?) markup. I might be able to go up another dollar but I think I would become more selective very quickly.

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I'm wondering how much of the packaging they can decontent. Blister cards are already pretty inexpensive but window boxes use more material. I know part of the Marvel agreement states only a certain percentage of the product can be shown but it might be a good time to revisit that stipulation with Disney/Marvel.

How the heck does Mezco get away with such a higher MSRP? I'm not seeing the value.

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I know DST has said there's a reason the 4-packs price went up, but I've always been curious to what it is.

There's more plastic in one 4-pack packaging then two 2-packs but less cardboard. However, that doesn't seem like enough to explain the price difference.

 

More worrying to me about the loss of TRU, than a price increase, is just less minimates made in general. DST is making a lot more products that aren't minimates than before and now with the #1 buyer gone I don't think they'll be looking to make minimates very much.

 

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I'm a bit concerned about that as well. Maybe it's my imagination but it seems like the LCS waves haven't had the budget that the TRU and Walgreens waves have over the past year or two. If another retailer doesn't pick up some of the slack Marvel minimates might not be near as impressive.

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Walgreens still charges less than DST's MSRP of $9.99. So did TRU and they probably shouldn't have given that many were exclusives.

But you're right, a retailer like Walgreens still has some wiggle room when it comes to margin. Comic shops don't. Mine charges full price.

Hopefully another big-box retailer will fill the Minimate-shaped void and start carrying our plastic crack.

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I think a price increase would cause a few more collectors to drop off.  There already seems to be a lot of collectors that don't want to pay a penny over cost for a set when they need help with something. 

Personally, I already feel like I have one foot out the door with Minimates.  The properties I was really into weren't handled very well and I'm just not really into any of the new stuff that has been announced.

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You may be right about that, I think there's a chance some significant portion of minimate collectors are more price sensitive than many of us would think. I know I'm always surprised at how many people on here regularly skip comic waves or individual packs because they don't think there's enough value there for the characters they want.

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On 5/31/2018 at 7:18 PM, stack32 said:

You may be right about that, I think there's a chance some significant portion of minimate collectors are more price sensitive than many of us would think. I know I'm always surprised at how many people on here regularly skip comic waves or individual packs because they don't think there's enough value there for the characters they want.

Agreed it is something that has puzzled me before or maybe it’s this board but it’s true we are a bunch of budget minded people. :)  for me for the most part I factor space (nyc apartment) and character selection. I love Vinimates but I can’t house them and know if I buy one I will be addicted. I typically don’t skip waves since I read most of the books and have only skipped Nazi Cap. 

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 months later...

I just saw new Kingdom Hearts Select figures at a Walgreens store. They are now $14.99 after having been on clearance for $2.49. Minimates didn’t change in price, but they didn’t have anything new.

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For me personally I've already seen a price increase on minimates.

When all of the local shops stopped carrying the line I had to start ordering comic mates online. I'm not the only one affected as I've seen more than one person mention the same situation. I was paying $8 per pack at the shops plus tax. Online prices are between $8.99 and $9.99 per pack at most e-tailers plus shipping.

I was paying $7.50 plus tax per pack at TRU and now they are gone.

Walgreens is the only game in town for minimate purchases and the last three waves haven't shown in my area for five months. I usually only want a pack or two from each animated wave but it's  costly. eBay prices are insane. Online stores also charge a premium price for Walgreens mates.

Dont even get me started on box set prices... 

Options are dwindling and collecting my favorite toy line is becoming harder and costlier than ever. I'm not in favor of any sort of price increase.

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  • 2 months later...

Though my interest in all collectible things has waned over the last few years, the increased cost of Minimates has been an issue, impacting my willingness to collect.  But it has been happening with everything.  MP Transformers used to go for $50-70 a piece, and now they're typically over $100.  Closer to $200 for Megatron, and apparently over $400 for the new Optimus Prime!  Hot Toys figures also are now typically in the $235-250 range even for fairly basic figures.  This is why we need the federal reserve hiking those interest rates!

Edited by karamazov80
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Minimates are the only line I can think of that has maintained a consistently lower price for something like a 2-pack while increasing the price of the boxset with twice as many characters. While not a completist I still buy most Marvel minimates and I still find it hard to pull the trigger on boxsets unless there's a significant discount. I ended up not buying the Black Panther set for this reason, well, that and the crazy amount of duplication in that set. If a dedicated minimate buyer hesitates to buy these I can't imagine less serious collectors are eager to buy.

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3 hours ago, stack32 said:

I ended up not buying the Black Panther set for this reason, well, that and the crazy amount of duplication in that set.

Just two characters, same as Thor Ragnarok and Infinity War. Unless you consider Powered Up Killmonger a duplicate of regular Killmonger, in which case, three.  

58 minutes ago, MisterPL said:

Agreed. I can justify the price of the 4-pack given the lower production numbers but, please, give me four figures unique to the set.

I believe the next movie set we do will be 100% unique from any associated wave of 2-packs. 

Edited by DSTZach
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