What do you think about Hasbro doing exclusives?

[Freedom]

I have no problem with exclusives as long as they are exclusive to retailers available to everybody, i.e. Wal-Mart, Target, and Toys R Us. If they are exclusive to retailers like FAO Schwartz, not everybody has access to them and then have to pay outrageous prices to aquire the item.

[Darth Evil]

I'm totally against exclusives, it means that non-US residents, like myself, will have great difficulty getting them and if we do find them, they'll probably be at massively increased prices.

[abell748]

I agree with the notion that stores offering exclusives should offer a on-line preorder. Most exclusives in my town go out the back door and never hit the shelf. If they do they are there for about one minute. When the Skiffs came out, Target only put 4 out and that was all they ever had. If Hasbro had any sense they would go to a preorder system or the fan club option. I would gladly buy two (one open, one boxed), from this system. I refuse to buy at inflated scalper prices. It has taken me over a year, but I just recently got the B-Wing and 12" Biker scout at a decent price.
Fight the power!!!

[Zingding]

Hasbro is a bunch of cheap bastards? Why? Here's why:

The exclusives that they release more than fifty percent of the time are only released to stores in the USA (Target, FAO Schartz) etc. For the collectors in Canada (equally ravenous) it's impossible. For starters we get half of the supplies you all get down there, we've seen a quarter of the product the United States has and our dollar is worth...well crap on the world scale. Do you actually want to know how much the Imperial shuttle is going to cost us Canadians. A paycheck for sure. Haven't got a TIE Bomber yet or a Luke speeder, why? Because we get caught by scalpers all the way or people in the states who don't want to deal with us Canadians. So in the end it hurts us, hurts us bad as we shell out for these things on the secondary market or with exchange (to the fan club) and end up with exactly the same product the USA has had for some time. Guess how many bombers we get at Wal-Mart here all across Canada: 2500. Helpful huh?

[bigbarada]

It doesn't ever seem that Hasbro even tries to offer some of these vehicles as anything other than exclusives. Why not try and ask the retailers if they would support the Imperial Shuttle or Y-Wing or Desert Skiff instead of just automatically assuming that they would never order them? It seems that exclusives are just another way for Hasbro to display their total lack of faith in the Star Wars brand.

[Master Goeweins]

I do like exclusives, only because it gives the collectors things they would never have otherwise. Not because of affordability to Hasbro, but because of risk. I mean, what person would take a risk on creating a toy on a character that only had 7 seconds of screen time. Exclusives give the real collectors and fans a chance to have them without taking a loss on Hasbro's part.

However, the way they are handled just plain SUCKS. Sure, limit it to one chain of stores. But at least make them available at the stores. They once did this to promote collectors hunting them down and having a secondary market to rely on. Collecting has changed though. Too many of us couldn't care less about any secondary market, we just want to collect for ourselves. The speederbike with scout was pretty much nonexistent here.

And to just ignore foreign countries is harsh and ignorant. I would buy more from a company that I believed was trying to reward the collectors. Anyways, I agree with WesleySr in Post #29. That is the greatest way to reward us collectors. I like the exclusives, I just want a chance to own them.

[Tycho]

Wesley, Sr. - you're new and I want to welcome you. How did I notice? You just made your first post. Plus you wrote in all CAPTIAL LETTERS. Online, that's considered SHOUTING. Please write in lower case and use caps to emphasize a word or sentence that's important. Our forums also feature buttons above the reply field that let you type in the box things that you want to have in different colors ,different sizes etc.

Feel free to experiment and learn how to type things the way you'd like eveyone to see them.

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Meanwhile, I feel totally bad for all of you foreign collectors. I think an international location poll might be interesting in the future - what country are you living in? That sort of thing. I'd say the majority of countries I've seen represented here are:

USA, UK, Canada, Mexico, Germany, Japan, China, Brazil, Australia, and France. Of course the poll could have an option of "other" but I do not wish to offend anyone. I probably left out some country that is obvious, but the general idea is that Hasbro could see where a lot of their customers are and where the toys need to be distributed. If you don't see your country on the list above, please add it to this commentary. (countries on Planet Earth only please ).

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As to exclusives, I never missed out on an opportunity to buy any of them. But I do set aside time to 'wait by stockrooms' to beat the scalpers at their own game. Mostly I get everything by going first thing in the morning, BEFORE the store opens, and make sure I go in the doors when anyone else shopping does. That covers most of the exclusives right there (Wal*Mart, Target). Sometimes TRU or KB stock in the afternoon. FAO Schwartz has been great about taking a pre-order list and just calling me when it comes in. I'm getting my 12" CloneTroopers (Cmdr. / Capt. ) that way as well. So there's a tip.

But the stores get exclusives as lures to get people to shop there - collectors specifically. For example, I found the new Chewie w. 3PO, Han Endor, and Obi-Wan pilot at KayBee. Unless another wave of newer figures starts shipping (Deluxe Nexu / Anakin vs. Geonosian or the Ephont Mon / Padme Pilot stuff) I won't need to go to TRU, Wal*Mart or anywhere else. I do have a life and just enjoy hunting and collecting, but have things to do the rest of the time as well.

