The MLP Arena
Pony Talk => Off Topic => Toy Box & Games Cupboard => Topic started by: DreamvalleyMLP on May 05, 2018, 06:23:26 AM
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I've met someone who made a hobby (and a lucrative business apparently) out of buying large Lego sets new in store, tuck them safely away in the attic, for the sole purpose of selling them a few years later for of course a much higher price. It's not a collection, not meant for play, but only to be sold later on.
I'm definitely not considering doing this, but I am curious how risky it is as an investment method. Does anyone here do that (with any other toyline you are not personally interested in) or know someone who does?
The crazy prices on ebay for the 35th anniversary ponies made me think of this guy's Lego investment hobby. The people snatching up the Bridge Direct ponies only to make money off of them on ebay clearly are trying to make a buck while the toys are still "hot" and don't seem to have much faith in their future value.
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Eugh, I hate people who do stuff like this. Screw scalpers.
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LEGO is one of the few toy commodities that one can do this, and make a tidy profit. I have a few MIB sets hiding away myself ;)
But MLP... nope. It very rarely increases more than 2x the retail unless you are talking G1 or G2. And G4 is NOT the generation to do this with, people tried in G3 and they still have stockpiles of non-selling ponies.
I think the increased price from the Ebay sellers is due to a few factors:
1) shipping is $$$$$$$$ and sellers want to make a profit somehow, after all the fees
2) MLP is definitely an impulse buy for nostalgic people but it doesn't have the same long-term draw as say, LEGO, so these 35th Ann. sets are in shorter supply
3) The retail price is whatever the market will bear... so people ARE buying them at these inflated prices so why would a reseller not list for higher?
Basic Economics 101
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The toys this is possible with are limited - there has to be a steady, adult demand in the second hand market, and the toy in question needs to have had a limited production run. Like anything else, there's always going to be risks. Toys can easily develop condition issues even still in the packaging. Lego is rather unique in this sense in that it stands the test of time very well, other than a few cosmetic yellowing issues.
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Yea this is the way a lot of people make money. They just seem to know when the market is hot for something and they work very hard to exploit that to gain a huge reward money wise. You have to admire a person that can make a living doing this. It is frustrating when you are just trying to find something to purchase for yourself for sure. However, when I think about how hard it has been for many to find jobs, if this keeps food on the table for their family I say smart decision just be sure to pay your income taxes and state sales tax.
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Flippers (or scalpers) aren't the same thing as investors. The former is looking to immediately sell their goods, hence the 'flip' part - they don't sit on boxes and boxes of merchandise, tying up capital. The kinds of products they're looking for are the fad items; lots of immediate short term demand, high prices. Think the original Furby, Tickle Me Elmo, Cabbage Patch Kids, etc. Most of them are selling to parents who are looking for a kid's christmas/birthday present.
Investors speculate on the future adult market for the most part. They're not targeting kids, but collectors. And of course there are people who do both.
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Moving to the Toy Box
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I feel there’s a difference between people buying up all of the limited toy releases and selling them on eBay for a profit, and those who buy toys and tuck them away thinking one day they may have increased in value and also be a prosperity thing (MIB toy preservation).
For instance, I have my original tamagotchis from the ‘90’s. I adore them. So when the first re-release of tamagotchis in the early 2000’s happened I picked up a few. Played with a bunch but have a couple new in box in my closet. I was very thankful to find a ‘90’s new in box Angelgotchi on eBay (about a decade ago) and I figure i’ll be happy to have these re-releases in the future (or my kids will, or other collectors will). I didn’t do it with the mindset of making money though.
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I tend to think this way as, like, a bonus for me if I end up not broadening that collection. I have two Ever After High dolls I need to sell and I figured they'd be in some demand later on. They'll fetch me something nice!
It's hard to predict toy collectors, but I have considered picking up any first year Shopkins at thrift stores/consignment shops in case someone on ebay is willing to pay for them... :devious:
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Sometimes it is mind boggling to me how people know what toy is going to be the "it" toy to resell in the future or even present for that matter. Some toy lines are real money makers because there were not many made. You can't rely on that concept though because other toy lines with gobs of merchandise are highly valuable. There is a real trick to this. I remember the first time I sold a lot of lego's from a neighbor of mine. I sold them on ebay and they really went high. I couldn't figure out how a pile of legos would go that high, but they did. Lego is something else.