Alternators

[El Kabong]

Begin rant...

 

I might have missed it, but did anyone ask the Hasbro reps why most of the Alts are so hard to find? I'm not just talking about Mirage and Prime, which are hard enough to find, but the debacle over Meister and Tracks a while back. Hasbro's products are available at TRU, Wal-Mart, Target, KB and countless mom-and-pop stores nationwide but it seems like these places never have any. I head out at least twice a week to see what I can find and come up snake eyes every time. It just doesn't seem like a good business model. Take very popular, adult oriented line of products and then don't offer them at high enough numbers which angers your intended demographic. I don't get it. I understand that a retailer does not want to clog shelves with one article. It takes away space from others but when I can't find ANY Alts it gets me very angry. Store reps then always answer the same way, "we only get a case every couple of weeks". I know it might not be Hasbro's fault completely, but there has to be SOME reason.

 

....End Rant

[The Batman]

It really has to do with both places. Hasbro doesn't send out as many alts cause its not the best selling TF line they have, the little 5-9 dollar ones sell the most. Kids dont' get the 20 dollar ones alot so thats why hasbro doesn't send out much.

 

The stores are also responsible for ordering a certain amount of product, they scan in stuff and make orders off of that, if they notice they are selling alot of alts quickly they should order more.

 

So its really both of thier faults.

[Starscream49]

I still see them. If you want to paypal me the money Ill get them for you. All I ask is you pay shipping.

[madman1366]

For the most part, I haven't had any problems finding them until lately. I did have problems originally finding Dead End, Hound, and Tracks and since then it's been pretty much smooth sailing. (Wheeljack being another hard to find one)

 

Target in many areas are about to reset the toy dept. I fully expect to work on it at my store this week. I walked into one store that was in the process of doing it, so ours isn't far behind. Once those are done, Target should be more reliable once again.

 

I'm still trying to find Prime, Mirage, now Camshaft. I want a botcon Nemeis Prime, but unfortunately I have just enough to buy what I find until my next payday on Friday. Even then, it's only a 4 day check, so I'll have to wait another 2 weeks before I get a full check.

 

Man that vacation really wiped me out!!!

[Starscream49]

I just need Mirage and Camshaft but theres no doubt ill find them.

[The Batman]

Well I've got the hard ones like Optimus and Mirage and NEmesis prime, but I haven't found ricochet or rollbar anywhere.

[El Kabong]

It really has to do with both places. Hasbro doesn't send out as many alts cause its not the best selling TF line they have, the little 5-9 dollar ones sell the most. Kids dont' get the 20 dollar ones alot so thats why hasbro doesn't send out much.

 

The stores are also responsible for ordering a certain amount of product, they scan in stuff and make orders off of that, if they notice they are selling alot of alts quickly they should order more.

 

So its really both of thier faults.

 

Oh yeah I know Alts arent' the biggest moneymaker for Hasbro. And I know it's a little of both to blame. I work retail so I'm all up on that. But I can't understand why Hasbro doesn't understand the demographic they're dealing with. ToyBiz knew exactly how to get ML into the hands of the adult collectors, save for variants and chases. I can go into any local TRU, Target, or WM and find the Villains wave, or the Legendary Riders or even the Apocalypse ones. I'm just so confused but more perturbed.

[The Batman]

I kinda believe it depends on where ya live and what the stores around you are like. I know for a fact that some Targets around me don't carry them Period!

 

Sometimes I see plenty of Alts and no marvel legends, I think what it really comes down to is that sometimes you get a huge rush of figures from one line to the next, somtimes theres a flood of transformers, somtimes a flood of SW stuff. I just depends more on what the individual stores feel wills sell more.

 

Unfortunately in Alts case, there is a specific group that buys them, and stores don't see that as a huge thing cause they make a killing on other things like Star Wars, Superman, Power Rangers, Transformers Cybertron, and they don't bother filling up on the Alts until someone calls and asks where they are and if they have any plans of getting them.

[Galvatron Prime]

I just recently found Mirage, Prime and Camshaft (although I could only get Mirage at the time). This has been the only time I found ANY of the newer Alts in my area.

[iacon45]

Up until the case when Prime came out, I never really had problems finding Alts. It might have taken a bit but I would eventually find them. The only Alt I had trouble finding was Swerve (this was about the time when Wal-Mart stopped carrying red box Alts).

 

It wasnt until the case with Prime...then Mirage...then Camshaft is when I started having problems. The only Alts I would see would be Skids, Sunstreaker, Tracks, and the occasional Ricochet. I had to get a friend of mine to pick up a Prime, Mirage, and Camshaft for me.

[SKYWARP]

Like The Batman said some Targets don't even carry ALT's at all. Of course the one I owrk at doesn't. So that makes it that much harder to find them. Them being Prime, Mirage, and now Camshaft. Hopefully after the Toy Department resets they will be easier to find.

