My Thoughtful Spot: Bring Back More 9" Vinylmation

Recently I've seen a lot of 9" vinyls for sale on eBay and trading groups and it got me thinking - how to bring back more successful 9" Vinylmation. You may have noticed that the numbers being produced have dramatically decreased to almost being non-existent and this might make you sad, like it makes me sad.

Perhaps 9" figures have decreased because like me, not everyone has the space to keep buying them for their collection. Even if Disney released only five 9" figures a year, if I loved them all, I couldn't buy all 5 because I have nowhere to keep them. But I think Disney have reduced 9" production because they've got the wrong end of the stick. Disney have released way too many figures, not all of which were desirable, at ridiculous prices, in excessive quantities, that didn't sell, went to outlet and still barely sold. The message picked up from this wasn't, "What did we do wrong here? How could we improve?" It seemed to have been received as, "I guess these things aren't wanted anymore".

  

In a sense, this decline in production is good to protect the hobby. Over production means they don't sell and then it looks like collectors don't want what Disney are selling. I purchased The Land 9" from Park #9 for a high retail price of $44.95 plus tax. The price bugged me, I think that's a pretty high price, but I gave in because I loved the figure. Despite being Limited Edition of 1,000 (which is on the low side considering Disney's 2,500 LEs) this figure went to outlet. Granted, that happened over a year later, but it still made me mad to see it for $18.95.

This is why the hobby needs protecting, especially when it comes to 9" figures. High prices deter the collector from buying. Don't even get me started on the $74.95 combo set prices!! All these high priced figures like Pixar #1's Crush and Squirt and Park #9's Toy Story Midway Mania went to outlet. I saw the former for $18.95 and the latter for $22.95 in a Florida outlet mall last October. Over production makes vinyls worthless.

I'm glad Disney have cut back, but I think they've cut back too far. My suggestion would be to limit the production of 9" figures to being released only with a popular series - like Pixar, Animation, Star Wars and the Park series. Within that, I would suggest only 1 or 2 figures per series, with a maximum limited edition of 1,000. Preferably 500-800. Then finally, stop with the crazy prices!! The most I want to pay for a 9" is $39.95 for a single figure, $44.95 for a combo.

Do you collect 9" Vinylmation? Are you glad Disney have cut back?