Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Boxer Day

Cripes, not again. I swear, when I posted this on Christmas Day:
A 40-piece Special Run Wedgewood Blue Pronghorn Antelope? Didn't see that coming. (What I thought might be coming? Either the Elk, or the Boxer.)
I had no idea that they would actually be doing a Boxer a few days later. Here’s Rolly:


He was available only to people who didn't buy Glacier, so I couldn't have gotten him anyway - which is good, because my follow-up doctor's appointment was that afternoon, and it would have bugged the bananas out of me to think I missed it-missed it!

(All is well on that health issue, BTW. It was something rare, unusual, and benign. And now gone for good.)

I like that they offered him only to people who did not order Glacier - that’s a nice way to spread the wealth around a bit. It’s an interesting and potentially viable workaround for future Vault Sales: drag it out during the holiday week when most people have some extra time and/or money, and limit the rarities to one per person.

It’s sort of like "Let’s Make a Deal"! Do I choose the contents of Door Number One, or pass it up for what might be behind Door Number Two?

My only complaint with being excluded from the Rolly sale is that I wasn’t able to directly print out the offer page for my archives, as I usually do.

I’ve seen some people compare these sales to what Peter Stone has been doing, but I think the comparison is a little off. What’s true: they are superpremium models with prices that reflect both the esoteric nature of the mold and paint selections, and the amount of detail that goes into creating them. Like with Ghost Moose’s eyes:


On the other hand, it’s Peter Stone who is duplicating himself, not the other way around. As I’ve mentioned before (most recently, here) Breyer has been doing these "Micro Runs" for years - some as early as the 1960s and 1970s. Surely all of the various prize models over the years - live shows, JAH contests and BreyerFest - also count. (Anything under 100 pieces, or 50? I can’t recall if I defined a piece threshold.)

And as for other differences, there are lots, and entire forums dedicated to arguing about it. The most fundamental difference is in the marketing. Running a boutique operation where every run is either a Micro Run or Factory Custom is basically Peter Stone’s business model. Reeves sells models of every production level and price point to everyone, and their Micro Runs are just one of the ways they market their product to the higher end/more dedicated segment of their customers.

Rolly's neat, and I had been planning on working on gaps in my dog collection next year anyway: looks like another one just opened up! I'll have to do a trade of some sort down the road, because the original $250 price tag would have been a stretch for me, regardless.

If I had the time - or the mind - to do it, I’d call up Reeves and ask if they are just deliberately messing with me now. If you guys are, could you please hold off on the Special Run Elk a few more days?

The bank account is a little low, and I don’t get paid until Friday. 

5 comments:

Ty said...

You were the first person I thought of when I saw him on the site.
From what I've been reading, it looks like a lot of people are hoping for the elk.

RowanMorgaine said...

Elk! Bighorn! I have to admit, Banff has really made me fall in love with the wildlife. I tended to ignore them prior to Banff, in favour of the horses - my bad!.

BTW, I saved the offer page for Rolly and I'd be happy to send it to you - just tell me how. (I'm also on Blab so you could PM me there - Avalon99)

bubbasmom said...

Oh. My. GOSH. I've been on the site every day hoping against hope I'd find something. I never saw a single SR!!! Not ONE. How do y'all find these things???

Yvonne said...

I have to disagree with you on this comment:"Micro Runs are just one of the ways they market their product to the higher end/more dedicated segment of their customers." I don't think higher end/dedicated should be lumped together. I don't have a ton of $ to spend, but my collection is pushing the 4,000 mark (is this why I have no $?!) I am VERY dedicated, but becoming very disheartened by all these runs of models I will NEVER have a chance to possess. Especially the animals.I live in the Boonies & have no Internet access when not at work,(yes, there are such places in the world!)so all Internet, single day, grab em while you can options are heartbreaking & will always be unobtainable...Sigh.

Sandra said...

Yvonne: It is extremely frustrating to miss out on the web specials/drawings and see others win multiple times. I've caught on that some apparently have multiple accounts, which may increase their chances. I won't do that so I'll keep on trying until collecting is no longer fun. Forty-plus years has been a good run.