I´m the next one who break up my collections - rare stuff up for auction!
Hey everyone! <3
It seems that more and more people stop collecting or decide to weed out their beloved main collections...even big collectors and sometimes it´s kinda shocking or very surprising at least. I know, the reasons can be different of course, it can be a personal thing, money issues or space problems or whatnot.
( read more about my reasons aso. )
It seems that more and more people stop collecting or decide to weed out their beloved main collections...even big collectors and sometimes it´s kinda shocking or very surprising at least. I know, the reasons can be different of course, it can be a personal thing, money issues or space problems or whatnot.
( read more about my reasons aso. )
But that doesn't mean everyone here is greedy, or that you're greedy for wanting to collect something! Personally, my happiness comes from within, not from what I own or post about online. At the same time, I enjoy buying Pokemon items, and seeing them on display usually makes me happy. I enjoy posting and talking about these things on the comm. I dont really like to brag, I'm not a boastful / prideful person.( I am a confident person though, I'm just not "in love with myself" lol) But at the same time, I enjoy sharing my collection pics with the comm, who share my passion for these items, and I am proud of the collection I've accumulated in an humble way. It irritates me when I see people posting " I have the best (insert Poemon name) collection! I'm #1 " Like, who cares? lol Those people are probably just insecure in real life.
I think the key is balance. Dont go crazy overboard with your collections, to the point where you burn out and get rid of them. ( i've seen several people do this within the past few months) If you feel like youre becoming greedy, take a step back and reevaluate what / why youre collecting. You could even try "countering" the greed by giving back a little bit, even if its just giving someone a compliment on their Pokemon collection posts.
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About me, I´m also not greedy. My collections also are really small lol, but I felt that I maybe forced too much on collecting everything of my favourite pokemon and owned stuff I don´t really really love. For example, I love heracross and was ever kinda happy and proud of what I found and got of him! I also bought figures which I not really wanted, if it wouldn´t be heracross lol, so I wasn´t ever REALLY attached to it. It was just because I like that pokemon...but it´s a pokemon and not a god or what, and I already had a little army of them on my shelf and I thought about how weird it is actually...xD I thought that it´s not important to collect them all just because I like the pokemon. (Maybe I´m on the wrong place here, since it´s a collectors community xD)
There are things which I really appreciate and love, esp. my custom stuff which were made with love and are unique too me, I feel the high difference between these things and the things which are nothing to me, when I´m very honest. So why not give the things away when I don´t really like or need them? Now my shelf looks better to me, I don´t like it when it´s overfilled! And yes you´re right, balance is important! To be honest, I could never have a room full of stuff, I would feel overflowed x_x
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"They pay wayyyyy too much for something which isn´t that much worthy (like 800$ for a kid figure). "
"eeveelution necklaces which are much too expensive even when it´s silver or gold, but 300$+?? Just because it´s pokemon and they think they can get rich with it, because the people are going so crazy for it (but the truth is, it´s not that worthy...) "
So, I gotta say, $800 is an obvious exaggeration. And either way, it may not be worth that much to you, but can be worth more to other people.
We live in a world where people pay $300 for a fancy dinner, $100-10,000 and above for handbags and outfits, $1000 for a theatre ticket, $1000s for first edition books and comics. People buy jewelry for WAY more than $300. And collectors buy fine art for tens of thousands all the way up to millions of dollars. For paintings and sculptures.
It's luxury spending. People will do it no matter what. The high spending your referring to isn't limited to the world of Pokemon collecting. It's a fact of life for many people. You shouldn't let it make you feel "sick of Pokemon". Enjoy Pokemon without letting other peoples' actions get in the way. And I understand you have your idea of how much money you want to spend, but please try to be open-minded about how much others spend.
Of course you must make the decision that makes you happy and feels right for you. And I am glad that you're feeling better about your collecting. But please don't be so hard on other collectors by saying they're paying too much for something that "isn't worth it" or that they "think they can get rich with it". Please don't criticize others for "going totally crazy" when new merch is announced, especially since this whole community is centered around merch. That kind of language comes off as really critical of others and can be kind of hurtful.
Just saying.
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I do agree with you, but the $800 part isn't an exaggeration o: It's something that actually happened but I don't remember with who exactly
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It was the clear attack Ziggy figure. I mean I spent over $50 for my last Absol clear attack figure but would never pay that price if the auction goes over $100 or anything. I am a hardcore Absol collector but would never pay crazy prices :'D I'm working hard for my money thats the reason.
