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Walmart Collector Con 2021 Launch Special!
424 Plays4 years ago
On this special bonus episode, Dave and Erik are joined by Kenneth Siemens from Think3Fold as we launch the 2021 Walmart Collector Con! Hear an update on the Collection Obsession section in Walmart as well as from toymakers participating in this year's con!
Don't miss you chance to own these limited edition collectibles! Visit Walmart.com/collectibles now!
Follow Collection Obsession on Instagram @collectionobsessionofficial.
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Intro and other voices by Joe Azzari
https://www.instagram.com/voicesbyjoe/
Theme Music is "Game Boy Horror" by the Zombie Dandies
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Transcript
Introduction to Adventures in Collecting Podcast
00:00:02
Speaker
Are you ready, kids? Get your parents' permission, check your mailbox, and grab your shopping cart. It's time for the Adventures in Collecting podcast. I'm Eric. And I'm Dave. Welcome to Adventures in Collecting, where we talk toy news, culture, and halls, along with our journeys as collectors.
Special Episode Announcement
00:00:26
Speaker
Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Adventures in Collecting.
00:00:33
Speaker
Hey, everyone. This is a this is a special episode. I mean, like an actual like we always say like this is a special episode and we have a special guest on. But this is like a special special episode, Dave. This is actually special. You are getting this on a different day. It is special and you will enjoy that it is special. Wow. I like I like this energy that you're bringing to the table today. This is good. This is a little different.
00:01:03
Speaker
Well, it's special. Oh, man, I love it.
Interview with Kenneth Siemens from Think Threefold
00:01:09
Speaker
Well, welcome to this special Collector Con edition of Adventures in Collecting. Joining us today once again is our friend Kenneth Siemens from Think Threefold to talk all things Walmart Collector Con. Kenneth, welcome back to Adventures in Collecting.
00:01:26
Speaker
Thank you for having me on this very special episode. I hope we're not going to talk about why we have to say no to drugs or things like that.
Success of Collection Obsession at Walmart
00:01:35
Speaker
This is not the DARE program. No, we're good. We're good. OK, good. A very special episode. It's not an 80s special episode. It is a now special episode. This isn't the one where Punky Brewster plays in the fridge or anything like that. That's good. This is your collection. This is your collection on drugs.
00:01:56
Speaker
I had to bring it to a toy to a toy pun somehow, right? So somewhere somebody got that joke. Or the Freddy's Dead version of it. Oh, yeah. Yeah. What's what does he say? Wow. Killer graphics. I don't know. That looks like a couple of eggs in a frying pan to me. Oh, yeah. Yeah. That's that's. Oh, that's right. Yeah. Because Johnny Depp does his little his little cameo. I forgot about that. I haven't watched that one in a while. Yeah.
00:02:24
Speaker
Well, first off, before we jump into all of the fun con things, it's been a little while since we last chatted, Kenneth, so how's the whole Collection Obsession program going at Walmart so far?
00:02:41
Speaker
It's really good. People seem to be obsessed, so that's good news. We actually had our best sales week of the year, just last week, randomly in the middle of summer, which is crazy. It just means that people are coming and buying the awesome stuff that we're able to get in there, so that's very exciting.
00:03:01
Speaker
That's awesome. I know I've been hitting some additional Walmarts, like I've been driving a little bit out of my, my normal Walmart hunting zone. And I've noticed some stores that it's been a little while since I visited them that they, they now have like a section whereas previously they didn't. So I'm in a fully stocked section too, which is yeah, that's probably, that's probably what you're noticing. There were some store changes actually, like in this last few weeks where some stores expanded and things like that. So.
00:03:32
Speaker
Yeah. It's really cool to see like all that stuff out there. Um, so have you learned anything from sales and have there been any unexpected hits? It's been really, really interesting watching the sales. Like I, I wish I could say like there's this one item that just does amazing, but it's kind of a week to week thing.
Surprise Hit: Alien Eggs at Walmart
00:03:52
Speaker
Like we see, and we have a really robust like assortment and, and the different, like it's,
00:04:00
Speaker
we see everyone seems to perform at their, they're all hitting at their weight, right? Like, which is really exciting to see. You know, I think the one item that we've seen that we were all kind of shocked with was, well, I think we may have even talked about this when we talked with loyal subjects, but they did these alien eggs, which still just keep performing like crazy. They're these little blind Easter eggs with aliens inside and
00:04:30
Speaker
We had them online, they're a top performer online, and then we actually just dropped them into stores as part of, we have a Saturday morning cartoon feature in stores right now, and they're just one of the top performers. People just love them, these neon alien eggs. It's crazy. But we see a lot of stuff. The features that we do are super exciting, so we're seeing a lot of really fun
00:04:55
Speaker
fun response to that. Like right now we have some really unique, some geeky, geeky type items in store, which are really fun, including a new, a whole new line from them that we're called, they're called like mini buglets. So for, you know, your adult geeky, geeky ears, they're little shot glasses, but it's like a collection of shot glasses. So there's a He-Man set that's super fun. So it's, um,
00:05:22
Speaker
Yeah, it's, you know, we see anime jump up, we see horror jump up. Migo has been doing amazing. So it's been great.
