Toothpaste, hair spray, books, those little bumpers you put behind pictures hanging on the wall, etc And I did buy a movie Snake Eyes for custom fodder for my kid, it was 5 bucks
I have gotten everything from Fortnite figures to Marvel Legends. I have bought Masterverse and Star Wars Black Series. I love this store. It is an army builders dream.
bro, i dont know much about you.. but i LOVE the idea of a toy insider/designer shopping for toys and just chatting their thoughts on collecting and the business
Fortnite kids are into video games, not action figures. They'd rather spend their allowance on digital skins, not on plastic versions of the base skins.
Completely agree. Where do you see the action figure industry going with that being the case? Drawing parallels from the classic car scene, you notice a vehicle peak in value when those who knew it (and value it) reach peak ability to spend. Who will buy figures if they never bought figures? That said, there's also something really sad about kids only spending on the digital (valuing digital).
I vividly remember when Infinity War came out and those figure started appearing on shelves, immediately thinking "This is the type of product they're putting out for the biggest movie to ever come out?"
If they included Fortnite codes with the figure to also get that character skin in the game then the value of the figures would have stayed firm. Especially for older season pass characters like Skye. Otherwise why bother making her? Newer players aren't going to recognize her.
If they had done Shadow and Ghost lines for the Chapter 2 Season 2 figures _and let you get the other style you didn't pick_ that would have been... well, a lot more thoughtful than Epic Games usually is.
People need to understand that, Ollie’s is good to look for figures that did not sell as expected and with not expectations. It was a cool video, specially when you related a figure with a true story!!
I also bought a Migs Mayfield figure at Ollie's, purely for the novelty of having a Bill Burr action figure. Also, last Christmas, I picked up Coronation Starscream for $15. He was still on the shelf for $55 at the Walmart down the street from the Ollie's I got him at.
R.A. Salvator is an author of fantasy novels most notable Forgotten Realms books in the heyday day of TSR. He has his own series with fantasy characters that would rival what the 4 horseman are doing. He is amazing with fans and loves cons.
Valaverse could try making a series of action figures based on R. A. Salvatore's own works. The problem is that it might not be well enough known to become a really successful line. Valaverse wants to grow and expand the Valaverse brand. There are probably not enough book fans that also buy action figures, or book fans that would be willing to start collection action figures based on R. A. Salvatore's books. Maybe Bobby Vala will consider it and look into it. Personally, I would enjoy fantasy action figures.
@@jaycee_baron That certainly seems to be the case from what we see. Would that be enough to get the ball rolling and actually expand the market and Valaverse's market share?
@@Williestyle-RobotechxMacross-x same here. I was surprised he didn't know who Drizz't was. I found ONE of those, in all the Ollie's stores I've hit in the past few months. Bought it quick!
i havent been to an ollies since i was a kid living in pennsylvania. and the one we always went to was this old building with a lot of exposed steel and wood beams. the interior was also painted like a dark red or something, because i just remember it being dark. much darker than this bright, sterile strip-mall place you're exploring. but it wasnt in a bad way, its like it was cozy. like you were exploring grandma's storage space. i dont remember much about shopping there, other than my mother would always look at the discount wallpaper.
Yeah, it's really not all that much better. Unless you're looking for a tumbler a customer used to spit snuff into and put back on the shelf. Or if nasty restrooms and a random placement of items is somehow inviting.
They just opened a new store near me in November here in Chicago and the building interior looks exactly like the one you went to. That must be their “design/look”. 😂😂😂😂😂
Yup. We finally got in a Ross in my county, and one visit and I knew it was that. It's just too far away for me to check often, so the resellers will win every time.
I'm curious to know how certain figures that are sought after and sometimes hard to get end up at discount stores. For example we saw classified crimson guard figures for $4.99 and Sgt. Slaughter for $12.99 at Ollie's last year. The crimson guard nobody could ever find at retail. It really felt like robbing a bank seeing these on shelves at those prices, but I'm not complaining.
Ollies buys unsold stock and dead stock from major retailers everywhere. If you buy 200 cartons of never-opened toy stock, chances are some of those cartons will have the scalped figurines in it that never made it out of the warehouse.
Ollie's is basically the last step before the landfill and really goes to show you how overproduced these things are. It's a fantastic place to buy books though
Being a Masters of the Universe fan myself, I went to Ollie’s and was able to pick up a Panthor for half the usual price, and a Wind Raider vehicle. And if you’re looking a Clamp Champ figure, Ollie’s has him… lots and lots of him, in stock.
If you're lucky, you can find Battle Armor Skeletor and the 2020 plain Skeletor. But all five or six Ollie's I've visited, they've all got tons of Masterverse Moss Man and Origins Clamp Champ. I've seen two with Battlecats and Panthors and one with Wind Raiders.
Always went to Ollie’s for cheap stuff that didn’t sell, for decades it has been great for figures, books, graphic novels, nerf, and, not at all in this video demographic, cooking spices and seasonings
I've noticed, while the design of toys has gotten impressively better, the toys themselves haven't. We are still needing to consistently add animatronics to action figures and creatures for interactive play. Imagine watching all your action figures creating cartoon episodes right in front of you, all you'd have to do is set up scenarios to follow. Get a few cameras for multiple angles, set up rocks in a garden, dig some holes, cardboard bridges, 3D print some set pieces, you'd have your own show with episodes. It would be "Small Soldiers" in real life, only limited to interactive play. So, no accidental fires or human boobytraps.