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What I said that they think they can get rich with pokemon, I haven´t meant the buyers, I mean Nintendo or the pokemon center. I don´t wanna criticize someone or making someone bad, it´s just how I see it. I´m against capitalism and I don´t wanna say that people are bad or something, because they give out too much money. But the things often aren´t that worth the price they were sold. I´m sure the eeveelu necklaces aren´t more worthy than another necklaces made of the same material and with the same workmanship, but they want the triple amount of the prize and this is "squeezing money out of the people". I mean the prices aren´t fair imo. And they do it because they can make a lot of money with it since they know that many people are going crazy for pokemon, esp. eeveelus. Maybe I´m wrong with it or thinking to negative, but often I see it like this and it makes me angry. I don´t wanna say that Nintendo is evil, but that whole system is bad.
I´ve also spend much money for a custom sculpture and custom plushes, but they´re REALLY worth it. I mean, not they´re better or something, since the personal worth of things are different, but handmade things are hard work and the price was high, but FAIR. (How could I paying someone just 20$ for a sculpture which was 10 hours work?) That I´ve bought (or commissioned) the sculpture and spent 100$ for it, is my own decision of course and many people maybe wouldn´t understand why I haven´t spend the money for a vacation or something. And I respect the personal decisions everyone makes with what they wanna do with their money. Except it is crime or something.
If the sculpture or plush would be a manufactured good instead of handmade, I would never give out that much, since it would totally be overpriced, because manufactured ba machines doesn´t cost so much. But what would you do as a collector when the next tomy figure costs 100$ and you need or want it for your collection? They could offer pokemon for such a price if they want, even when the price normally would be 5$...and yes, they would get rich of it.
It also makes me kinda angry when I see that kuttaris were sold for 20$ and the real price they were sold at the pokemoncenters is around 7$ each. Oke, I think they might include import taxes and whatnot.
When people paying thousands of dollars for a handbag or such, then because they have so much money. But I know that most of people aren´t that rich, otherwise they wouldn´t sell old stuff to get money in lol. There are people who maybe have a lot of money and can easily buy all things, even when they´re overpriced. But I think that´s not the rule, most of us aren´t rich people.
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I have faced the problem myself, at one point I simply wanted to buy every item that I found nice or "fitting to my collections". It takes thought to decide which things you seriously want to buy AND will appreciate in the future as well. I'm probably not quite there yet, my collection is a bit bigger than I intended it to be, so I will slowly work with concentrating on the things that are meaningful for me.
And about capitalism, the way this ideology has freed the markets around the world, is hurtful to everyone in the long run... That's how I see it anyway. I think it's a good thing to buy items from other individuals rather than directly from huge companies, that's why I like to deal in the community more than elsewhere!
I'm sure I had something else on my mind as well... The values of items can seem different to different people I guess, someone could afford more expensive stuff than the other. I don't like high-end brands because I don't think they are any better than less expensive ones, but I very much agree with you when it comes to handcrafted items! I wished I had the self-control to save my money for cool customs, hah...
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And I agree with you, it´s very different from people to people, with how much stuff in their room they feel comfortable or if they like small or big collections. For me personally, I really like to see the big collections of other people here on the comm and stunning over them, but wouldn´t like or want those big collections in my home. It´s just like I see this with the eyes of the child I was when I was into pokemon and crazy about pokemon stuff! Lol A store full of pokemon stuff, a games store or a tradingcard store was like a cave of treasures to me!! Also when there are things I couldn´t buy as a kid because they were to expensive, they were super worthy in my eyes! I remember the card stores and the whole hype about the holos which were handled like they were made from gold lol! And they had single cards behind glass, holos or japanese ones or promos and overpriced them to 20$ or 50$ or whatnot and I think I just had dollar bills and sparkles in my eyes lol that was very materialsm - but it was so exciting as a kid! ^^'
I know what you mean, with buying too much. I was also tempted to buy everything which I find cute, but after the time you have many of them and they doesn´t mean anything to you, but you cannot also give them away. This is so conflicting sometimes xD When I think about it, I would say the best thing is, buying stuff just for your birthday, christmas or in generell as a gift, or get them as a gift from other people - it helped to appreciate the stuffs more. And think about if you really really want it, if it has a special meaning to you and being patient...don´t think you must buy it immediately before it will be sold out. Wait and then you will see if you´re still "dreaming" of it or if you´re interest get fainted...maybe you forgot about it and if so, you know you don´t need it.
