[backhawkdown]

Go to YouTube, look up Spector Creative, learn about the marketing and logistics of toy manufacturing (ultimately the principles apply to almost all manufacturing) and all of your questions will be answered.

The bad news is the CS rep for Pulse is not the person who has a hand in any of these marketing or logistics concerns, and are just as ignorant of these things, so they won’t be able to answer you.

My advice — educate yourself on these topics so you can ask reasonable questions, go to LinkedIn and find a Hasbro employee that may actually be relevant to your concerns, decipher the Hasbro email pattern and send it to someone specific. People generally only take serious inquiries that indicate the sender’s own effort deserves serious consideration.

[KvHulk]

Wall of text no one will read at Hasbro. Hope you feel better though.

[pankratiast]

In a different thread I posted an email I sent to Hasbro criticizing their distribution practices. I did receive a response from their global unit that "there have been challenges","they are working with their partners" to address these issues, and "the fan base is important" to them. After their second wave of unattainable Target exclusives, I sent a snide email asking them if that was how they handled customer complaints. I did not receive a response to that one.

[TheDarkTabby]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThePriest

yeah, I might sound like whiney punk, but it was worth a shot...
-------------------
This is just a general commentary on one of your potentially best toy
series in the last decade: GI Joe classified.

And I say potentially, because it is nearly impossible for fans to buy
these figures without resorting to grey market purchasing, thanks to
bots (at Hasbro Pulse) and volume buyers of the exclusives (Amazon and
Target). I don't know if it is manufacturing limits or distribution
channels, but it makes zero business sense to limit availability,
because Hasbro only profits from initial sales at MSRP, not from
grey-market mark-up. The fact that these exclusives are re-selling at
3-4x MSRP is not beneficial to the fans or collectors; it only
benefits the grey-market profiteers. And although scarcity can
amplify apparent demand, do you not see that it hurts the brand and
consumer confidence.

It would have been more effective to make this series DTC, perhaps via
the Hasbro Pulse website or made to order like you do with Haslab,
especially with the exclusives. That way you would profit the most
from this premium figure, with the potential to do figures with lesser
equipment at retail (like you did with the Dollar General exclusives
of the 3.75" line years ago). This seemed to work well with the Snake
Eyes and supreme Cobra Commander...

The other real question is how can a Hasbro pulse pre-order be Out of
Stock? The manufacturing run for this order hasn't happened yet, so
shouldn't the Pulse orders be made-to-order and the cut-off date
dictate how big the first mfg run be? The fact that bots scooped up
the initial run is extremely frustrating, as shouldn't Hasbro Pulse
orders be exclusive and limited quantity to members?

The frustrations I've been experiencing is enough for me to forego
this line, as I would rather PAY HASBRO for every single figure you
produce, and give the grey market NOT A SINGLE CENT, because the more
profits you HASBRO makes, the more likely you will continue to produce
more figures in the line....and I know I am not the only fan who feel
the way I do, if the fans at Hisstank.com are an exemplar sample.

To put it simple: I (as do many fans) want to give you my money, and I
don't know you don't want to take it, and if the classified figures
are more of a service to the loyal fans who want to share in the brand
with our kids, much like the success of the Star Wars Black series,
why are you not following that already successfully tried, tested and
true model? One would think that whomever is your brand manager lacks
some understanding of their product, or just doesn't care.

From a confused, extremely disappointed fan... who is losing love &
confidence with the brand every passing moment,

Perfect, abslolutely perfect letter! Every Joe collector frustrated with any thing about Classified line should send this letter to Hasbro. If enough of us make noise it will improve our chances of changing this ridiculous situation of exclusives and limits. I have been saying dtc and preorder made to order without limits to Hasbro for years. These people really do not get it at all. I really do not know who to address this letter to, but I am going to copy and paste it and send it to every Hasbro address I can find.

[Mud Wasp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KvHulk

Wall of text no one will read at Hasbro. Hope you feel better though.

To be perfectly honest, this is exactly what I was thinking. Though hopefully I would have said it in a much nicer way.

[LionHeart]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pankratiast

In a different thread I posted an email I sent to Hasbro criticizing their distribution practices. I did receive a response from their global unit that "there have been challenges","they are working with their partners" to address these issues, and "the fan base is important" to them. After their second wave of unattainable Target exclusives, I sent a snide email asking them if that was how they handled customer complaints. I did not receive a response to that one.

Their distribution problems are all COVID related (as every other retailer has faced the same challenges).

[Cobra Agent 66]

I'll say this much: I've seen more Classified at retail than Retro. I haven't seen one figure or vehicle. Only got the HISS and Storm Shadow because of Ebay.

[Dusty Ayers]

Dude has a gripe and shares it. I'm not sure why he is getting dumped on. He states a possible solution and that is DTC.

[theprocess]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dusty Ayers

Dude has a gripe and shares it. I'm not sure why he is getting dumped on. He states a possible solution and that is DTC.

To be fair. It was really only one person that called him whiny. The letter is well written but it does come off as uniformed. Talking about bots and distribution practices which frankly, people on here love to talk about but are entirely clueless when it comes to running a huge corporation...including myself.

[NaytNavare]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cobra Agent 66

I'll say this much: I've seen more Classified at retail than Retro. I haven't seen one figure or vehicle. Only got the HISS and Storm Shadow because of Ebay.

Opposite for me. Wave 1 SE is common here in Iowa. Seen a couple stores with SS. Seen one store with Baroness twice.