I've been seeing so many Ollie's videos I was just about to head up to that one later this week but you just saved me the trip, glad to know just like our Target and Walmarts even our Ollie's doesn't get the good stuff in.
I really enjoy the parts where he talks about his experiences with a toy line. As for fortnite failing, too many repaints and the ankles on some are just weak.
I love going to Ollie's and finding random stuff I didn't know I wanted. There are 2 in driving distance from where I live and I frequent them both, they get new stuff in every Wednesday but they take their time putting it out. Lately though I have noticed scalpers have been raiding them looking for stuff to flip on ebay and amazon. Kind of kills the vibe.
Went there for the 1st time a few months ago. I assumed there wasn't one in my area because I never came across it in my travels . But I randomly Googled it (after years of hearing it being mentioned in passing) & it turns out there's one approximately 12 miles away. Just happens to be in a town I have no reason to go to (not in an active avoidance way, but it's essentially just a repeat of any other town in the area). I did not have a "Jackpot" or "Hidden Gem" experience. Won't be making it a habit at this point & doubt I'll be back there anytime soon.
Hasbro COMPLETELY bungled the Dungeons & Dragons action figure line. Hasbro could have cornered the market on fantasy action figures. Hasbro also contros the super-hero and science fiction action figure market with Marvel and Star Wars. But.....Hasbro does not want to make toys anymore. Hasbro is just a weird company.
hasbro are told what to make for Star Wars by Lucasfilm/Disney. They (Hasbro) are trying to off the brand because they can’t make money making figures that nobody buys. Hasbro are in the business of making money, not making Woke Disney happy.
Same I said from a different video: It's nice to get a chance to buy something at a more affordable price especially if you have a tight budget and other financial obligations.Also good if you have a family with children.
about the wakana forever helmet: i created/designed sun-staches. i spent a lot of time redesigning my original packaging so that people could try on the glasses thinking it would increase sales. boy was that an expensive mistake. what happened was people would put them on, take a selfie and not buy them. also the packaging would often get damaged and dirty from people putting it on and off. i think wearables are often purchased for showing off. i wonder if that’s how they also arrived at the decision to not make it wearable in the package.
Luckiest break I ever got at Ollie's was being an army builder and going out of town in the middle of the week to find a full shelf of Marvel Legends Hand Ninjas.
Ollie's is the real world equivalent of the Burl Ives island of misfit toys. What's kind of nuts is that whole BAF waves can turn up from time to time.
You can find stuff sometimes at Five Below...back when Mattel had the DC license, the Shazam movie figures weren't popping up everywhere, Five Below had a ton of them and not just Shazam himself, they had all of the other kids
Don't have a ollie's over here in the bay area, toys R' us closed due to constant theft. Probably the same reason no ollie's. Greedy, immature, idiots😂❤
@joem7078 yep, you are correct. It was not shoplifting that killed Toys R Us, it was a leveraged buy out and debt loading by Bain Capital (the same equity firm that did this same thing to Kay Bee Toys).
Great hunt video. Ollie’s is great if you’re in areas that don’t get certain stock in. Most the marvel legends that are at Ollie’s right now I’ve never seen at retail.
My Ollies is an old Toys R Us, so not nearly as big as this one. I was not expecting the Mario Movie figures to wind up there, but I think you're right in them being over-produced. Great place for graphic novels, but they rarely have volume 1s.
Only thing about those open boxes is theft. When I lived in Houston every figure without plastic had their heads missing. I like going to Ross because they usually have gi classified figures for like $5.99
@valaverse those DnD creatures are the best thing to get at Ollie's! Especially the panther and the head with multiple eyes! Some of the best figures out there. Sad they came from an obscure line.
Im 54 going on 55. I still hit the toy section of all the stores I go to. I dont collect anymore. They are too expensive. Kids just dont play with action figures like it was when i was a kid. It's more of a nostalgic adult thing from what I can see. I see 90% adults in front of action figures and 10% small children. Video games have taken the lead.
Ollie's has some excellent kids books at great prices. And it's a great place to pick up cool kids toys that you don't really want to pay full price for. Not as great for action figure hunting, but sometimes they get good stuff. Prices are 50-75% off MSRP usually.
About 2 yrs ago I bought in ollies transformers earthrise optimus prime and siege megatron for 19.99 each. Recently Transformers beast wars optimus primal and megatron a few motu origins, marvel legends deluxe apocalypse and today star wars the black series carbonite 2 pack emperors royal guard and tie figher pilot $19.99 at one point they was selling a lot of good marvel legends figures like cyclops x men deadpool etc now is more figures that no body wants😂
That would probably be WAY too expensive. Hasbro couldn't do it for less than $50. Hasbro has their own problems, but dealing with sports leagues, shoe and apparel companies, individual players, and tattoo artists. That's a lot of time and money just for negotiations before they even divide up the money that comes in from sales. It would be nice to have some action figures like that, but probably not worth the effort for any manufacturing company. Then again, I could be mistaken about how this works, but not too far off the mark.
