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Old 06-08-2022, 02:33 PM   #2761
Autovolt 127
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Re: ToysRUs.ca Transformers Sightings and discussion

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Originally Posted by Yonoid View Post
Stopped at Oakville tru. Legacy voyagers are now $55
What the actual.....

HOW?

does TRU not realize overpricing themselves will ruin them.
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Old 06-08-2022, 04:01 PM   #2762
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Re: ToysRUs.ca Transformers Sightings and discussion

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Originally Posted by Autovolt 127 View Post
What the actual.....

HOW?

does TRU not realize overpricing themselves will ruin them.
The approach some companies are taking right now is cater to the whales, people with a lot of money (I am sure people have heard this word with Diablo Immortal out now)... Get the people willing to pay the high prices up front then offer sales for the regular plebs down the road. FOMO also plays into this as more people would be willing to pay more for a character they really want... and the ones they dont will wait for sales (which is now the regular retail price).
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Old 06-08-2022, 04:33 PM   #2763
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Re: ToysRUs.ca Transformers Sightings and discussion

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Originally Posted by RansakWORK View Post
The approach some companies are taking right now is cater to the whales, people with a lot of money (I am sure people have heard this word with Diablo Immortal out now)... Get the people willing to pay the high prices up front then offer sales for the regular plebs down the road. FOMO also plays into this as more people would be willing to pay more for a character they really want... and the ones they dont will wait for sales (which is now the regular retail price).
The voyagers, or any Legacy figures, aren't even listed on TRU.ca.
It's almost as if they are ashamed of their hyper-elevated pricing, and want people to walk into the store and say "well, we're here, and this thing is on the shelf"

Btw, the Ghostbusters Ecto-1 crossover is marked down to $76 in case anyone wants that for not over a hundred dollars.
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Old 06-08-2022, 04:40 PM   #2764
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Re: ToysRUs.ca Transformers Sightings and discussion

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Originally Posted by Napseeker View Post
TRU reduced the boys section in order to sell more ...books. A manager told me that books have a higher profit margin. I'm also sure that TRU just hasn't been ordering as much Hasbro toys as they did in the past so they need to fill up the store with something else.


At this rate, they may as well call the store Books R Us.
That's hilarious.

Indigo had to diversify away from books because the industry is dying/stagnant competition from Amazon.

Yet TRU is investing into books to boost profits.


If it's available, I'm curious to see how their financial statements have compared with the new owner and management taking over.
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Old 06-08-2022, 11:49 PM   #2765
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Re: ToysRUs.ca Transformers Sightings and discussion

I think the reason for investing in books is to expand their offerings to the parents. I noticed at my store, the new book section is on the Babies R Us half of the store, where the parents are already hanging out to do their baby shopping.



TRU is now heavily pushing their store as the place for parents to take their kids on the weekends for fun activities, interacting with the store mascot, and now a sit down area with tons of books for the kids to read (and if they like the book, you can bet the kids will push their parent to just buy it on the spot). It looks like the kid's section of my local library...



It DOES make business sense - pre-pandemic, I did see parents bring their children to the library for free activities, and I think TRU is trying to steal away those library patrons, to get them to spend more time in their stores instead, where they will undoubtedly buy something while they are there, including snacks.


We adult toy collectors are probably a marginal part of their new business plan.
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Old 06-09-2022, 01:52 AM   #2766
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Re: ToysRUs.ca Transformers Sightings and discussion

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Originally Posted by Napseeker View Post
We adult toy collectors are probably a marginal part of their new business plan.
And without us, that store would be in shambles. Collector's are one of the biggest reasons why TRU is staying afloat.
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Old 06-09-2022, 06:32 AM   #2767
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Re: ToysRUs.ca Transformers Sightings and discussion

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.
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Old 06-09-2022, 07:32 AM   #2768
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Re: ToysRUs.ca Transformers Sightings and discussion

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Originally Posted by Napseeker View Post
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.
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Old 06-09-2022, 07:43 AM   #2769
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Re: ToysRUs.ca Transformers Sightings and discussion

Here's the article: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/busi...n-investments/

I don't think the traffic and sales of the company has been the same since the new owner took over, but hey, I could be wrong.

If TRU and another merchant sold the exact same item, but TRU has a higher price, where would you think a savvy consumer would go to? I'm not talking about impulse buys, but researched bigger item purchases.
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Old 06-09-2022, 08:23 AM   #2770
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Re: ToysRUs.ca Transformers Sightings and discussion

I'm finding it really easy to pass up on new toys considering the prices everywhere is stupidly insane. I grabbed Blaster from Eb the other day, still around 50.00 but honestly considering returning it. I cant justify these prices, no matter the retailer.
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