[madman1366]

Like The Batman said some Targets don't even carry ALT's at all. Of course the one I owrk at doesn't. So that makes it that much harder to find them. Them being Prime, Mirage, and now Camshaft. Hopefully after the Toy Department resets they will be easier to find.

 

 

Yeah, I'm hoping we'll do ours this week. One store I've been to already did it but they haven't filled it yet and they did it on Monday. @grumpy@

 

I'm on the plan-o team at my store and there is NO WAY we ever could have gotten away with leaving an aisle that empty for so long like that. We have to have it as close to 100% filled as we can get on the day we do them.

 

We have some of the new figs in, but right now they're in a staged area for the reset which means I can't touch them...that is if I could even find them. If they were in stockroom locations then I could get them, but they're not. @grumpy@

 

Man I hope we get them done soon. I'm tired of finding a whole lotta nothing.

[OB1Killa]

You can pre-order from BBTS for $89.95, but you have to get one that nobody wants....wow hasbro...

[darthfather2005]

I totally feel you there guys. St. Louis is the Black hole for transformers, we get nothing. I mean, I go to 6-Kmarts, 3-Walmarts, 2-Targets and not even a freaken skids. I ended up trading for most of mine, and I just bought Camshaft and Mirage on Toymaniacs.com for $67 shipped. Not too bad, but I'm sick of going in and out of stores looking for these things. Freaken crap in a hat. I'm just going to buy online from now on, stores piss me off.

[SKYWARP]

Well we just did our reset today, and to my surprise we have started carrying Alt's at my store for the first time. Only thing is we only have the label up now, unfortunately we didn't get any Alternators in.

 

O and madman you should see how empty our aisle's are right now. I can't believe some of the stuff got set with so few product to come out.

[El Kabong]

Well we just did our reset today, and to my surprise we have started carrying Alt's at my store for the first time. Only thing is we only have the label up now, unfortunately we didn't get any Alternators in.

 

O and madman you should see how empty our aisle's are right now. I can't believe some of the stuff got set with so few product to come out.

 

If you get any Alts in, can you grab me a Mirage and/or Prime? I'd pay for the toy and shipping of course. I'm just not having any luck here and I can't keep driving around going from store to store.

[The Batman]

Well, I know that prime is getting easier to find, I've found at least 6 just walking through stores. I saw one today even at a Target.

[kndy]

I usually find anything but since everyone started reporting late June/first few days of July... I have not seen the Optimus wave in this part of Cali. Not sure if they need to get rid of all the scions and they are in the back but have not seen squat! Found everything else Cybertron, Titaniums, etc. but nothing new for Alternators.

 

kndy

[SaintDemon]

The only problem stores in my area are usually a couple of Walmarts, they always overstock when new product comes out and end up stuck with it. They have tons and tons of Skids and Tracks, while other stores have only a case of new Alternators, and as soon as they sell out they just get more.

I usually have no trouble finding Alternators, the only one I haven't been able to find yet is Prime.

I Got Mirage a couple of days ago and Camshaft this morning.

[The Batman]

I went to a walmart the other day and they had everything new, the shelf was packed with like 15 ALts and I grabbed Camshaft, Optimus and Mirage. THe rest were a couple of meisters and tons of Tracks,

 

They'll be there forever.

[BeastWars_Megatron]

for the past 3-4 weeks there has been just 1 skids sitting all alone at tru, havent gotten a chance to check other stores though. all i know is i really want the new wave to hit already.

[OB1Killa]

Glad to hear camshaft is out.... I found Mirage last Thursday at this one target after I hit 4, but no camshaft....

I passed on meister since I have like 3 of him in the old style packaging....

If anyone wants one & wants to trade for a new style box..pm.

[madman1366]

I found Optimus last Friday and last night I found Mirage at a store that I almost didn't stop at.

 

I was kinda mad cuz there was a store near the one I found Prime at last Friday that had gotten Mirage in but I didn't go there that day and I missed him. I went there a couple of days later and they had a Meister, so obviously they did have that case.

 

You know what's gonna happen now though, I'm gonna go into work today, reset the action figure aisle and we'll end up having both Prime and Mirage. I just hope the case we get in has the Camshaft in it seeing I didn't find him yet.

[OB1Killa]

I doubt it.

[Three Storms]

Up until the case when Prime came out, I never really had problems finding Alts. It might have taken a bit but I would eventually find them. The only Alt I had trouble finding was Swerve (this was about the time when Wal-Mart stopped carrying red box Alts).

 

It wasnt until the case with Prime...then Mirage...then Camshaft is when I started having problems. The only Alts I would see would be Skids, Sunstreaker, Tracks, and the occasional Ricochet. I had to get a friend of mine to pick up a Prime, Mirage, and Camshaft for me.

 

 

Up until the current-package ones came out, I had nothing but problems finding them. It was frustrating, but luckily some re-releases have allowed me to get some I missed.