@@hammertronactionfigures2426 I meant his take as in commentary on them as a brand and failed product like his take on the Shang Chi open box play feature
@@_Kimberlin Oh. It would be fun to see him tear into the Starting Lineup fiasco. The sky high price was the most obvious problem. I'm still curious about what other license he'll try to acquire, or what other line he'll try to develop.
I picked up 4 of Druig, the only Eternals figure I could find a use for. The guy in black and red. Used the extra skull and hood heads from the Legends the Fist ninjas. Made for really cool looking evil witch guys. Put them in creepy crooked poses. Or the oni masks from the classified blue ninja. And he came with a head for Ma Dong -Seok as Gilgamesh. I put it and a Benadict Wong head on Legends Hammer Head body so they look like big dudes in suits.
I couldnt really see but i think that D&D figure was Drizzt Do'Urden, the most popular character in Forgotten Realms. R.A. Salvatore (the name in the big print) was the author of the dark elf trilogy and the icewind dale trilogy, along with a ton of single novels in the Forgotten realms, which is a sub-series of D&D.
I actually owe Ollie's quite a bit for my current Transformer collecting addiction. Was a Beast Wars kid and had tons of those, and had bought a handful of Transformers Prime figures around 2010ish, plus was reading IDW's TF comics at the time as well. But I wasn't really collecting figures. In 2017, I went into Ollie's to get some various things cheap and they had a ton of the Deluxe class figures from the Titans Return line for I believe $8 at the time. Fast forward 7 years and while I do still buy some new Hasbro Transformers, I'm neck-deep in third party Transformers by this point. Thanks Ollie's, my self-control and my wallet hate you despite you personally offering toys cheap 😂
Never heard of "Ollie's". I thought this was going to be about a vintage toy store where old guys go to find the toys of their childhood that they should never have destroyed and thrown out.
I live in the UAE and a lot of the GI Joes, Black Panther and Eternals figures are filling up Brands For Less, a discount store chain here. Some of the other figs you showed haven't made it but if they use the same supply chain, i am hoping for the D&D figures to also arrive soon. Now we just need a Julia Roberts figure and i can make my wife a Notting Hill diorama. 😊
Those Titan heros are a airbrush/ model painters dream. you get a cheap buck that you can repaint and make look higher quality. You just have to have the painting skills. If i was comoing out with a toy line, I could see myself using those for mock-ups.
The failure of Hasbro's Fortnite figures is due entirely to the WINDOWLESS boxes. Customers did not know what they were looking at and decided to buy something else that they could see.
I do think a much bigger reason is the fact that most kids today dont care for action figures. They would rather want a new skin or new weapon in game. So who were the figures marketed at?
@@bjarkepedersen8537 Something weird has happened to kids these days. They should be interacting with the physical world whether it is action figures or climbing trees or riding bikes. We might all live long enough to see what the long term affects are of not interacting with the real and physical world.
There's also a trend that I'm seeing in my liquidation bins in Canada is that most of these figures are priced well above what we were paying (inflation adjusted) for toys as kids. I'm noticing that most of the liquidation shelves are full of female characters and people of colour. I ended up getting a ton of female action figures for my girls for next to nothing, but I wonder how many of these figures are sitting unpurchased while figures that should have been "common" were sold out during presales, before they ever hit the stores...
Stuff I Bought at Ollie's: Toys: ML X-Men Storm, Forge, Jubilee 3pk 5 ML Hand Ninjas BS Chewbacca BS Obi-Wan show Obi-Wan Kenobi Classified Zarana ML Black Panther ML Quake/Maria Hill ML Elektra Daredevil Slimed Peter Venkman Slimed Ray Stantz Slimed Winston Zeddemore 12 inch Egon Spengler Ghostbusters Neutrona Wand RGB Repro Peter Venkman RGB Repro Ray Stantz RGB Repro Winston Zeddemore RGB Repro Slimer RGB Repro Fearsome Flush ML AoA Iceman ML AoA Legion Classified Lady Jaye McFarlane Endless Winter Wonder Woman McFarlane Endless Winter Batman McFarlane Endless Winter Jon Stewart McFarlane Endless Winter Black Adam McFarlane Belle Tons and tons of graphic novels, including a veritable ass load of omnibuses.
I don't have an Ollie's in my neck of the woods. I appreciate your perspective as a toy designer, business man, and industry maven. It was nice seeing you do your tour around Ollie's - after watching World Class Bullshitters do theirs. I dug the different POVs - especially with your being a father. I would stumble upon finds via Dollar Tree, and Rite Aid where I'm at; and can't forget the local Value Village. P.S. I think that cut works, though I miss seeing ya as a bald brotha' ha ha
How do you guys find an Ollie's that has so much stuff?!?! Mine has NOTHING until a month before Christmas! Also, I always questioned making action figure lines for video games. The customer is already spending a lot of money on the console/computer, the game and any in game purchases. And now, a toy company is going to ask them to buy a set of $20.00 figures so they can set them on a shelf. There is no endless supply of money. It boils down to where do you want to spend your money?
