8 hours ago, JayC said:The cheapest place to buy it online is . As I understand it EE acts as a Hasbro distributor for many of these things including this figure, so in order for BBTS to offer it they have go through EE to get it, but at essentially the $20 price or there abouts. In order for BBTS to be able to make any profit from selling it, they then have to mark it up some, hence the $24.99 price tag. BBTS isn't marking it up cause they are greedy, its just the only way they can offer it and stay in business. BBTS is a sponsor of the sites and EE isn't. BBTS helps keeps the proverbial lights on here. I wouldn't blame anyone for going where the figure is cheapest but if you need incentive to pay a little more then think of it as when you support BBTS your also helping support MarvelousNews.
This is partially true. EE's wholesale and retail prices are not the same. It's likely their wholesale margin is quite slim, but they are--nevertheless--getting their product a little cheaper, and thus able to offer better prices. EE is one of my distributors and my pricing is just a hair higher than theirs, but I'm mostly brick and mortar, so when I ship I charge actual shipping. Frankly, I'm amazed sites like BBTS are able to offer the prices they do. Margins in the industry are garbage. If they were buying at $20.99, selling for $25 would be pretty much impossible, especially since they only charge like $4 for shipping when it's definitely costing them $8. They would be, at absolute best, breaking even if someone ordered a single figure. I don't think I can contractuallytalk pricing specifics for EE's wholesale rates, but BBTS is at least making a few bucks on these figures,which is to say they're definitely not making enough, and definitely, definitely not gouging. Hasbro's pricing structure, and really the whole toy industry's, is badly unsustainable. If people want sites like BBTS, that are tailored to serve collectors, to exist, paying a few bucks above MSRP is the cost of showing that support. Otherwise, we really will be stuck with mass market screw-ups like Walmart and Target as the only option, and that will only exacerbate the exclusive game.
7 hours ago, monron999 said:Wow, was this the plan the whole time? It never went up on Walgreens and every Walgreens that got it that I know of only got one stock. Is this some deal that was made with EE or did this exclusive just get caught up with the changing of the Purchasing Officer at Walgreens?
Hasbro frequently comes to EE when they have surplus stock on an exclusive that the originalretailer no longerwants. I'm sure it wasn't the plan, and I wouldn't expect EE and their customers to have much in the way of other Walgreens exclusives, at least not reliably, but they do get this sort of thing from time to time. This is why I have the 80th classic Captain Americas in stock, for instance. Walmart stopped ordering them, and Hasbro still had some, so EE got to bring in the surplus and much of it went out to other independent brick and mortar/online retailers. That there is a surplus of Cuckoos (or Caps, for that matter) blows my mind, and goes to show just how out of touch with collectors the decision-makers at stores like Walgreens really are. I too had no luck finding these locally and had to trade for mine online, though other areas (like New York) seemed flooded with them. This, in my mind, further reinforces the need for higher-priced specialty shops (online or otherwise) who actually know their customers and can stock more adequately.
I am glad to hear that EE will sell that set, I would love if EE got previous Walgreens exclusives, like Mystique, Emma and Magick.
4 hours ago, JayC said:The cheapest place to buy it online is . As I understand it EE acts as a Hasbro distributor for many of these things including this figure, so in order for BBTS to offer it they have go through EE to get it, but at essentially the $20 price or there abouts. In order for BBTS to be able to make any profit from selling it, they then have to mark it up some, hence the $24.99 price tag. BBTS isn't marking it up cause they are greedy, its just the only way they can offer it and stay in business. BBTS is a sponsor of the sites and EE isn't. BBTS helps keeps the proverbial lights on here. I wouldn't blame anyone for going where the figure is cheapest but if you need incentive to pay a little more then think of it as when you support BBTS your also helping support MarvelousNews.
Oh I have no problem supporting BBTS and by extension this site, I simply remarked that BBTS has a mark up.
I buy from them all the time, just usually not Legends.