Mattel Disney Pixar Diecast CARS: Easy to Shop, Hard to Buy
What’s wrong with this picture?
Maybe we should sell PRINTS here at TakeFive … I shall title this …
“Retail Death.”
“I Cry.”
“Stare Into the Abyss. It Shall Stare Back At You”
“Faded Shadows of Fun”
“Stick a Peg in Me …”
“Mankey Scot Git.”
“O (I’m In) Canada”
“Better to have it and not need it than it is to need it and not have it.”
“I Shall Crush the Rebellion”
“I Don’t Abide.”
“This is Horse BLEEP”
(oops, not a title of this print, just overheard in the aisle).
Thanks for the pic, “IHM.”
| « Disney Pixar CARS: Carve You Up, Set You on Fire and Eat Your Insides … | Man and Squirrel = Best Friends » |
4 September 2009
41 Comments
Actually, where I am in Canada, the pegs are not empty. They are just full of stinken McQueens!
Oh yeah, who’s the genius at Mattel who put a picture of Nurse Mia/Tia on Nurse Kori’s blister card? Amazing, truly fascinating…..
As usual, Target selection is at best unimpressive. However: at TRU today, I found all the Cars Toons singles and Mega Size. About time I scored some cars: I actually hadn’t bought any new cars at retail for several months.
Great score!!
Thanks, I’d forgotten how exciting it was to score 🙂
Dang! I knew I should have gone to TRU today! Too busy 🙁 I need my little GTO!
well you could complain about this but in reality it is better than being full of peg-warmers. In my logic if the product runs out the store is at least hopefully ordering new ones or even possibly about to bring new stock out from the back. I’d be asking the manager or going back on a regular basis because when the new cars come you don’t want to miss out.
I like to think that as well . . . but you never know with the people in charge at these places!
The family went rummaging today.
We passed our nearest K-Mart (some 30 miles away from home).
This store has NOT had any CARS stock since the last PIXAR DAYS EVENT and the pegs have been empty for a while.
As I rounded the corner of the die-cast aisle, a K-Mart employee was stocking two fresh cases of “CARS” –
TWO FULL CASES OF ALL LIGHTNING McQUEEN LENTICULARS?!?
What a disappointment – for me and for the store – the store will be stuck with these pegwarmers?!?
I actually found full pegs and shelves everywhere today, W-M’s, Target’s and TRU………..just nothing to buy!
Maybe when I stop by Target tomorrow I’ll just carry a few of those pegs up to the register.
Employee: “Hi. How are you today?”
Me: “I’m good. I would just like to buy these two pegs since that’s all you have in your Cars section of the aisle right now!” 🙂
Just bring the pegs up with you and say “There were no UPC codes on these things, can I just have them?”.
GOLDEN AGE OF CARS . . . MY #@!
It’s really sad that Mattel just doesn’t get it. And make no mistake, this is a Mattel problem NOT a WMT, TRU or TGT issue. All the retailer can do is sell what is sent to them. They can ask for different product or make suggestions, but it is up to the manufacturer to do the product research and produce what the customer wants. And, you must keep in mind that toys are not a big margin or revenue item for the retailers. Say a car sells for $4 and the retailer buys it for $2, so the retailer makes $2 a car. Now if they sell a television or clothes or food or anything else, well you can see where they make their money. Plus often times these toys may be what is called a loss leader, which means the retailers will sell these items at or close to cost just to get customers in the store. A clear example of this is the Bumper Save Black Friday item at Walmart last year. Walmart wasn’t making money off that item, but it got people in the store, and “as long as I’m here I might as well do the rest of my shopping.” So, clearly this is a Mattel issue. They are either too dumb or too lazy to figure this out. And it’s a shame because they could be making a lot of money if they would WAKE UP and realize the opportunity they are missing. Because unlike WMT or TGT, Mattel’s business is to make money from making and selling toys, and at this point it seems as if they are failing at both. Hasbro doesn’t seem to have this issue with Star Wars, so why can’t Mattel WAKE UP. Enough of the BS that Mattel wants to milk the line and bring product out slowly. That’s ridiculous, Star Wars started in the 70’s, I repeat the 1970’s, and their toys are still selling strong. There will always be a new group of collectors or kids who want cool toys. So if you made some extra McQ’s stick them in the back of the factory and start packing cases with new product that people want. You don’t see Star Wars cases with 6 Lukes, 6 R2D2’s, 6 C3PO’s and 2 new Ahsoka’s. It’s really ridiculous. Now, I’m sure some people or Mattel employees will say these people don’t know what they’re talking about, we work at Mattel and we know what we’re doing. Maybe Mattel has a plan and knows what they’re doing, but the evidence is strongly against them. For why do we constantly see the pegs full of McQ’s, green Ramones or Octane Gain haulers? Yet when a new casting comes out, it is gone within minutes. How many Greta’s, Andrea’s or Milton’s do you see sitting on the pegs for more than a day or two? So bottom line Mattel, WAKE UP, WAKE UP, WAKE UP don’t kill a golden goose. Pack the cases with an ounce of reason, 3-4 of each new casting, no more than 2-3 McQ’s, and you in turn will prosper. The only way the line will die is if you fail to bring the product to the customers.