4” Fortnite was a huge success. They made well over 300 figures and a ton of excellent vehicles. I think it finally ended sometime earlier in the year since they arent at Walmart or Target anymore. They still made a lot of figures after that. Count yourself lucky if you found them. The game is still one of the most popular games being played to this day. The Mario movie line was a limited run line. The Super Mario 4” line contains dozens of figures with new figures releasing every wave. Theyre half the price of the movie line and basically the same thing only much deeper character selection.
They are wing folds that look thorny, I guess on the 89 Bat symbol they would be considered winglets. A Chinese company makes an electronic 1:24th scale 89 batmobile. But for some reason they put a blue light in the jet exhaust instead of yellow.
Hey Bobby, when you talk about working on toy lines and figures, are you doing 2D Designs first, then moving into 3D sculpts of the products in programs like Z Brush?
We have one of these stores in Zephyrhills Florida. I’ve only been there like maybe three times since it’s been there till I don’t know three times in 10 years.
Which Ollie's is that? You mentioned a con in R.I., and I've been to the Ollie's in Woonsocket, and the one in Worcester, MA, so I'm curious if you were in the Ollie's in Seekonk, MA, adjacent to Providence, R.I., which I haven't schlepped down to yet.
@nicholascarter8315 , I took the 90-Minute Schlep this morning to check out the Seekonk Ollie's. Between Tractor Supply Company on the left, and Price Rite on the right, this does indeed seem to be Seekonk. No better than Worcester, so I won't be repeating that trip.
What have you bought at Ollie’s?
Yep I picked up some great marvel peg warmers for fodder to supplement my Action Force
We don’t have them in Canada. Maybe that’s a mixed blessing.
A bit. My latest score there. The then, now, forever elite four-pack hulk Hogan Rock Stone Cold Becky lynch. $29.99. 😎👍
Toothpaste, hair spray, books, those little bumpers you put behind pictures hanging on the wall, etc
And I did buy a movie Snake Eyes for custom fodder for my kid, it was 5 bucks
I have gotten everything from Fortnite figures to Marvel Legends. I have bought Masterverse and Star Wars Black Series. I love this store. It is an army builders dream.
bro, i dont know much about you..
but i LOVE the idea of a toy insider/designer shopping for toys and just chatting their thoughts on collecting and the business
Fortnite kids are into video games, not action figures. They'd rather spend their allowance on digital skins, not on plastic versions of the base skins.
So true and funny. If I'm spending my allowance its on something tangible. I get it though, its all about instant gratification .
Completely agree. Where do you see the action figure industry going with that being the case? Drawing parallels from the classic car scene, you notice a vehicle peak in value when those who knew it (and value it) reach peak ability to spend.
Who will buy figures if they never bought figures?
That said, there's also something really sad about kids only spending on the digital (valuing digital).
Parents don't understand allowance. The allowance is supposed to teach kids to save up for stuff they want, not shut them up and keep them pacified.
@@shishoka speak for yourself
so true I have a 11 year old and he does not want any action figures, but you give him a gift card for PSN or XBOX and he is happy
4:53 I absolutely relate to when Bobby looked at the multiple Bill Burr figures to see which one had the best paint application
Bill Burr asked for the helmet to be put on. This was Bill's first released figure, and he thought releasing it covered was hilarious.
I vividly remember when Infinity War came out and those figure started appearing on shelves, immediately thinking "This is the type of product they're putting out for the biggest movie to ever come out?"
This insider commentary of toys in a store is really fascinating. Please do more of these videos.
If they included Fortnite codes with the figure to also get that character skin in the game then the value of the figures would have stayed firm. Especially for older season pass characters like Skye. Otherwise why bother making her? Newer players aren't going to recognize her.
If they had done Shadow and Ghost lines for the Chapter 2 Season 2 figures _and let you get the other style you didn't pick_ that would have been... well, a lot more thoughtful than Epic Games usually is.
Then Epic would hardly make any money through that deal besides royalties. With skins they have very little overhead.
marios been around 50 years and people know who he is. maybe your battlepass characters are worthless and disposable with no staying power..
@@Val-m8c "worthless" say that to the millions of kids that still prefer it over plastic physical action figures
People need to understand that, Ollie’s is good to look for figures that did not sell as expected and with not expectations. It was a cool video, specially when you related a figure with a true story!!
Ollie's is best for custom fodder. Most of my Valaverse Republic Trooper bodies have Marvel Legends heads from Ollie's
@@andrewtaylor940 oh yes, that one too!! Ollie’s for the win!! 👍
I also bought a Migs Mayfield figure at Ollie's, purely for the novelty of having a Bill Burr action figure. Also, last Christmas, I picked up Coronation Starscream for $15. He was still on the shelf for $55 at the Walmart down the street from the Ollie's I got him at.
These are really great vids how you explain marketing and packaging from an insider while shopping, hope you keep doing them bro 👊
R.A. Salvator is an author of fantasy novels most notable Forgotten Realms books in the heyday day of TSR. He has his own series with fantasy characters that would rival what the 4 horseman are doing. He is amazing with fans and loves cons.
Hes a woke fool.
Valaverse could try making a series of action figures based on R. A. Salvatore's own works.
The problem is that it might not be well enough known to become a really successful line.
