15 replies to this topic

[bigburty]

I'm interested to know what you guys think about the pricing of sealed and loose series 3 MIMP. In my opinion, I don't think there's any difference in price and have paid the same amount for sealed series 3 as I have for loose ones. I never actively sought sealed ones, rather I ended up with them as they contained the sculpt/colour combination I wanted.

I suppose I could also include sealed/loose premiums in this discussion. I still think they're worth the same price. I remember seeing a guy on eBay selling a loose pink Cockatrice and a sealed pink Cockatrice- two identical figures - and guess what? He was asking $15 more for his sealed one. I messaged him out of interest to see why he'd done this, and he said that the sealed one was more desirable to 'retro collectors' wanting a 'sealed piece of history'.

[Behemoth]

I own one sealed Series 3 figure and I paid less for it than any of the other Series 3 that I bought in singles. I haven't noticed much (if any) difference in sales price between the two. 

[Strontium Dog]

It's fairly standard in the collecting world for mint in packaging items to be valued more highly than loose items.

[bigburty]

It's fairly standard in the collecting world for mint in packaging items to be valued more highly than loose items.

Sealed on a piece of cardboard that has some interesting artwork/details maybe, but that's different to a plain plastic square bag.

[Strontium Dog]

I tend to agree, but some folk will still pay well over the odds to have a figure sealed in its original plastic baggy. See any thread about Nesquik MUSCLEs or UK MIMP cereal premiums.

[PaulEWog116]

I have no problem paying more for a sealed figure. It is pretty standard as SD said. I think it just depends on how much more you Should pay. MIMP collecting is a weird area to collect because it really does not have the huge collector base as say G.I. Joe or some other massively popular collectors line. There just isn't enough consistent competition out there to get a good idea for true value on most figures except for the rarest of the rare. Most collectors snap up easy premiums like pink Trice very early and then never worry about them again causing the price to go artificially low.I really dont find Ebay to be an accurate way to place a value on MIMP. One day you have 10 people fighting over the same figure; the next day you see a rare figure go dirt cheap without any competition. I mean when you see the Arcade premiums recently go so cheap it was because there was next to zero competition for them between buyers that are not big spenders in the first place. The rest of us major collectors stepped out of the way to let the new guys get them; otherwise they would go significantly higher. The only one that went for any real price was the one that Mike snapped up so he could do his typical price gouging with them. The rest went to low budget collectors for insanely low prices. That is not a true value for the figure. 

 

Back to the topic, I have paid around the same price or slightly more for my sealed premiums. I would pay even more for a sealed series 3 if I cared to collect them that way. Series 3 are hard enough to come by let alone sealed. Collecting a full sealed set would be a serious undertaking over a long period of time unless you got really lucky. I say that gives the figures some extra value. As for how much you should pay extra; it really comes down to how much they are worth to you. That's always the bottom line. I would probably end up picking them up incidentally just because I needed the figure and not pay any extra at all for them. On the other hand if I were really adamant about collecting a full sealed set; then I would have not problem paying $20-30 over what I personally value the base figure at depending on the figure. 

[Behemoth]

To be fair I have seen one BB Sealed figure go for more money, but it is different in their case since they are all blind bags. So I should amend my statement that the Shreddies I haven't noticed any difference in price. 

[bigburty]

If you're collecting sculpt/colour rather than sealed then why pay more? I guess I'm just stubborn though and won't pay over the odds for any figure. I'll walk away from any deal if needs be, yet 99% of the time when I put pressure on I end up making the deal anyway. My deal with the guy from Raumhaufen is proof of that I suppose.

[Grencats]

I like having a few sealed toys in my collections just as an example of how the vintage toy was packaged. If it's a clear bag it wouldn't be any different, keep it sealed as they would be much rarer in this condition. Just because they sell at par right now does not mean that they always will. In most cases they would be worth much more. Vinyl toy collectors almost need the crinkle wrapper to be included or they consider the toy to be incomplete, even if you have the box for it. I also feel that vinyl toy collectors are also slowly becoming more and more interested in vintage rubber figures. These lines will probably keep getting new collectors jumping on board in the next years to come.

[PlasticSoul]

Sealed figures are always worth more.

 

With MIMP it usually doesn't seem to be a ton more like with other lines but even a little bit more is still more. The cereal premiums generally provide the best examples. That in no way means I would pay more for sealed MIMPS but what anyone on this board would pay and what something is worth doesn't always match up. 

Edited by PlasticSoul, 31 December 2015 - 08:09 PM.

[PaulEWog116]

If you're collecting sculpt/colour rather than sealed then why pay more? I guess I'm just stubborn though and won't pay over the odds for any figure. I'll walk away from any deal if needs be, yet 99% of the time when I put pressure on I end up making the deal anyway. My deal with the guy from Raumhaufen is proof of that I suppose.