Mattel,
Forget the retailer exclusives… Please sell all the Cars items to all the retailers… or let us buy them all directly from a new and improved Matty.com or a working replacement for Matty…
I did buy 2 old singles today for $2 each… WM8 Al Oft with New Snipe, and a Lightning McQueen with Rusteze on the rear spoiler… I bought a Lenticular Fabulous Hudson Hornet for a friend in the UK… I even left a Rev N Go on the shelves because I just noticed I have too many with 2 more in transit…
Here’s hoping my UK friends have good luck tomorrow with the start of the UK promo… here’s hoping too that it’s Gask-Its…
Equally as depressing as the 81 McQueens that make up the ONLY singles at a TRU I just left. Kinda wore off the grin I got from baggin a Chase DLM at TRGT just before.Gonna be kinda hard to stalk stores this Holiday weekend. Either way it will turn out “you should of been there” if I dont keep watch of the pegs or Junior stealing the show when I sneek off to see what didnt come in.
Little did I know at the next TRU I would have cause to celebrate. Cars Toons Singles Baby!!!
Mattel…PLEASE sell the Final Lap Collection to Walmart!!!!
MET, do you know if lizzie will be released again either in race o rama packaging or final lap packaging. she one of the only cars i dont have.
Yeah, what is the deal with Lizzie? She’s always been one of the hardest to find, no thanks to Mattel’s case contents.
I have a couple Lizzie MOC Supercharged….$5 plus shipping, or trade car for car, email me if interested!
PirateDad95@gmail.com
Our Target stores don’t even have that many pegs to have empty!
I think Target is the worst of the retailers in handling the CARS line.
I’ve found more at KOHL’S than Target over the last few weeks……..what does that say about Target’s distribution system?
Yeah but Kohl’s are like $1.00 more per car than Target, at least in my neck of the woods.
$4.49 for Saluting Sarge, Flo, etc. when toys are 10% off, or about $3.75 each when toys are Buy 1, Get 1 @ 1/2 off. Not bad for a clothing/home accessory store!
looks like all meijer stores in michigan
I have plenty of Cactus McQueens, Tank Coat and Trunk Fresh pittys at my Target they can send to fill yours up…. and new and old Movie Moments… those things are everywhere now..
I sometimes wonder…isn’t there some way to just embarass the stores by filming the empty shelves? Or do they not allow video cameras in the store?
Something akin to ‘Michael Moore’ tactics? 😛 The title ‘McQueen and Me’ comes to mind, where someone goes on a search to try and unclog the distsribution system for PIXAR’s CARS.
Oooh I like that idea… how many McQueens could one buy during a trip from Cali to New York……
Hilarious!!
…Mike? Are YOU Michael Moore??? You need to make this film!!
hahaha!
No, just another person with the name Michael (apparently, my parents couldn’t come up with a good name, and just decided that would suffice).
but can you imagine it?
(Walk into the Mattel offices)
secretary:”Do you have an appointment?”
me: “No, but we’re here to help Mattel.”
secretary:”…I’m sorry?”
me: “Well, we’ve brought 10 semi trucks, you can see them outside, and we’re here to make sure that the ‘Final Lap’ series for your CARS brand makes it to Target stores.”
OK, even if you’re not Michael Moore, you need to do this anyway!!
I tell you… I worked retail for a long time (thankfully now “retired” and have become Mr. Mom to my 1 year old…)
I never had a District Manager who would have accepted such sites in my stores… whether it was TRU, CVS or Dollar Tree… this is what I called “selling pegboard”….
How much can you ring up pegboard at your store??
Nada
Goose Egg
Zilch
Zero…
Unbelievable… stores like Target, etc… seem more interested in having an aisle “reset” than getting product in and selling it these days…
I have money… I’m ready to spend! Just have no need for pegboard.
If it weren’t for the MCqueen lenticulars, my Targets would look like that too. I counted two full pegs of them. A few of ROR full size cards left.
love the “Stick a Peg in me” quote
Yeah I have seen that oh too often, and the only response you get from the employee is that they don’t know when they are coming, but they are coming. Thanks for that.
I will say that in the last few months though there has been a decent stock at both WM and Target, too bad it is all old stuff and a sea of LMQs.
and Lenticulars…
Yes and yes. Funny though I am seeing them moving a lot of the mainline characters in the NE area, but the MCQs are starting to take over in numbers.
An Army of McQueens. Blinking in unison…mocking us!
Judging by the pegboard, I guess this is what it’s come down to: kids across the globe are forced to play with Shadow Puppets.
“Only at Target”… If they EVER stock!
Secret survellence pictures from Canada!!
oh my word. Thats what our WalMart usually looks like sadly 🙁