Valaverse wants to grow and expand the Valaverse brand.
There are probably not enough book fans that also buy action figures, or book fans that would be willing to start collection action figures based on R. A. Salvatore's books.
Maybe Bobby Vala will consider it and look into it.
Personally, I would enjoy fantasy action figures.
@@jaycee_baron That certainly seems to be the case from what we see.
Would that be enough to get the ball rolling and actually expand the market and Valaverse's market share?
I was actually a little surprised that Bobby had not heard of R. A. Salvatore*
But he is a bit on the young and buff side for Salvatore's audience...
@@Williestyle-RobotechxMacross-x same here. I was surprised he didn't know who Drizz't was.
I found ONE of those, in all the Ollie's stores I've hit in the past few months. Bought it quick!
i havent been to an ollies since i was a kid living in pennsylvania. and the one we always went to was this old building with a lot of exposed steel and wood beams. the interior was also painted like a dark red or something, because i just remember it being dark. much darker than this bright, sterile strip-mall place you're exploring. but it wasnt in a bad way, its like it was cozy. like you were exploring grandma's storage space. i dont remember much about shopping there, other than my mother would always look at the discount wallpaper.
Yeah, it's really not all that much better. Unless you're looking for a tumbler a customer used to spit snuff into and put back on the shelf. Or if nasty restrooms and a random placement of items is somehow inviting.
They just opened a new store near me in November here in Chicago and the building interior looks exactly like the one you went to. That must be their “design/look”. 😂😂😂😂😂
Did your mom ever even replace the wallpaper? Lol
Bumping into Bob Vala in the Ollie's toy aisle... Would break my reality 🤯👍
id puke. the guys hideous
We only have Ross and the secondary market store buys all the Joes as soon as they get put out
Yup. We finally got in a Ross in my county, and one visit and I knew it was that. It's just too far away for me to check often, so the resellers will win every time.
🤣Nothing worse than buying a figure, getting home & finding out you already have it! Done that more times than I care to admit
That's what spreadsheets are for!!! 😊
That happens to me with porn dvds,lol
Go shopping with your list, saves you that trouble
@@MrJoseoz😂😂😂😂
It’s more pathetic that you’ve spent so much money on junk.
I see "Ollie's" I watch.
There is One in Dundalk where I live and it's a great place to shop.
Nice yeah I’ve been there, I go to the one in Columbia the most. But I’ll hit up all the Baltimore area Ollie’s too
@ChristainMecha Well Ollie's does have a Black Market Mecha department. The only one on the East Coast.
Just looking out for you man.
I'm curious to know how certain figures that are sought after and sometimes hard to get end up at discount stores. For example we saw classified crimson guard figures for $4.99 and Sgt. Slaughter for $12.99 at Ollie's last year. The crimson guard nobody could ever find at retail. It really felt like robbing a bank seeing these on shelves at those prices, but I'm not complaining.
Ollies buys unsold stock and dead stock from major retailers everywhere. If you buy 200 cartons of never-opened toy stock, chances are some of those cartons will have the scalped figurines in it that never made it out of the warehouse.
The people at retail chains or back at the warehouse sometimes never restocks toy aisles for various reasons.
Ollie's is good in my area for black series, marvel legends and fortnight accessories.
I found the Fortnite boat at an Ollie’s late last year for $15. I kind of wish I had gotten two so I could turn one into the Water Moccasin.
I never noticed the figure joint tattoos before. That's cool!
i got my nephew one of those black panther claw gloves and he proceeded to beat the crap out of everyone in the house with it, glorious times
😂😂😂😂
My local Ollies does not have these many toys. It's like 12 feet of slat wall in the corner next to pet supplies.
Ollie's is basically the last step before the landfill and really goes to show you how overproduced these things are. It's a fantastic place to buy books though
It's not the last place Junior...Ollie's sales leftovers on skids to collectors and flippers...💯
Great place for graphic novels, but they rarely have volume 1s.
They recycle the plastic on the next batch of unsellable toys.
why just make a false statement ? its not recycled
Ollie's is a great store for figures and comics.
😂 wouldn't be an Ollie's if the parking lot wasn't busted!
It was probably built on the site of a 50 year old Kmart/Ames
Ok is that like a rule or something the Ollie’s near me is also built from the remains of a Kmart.
Being a Masters of the Universe fan myself, I went to Ollie’s and was able to pick up a Panthor for half the usual price, and a Wind Raider vehicle.
And if you’re looking a Clamp Champ figure, Ollie’s has him… lots and lots of him, in stock.
If you're lucky, you can find Battle Armor Skeletor and the 2020 plain Skeletor. But all five or six Ollie's I've visited, they've all got tons of Masterverse Moss Man and Origins Clamp Champ. I've seen two with Battlecats and Panthors and one with Wind Raiders.
Always went to Ollie’s for cheap stuff that didn’t sell, for decades it has been great for figures, books, graphic novels, nerf, and, not at all in this video demographic, cooking spices and seasonings
I've noticed, while the design of toys has gotten impressively better, the toys themselves haven't.
We are still needing to consistently add animatronics to action figures and creatures for interactive play.