So if the exclusives are collector bait, they can be and are more expensive since they know we "have" to buy these. Most stores stock stuff for the casual buyer as well as the regular. Or else why aren't you buying 35 "Freighter Anakins?"

But sometimes, Hasbro makes something and the stores don't want it even though the fans do: Pote Snitkin, Leia Hoth, ATAT Driver, Death Star Droid (collection 3 FF wave). Exclusives are a good route. Doesn't anyone hope that the Fan Club could at least get the Eopiee with Qui-Gon Jinn after all this time?

I think the shuttle is one of these cases in point. It was shown to buyers in concept drawing, or pictures of the vintage - because that all this will be - a remold of the vintage shuttle. (Nothing wrong with that - it's what I expect and the least that I hope for). So they could have shown an actual 1984 product to their buyers. It was turned down and it was interest on the web more than anything that convinced FAO Schwartz to pick it up. Folks, THEY didn't want to carry it either.

So there you go. We are lucky to have it offered in any category (exclusive or general merchandise).

Those of you that want a large Death Star Playset: I've got news for you - none of the retailers we shop from today would want to carry it. Large items of high cost are totally discouraged. It takes up too much stock room. Most retailers are in business to sell more than just toys. TRU is the exception and that's why they have some incredibly large 21st Century Toys vehicles. But TRU originally charged us $80.oo for the 12" Dewback because they knew they could. [So do you or do you not want a 12" Bantha].

Oh, and the Fan Club's exclusive Cantina Bartender - probably one of the most requested figures of all time in this hobby (so plain Hasbro didn't want to make him, supposedly) was originally going to ship in a CommTech case that was cancelled - when Chewie Chess Set and Porkins were going to have Classic CommTechs and instead were changed into POTJ assortments. So Wuher got stocked at the Fan Club. Since there were too many of him there and folks don't army build a "bartending academy" for their Star Wars collections, TRU cracked a deal with Wizards (a Hasbro subsidiary) to take their extras. Otherwise, Wuher would have gone nowhere.

I criticize the quantity produced and the management of exclusives, as well as their international distribution.

I do not want to petition to end exclusives nor do I think that's a good idea. Please look again at the picture I made for the first post in this poll. We never would have gotten most of these items w.o. exclusives.

I support those who felt the skiff, TIE Bomber, B-wing, and Y-wing could have been mass marketed though. They likely would have sold well and production on them could plod along at half-speed, so that while they might sit a little longer than newer figures (because not all of you collect the vehicles) they could reinstate production later on the same vehicle, as demonstrated recently by the ATST, and put it out again so everyone would have an opportunity to get one. How many of you new collectors lack the standard 1995 TIE Fighter? Uh-huh.

[Hellboy]

I am one of the lucky few who can fully take advantage of exclusives because I'm in close proximity to most of the stores that carry them. I'm glad that this gets more things made but the stores should always set a certain amount aside for purchase via their online stores. If they took preorders like they are for the shuttle it could give them a better idea of how many to produce. I'm glad I get the opportunity to buy vehicles like the Tie-Bomber and the B-wing but just because they're exclusive shouldn't make them impossible for certain collectors to get. The idea of having exclusives is a good one but it needs work to be a great one.

[CooLJoE]

I don't mind exclusives....

...to a point.


Here's what I mean. $20 for the 4-pack stormies isn't all that bad since it ends up being $5 per figure. Not a bad price really. $10 for the accessory packs isn't that bad either since you get a nice load of accessories AND a figure. And $20 for 12" Mace is the same as any other 12", just at TRU only.

But things like the FAO schwartz $125 Imperial Shuttle is completely unneeded. This is where exclusives suck. Why not have the Shuttle available at TRU or Target for like $50 (which we all know is what it would normally be, but FAO is a rich person's store so they inflate prices).

If the Shuttle and all other exclusives stayed at regular toy stores available across the country and were put at normal prices, I wouldn't mind exclusives. But this FAO thing really kills it. Sacul was no biggie since its not an actual figure. TF Vader was cool, but nothing needed. The shuttle, however, is an integral part of the storyline and at that price only a few will be able to get one. And once they are gone, good luck since scalpers will be putting them on ebay for about $200 or so. And even if you manage to get one, who is going to open up a $125 toy and play with it. Not unless your rich or bought 2 of them.

[Dryanta]

My problem is with Retail exclusives Tycho.I don't want exclusives to end either.I want them on the internet where everyone every where can get one.No FAO here.One Target 75 miles one way,Tru is next to the Target.Nearest KB is 45 miles one way.And I'm in Heaven compared to our freinds out side the U.S. I agree whole heartedly with the FACT that they are things that wouldn't be normally produced.But it does no good to alot of us if we cannot get them.And more and more of us are refusing to deal with scalpers.
And if all that are tired of this crap decided to stop collecting.The line WOULD die.Something neds to be done.And if the line is to survive it needs to be done quickly.
At least check the petition.Read it and then decide.No hard feelings either way.Just read them