Unique Toys in the Collector's Market
00:05:30
Speaker
So I will jump back in here. I can confirm that the alien eggs are in stores. I saw a whole bunch of them and I had to do it. I partook and they are delightful. I enjoy them. I enjoy like hiding the little alien, the little xenomorphs and the little face huggers in different spots.
00:05:51
Speaker
for people to stumble upon. And it's awesome. I'm really impressed with the detail they got out of those tiny little molds. Yeah, absolutely. They remind me of the little muscle figures. And they're just so fun. There's nothing better. And I think JC had said this. There's nothing better than a little neon xenomorph.
00:06:22
Speaker
Well, I don't know if you get one of the chase ones. I actually ended up with a silver one. I was like, oh, that's that's cool.
00:06:29
Speaker
And see conversely, you know, kind of going going the opposite direction of like the simplicity of like just a day glow xenomorph. Something else that I notice is on the shelves right now, too, is I'm taking a look at these these Ninja Turtles Q figs that you guys sent out for us and they are they're super cool. Talk about like tons of detail like I love like the
00:06:57
Speaker
all the different textures like the the like gross like sewer water texture that's on the bottom um yeah like they're they're they're cool and they're like they're not really um the thing that i think i i like about the most is they're kind of their own thing like they don't look like any other version of the ninja turtles like previously like they kind of just look like their own you know artist take on on the turtles which is always fun
00:07:26
Speaker
Well, the cute, the cute things are great because they have so much personality. Like you can always tell that it's a cute thing, right? Like they did like penny lies and you can still look at it and go like, Oh yeah, it's still cute, right? It's Georgie without an arm, but it's still cute, right? So they just do an amazing job with that story, that storytelling and personality. The kind of figure you really want to float with. That's right. Yeah.
Inside Walmart Collector Con
00:07:53
Speaker
So getting into con season right this this con season much like much like last year's is different than years prior right with the what with all of the virtual things and you know still kind of figuring out how to how to exist in a global pandemic.
00:08:13
Speaker
But you guys are helping out with the Walmart Collector Con. So tell us a little bit about what you guys are doing to make this particular year of convention season special. Yeah, so this is technically our second year doing this kind of online Collector Con with Walmart.
00:08:37
Speaker
We learned a ton last year, and we just brought a lot of items in, but this year we're really focused on making sure that the items are special, right? So kind of really taking that comic con approach to the selection. So these are the things that if you were in San Diego, these are the things that you would be in line for.
00:08:59
Speaker
Right at the specific booths, you know, up at 4am to get in line to, you know, get that that item you want. Whereas last year it was kind of like, oh, Comic Con is not happening. What's everyone got? Right. So it was a little bit more of a grab bag where this year we actually planned it from the beginning, which is really exciting. And the way that it's
00:09:21
Speaker
The way that it's coming together is there's going to be like four days and there's new new items kind of dropping every day so it kind of keeps everyone revisiting over and over. I think it starts it starts this Friday and there's going to be new items. And that and we've also focused on kind of making sure we have really really meaningful like exclusives. We're getting really good kind of partners involved so it's a really fun, really fun collection of items that have really been developed.
00:09:51
Speaker
you know, from the heart, from the ground up. So how is it different curating products for a special con event like Collector Con, as opposed to just one of the regular themed rollouts? Well, you know, like I said, this is this is kind of we were building towards this collector, this convention style program from the beginning. So we wanted to get stuff that was
00:10:19
Speaker
meant to be limited, meant to be unique and of the moment. Whereas a lot of times with the themes, we're kind of finding a couple of hero items and then kind of filling around it with other items that kind of support that theme. This one we felt like every single item needed to stand on its own because it's not really, nothing is drafting off of anything else. It's all kind of everything has its own reason to live and everything has its own strong fan attached.
Collaborations with Diamond Select for Collector Con
00:10:50
Speaker
So when, you know, when you were, when you were reaching out to, you know, some of the, the toy makers to participate in this, did a lot of them have things like already in mind that they were, you know, hoping to release for San Diego comic con, or did this kind of spark the discussion of like, Hey, you know, this thing that we've been talking about or thinking about doing like, you know, is now the time to act on it?