Imagine watching all your action figures creating cartoon episodes right in front of you, all you'd have to do is set up scenarios to follow.
Get a few cameras for multiple angles, set up rocks in a garden, dig some holes, cardboard bridges, 3D print some set pieces, you'd have your own show with episodes.
It would be "Small Soldiers" in real life, only limited to interactive play. So, no accidental fires or human boobytraps.
Ollie's' security: "Now there are two of them!!" :D
Thing people tend to forget about Ollie's is that stuff is there for a reason. But sometimes you find a pretty great deal.
Bobby Vala with hair is something I didn’t expect to see this morning
that was a very interesting toy hunt. nice to hear someone who has insider knowledge.
I've been seeing so many Ollie's videos I was just about to head up to that one later this week but you just saved me the trip, glad to know just like our Target and Walmarts even our Ollie's doesn't get the good stuff in.
I really enjoy the parts where he talks about his experiences with a toy line. As for fortnite failing, too many repaints and the ankles on some are just weak.
I love going to Ollie's and finding random stuff I didn't know I wanted. There are 2 in driving distance from where I live and I frequent them both, they get new stuff in every Wednesday but they take their time putting it out. Lately though I have noticed scalpers have been raiding them looking for stuff to flip on ebay and amazon. Kind of kills the vibe.
My local Ollie's doesn't have that much for toys. Maybe one aisle. Glad you atleast found a good one to be at.
That's the quietest Ollie's. It's like he's the only customer over there.
Went there for the 1st time a few months ago. I assumed there wasn't one in my area because I never came across it in my travels . But I randomly Googled it (after years of hearing it being mentioned in passing) & it turns out there's one approximately 12 miles away. Just happens to be in a town I have no reason to go to (not in an active avoidance way, but it's essentially just a repeat of any other town in the area). I did not have a "Jackpot" or "Hidden Gem" experience. Won't be making it a habit at this point & doubt I'll be back there anytime soon.
I'm not toy collector, but I noticed an Ollie's store just opened in my area.
Hasbro COMPLETELY bungled the Dungeons & Dragons action figure line.
Hasbro could have cornered the market on fantasy action figures.
Hasbro also contros the super-hero and science fiction action figure market with Marvel and Star Wars.
But.....Hasbro does not want to make toys anymore.
Hasbro is just a weird company.
hasbro are told what to make for Star Wars by Lucasfilm/Disney. They (Hasbro) are trying to off the brand because they can’t make money making figures that nobody buys. Hasbro are in the business of making money, not making Woke Disney happy.
Same I said from a different video: It's nice to get a chance to buy something at a more affordable price especially if you have a tight budget and other financial obligations.Also good if you have a family with children.
I stopped collecting comics long ago, so getting $12 graphic novels/trade paper backs for 7 dollars is a great deal.
Great video man! Gosh I wish I could visit this place there's of lot of great rare goodies there. Hello from L.A. CA
about the wakana forever helmet: i created/designed sun-staches. i spent a lot of time redesigning my original packaging so that people could try on the glasses thinking it would increase sales. boy was that an expensive mistake. what happened was people would put them on, take a selfie and not buy them. also the packaging would often get damaged and dirty from people putting it on and off. i think wearables are often purchased for showing off. i wonder if that’s how they also arrived at the decision to not make it wearable in the package.
I love videos like this. how you created some of the toys and pulling back the curtain. thanks!
Definitely a flex to be like oh that, oh yeah I created that
Luckiest break I ever got at Ollie's was being an army builder and going out of town in the middle of the week to find a full shelf of Marvel Legends Hand Ninjas.
4:28 dude, I feel you. Rogue One is actually my favorite SW movie ever 😅
Ollie's is the real world equivalent of the Burl Ives island of misfit toys. What's kind of nuts is that whole BAF waves can turn up from time to time.
I'd buy the Flair just for the robe , so worth $4. I like the extra point on the 89 bat suit symbol as well, wish they kept it for the returns logo
I don't know if you like reading, but the Drizzt stories by Salvatore are amazing.
You can find stuff sometimes at Five Below...back when Mattel had the DC license, the Shazam movie figures weren't popping up everywhere, Five Below had a ton of them and not just Shazam himself, they had all of the other kids
Don't have a ollie's over here in the bay area, toys R' us closed due to constant theft. Probably the same reason no ollie's. Greedy, immature, idiots😂❤
Shoplifters are trash but TRU closed bc of Private Equity loading it with debt. I miss TRU.
@joem7078 yep, you are correct. It was not shoplifting that killed Toys R Us, it was a leveraged buy out and debt loading by Bain Capital (the same equity firm that did this same thing to Kay Bee Toys).
To me. Ollie’s is the place to go for good custom figure fodder in addition to finding some good figures for collecting.
Great hunt video. Ollie’s is great if you’re in areas that don’t get certain stock in. Most the marvel legends that are at Ollie’s right now I’ve never seen at retail.
My Ollies is an old Toys R Us, so not nearly as big as this one. I was not expecting the Mario Movie figures to wind up there, but I think you're right in them being over-produced. Great place for graphic novels, but they rarely have volume 1s.
Those G.I. Joe 12 inches figures are so much fun to paint! I love that they are so cheap
Only thing about those open boxes is theft. When I lived in Houston every figure without plastic had their heads missing.
