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http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZkz6230

Blatantly taking advantage of this recent sale, hoarding them and then selling them for scalper prices. ***hole.

The only good thing about this is that he will hopefully be sitting atop a stockpile of "rare" Tracks Alternators when Hasbro re-release him next year.

Was the walmart sale intentional, or just an accident? The link doesn't really specify.

I can't imagine those prices won't screw him over in the end.

That should probably be posted in the news forum, as a warning for those, who do not browse this forum.

Yeah, definitely not cool. I can see perhaps doing this for something not being rereleased and having a BIN at cost in order to help people, who don't have it in their area, but this is ridiculous.

EDIT: Just noticed the second and third auction. Yeah, that's pretty ****ty.

this is ridiculous.

I don't think so. People always have the option to not buy it. In this case, I'd say that's highly likely.

Obviously, setting his auctions with only the absurd BuyItNow prices won't help him, but if nobody buys them, then that problem takes care of itself.

It's not as if people scrounging around on ebay for an Alternator Tracks don't know how much they cost at retail.

What I do find incredibly tacky though is that he uses a picture with ten boxed figures in it while not making it particularly clear that that's not what you're getting.

And what I just plain don't understand is that he lists auctions for multiple figures, and then raises the price per figure. That's backwards.

The problem is that these eBay scalpers exactly know which toys will be rare and sought after, then go and buy them all from their local stores, thereby intentionally create a shortage, and then sell those "SUPER RARE HARD TO FIND" items at aBay.

There's also artificial scarcity... I think a decent part of the distribution problem is that people will keep snagging waves of anything that doesn't seem to be around in high quantity and isn't clogging shelves...

How long before stores wise up to allowing single customers to walk out with armfuls of the same one or two toys resulting in a net loss of custom?

Originally posted by Denyer
How long before stores wise up to allowing single customers to walk out with armfuls of the same one or two toys resulting in a net loss of custom?

I've heard from a friend's uncle's pet horse's vet's son's pediatrician's dentist's assistant that sometimes toy-savvy employees just buy all of wanted figure in order to sell them on ebay, and as such the figures don't even make it onto the shelves. If true, that would make the situation even more annoying.

Also, a question about the new packaging wave of alternators: I thought hasbro was going to start shipping them in one-figure waves to help prevent overstock of shelfwarmers? The update I got from BBTS said the new wave, which is in the new packaging, is consisted of of Skids/Sunstreaker/Prowl/Tracks, and as such not in the new format. Is the new shipping strategy supposed to start later?

Well, three of those are new, and Tracks wasn't well-stocked... if they start singles after that, it'll probably work out quite well.

I've heard the employee thing from slightly more reliable sources. Again, it'd take savvy management to do anything, spotting multiple repeat purchases of the same item...

Originally posted by Denyer
I've heard the employee thing from slightly more reliable sources. Again, it'd take savvy management to do anything, spotting multiple repeat purchases of the same item...

Hmm... when you put that way, I suppose the biggest question that comes to mind is this: Should management do anything about employees buying stock like that? We've agreed that it's tacky, but I don't think we've come up with any grounds that it's wrong. It's just basic capitalism: buy commodities at a low cost and sell at a high price.

I guess the better perspective would be whether stores have any inclination to intervene against their employees. If it sells, it sells, after all.

That assumes all items to be equal.

Originally posted by Clay
Should management do anything about employees buying stock like that? We've agreed that it's tacky, but I don't think we've come up with any grounds that it's wrong.

Stores lose incidental trade if they're always out of shortpacked items—a) people give up visiting and order in from elsewhere, b) someone who's happy to find an item is much more likely to make other, related purchases at the same time (why so many stores offer loss-leaders; it gets people through the door.)

An employee who gets first pick for themselves and immediate friends and family is just taking advantage of one of very few perks of the job. An employee who consistently removes shortpacked items and in volume (indicators of reselling) is driving custom away from a store.

I've got to say, as reprehensible as the basic tactic is, there's really not a massive amount actually wrong with it... it's not very nice, but basically there's a market for it or people wouldn't do it... Most people will still call into local toy stores regardless of whether they have shortpacked stuff or not, and I can't see how it's management's area to tell customers they can't actually buy multiple items. I mean, I work at a convenience store, and there's a few items we have that people buy in bulk whenever they come in. I don't see how that changes because it's a toy with a fandom.

To be honest, if I was to walk into the local toy store, and they had a stack of, I dunno, RiD Scourges at a cheap price, I'd buy the lot and resell them, and I wouldn't feel bad about it. Sure, I'd see if there was anyone online I like who'd be interested in buying them for what I paid first, but if I had the cash, that's what I'd do. Like it or not, this is entirely generated by impatient people who want this or that figure now, and rather than hunting around stores are willing to pay double the RRP from ebay. If that didn't happen, scalpers would go out of business and have big stockpiles of unwanted figures.