00:11:14
Speaker
It's a little bit, a little bit of both. Um, you know, uh, so, you know, we work with, so good example is, is diamond. We work really closely with diamond and they definitely had some items that they had earmarked as exclusives. They were planning on offering as part of the Comic Con, but then we also went back to them and we're actually developing a line that's going to be in Walmart stores, but we're doing some,
00:11:41
Speaker
first, the first items that are unique to the collector, the collector con event. So we're working with them on what we're calling, I call them diamond VHS. So basically what they are is that they're diamond select figures, but they're packaged in VHS like blockbuster video style cases. So we have one, we have, we actually have two coming out as part of the part of the event. And the one that's coming out on Thursday is the crow.
00:12:11
Speaker
So they're awesome. Because the select figures are just really, really well done. And then taking them and putting in this VHS format. They did this last year with their Tron figure. And so what we've done is we've basically we've taken that and we're going to kind of own that line and just kind of keep going with it and go crazy and see what we can do further. They're super, super fun.
00:12:40
Speaker
So I'm super excited about those. So just as kind of a recap for everybody, the Tron was one of my top 10 favorite things of last year. So this is already incredible sounding. Yeah, you're going to love the second one, which I'm not going to tell you yet.
00:13:04
Speaker
And then like I said, it was, we go into the fall at Walmart, there'll be, they'll actually be on shelf.
Eagle Moss Replicas and Marvel Museum Line
00:13:09
Speaker
There'll be new ones coming in. So it's super exciting. Very cool. That Crow figure just in general, like the.
00:13:17
Speaker
is an amazing figure. It's had a couple of iterations now. The regular release, I think there's an exclusive where he's sitting in a giant wingback chair. There's one with the drainage coat. Yeah, it is a great figure. And the likeness of Brandon Lee on it is fantastic. So kudos to getting that figure in more people's hands. That's awesome. Yeah, it'll be really, really exciting. And then keeping going down that path of
00:13:48
Speaker
things that we worked on. So there are some other ones that we have coming that were, they were creating them, but they weren't sure where it was gonna go. So we had the opportunity to come in and say, okay, this is a perfect opportunity for that. So we have a really cool Eagle Moss item, which is a replica coming out as well as part of CollectorCon.
00:14:14
Speaker
And it's it's really exciting. We actually it's a continuation of the line that we dropped in stores in the May in May with we had a marble program. So it was all the marble museum items. So the replica their scale replicas of elements from the MCU
00:14:32
Speaker
So there's a suit and there's one coming, um, as part of the collector con. It's really cool. If a friend, friend of the pod and fellow toy blogger got an advanced look at the, the one I think you're talking about. Um, and he posted it. Yeah. The, uh, the, uh, Tony Stark has a heart proof that Tony Stark, that's correct. Yeah. It looks amazing. Amazing. Yeah. Yeah. It's really, I'm really pleased with that.
00:14:57
Speaker
with that line like we're so excited to get replicas in to Walmart stores and then having these that being able to drop these out for these special occasions is super cool. They're really good. They're just really well done. So I think you hinted at this a little bit but are these just going to be online or in store as well? So where these should be
00:15:25
Speaker
These should be just online. Some of the items will kind of get a home in stores, but the majority of them are online for this program.
00:15:38
Speaker
That's good. I mean, that makes it the hunting aspect of it easier. It's much easier to sit in front of your computer than it is to drive out and wait in line at Walmarts and wait for them to open. We've tried to use this, so the VHS is a good example of it. We tried to use this as an introduction to a whole new
00:15:58
Speaker
our whole thing is introducing you to your next obsession. So like the VHS line, we're hoping will become a lot of people's new obsession, right? So this is a really good time to introduce that. So you'll see that kind of thing as you see the items drop. You'll see like, oh, I haven't seen that before, but you will see more of it, right? Especially with like the recent random uptick in VHS collecting, like that is,
00:16:26
Speaker
I feel like perfect for right now. Yeah, that's a bizarre thing. Like the two that I don't understand are VHS and cassette, like audio cassettes. I'm like. I am with you. I am with you. Yeah, I love the nostalgia. I love the like nostalgia feels that that that Tron from last year and this Crow from from this year will will definitely it. Right. I'm not saying I don't collect those things. I'm just saying that I don't know why I do.
