Quote:
Originally Posted by Napseeker
Agreed, although as someone pointed out, they are now expecting the toy collectors to be the whales that will pay the higher pricepoint to get that figure rather than have it slip from their grasp.
They still want our business, but they just happen to want us to pay a lot more. Before TRU got sold off to this new guy, the store enticed collectors with fantastic sales. I am guessing that with supply chain problems and Hasbro now shipping a lot less of each wave, that the new management at TRU likely sees that the retailer is in the driver's seat now, not the consumer.
|
I wish I could find the article, but the long and short of it was that the new owner is a big collectibles guy. He bought HMV in the UK and of course has Sunrise Records here (and now TRU). If you look at those stores they are collectible heavy. TRU has also started to get more collectibles as well (recent Super7 ReAction being the most recent example).
He also mentioned that he wanted TRU to be a place where they hold events to bring in crowds which would lead to buying. Usually he also likes to get the properties where the stores are located, which gives him revenue on both sides, but with TRU he didn't get the properties, but is leasing from the previous TRU owners. So that could affect his plan long term, and definitely doesn't help with his history of price increases once he buys a chain. If he can't get revenue from both TRU and the property he may be in for a bit of a shock if things don't move in store. Though he is definitely in a better financial position since all of his acquisitions have been financed internally through his family's property holdings. So he has a better buffer than most capital investment companies who leverage like crazy to make money and move on to the next deal.
Either way, TRU just isn't in my wheelhouse anymore, except for the rare item. Prices are too high, selection is not great, and I don't see a need to go in anymore with gas prices.
