I NEED to vent somewhere...kim @ www.spawntoys.com

[JacktheRipper]

I meant to reply to this post earlier, but work got in the way.
I don't really have anything new to add, but to just reinforce that you should look into diversifying.
There was a time when I used to by tons of TMP stuff. In fact, I used to buy a lot from kim (cases of stuff). He's (Todd) gone in a direction which interests me very little. As most I still buy the occassional McFarlane stuff, but nowhere near the volume I once did.
As far as the store goes: I've never bought a single retail figure at the spawn store. I've either bought it at a store front (which is getting harder and harder to do) or online.
I wonder how Sideshow does it? They sell everything they sell to online retailers at their site. I know some are more expensive on their site, but many aren't that much more.

kim, if you get into other companies products you would be the first place I look to to get such merchandise. As it stands right now I feel sad to say but I've only been to you site twice in the last 3 years. [img]redface.gif[/img]

This is one of the best threads in a long time. [img]graemlins/thumbs_up.gif[/img]

[Moviemaniac4]

Don't be a stranger Kim...and keep on venting....

One more time from my side....McFarlane ending the Moviemaniacs line was WRONG....

<font color="#cd6600" size="1">[ August 05, 2006 07:55 AM: Message edited by: MM4 ]</font>

[KILLERMOTH]

Unfortunately Todd has become more attractive to the mass market and less attractive to collectors of more obscure and edgy products. Your new approach may have to be to start carrying companies products who do most of their business with the smaller retailers. NECA is a good choice since they are basically providing the merchandise for people who were fans of the pre-sports era of McF. I used to collect most of Todd's stuff but he doesn't produce anything I'm interested in anymore. Partly because I've become obssessed with anime and other Japanese figures, but also because the core Spawn stuff has started to suck and his choices in movie licenses are generally films I won't watch or can't sit through.
I've never personally done business with you, but you have an excellent rep and it would be a shame to see such a great collector's resource go down when it's becoming harder and harder to find reliable stores who really care about what they're doing. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Peter Peeker]

I've bought 2 toys in the last few months, and neither was from McF.
I'm skipping the latest Elvis fig too, as it looks awful, IMO.

and me skipping an Elvis fig is a pretty serious thing.

[kimk]

Now I see that MLB series 17 is a TRU exclusive....what dumb ass thinking is that?.....i think the ultimate goal by TMP here is to divide the mass market and specialty market......SP's mass market only.....specialty market gets the quirky stuff like Twisted Fairy Tales, Hanna-Barbera, etc.....I think this is the dumbest god damn move they could make...but I truly believe that is whats happening here. Oh well....its been fun.....

[kimk]

One of the reasons I have NOT diversified into other toys is a "puppy dog" sense of loyalty towards McFarlane toys. I didnt feel it was appropriate to promote OTHER products from other companies given that I have a direct link (which is worthless now that they retail their own fucking products) from their website. Loyalty is a two way street...unfortunately, the street only runs one way now.....

[munkkeyboy]

It's a sad day for a collector like myself when I can walk into a toy store, see a McF product and yet not REALIZE it's a McF product. Case in point - the new Simpsons stuff. Both the product and the packaging looks as generic as any other Simpsons toy, and I must have passed by them several times before realizing they were the new McF versions.

I imagine that may have been part of the marketing scheme - make them look enough like the other Simpsons stuff to help sell them. What bugs me about it is that is NOT what McF has been built upon all these years. McF's entire selling point has been STANDING OUT from the rest, not fitting in. With these cartoon licenses, blah and meh movie licenses, and sports figures clogging pegs everywhere, McF has become very mainstream in some senses.

I imagine Todd thinks that is great somehow...Like, the more people that know your company's name, the more product you can move. Maybe I'm wrong, but I don't think this is true in McF's case. I think it's their originality and innovation that has given them ANY sort of name in the industry over time, not clogging store shelves with the same shit everyone else is doing.

Which is actually what companies like NECA have done to McF in recent years with all the horror / movie figures. Yet there's a kind of irony - it seems in McF's quest to leave all the copy-cat companies behind, they've become copy cats of the "big" toy companies in some ways.

[SlappyMcNasty]

<u>Diversity Kim</u>....change the name to Kim's Toys, sell what sells; whatever that may be & whatever company that may come from.

Best of Luck & Take Care!

[SlappyMcNasty]

Since I've began buying almost all of my figures online instead of hunting for them, I'd love to be able to buy things from all companies instead of just McFarlane, because honestly I rarely ever buy McFarlane products anymore....this year the only figures I've gotten or will be getting are:
Dracula box set(really just because it was $10 w/free shipping)
Scott Podsednik MLB SportsPick
Ninja Spawn 2(&lt;maybe)

Again, Good Luck.

<font color="#cd6600" size="1">[ August 15, 2006 11:09 AM: Message edited by: SlappyMcNasty ]</font>

[SlappyMcNasty]

Any new thoughts/decision(s) Kim?