It's obvious price point is a major factor.

[megocrazy]

So after having conversations with two different TJ Maxx toy department people, I'm convinced the new lower price point is the reason Toys R Us has had some of these figures sitting around for so long.

I've been looking to pick up the wave 2 and have been unable until landing 2 Aquaman's , a manta, and a Two Face between two stores today. While discussing I was told they've gotten either 2 or 4 cases a week for the past three weeks and both waves 1 and 2 and have all sold out.

I'm wondering if the ones they've gotten came directly from Mattel or possibly a buy-out from TRU. The department heads didn't know but did say they regularly get their toy supply from other retail chains at discounted pricing.

This could be the best thing that happened to this line because I really think they now have a better chance of being an impulse buy for little kids the same way Mego's could have been years ago. Something I don't think you would see at the $20 price point.

I will continue the hunt until I have completed wave 2 since I have not yet seen them at TRU retail in my area.

[toys2cool]

my toys r us is still full, it's gotta be mattel

[ODBJBG]

Mattel would sell 2-3 times as many of these figures at $10 than they will at $20. These leaking to discount chains have proved that as they've been selling like hotcakes. Price is the single biggest factor holding these toys back.

Unfortunately I don't know if Mattel will budge on the price, even if it would benefit them in the long run.

[BlackKnight]

10 Buck grabs right before X-Mas ..., I'd say quite a few Kids out there got 1 or a couple of these Under the Tree. It's a good buy for Parents that buy figures for thier Kids for Sure. At 20 + tax ..., Unless a Kids Parents are into these , and know what they are, Not so many ... The Ratio now is Probably Huge.

As a Collector, 10 buck Figures are Fantastic Too.
Even More so, if you are Disapointed with the Mattel Body, wanted to swap it out, or change something...., or customize.

It's Really a Win , Win Situation.
I only really Wanted Aquaman from Wave 2 ...
But at 10 Bucks ..., I could buy a few.

[k2]

I really don't like this line. The rubber looking boots and a few other things make it seem kind of off, but I would definitely buy a few of the better ones for $10.

I even hit up a few tj maxx just to see what i could find, but pretty much pass them by at toys-r-us

k.c.

[Astronut]

When I see threads like this I get a sense of reassurance regarding my position on this subject. I agree with every single word written by the OP. I said the same thing months ago: these figures - while I love 'em and love the people responsible for making them - are priced too steep for high volume sales. Sadly this means no Mego-style renaissance. Not gonna happen, no way, no how.

I'm like that dude who ran for mayor, only my slogan is "The price of ReMegos is too d@mn high!!"

[Audiorij]

What if the price is what it has to be?

The $9.00 ones at TJ Max might be an unloading of the type 1 Mattel body, which could mean they are ok with unloading those for less than what they really need to get.

I think the line is great, I would rather have a more mego-like body, but at this point..they are what they are, take em or leave em. I am fine with the price if that is what it takes to keep the line alive.

[megocrazy]

I won't say that the price point will stop them from being successful, though successful has different levels. You will never see even close to the number of Superman's from Mattel sold as Mego did. Price point will make sure of that. I don't know what Mattel deems as successful.

They have done very well with the MOTU line in limited production numbers. I doubt half of the MOTU figures sold through Matty.com will ever see the light of day outside their plastic packages. The Retro figures will definitely have a higher occurence of being released from captivity.

My total analysis is from two local sources so it's not like I have a wide field to draw from, but those two TJ Maxx stores have sold way more figures in the past three weeks than my local Toys R Us has since the initial release. In fact one of them has probably exceeded TRU by itself. Mind you TJ Maxx is hardly known as a toy seller, in fact until the post about them having retro figures, I had no idea they even sold toys.

I guess the basic idea I'm tossing around is, is it better to make $8 profit on 10,000 figures or $3 on 50,000? If the price point on these figures was $12 how many more would have been sold versus the number that was at $20? We will probably never know for sure but the small sampling I've seen through the TJ Maxx stores definitely raises the subject for question/discussion.

[Doctor Flarb]

The million dollar question then is how much does it cost Mattel to produce a figure. Methinks no one is going to share that number.

[ScottA]

Will TJ Maxx continue to sell these after the Christmas holidays? Will they get Wave 3 and so on? Or is this it come January 1? Like Chuck said I had no idea they sold toys.

[SlipperyLilSuckers]

The price has made a huge difference to my desire for them.

[jwyblejr]

Will TJ Maxx continue to sell these after the Christmas holidays? Will they get Wave 3 and so on? Or is this it come January 1? Like Chuck said I had no idea they sold toys.

They've had the 3 3/4" G.I. Joe 25th Anniversary stuff at these stores for quite awhile,so who knows?

[madmarva]

TJ Maxx getting these figures isn't a good sign for the line in my opinion. Maxx purchases items at a discount from retailer which overbought items. Maxx is buying from TRU not Mattel. That means TRU is cutting their losses after over purchasing. This could mean that TRU won't be ordering as many or won't order them at all from Mattel in the future.

Maybe the line will become a specialty store and mattycollector.com exclusive.

[noelani72]

totally agree Chuck. I've said from the beginning if cost came down; these would fly off store shelves.
I haven't done the Twilight Zone figs..Dark Shadows...EMCE monsters...Zica...even Wave 3, all because of $$ right now.
If I could walk into a store, nab em all at $9-$12 each....that's a diff story.
And believe me, I really want some of those figs so it has nothing to do with my desire :-)

[megocrazy]

Will TJ Maxx continue to sell these after the Christmas holidays?

I guess that's the $64,000 question. I can only hope the fact that we've seen pics of at least a few more figures means Mattel is still behind this as strongly as they were before. If they can keep these running the way they seem to be selling at TJ Maxx maybe other retail outlets will jump on board.

You never see toy lines survive anymore. Even the few quality ones that have come out. I have, even before this, thought price point has been a major factor in that. When was the last time a movie toy line didn't have immeasurable amounts of figures hanging on the pegs. Some never sell squat. and some hit clearance as soon as they hit the shelves.

Say what you want, but the famous Covers figures disappeared overnight when they hit the $9.99 price, and the majority of the 9 inch Sig. Series did too once they came down a bit. The only ones I recall seeing in large quantity was the Cyclops figure which was released after the line had lost popularity. Mr. Fantastic pretty much went straight to Kay Bee's and was gone pretty quickly.

TJ Maxx getting these figures isn't a good sign for the line in my opinion. Maxx purchases items at a discount from retailer which overbought items. Maxx is buying from TRU not Mattel.

Not everything they sell is an overstock. They have a bunch of first run stuff. Especially right now during the holidays. I'm not saying the Retro Heroes are or aren't but it's not 100% guaranteed these didn't come straight from Mattel.

Even at the $10 price I'm sure Mattel is still making profit, the question is, is it enough? They're definitely selling so I would think interest would be there to restock them. If a couple more stores jumped on board maybe there would be enough total pieces moved to make it enough profit on volume alone.

I hardly view TJ Maxx's customers as the cream of the toy buying crop. The majority would strike me as impulse buyers, the way our parents were way back when, that simply viewed them as a toy kids would like at an affordable price point.