I like going to Ross because they usually have gi classified figures for like $5.99
@valaverse those DnD creatures are the best thing to get at Ollie's! Especially the panther and the head with multiple eyes! Some of the best figures out there. Sad they came from an obscure line.
Im 54 going on 55. I still hit the toy section of all the stores I go to. I dont collect anymore. They are too expensive. Kids just dont play with action figures like it was when i was a kid. It's more of a nostalgic adult thing from what I can see. I see 90% adults in front of action figures and 10% small children. Video games have taken the lead.
Ollie's has some excellent kids books at great
prices. And it's a great place to pick up cool kids toys that you don't really want to pay full price for. Not as great for action figure hunting, but sometimes they get good stuff. Prices are 50-75% off MSRP usually.
About 2 yrs ago I bought in ollies transformers earthrise optimus prime and siege megatron for 19.99 each. Recently Transformers beast wars optimus primal and megatron a few motu origins, marvel legends deluxe apocalypse and today star wars the black series carbonite 2 pack emperors royal guard and tie figher pilot $19.99 at one point they was selling a lot of good marvel legends figures like cyclops x men deadpool etc now is more figures that no body wants😂
This is the Ollie’s in Seekonk, MA. Noticed it in the thumbnail immediately.
I was hoping to see your take on Starting Lineup
That would probably be WAY too expensive.
Hasbro couldn't do it for less than $50.
Hasbro has their own problems, but dealing with sports leagues, shoe and apparel companies, individual players, and tattoo artists.
That's a lot of time and money just for negotiations before they even divide up the money that comes in from sales.
It would be nice to have some action figures like that, but probably not worth the effort for any manufacturing company.
Then again, I could be mistaken about how this works, but not too far off the mark.
@@hammertronactionfigures2426 I meant his take as in commentary on them as a brand and failed product like his take on the Shang Chi open box play feature
@@_Kimberlin Oh.
It would be fun to see him tear into the Starting Lineup fiasco.
The sky high price was the most obvious problem.
I'm still curious about what other license he'll try to acquire, or what other line he'll try to develop.
Toy education class goes to the mecca of savings and deadlines. This is already more interesting than what we thought ❤
I picked up 4 of Druig, the only Eternals figure I could find a use for. The guy in black and red.
Used the extra skull and hood heads from the Legends the Fist ninjas. Made for really cool looking evil witch guys. Put them in creepy crooked poses. Or the oni masks from the classified blue ninja.
And he came with a head for Ma Dong -Seok as Gilgamesh. I put it and a Benadict Wong head on Legends Hammer Head body so they look like big dudes in suits.
I couldnt really see but i think that D&D figure was Drizzt Do'Urden, the most popular character in Forgotten Realms. R.A. Salvatore (the name in the big print) was the author of the dark elf trilogy and the icewind dale trilogy, along with a ton of single novels in the Forgotten realms, which is a sub-series of D&D.
Oooo… new toy making term acquired: Platform.
(vs platform art toy)
Not all Ollie’s are well stocked. That one was.
I actually owe Ollie's quite a bit for my current Transformer collecting addiction. Was a Beast Wars kid and had tons of those, and had bought a handful of Transformers Prime figures around 2010ish, plus was reading IDW's TF comics at the time as well. But I wasn't really collecting figures. In 2017, I went into Ollie's to get some various things cheap and they had a ton of the Deluxe class figures from the Titans Return line for I believe $8 at the time. Fast forward 7 years and while I do still buy some new Hasbro Transformers, I'm neck-deep in third party Transformers by this point. Thanks Ollie's, my self-control and my wallet hate you despite you personally offering toys cheap 😂
Never heard of "Ollie's". I thought this was going to be about a vintage toy store where old guys go to find the toys of their childhood that they should never have destroyed and thrown out.
I'd have grabbed as much of those marvel legends and black series as i could have especially another burr for fodder at least.
I live in the UAE and a lot of the GI Joes, Black Panther and Eternals figures are filling up Brands For Less, a discount store chain here. Some of the other figs you showed haven't made it but if they use the same supply chain, i am hoping for the D&D figures to also arrive soon. Now we just need a Julia Roberts figure and i can make my wife a Notting Hill diorama. 😊
Those Titan heros are a airbrush/ model painters dream. you get a cheap buck that you can repaint and make look higher quality. You just have to have the painting skills. If i was comoing out with a toy line, I could see myself using those for mock-ups.
The failure of Hasbro's Fortnite figures is due entirely to the WINDOWLESS boxes.
Customers did not know what they were looking at and decided to buy something else that they could see.
I do think a much bigger reason is the fact that most kids today dont care for action figures. They would rather want a new skin or new weapon in game.
So who were the figures marketed at?
@@bjarkepedersen8537 Something weird has happened to kids these days.
They should be interacting with the physical world whether it is action figures or climbing trees or riding bikes.
We might all live long enough to see what the long term affects are of not interacting with the real and physical world.
@@hammertronactionfigures2426 yeah its a shame. But its a new world for us old heads
Not to mention the original price tag on these figures when they were released.
What they did to snake eyes is just sad 11:35 Great video btw
No Ollies in NYC! AN OUTRAGE!