00:16:57
Speaker
VHS though like you can make it you can make an argument like some of my fondest like pop culture awareness moments from like my childhood where even like forget like Blockbuster or West Coast video or you know any of those places like even even as simple as I walking through like the the rental section and like a grocery store like there are some
00:17:17
Speaker
There are some truly terribly bad, like not even good, bad, just like terribly bad movies that have amazing VHS art. Like the first one that jumps to my mind is the Robert England's fan of the opera film, which is like, you know, dreadfully bad. But that box art is like iconic. Naked Lunch is another one that jump that comes to mind. Although that's a good movie. Yeah, Naked Lunch is actually a good movie.
00:17:45
Speaker
I'm hoping that we can go so far with this line that I can make like a chopping ball set or something like that, like where we got some. That would be amazing. You know, I I friend of the pod Zach from Diamond Select, I'm pretty sure he's also like pretty big into like horror and like B movies and stuff. So I think you have you have a good partner on your side there with with Diamond, a like minded individual.
00:18:15
Speaker
as they say.
Future Collector Events and Mini-Events
00:18:17
Speaker
Yeah, I believe that.
00:18:21
Speaker
So you mentioned that this is really kind of the second annual collector con at Walmart. And it seems like the first event was very successful. And I'm sure this one is going to be great. Are there plans to do kind of smaller mini events like this throughout the year or really kind of just save this focus for this big kind of annual event?
00:18:50
Speaker
I think we'll probably do more. I think this is probably the big one, but I could totally see one happening in the fall with the other cons happening. And then as we look at everything that's happening online, we're working to come up with just many events. So there'll be a big one in the fall, or a big one now,
00:19:15
Speaker
a big one in the fall and then kind of some more mini events through the year. They'll probably be more thematic, but I think that's the that's the point. Which makes sense with New York being like, yeah, that big fall convention. Right. Yeah, because this is the two anchor ones, right? You have the San Diego Comic Con typically, you know, this week in July and then, you know, the first two weeks of October, you know, kind of leading up to the the New York one, so.
00:19:43
Speaker
makes sense to have, you know, kind of a virtual companion with them for sure. Yeah. Yeah. And I think that that's, it's, it's been a lot of.
00:19:52
Speaker
It's been a lot of fun getting Walmart into the game. It is only the second year they've done it. And what was really fun about last year is we really did make it up as we went along. So we had really just kind of got it, started getting rolling with Walmart. And that's when everything started to shut down. And so I basically reached out and said, hey, what if we did this? And so we started to pull stuff together. And what was really fun about it is we had this thing all set to go. And then all of a sudden at the last minute,
00:20:22
Speaker
You know, the big dogs jumped in and like Hasbro wanted to take part in it. So it was, it got a little messy, but it was, we've learned a ton. And so this will be way better. And I was going to say too, outside of, you know, for everyone else that's listening, I mean, there is, I would say that you guys have kind of the lion's share of, you know, the, the things that are being announced and like all of the things that you've, you've carefully curated for it. But.
00:20:46
Speaker
It is so popular that, as you mentioned, some of the other bigger brands are participating in it as well. We've seen there's going to be a Marvel Legends exclusive. It's an incredible Hulk figure that's split in half. Half of it's green and half of it's red. Also, to name drop him again, our friend MCU Collector had a chance from Hasbro to take a look at that early. So that's going to be offered during it.
00:21:15
Speaker
Looks like, uh, it looks like Funko might be participating as well. I'm, I'm looking at the, the fun little like teaser silhouettes that they've been, uh, that they've been showing. Yeah. GI Joe. Yeah, it looks like, yeah, that's right. But, um, yeah, it should be a lot of fun. And why don't you tell people where they can actually find this, this, this cool, uh, uh, virtual con.
New Qfigs for Disney Fans at Collector Con
00:21:41
Speaker
So it's at walmart.com slash collectibles. And then you can always find links to it at the collection obsession.com or on our Instagram collection or collection obsession official, I believe. Hey, Dave. Hey, Eric. Do you want to hear from some toy makers that are going to participate in this year's collector con? I think that would be fantastic. Well, let's roll the clip.
00:22:13
Speaker
Thanks for having us. We are super excited about participating in CollectorCon this year and being able to bring you some fantastic new collectibles from QMX to Walmart and Walmart customers all over. We've got a bunch of new Qfigs that are ready to come to Walmart that we know people have been excited about since we announced them a few months ago. And now, collectors are finally going to be able to get their hands on these fantastic new Qfigs.
