Bi-Weekly Market Report - September 6, 2006
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| McFarlane Toys out of NASCAR Figures Market |
From Tuff Stuff: "Is McFarlane Toys out of the NASCAR figures market? The answer is yes, for now. Action McFarlane, the joint venture of Action Performance Companies and McFarlane Toys, was terminated earlier this year. Action was acquired by Motorsports Authentics in December. Motorsports Authentics is consolidating its licensing, manufacturing and distribution operations in North Carolina and closing its Arizona operations. While the Action McFarlane line of figures has come to a close, McFarlane officials say it is possible the company will look to re-enter the market in the future." My take: This comes as quite a surprise to me. I know that NASCAR figures haven't sold like Football or Hockey figures, but with the phenomenal growth of NASCAR and NASCAR collectibles it comes as a shock to me that McFarlane wouldn't want a piece of that. I recently was discussing the rise of NASCAR with a friend and I mentioned how I really didn't understand it (I'm an open wheel racing fan and I can't understand how people don't see IndyCar, Champ Car, and F1 as more exciting sports). His response - it has to do with the marketing and collectibles. NASCAR is everywhere. Drivers sponsor everything and NASCAR sells shirts, hats, and collectibles of pretty much anything possible. When was the last time you saw a Sam Hornish Jr. collectible? That said, one would think McFarlane would want to jump on that bandwagon.
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| 2007 McFarlane Toys R Us Baseball Lineup Updated |
From Spawn.com: "As fans root their favorite baseball teams down the September stretch run, McFarlane Toys is already thinking ahead - planning the MLB Sports Picks series for 2007. We've already announced the MLB 17 line, which will be exclusive to Toys R Us as part of their "Opening Day" program next February. The lineup consists of Yankees' 2B Robinson Cano, White Sox DH Jim Thome, Red Sox SP Josh Beckett, Athletics 3B Eric Chavez. Toys R Us requested we add another two players to the lineup, and we were happy to oblige. Here then, are the two players joining the MLB 17 lineup: Billy Wagner and Troy Glaus." My take: Glaus has had a great season and is a bit hidden up there in Toronto so it's nice to see him get a figure. Wagner has racked up the saves as of late in NY, but he's been shaky at times - he'll make or break himself in the post season. No doubt he was chosen as much because of the NY market as his skills. MLB 17 is shaping up to be a solid set but it lacks that one big figure that everyone must have (sorry Jim Thome).
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| Collector Pulls Dual Gretzky-Lemieux Shields |
From Beckett : "Stories have been pouring in from around the globe of the amazing cards being pulled from Upper Deck's astounding 2005-06 The Cup series. It doesn't matter where you live—hockey fans in towns large and small are finding amazing cards in this revolutionary product. One collector in particular, who asked to remain unidentified, got the shock of his life—and broke the hearts of thousands of hobbyists—after pulling one particularly stout card from a pack purchased at BC Collectibles in Westbury, N.Y. 'I pulled a few 1/1 Masterpiece Press Plates and some other nice cards from the first few packs, but the third box was the charm. From it, I pulled the ultimate 1/1, a Dual NHL Shield card of Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, the two greatest hockey players of the past 30 years!'" My take: Congrats to this anonymous collector - he lived every collector's dream. The card sold on eBay recently for an astounding $10,700! My only question is why would this guy want to be anonymous? Is he in the witness protection program or something? Who WOULDN'T give their name to a magazine after a pull like that?
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