 |
| Girls! Girls! Girls!!! Lovely figures during the Toycon |
Christmas is the time when kids happily get toys for gifts but of course there is that child in all of us and even the 'big kids' AKA adults can also have a Merry Christmas with their kind of toys.
And the best place to get the best toys at the best prices? Is none other than the 7th Christmas Toy fair! Which is organized by Collectibles Unlimited Association. You can check out their Facebook page here.
For the employed it is a great place to finish...err...spend your 13th month pay and for the students it is a great place to spend your early pamasko from Ninong and Ninang. ^__^
I'll be honest with you, I'm just really a newbie when it comes to collecting toys (Wait! Don't close the window!) You might be thinking on what authority then do I have to start blogging about events like this? Well (hear me out) even if I am still a beginner when it comes to collecting toys it doesn't mean that my love for them (anime and the geek genres) is anything but new.
So I've recently just started collecting toys and figures and I bought a couple during the Christmas Toy Fair. As usual, Paul and I came from work so we were pretty much done for the day.
Tips for the toy shopper:
I've been to other Toy and Anime Conventions and as we all know that there can be a lot of people! So a helpful tip would be to go to the convention on the first day. Not only will there be a lot of room (you also don't have to breathe anyone else's air) you will also be able to see all the new items- fresh from the boxes! You can make a quick stop during a long lunch or maybe a working break or you can go on leave just like my cousin ;)
Make your rounds first, sort of like an ocular inspection this is also the best time to take note of prices for items you are interested to buy. This is the best time to gauge which items you like more and which ones you can afford.
Get your haggle on!
Don't be embarrassed to haggle. Even for guys. You can really save a lot with just a simple question of 'last price?'-with a smile ^__^ I bought three items during my toy fair trip and I was able to save P50.00 on each. So that's a total of P150.00 savings :)
Another good tip is to go to the toy convention on the last day. Sometimes stalls would give the best prices during the last days. So an item you may have been salivating on the first day would most likely have the best price on the last day.
Build Connections:
Stalls usually have fliers available during toy conventions. Make sure you get one especially for stalls you like. Liking a Facebook page of a stall is a great way to keep updated with sales and promos that they may have throughout the year! :)
My cousin, Beau has actually been in the collecting business for a long time now and he's more of an expert than I am. We have been trying to schedule a shoot/shoots for his collection. Although it would probably take a number of shoots due to the large number of his collection. :p Looking forward to that project. Here are his buys from the recent Christmas Toy Fair.
Beau's Buys:
Photos taken with his Blackberry
 |
| Scott Pilgrim VS the World (Movie Poster) Poster: P1500.00 Frame: P1,100.00 |
 |
| Join the Empire T-shirt. Shirts from Customized Printing. Price. P375.00. |
 |
| Head Knockers: The Exorcist. Price: 1,400.00 Bought at P1,000.00 from the Hobime Toyshop. Check out their FB page here. |
 |
| Vintage Tokusatsu Vinyl Records (Ultaman, Magmaman etc.)
These Vinyl Records actually have a great back story to them, they came from a collector's personal collection so for him, you can't place a price tag on these records.
After my cousin purchased a number of records, the owner brought out these vintage vinyl records. My cousin was so happy with his purchases that he he shook hands with the owner and told him that he made him (very) happy. It was a passing down from one collector to the next with the intention of really valuing the item and not just doing a buy and sell routine. Like I told you my cousin is really the collector so I'm just lucky he shared his great finds, buys and tips with me and of course the joy of experiencing Toy Conventions. ;) |
 |
| Voltes-V VS Daimos (T-shirt). Shirts from Customized Printing. Price. P375.00 |
 |
| DC Universe Classics: The Joker. Price: P850.00 They don't usually sell these individually but they finally did! |
 |
| Kamenrider Figure. Price: P850.00 Bought at P700.00 |
 |
| Join the Sith shirt. Shirts from Customized Printing. Price. P375.00 |
And here is me just getting my feet in the pool wet! :p
Ica's buys:
Rei Ayanami Figure
Original Price: P400.00
Bought at: P350.00
Rei Ayanami Chibi Figure
Original Price: P200.00
Bought at: P150.00
P-Chan Back pack
Original Price: 500.00
Bought: P450.00
I know I'm just getting started with Toy collecting but it really doesn't mean I can't appreciate them and of course Toy Conventions are a great place to do just that. :) As you can see from the price range of my purchases, you really don't have to spend thousands and thousands of pesos just to start up on your collection and I really just love looking at Rei on my desk. Takes the stress away!
Oh and another tip when and if you are planning to go to a Toy Convention would be to save up months before. ^__^
If you want to be updated with all the Toy Convention news make sure to like the Facebook page of Collectibles Unlimited Association (Philippine Toy Con).
*Pahabol Photo:
No comments:
Post a Comment