The only real solution would be to have no shortpacked figures - and we all know that'd mean that the ranges just got reduced to fewer figures.

A "rare" Tracks?


Weird, here in Ohio, they're everywhere.....

Originally posted by Clay
Also, a question about the new packaging wave of alternators: I thought hasbro was going to start shipping them in one-figure waves to help prevent overstock of shelfwarmers? The update I got from BBTS said the new wave, which is in the new packaging, is consisted of of Skids/Sunstreaker/Prowl/Tracks, and as such not in the new format. Is the new shipping strategy supposed to start later?

I think that was just a deal they have with Walmart, who has the market pull to do something like that (If Walmart won't carry it, that's usually a death sentence for the toyline, as they're the major buyers, and they really push things beyond the breakeven point these days. Otherwise, it's just not worth it to produce the line).

Originally posted by Cliffjumper
if I was to walk into the local toy store, and they had a stack of, I dunno, RiD Scourges at a cheap price, I'd buy the lot and resell them, and I wouldn't feel bad about it.

Snap (well, I'd be inclined to leave some—I don't personally feel it's fair to kids to clear a store out of a particular item.) It wouldn't necessarily be the best thing that could happen from the store's perspective.

Originally posted by Cliffjumper
I don't see how that changes because it's a toy with a fandom.

Nothing to do with fandom—simple economics of not catering to customers who divert business. It's a bit like supermarkets limiting the number of items that can be purchased per visit when there's a big sale on.

Originally posted by Cliffjumper
this is entirely generated by impatient people who want this or that figure now

Not quite. It's a carnivorous loop—in some cases the toys don't reach the shelves in any significant quantity. You could pass the buck to the manufacturer and store being inflexible enough to not restock specific items within a line, and initially misjudging interest.

Originally posted by Cliffjumper
we all know that'd mean that the ranges just got reduced to fewer figures.

No great loss, judging by the last ten years. Hasbro would be better served by cutting off shelf-warmers such as Energon Ironhide in the development stages. Sticking to stand-out designs could really pay off...

Aye, but they'd go for the more economical ones, and the line would suffer if they did so. To be honest, if every Transformers line consisted of, say, 10-15 figures, a lot more people would buy the set simply because it didn't cost a lot and they didn't have many choices [c'mon, we've all bought TFs sometimes just for a quick fix, even if we thought they were crap], and that'd encourage complacency and corner-cutting. It'd be unlikely they'd simply junk the unpopular moulds... Hasbro/Takara don't design bad, unpopular toys on purpose, and as I've said before they don't purposefully jam waves full of unpopular shelf-fillers...

I still don't see how it makes much difference to a store who it sells the toys to... Most people are still going to go into the store and have a look, regardless of their track record with regard to what they have in stock. 99.99% of stores aren't going to have the knowledge to stop people from buying whole chunks of a short-packed toy [retailers rarely have time to check this sort of thing out in advance; remember, Transformers is just one line] and extrapolating it across causes all sorts of problems; what if someone's buying a dozen of one figure as stocking fillers? What if some mad bastard wants to buy a dozen En Ironhides and you want to shift the stock? What if you make a stand about someone buying a dozen Tracks Alternators, and then you get four cases in, can't shift the things and you're running out of space in the stockroom?

Originally posted by Cliffjumper
I still don't see how it makes much difference to a store who it sells the toys to...

Pretty much. As long as the store is selling at least some of the toys, it shouldn't matter. The shelfwarmers won't sell anyway, and all the people looking for the chase figures aren't going to know that the toys were all bought by the same person at the same time. Kids won't notice the rare figures are missing because they'll want the most recognizable entity from the show*, which is usually Prime and Megatron (HasTak have done a pretty good job making sure of that).

*This assumes that kids will want toys based on what's in the show.

Originally posted by Cliffjumper
I still don't see how it makes much difference to a store who it sells the toys to...

Stores want to make money, yes? Have many customers and such?
Employees will always be there. Customers not.

Most people are still going to go into the store and have a look, regardless of their track record with regard to what they have in stock.

As long as there IS some stock - maybe. But if you go into that store the third time and they STILL don´t have anything(anymore) - do you continue to go there?
I didn´t.

Originally posted by Cyberman
Stores want to make money, yes? Have many customers and such?
Employees will always be there. Customers not.

