Automaton Toys: official announcement!!
Hi everyone! Bonjour Ã* tous!
A big wind of change is coming towards Automaton Toys. Indeed, starting this week, a new owner will take the reigns of your beloved e-store and I'm passing the torch after 7 years of entrepreneurship. I'm proud and excited to introduce you to Jasmin, the coolest guy on this earth. Jasmin is an absolute devoted fan of the Transformers franchise and I'm 100% sure that our customers will be in good hands.
Both me and Jasmin will make sure that this passage will go smoothly and that what has made Automaton a great place to shop remain. Our website has been down for some hours for 'maintenance': no need to worry here since this was a mandatory process in order to make some changes.
Worth mentioning, I will still be around Automaton to help Jasmin in this new adventure and you will surely see some of my work for the e-store through front page slides, promotional texts and the like. I will also act as a mentor to make sure this fresh new start is enjoyable for the new owner.
On a personal note, I'm leaving for new professional endeavours, returning as a full-time pro concept artist/designer, which was my occupation before starting the Automaton project. Basically I'm an artist, having earned my life mostly with my drawing and writing skills and this part of my life was sorely missed as an entrepreneur. The project has also taken a certain toll on my health and personal life: being the one-man army behind a project like Automaton has certainly leaved some scars here and there. But that's the name of the game and I think that any serious entrepreneur will tell you that sacrifices are to be made in order to be successful. You will also hear from me on the TF boards since I will certainly post some artwork featuring our beloved Cybertronians from time to time. If my schedule permit it, I will gladly take art commissions. :-)
Now, I would like to take a moment to give an emotional and warm thank you to my wife, Caroline, who has been adamantly supportive in that project. She has been the one with whom I shared the joyful moments as well as being the shoulder I cried on when darker times arised. You have all my love and I celebrate your beauty, patience and support.
Of course, I would also give many thanks to YOU, all our faithful customers, who happened to become more fans than customers actually. Without your support, there is no little blue robot with big orange eyes running around. As the owner of this e-store for seven years, I was in the first row to certify that Canadians fans and customers are polite, patient and are the best to deal with without a doubt. You, the customers, are the backbone of this business and we never forget that. Thank you so much for your ongoing business.
And lastly but not least, I would like to thank the people at Cybertron.ca for their support: they have been a great partner of mine in this adventure that will move forward with a new captain.
On that, I sincerely hope that everything's fine in your part of the universe, you have my Best Regards,
Mario
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Hello to all of you out there! Bonjour Ã* vous tous !
First of all, I would like to tip my hat off to Mario for all the hard work he did in the last 7 years with AutomatonToys. Being a long time transformers fan (I was hooked on these bots ever since I first saw them on tv in '84.), I first saw interest in Mario's store as a way to further my collection and at the same time encourage a local guy trying to make a name for his own in this industry.
As time went by, I had the chance to meet him when I picked up my OOH's way back in the early years of AutomatonToys and I had the feeling this guy was special. He was so passionate about his business and the toys he carried! In fact, Mario is a big part of why I still am collecting today because he managed to bring back in me the interest and the passion I had in these robotic aliens 30 years ago. I felt like a kid again!
Over the past 7 years, Mario has built himself a solid reputation of providing excellent customer service with hard work and he managed to make of AutomatonToys a well known name and a big part of our collector community.
What always pleased and amazed me with AutomatonToys is the feeling that Mario and his team care about you, that if something's wrong he will be there to help out, that you are more than just ''another customer''. For me, this human aspect of the brand is an essential part to adhere to and pursue in order to give you the same feeling that made me a dedicated fan of AutomatonToys.
I now have the opportunity to engage myself in this exciting adventure and I will strive to provide the same dedicated service to you. It is a big step for me, a scary one but a challenging one at the same time and I will do my best to make sure you stay with us for a long time!
And to celebrate this new endeavour, I’m thrilled to announce that Automaton Toys is back with the Canadian currency on the e-store and it’s here to stay !!! All the prices on the store have been locked in canadian dollars with a competitive retail price and we will price-match any canadian competitor on in-stock item !
To all our Montreal’ s greater area customers, Automaton Toys now offers free pick up service ! Please see our policies or contact us for details.
Thanks to all for your confidence and your continued business with us and stay tuned for more offers and great deals from Automaton Toys !
Jasmin
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