00:22:37
Speaker
On Friday, we're starting with launching the Stitch Qfig Max Elite. This is a really huge piece that features Stitch stomping through a cityscape of San Francisco that he built from toys and different parts in Lilo's room. And then we're also releasing the Darkwing Duck Qfig Elite. That is one of our pieces from our Disney Afternoon Collection that we know Disney fans have been salivating over again since we showed it off a few months back at our last event.
00:23:05
Speaker
Then on Saturday we've got the Gargoyles coming. Two more pieces from our amazing Disney Afternoon series. We've got Goliath and Desmona from the Gargoyle Show and we know fans of this show have been waiting for an amazing Gargoyles collectible and now you can pick one up from Walmart. And then lastly on Sunday we've got one of our
00:23:24
Speaker
biggest Q-figs we've ever created, the Maleficent Q-fig Max Elite in her dragon form. She's huge, she's massive, she's stunning. Any Disney fan is going to need this in their collection along with the Sorcerer Mickey Q-fig Max
00:23:40
Speaker
from the movie Fantasia, inspired by the classic scene where Mickey is trying to bring everything to life, to clean up the mess that he's making, captured here in Q-fig form. It's a spectacular piece that every collector and every fan of Disney is gonna need in their collection. All of these coming to Walmart this weekend for Collector Con.
Announcement of Marvel Gallery Dr. Doom Diorama
00:24:02
Speaker
We're really excited about Collector Con. We're excited to be able to bring some great exclusives and other collectibles to Walmart.
00:24:08
Speaker
We have a few items we're really excited about that are being released for Collector Con. One of them is the Marvel Gallery Dr. Doom PVC diorama. This is the first Doom in our PVC diorama line. He's about 11 inches tall. He's got the glowing energy in his hands. He's standing atop some dinosaur skulls, all standard Dr. Doom stuff. And he is made out of PVC, so he's got a low price point. And that one is going to be shipping in the fall, early fall.
00:24:36
Speaker
And the other item is the VHS edition of our Rocketeer action figure. It's painted in VHS colors, the bright colors from the VHS box, and it's packaged in an actual VHS case, which looks just like the VHS case that was issued in 1990. So that's a really cool piece, seven inches tall, interchangeable backpack, hands, flame effects, support stand, very cool figure, and that'll also be available in the early fall.
00:25:05
Speaker
This is Jonathan Cathy, owner of The Little Subjects. Thank you for having us. We're super psyched about CollectorCon and being able to bring some great exclusives and other collectibles to Walmart. We have this killer four-pack best action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle battle damage collection.
00:25:22
Speaker
sort of lifted from and inspired by the Mirage Eastman layered comic books with the grayscale, some of the red scarring, the red masks, very cool. 31 points of articulation each figure, interchangeable accessories, a little pullout piece of the belt, utility belt, you get swap, very cool. Multiple hand gestures, multiple face portraits.
00:25:45
Speaker
It is a must
Importance of Real-Time Participation in Collector Con
00:25:47
Speaker
have. I think people are going to go nuts. The box is insane. It's a work of art by itself, but super psyched to be bringing this. Kenneth, thank you again so much for joining us on Adventures in Collecting and taking us through all of the amazing things that people can expect to see over the next couple days on Walmart.com slash collectibles at the Collector Con.
00:26:16
Speaker
Yeah, which should be happening as we speak, depending on when you're listening to this. Roughly. This episode is the then for this episode, or I should say the now, if you are listening to it now, as it airs, is 5am Eastern. So you have some time to get yourself ready. You have five hours. Mark it down. Roughly. Don't miss it.
00:26:41
Speaker
Don't miss it. Check those links. Check your bookmarks because they will be coming. And then they will be
Conclusion and Listener Engagement
00:26:47
Speaker
now. One of the things that they are not offering is a time machine. So there will be no chance to do this over. You get one shot. Do not miss your chance to go. This opportunity comes once in a lifetime. And if we go any further, then there's a copyright that we will not be able to make happen. So.
00:27:10
Speaker
Just know that you have to do this. There may be a time machine related item available. Thank you, dear listener, for hanging out with us today. Subscribe, rate, and review us wherever you listen, and then tell your friends to do it. Thanks also to Joe Azari, the golden voice behind our intro. Our music is Game Boy Horror by the Zombie Dandies. Find more about them both on our show notes.
00:27:37
Speaker
Follow us on social media at AIC underscore podcast on Instagram and Twitter. Stop by and say hi. Show us your toy hauls and share your toy stories. Maybe we'll talk about it in a future episode.
00:28:00
Speaker
This has been a non-productive media presentation. Executive producer Frank Kablaui. This program and many others like it on the non-productive network is distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives license. Please share it, but ask before trying to change it or sell it. For more information, visit non-productive.com.