Classic Star Wars Figures Question

[Mikey]

Back between Star Wars and Empire some of my younger nephews were really big fans.

They had all the figures, ships, playsets and stuff

I remember seeing millions of Star Wars figures in the store -- because I used to buy them for my nephews.

Ok, this brings me to my question ....

By the early to mid 90's MOC Star Wars, Empire and Jedi figure were going for crazy high prices in the collector market.

Why ?

There was like 10 zillion figures back in the day.

I understand supply and demand but there's no way these figures should have jumped so fast in value in less than 10 years

I'm not talking about blue saggle etc, I mean just regular figures

[megome1132]

my take on it is ebay ..i started my joe collecting in the 90's ant the prices were way high..i payed top dallor for a talking soldier in bad shape foe $90.. now you can get one in nice shape for 1/2 that .i had to serch high and low for them and now they are all over ebay .some are still high but not as bad now . and in the 90's i payed top dallor for star wars figures .. $12 and 20 each loose ..now i can get the same for way less ..guess what i'm trying to say is they are so ready avalible it brings the price down .. my 2 cents

[Enik24]

My guess is that there is no demand for them. They were popular in the 90s because of Special Edition. When A New Hope comes in 3D I expect a jump in prices again.

[Den82]

I think he is talking about vintage stuff.

I was born in 1982 and I didn't get into Star Wars until I was about 10. The toys by then were long off the shelves, but if you went to toy shows in that period, Star Wars was HOT. Although I think it was easier to get deals then. I remember one small store having a ton of carded figures I'd buy.

Now the line ended in '85 due to lack of interested and a lot of the Power of the Force stuff ended up in discount bins. Yet the Last 17 were JUST as desired then as they are now. In my very, very small circle of kid collectors (my cousin a few others), any of those figures were prized.

So within 7-8 years I guess of the line dying due to lack of interest, it became super hot and I've seen little to no difference in prices.

My dad is always telling me I should "strike while the iron is hot" and sell my stuff. But I've told him I've see no difference in values since the early 90s with Star Wars. Unlike the depression glass him and my mother bought by the TONS at the same time I was buying second hand SW for top dollar.

[jimsmegos]

I have to go with supply and demand as well. Before the relaunch of the Star Wars merchandising machine circa 1996, it was a bit difficult to get your hands on most of the figures in really good to mint shape. Plus all of those 80's kids now had real jobs and careers in full swing in the booming economic times that were the mid to late 90's. You know, when the credit cards were being dealt out like playing cards and THEN of course comes ebay and then Paypal where all of those elements could be thrown together to become a fireball of nostalgic napalm. Also I think solid nods should go to Wizard and Toyfare along with Lee's and Tomart's mags and price guides.

Well that's what happened to me

[ctc]

Hmmmm....

I suspect it was hype from the rereleases and new movies coming. Just before the Phantom Menace prices were damned high. Right after, damned low.

Don C.

[jwyblejr]

Because unlike today,most leftover stock was dumped at the bottom of the ocean.

[megoat]

I think the laws of supply and demand were in play in the 90s, but without eBay it was difficult to ascertain the supply. When eBay came along it became clear to everyone exactly how readily available some of these figures were and the market adjusted. Say what you want about eBay but it really did sort of level the field. The cream rose to the top while the common stuff was seen for what it was--common.

So to answer your question, I think there was high demand but with an uncertain supply--dealers were able to exploit this uncertainty and maximize their profits. Once a centralized marketplace like eBay came along the supply became readily available and the prices correspondingly adjusted.....

[Myoldtoys]

Fair to say that Star Wars revolutionized the marketing of toys. It's been 35 years, and they are still pumping out new toys. I think in the 90's you had all the kids from the late 70's who beat their Star Wars figures or whose parents wouldn't buy them enough reclaiming their youth. I kept all mine. So I repurchased Evel Knievel stuff at ridiculous prices in the 1990's instead. Lol.

[Nostalgiabuff]

agreed. it was supply and demand. there had been virtually no new Star Wars merchanise from like 1985 to around 1995. people were paying big money for stuff.....then with the advdent of ebay things became more easily available, then with the special editions and prequels the market has just been flooded non-stop with star wars crap and as a result the bottom dropped out