Erm, so if a store doesn't have a rare chase Transformers figure, but do have a sizeable section of Transformers, they will go out of business? I can list you a dozen stores within half an hour of my house that prove that theory wrong. No store is going to go out of business because they don't have a limit on how much people can buy. Try to follow this - the same number of figures are being sold, but to a smaller number of people [note that's fewer paying customers spending the same amount of money; probably just as many coming in to have a look, but not buying the figures that aren't there]. That's the same amount of money for the store.

What the **** has that got to do with employees? Same amount of money

As long as there IS some stock - maybe. But if you go into that store the third time and they STILL don´t have anything(anymore) - do you continue to go there?
I didn´t.

Most stores will get stock in when stock sells. It's kinda how the world of shops works. I can only presume the shop you mention was stupid. Your example, however, frankly fails to carry across, as most places have a fair few Transformers, just no short-packed ones.

Top marks for skipping the more complex points I bought up, though. Impressive that, really had me on the run.

Let's break this down a bit in case I'm missing something, as that really seems to be not coming together here.

Let's say there's a town with a toy shop on the high street, and we've got four guys called Dave, Unca Spenka, Vashar and Zquilivy.

They all regularly go into town to do shopping, and not exclusively to buy short-packed Transformers, just 99.99999% of people who go shopping in a town do. They all usually have half an hour to spare, during which they all swing by the toy shop on the high street just to see what Transformers are out.

Now, this is a very lucky toy shop. Due to a breakdown in reality, they have got a case of four MISB blue Bluestreaks.

And this is where the Time Trousers come into play, giving us two parallel, but slightly different legs [it's one of those pairs that have the little second pocket for a lighter on one side].

Down the left trouser leg, this is how the fate of these very rare figures plays out: -

Dave goes into the shop at 1pm. He buys one of the blue Bluestreaks for £10, and leaves the shop. He'll swing by next time he's in town, never know what might turn up, and it took him five minutes, and like 99.99999% of people he goes into town for things other than short-packed Transformers, and the shop's right there, so no loss if there isn't anything.

Unca Spenka goes into the shop at 2pm. He buys one of the blue Bluestreaks for £10, and leaves the shop. He'll swing by next time he's in town, never know what might turn up, and it took him five minutes, and like 99.99999% of people he goes into town for things other than short-packed Transformers, and the shop's right there, so no loss if there isn't anything.

Vashar goes into the shop at 3pm. He buys one of the blue Bluestreaks for £10, and leaves the shop. He'll swing by next time he's in town, never know what might turn up, and it took him five minutes, and like 99.99999% of people he goes into town for things other than short-packed Transformers, and the shop's right there, so no loss if there isn't anything.

Zquivily goes into the shop at 4pm. He buys one of the blue Bluestreaks for £10, and leaves the shop. He'll swing by next time he's in town, never know what might turn up, and it took him five minutes, and like 99.99999% of people he goes into town for things other than short-packed Transformers, and the shop's right there, so no loss if there isn't anything.

So, in the reality known as the Left, the shop makes £40.

Down the right trouser leg, this is how the fate of these very rare figures plays out: -

Dave goes into the shop at 1pm. He buys all four of the blue Bluestreaks for £40, and leaves the shop. He'll swing by next time he's in town, never know what might turn up, and it took him five minutes, and like 99.99999% of people he goes into town for things other than short-packed Transformers, and the shop's right there, so no loss if there isn't anything.

Unca Spenka goes into the shop at 2pm. He buys nothing and leaves the shop. He'll swing by next time he's in town, never know what might turn up, and it took him five minutes, and like 99.99999% of people he goes into town for things other than short-packed Transformers, and the shop's right there, so no loss if there isn't anything.

Vashar goes into the shop at 3pm. He buys nothing, and leaves the shop. He'll swing by next time he's in town, never know what might turn up, and it took him five minutes, and like 99.99999% of people he goes into town for things other than short-packed Transformers, and the shop's right there, so no loss if there isn't anything.

Zquivily goes into the shop at 4pm. He buys nothing, and leaves the shop. He'll swing by next time he's in town, never know what might turn up, and it took him five minutes, and like 99.99999% of people he goes into town for things other than short-packed Transformers, and the shop's right there, so no loss if there isn't anything.

So, in the reality known as the Right, the shop makes £40.

Basic thing is if you travel any real distance solely to try to find shortpacked Transformers, you're a bit of a nutcase, and stores shouldn't have to make rules and/or give additional training on "What figures Hasbro have shipped 95% of to New Zealand this week" for an insane minority.

Originally posted by Clay
Was the walmart sale intentional, or just an accident? The link doesn't really specify.

Yes and I almost bought out Wal Mart's selection of Alternators (the Jeep Wrangler, Dead End and Silverstreak....but I went with Starscream instead...