except no one buys that crap b/c barrels have been fluctuating around the 100 mark for a while now, even back when they were $4.88 per figure. its just gouging to keep their margins up and make up for the shortcomings in other lines.

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Actually that's part of it; the rest has to do with the rising cost of doing business with China (read it in the financial section of the paper a few weeks back, just prior to Toy Fair, where Hasbro had planned to announce the hike). Chinese workers are getting better wages, environmental and safety controls are tightening up, the US dollar is badly weakened, etc., and it's cutting heavily into the profit margins of all the toy companies. Mattel was one of the first to raise their prices; I think Hasbro, if I read right, actually held off a bit longer but all of the toy companies are going to be affected. Hasbro's increase was to be around 14%-15% (which again, if I recall right, was a bit lower than Mattel's) which is what people are reporting. The article did quote one person (I think a marketing manager for TRU) as saying, "The days of $2.99 bargain toys are pretty much over."

The thinking now is to start shifting manufacturing to countries like Vietnam and India where the cost is still lower for a good number of products, not just toys. And I know people (myself especially) like to [LASER BLAST] about the greedy big toy companies, but the simple fact is, you don't run a corporation out of the goodness of your heart--you run it to make money, and lots of it, and as long as people will pay for your product, there's not much incentive to take a cut in that money flow.

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http://www.toynewsmag.com/news/29517/Hasbros-Chinese-suppliers-re-locate

Takara Tomy is actually moving out of China...
- http://www.tfw2005.com/boards/showthread.php?t=156474

I thought I heard that Hasbro was going to move out too but I might have mixed it up with this info.

You know this is my opinion about walmarts price hike to 5.44 a figure...
I think that until they can supporrt the collectors with the figures we need on a continued
basis they should not hike the price up....come on Walmart for the past six months I only
scored on figures several times when your stupid toy managers order one case a month...
ive counted numerous times of empty pegs of course I live in the same area as another collector... But I had to drive to just about every walmart in the immediate 100 mile area to
find my figures ...your people scowl at us collectors lie to us and its a hit and miss situation
on weather or not we find anything point in case I drove to Baton Rouge about eighty five miles
from me not a fig to be had....I got a rock in my windshield that spread as soon as I stopped to
gas up...that cost me 200.00 ...You evidently dont care about the customer ...and they restock returned
worthless merchandise... oh yeah and you stock junk like the corps figures..and
other worthless stuff....I know everyone here has walked into the store to find the empty shelves
and start cussing to yourself...I guess ive preached to much but you see all ive got is target
and walmart cant count on TRU...to find my figures I dont have a credit card..so thats my delima
But I do Have GI joe Heaven I mean http://www.joearmory.com/ Down the street...but I help
Zombieguide out and he is helping me rebuild my lost collection...

In conclusion I do not think Walmart should raise there prices until they can give us product..
I would even be happy if they institute the same policy as they had when Starwars figures
hit the shelves in the 90's so what if Ive got to take the figures to the car then go back to get my
duplicates... If you supply us we will buy and once the movie hits or a new cartoon hits
the kids will buy ...

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I guess you know the term eating crow... Well I posted that yesterday...and I find all of wave6
at walmart today...so I guess you got to bad mouth a company online then the next day you
strike joe gold Walmart had all of Wave 6 got one too open one not to open
of all 3 Torpedo is the s**t ....

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ARG!!! One of my Walmarts just got in wave 5 (wave 1 '08). Only Snake Eyes was left. It appears they decided to increase the price when they got new figures in.

Just visited walmart today and seems like there has been another price hike from $4.88 to $5.44 and now to $6.84!!! I did go to another walmart and it is still $5.44. Hopefully the $6.84 price tag is only for that one walmart.

I just came from a Wally World in White Plains and they listed 25th Anniv Joes for 4.88. Of course the pegs were empty.

I'm pretty sure the price hike is because of the cost of diesel. Everything is transported by trucks.

My local Walmart's have gone to $6.84 as well. Lots of stock on the shelf but the price will keep me from buying as I have in the past. The comic packs were still at $9.96.

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6.84 for me too. I was [LASER BLAST] to myself about the price of the WWE Build N Brawl guys and then I turned around to see the near same price for the three Serpentors hanging on the pegs.

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same here at 1 walmart$6.84 and another $5.44. Nothing good though just buzzer and serpentor.CP are still the regular price.So it's gonna be a rip to buy a single figure at the new price compared to the 2 in the CP, but they'll raise that too most likely

That was a huge hike! If it's due mostly to fuel costs, comic packs could stand at their current price point or thereabouts, since it wouldn't cost significantly more to ship a 2-pack over a single.

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6.84 here also, but they're not restocked. Just a couple of Cobra Commanders, Dukes, and Scarletts hanging out at 3 of the Wal-Marts. One of the Targets has 2 Snow Jobs, Cobra Commander, and Scarlett. The other Target has nothing and hasn't had for 4 weeks now. They all suck in my area about restocking, but they do have the Star Wars exclusive Aayla starfighter, the multipack, and the Galactic Hero sets. I don't know if it's a Hasbro distribution thing again or what but it seems odd to me that Target and Wal-Mart would have the same trouble with getting these unless you do look at the source (Hasbro). I even asked about the new wave at the Wal-Marts that I know the department manager. They say the sku shows they're on order but no date when they'll be in.

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I just saw the price hike at my local WM today and yet not one single pack on the pegs.

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