 

Thats what I said. Collecting as I am right now, I dont care if they are sealed or not; so I wont spend any extra on them because it is not worth it to me. However, if I were adamant about putting together a full sealed set, I would be more inclined to pay the typically higher sealed prices just because at that point it is worth it to me. Also, you have the issue of convincing a seller that your price you want to pay for the item is the right price. Some people will let them go sealed or not for the same price but you will have a hard time convincing a savvy seller that his sealed figure is worth the same as an opened figure.  

[PaulEWog116]

Again, the big thing is, what is it worth to you? Draw your line and pass on all of the deals that cross it. Easy enough.

 

My line is to never spend more than $35-$50 on series 3 shreddies figures. I pass on the deals that cross the line and I have gotten some great deals just being patient. 

[fkro6784]

Oddly enough, in recent years I have regularly seen (and experienced myself) some sealed toys actually ending for less money than the same toys loose. I'd guess this is because of collectors who would rather have the items in their collections loose and wouldn't want to open the sealed examples if they won them, so they don't bid on them. Just a theory.

 

For me personally, something being sealed in the package adds no value unless the package is cool looking and has visual appeal. I have no desire to own a MIMP sealed in a tiny clear bag with a little piece of cardboard, and wouldn't pay any more for one than I would a loose example. I'd rather have the figure out of the bag.

[PaulEWog116]

Oddly enough, in recent years I have regularly seen (and experienced myself) some sealed toys actually ending for less money than the same toys loose. I'd guess this is because of collectors who would rather have the items in their collections loose and wouldn't want to open the sealed examples if they won them, so they don't bid on them. Just a theory.

 

For me personally, something being sealed in the package adds no value unless the package is cool looking and has visual appeal. I have no desire to own a MIMP sealed in a tiny clear bag with a little piece of cardboard, and wouldn't pay any more for one than I would a loose example. I'd rather have the figure out of the bag.

 

I am the same way. I have a number of sealed permiums. I think maybe a whole set of the cereal series 1. I thought about getting them framed or something so they can be displayed reasonably. Otherwise I prefer loose figures.

[Smotemotem]

I also feel that vinyl toy collectors are also slowly becoming more and more interested in vintage rubber figures. These lines will probably keep getting new collectors jumping on board in the next years to come.

This is literally me. Started collecting soft vinyl kaiju. Got on Instagram to post pictures. Met LRG collectors on Insta. Started collecting rubber toys & haven't turned back.

[NeonGreen]

Oddly enough, in recent years I have regularly seen (and experienced myself) some sealed toys actually ending for less money than the same toys loose. I'd guess this is because of collectors who would rather have the items in their collections loose and wouldn't want to open the sealed examples if they won them, so they don't bid on them. Just a theory.

 

I can attest to this myself. I have occasionally passed on a sealed item if I didn't "want to deal with it" in that context. I'll want the item in question, but I am unwilling to open a nice, sealed version. That may sound crazy but I can understand others' desire to own a certain item sealed, and I'd rather not be the guy who causes one less of it to exist! -- especially if I can wait and find an open version of it later on down the road without too much trouble.

 

I own some sealed toys that I find particularly appealing in the original packaging, such as MUSCLE 10-packs and 4-packs. The complete visual of them in their original, new state is worthy of owning a handful to display, to me. As someone else mentioned earlier in this discussion, I am one of those who own a Nestle Quik MUSCLE, still sealed. The packaging is pretty useless and holds no visual appeal, but I would agree to a small extent to what burty had heard from a seller, and that is that I enjoy seeing the Quik figure in its packaging as a... virtual snapshot of the original promotion. I would own the Quik can itself if that were possible but this is the next best thing. To take it from its package would destroy the association I have with its origin. Out of the package, the figure is just another #212, but sealed it's a very specific piece of history, albeit a visually bland one.     Some folks own gobs of them, but for me, one is enough to "get the idea", so to speak.

 

As for why a sealed figure "should" be worth more, beyond its historical significance (for whatever that's worth)? Condition. Figures are often listed as like new, or new but out of the package. However, these "new" figures are occasionally discolored/stained/faded to some small degree, or have other slight imperfections or irregularities that may not rate high on the list of importance to the seller, but can spoil the figure for the buyer. Buying it sealed in a plastic bag almost always ensures the item comes to you spotless and free of imperfections. You may still encounter discoloration, but I'd wager the odds of that occurring are far less with a sealed figure, as it is more likely to be stored away vs. being displayed in a window sill, left out in a backyard, buried, placed near other stuff that may transfer color or dye, etc.

 

Barring impressive packaging and/or historical significance, and given two figures in more or less identical condition, I value them the same. In my own humble collection, I typically enjoy owning a small handful of sealed items, but by and large I prefer figures that are already unpackaged and ready to be held, fiddled with, and displayed without worry.

Edited by NeonGreen, 16 January 2016 - 02:09 PM.