Middle town NY 15 mins away from Woodbury commons 👍
I hit it up every week they even have a bus from port authority ✌️
Thank you for showing some love for Rogue One.
There's also a trend that I'm seeing in my liquidation bins in Canada is that most of these figures are priced well above what we were paying (inflation adjusted) for toys as kids. I'm noticing that most of the liquidation shelves are full of female characters and people of colour. I ended up getting a ton of female action figures for my girls for next to nothing, but I wonder how many of these figures are sitting unpurchased while figures that should have been "common" were sold out during presales, before they ever hit the stores...
The negrows wont even buy dumb figures of themselves
Stuff I Bought at Ollie's:
Toys:
ML X-Men Storm, Forge, Jubilee 3pk
5 ML Hand Ninjas
BS Chewbacca
BS Obi-Wan show Obi-Wan Kenobi
Classified Zarana
ML Black Panther
ML Quake/Maria Hill
ML Elektra Daredevil
Slimed Peter Venkman
Slimed Ray Stantz
Slimed Winston Zeddemore
12 inch Egon Spengler
Ghostbusters Neutrona Wand
RGB Repro Peter Venkman
RGB Repro Ray Stantz
RGB Repro Winston Zeddemore
RGB Repro Slimer
RGB Repro Fearsome Flush
ML AoA Iceman
ML AoA Legion
Classified Lady Jaye
McFarlane Endless Winter Wonder Woman
McFarlane Endless Winter Batman
McFarlane Endless Winter Jon Stewart
McFarlane Endless Winter Black Adam
McFarlane Belle
Tons and tons of graphic novels, including a veritable ass load of omnibuses.
Nice to hear you're a fan of Gary Frank's work!
Very funny and informative toy hunt vid. Keep up the marvelous work with your line brother
I got the Jurasic Park x Transformers Jeep and Dilophosaurus at Ollie's yesterday. My inner 8 year old was so happy to find it.
Saw that yesterday. Looked pretty good
I don't have an Ollie's in my neck of the woods. I appreciate your perspective as a toy designer, business man, and industry maven. It was nice seeing you do your tour around Ollie's - after watching World Class Bullshitters do theirs. I dug the different POVs - especially with your being a father. I would stumble upon finds via Dollar Tree, and Rite Aid where I'm at; and can't forget the local Value Village.
P.S. I think that cut works, though I miss seeing ya as a bald brotha' ha ha
I found an Earthrise Sunstreaker there and have been riding that high ever since.
How do you guys find an Ollie's that has so much stuff?!?! Mine has NOTHING until a month before Christmas!
Also, I always questioned making action figure lines for video games. The customer is already spending a lot of money on the console/computer, the game and any in game purchases. And now, a toy company is going to ask them to buy a set of $20.00 figures so they can set them on a shelf. There is no endless supply of money. It boils down to where do you want to spend your money?
That one normally doesn’t look that good
The music at Ollie’s slaps
4” Fortnite was a huge success. They made well over 300 figures and a ton of excellent vehicles. I think it finally ended sometime earlier in the year since they arent at Walmart or Target anymore. They still made a lot of figures after that. Count yourself lucky if you found them. The game is still one of the most popular games being played to this day.
The Mario movie line was a limited run line. The Super Mario 4” line contains dozens of figures with new figures releasing every wave. Theyre half the price of the movie line and basically the same thing only much deeper character selection.
We could do w/ Ollie’s in CA. Awesome video Bobby!
I picked up a few of those Luchadores figures, and repainted them. I also pick up odds and ends like MOTU, or Star Wars guys.
im an ollies fan through and through, i love this place
Rogue One and Andor is the best Star Wars cinema we’ve had since the original trilogy.
Ollies is great both for cheap figures and collectables plus sometimes you can fond some great comic books
They are wing folds that look thorny, I guess on the 89 Bat symbol they would be considered winglets. A Chinese company makes an electronic 1:24th scale 89 batmobile. But for some reason they put a blue light in the jet exhaust instead of yellow.
Hey Bobby, when you talk about working on toy lines and figures, are you doing 2D Designs first, then moving into 3D sculpts of the products in programs like Z Brush?
I love World Class Bull-shitters videos about Ollies, but it's great to see some analysis about why this stuff failed.
All the aliens and creatures hasbro could make with dungeon and dreams dragons and Star Wars and all we get anymore is DEI peg warmers!
Those coloring books are insane. Gotta find one for myself.
We have one of these stores in Zephyrhills Florida. I’ve only been there like maybe three times since it’s been there till I don’t know three times in 10 years.
I really like the Masterverse line.
Which Ollie's is that? You mentioned a con in R.I., and I've been to the Ollie's in Woonsocket, and the one in Worcester, MA, so I'm curious if you were in the Ollie's in Seekonk, MA, adjacent to Providence, R.I., which I haven't schlepped down to yet.
That very much looks like the Seekonk Ollies
@nicholascarter8315 , I took the 90-Minute Schlep this morning to check out the Seekonk Ollie's. Between Tractor Supply Company on the left, and Price Rite on the right, this does indeed seem to be Seekonk. No better than Worcester, so I won't be repeating that trip.