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I don't remember much about the toy stores selling Pokémon merch in my childhood, but I remember loving plushies the most. To think that I wanted every Pokémon plush I saw back then - if I my parents would've given in and bought each of them for me, I would probably have been bored with them quickly!
I love your story, though, I feel you! It can be even more wonderful to just dream about something than realise the dream every time. It would be boring if you didn't need to work for your happiness :)
I thought about this some time ago!! Thank you for putting the thoughts into words so accurately! I've impulse bought during past years too much for my taste, and I should be reminded that it pays off to be patient. It's annoying that you have to worry about things selling out, it can even make you anxious at worst ._. ugh.
I understand what you mean, I've received some Pokémon items as gifts, some of them are very special to me! I'll cherish them as reminders of other people's kindness ^-^
Thank you for provoking discussion on this subject, it's good to reflect on our choises as consumers. With money comes responsibility!
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For what its worth, I agree about the Pokemon Company. I really wish they concentrated more on releasing different Pokemon instead of the same Pikachus dressed up and Eeveelutions. I love Umbreon, and I love new Umbreon merch, but I wonder, if new Umbreon merch is coming out every other month, I wonder what my collection will be like. Like you, I've also set limits. I have one display case and will probably get a second smaller one, but that's it. I can't justify a whole giant Umbreon room, as awesome as that would be 😆
But eevees and Pikachus are what sells, so, I understand why they do it..but its definitely frustrating for a lot of us >.<
And agreed about custom plush. It's definitely more fun to support an artist in their craft than to buy a mass produced good.
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I still really understand your personal opinion, Pika! So please don't take it personal what I say now. :3 I agree to BUYMYSNAKEOIL that it's normal in our modern society to spend a lot of money for different things and I think everybody does. I think it's not about the amount of money. To me 5€ is a lot of money, but it depends on WHAT, if I'm going to spend it. This is different every time. And it's totally a personal thing. For example public transit here is very expensive, but a car is it as well. So what to do? You can't really change how it is. You can only find your way to be happy. I think THAT is important. As I started collecting, I got a little bit "crazy" as well. Afterwards I felt really bad about that. You know what I mean. But I already resold the most items. And now I just do/trade/buy what makes me happy and never will be obsessive with that again. I still enjoy being a part of the community. It's not all about spending money. And what else I wanted to say... It's pretty normal that a company wants to make profit. And I'm sure the Pokemon Center stuff is high quality. I've got a spontaneus suggestion..I just thought about the high quality Anime figurines(the ones that starts at 50$ and can cost hundreds of $). They aren't mass produced. They are hand painted. They CAN'T be cheaper. That's not really the point but, I just thought about this when it comes to the more expensive merchandise.
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But I have to say I partly agree with pikabulbachu.
I think what she was mainly referring to was that companies sell products for a lot of money because they know the people want it and will pay that amount of money for it. It's a form of exploitation. Think about some other popular companies for example. They sell their products for a lot of money, so you end up paying for a brand name. They have their stuff produced by people actually committing suicide because the working conditions are so bad (see Apple). This is an extreme case of course, but basically you can be almost sue that everything produced for example in China will be from bad working conditions. Pokemon is not exempt from that, unfortunately.
A company selling new stuff directly to the customer, and some things getting rare and scare and therefore rising in price are two different things. The companies themselves cannot always influence that and it's largely something that happens in the collector's community.
I think one should definitely consider one's own relationship towards collecting, and I think it is a good thing that pikabulbachu addressed this issue. I am not trying to tell anyone how they should spend their money or how much they should spend on it. But I think we have to pay attention to our relationship to the products we buy in general really. For example: what does it say about me when I want to buy more and more? Does it only mean I spend more money, or does it maybe have effects on other things? I know I talk about this a lot, but the way we think about products and buying things has HUGE impacts on the environment and above all, on other people who work to produce the stuff we buy. Especially with collecting there is the danger of kind of getting in a flow of buying and buying even more without really thinking about much anymore. But I think it's important to reflect in what way my behavior in collecting maybe reflects my relationships to other products I buy.
The fact that nowadays, everything seems to be about competition and spending ever more money is correct. And yes, people spend huge amounts of moeny on paintings and sculptures. But your argument is fundamentally flawed in my opinion: Only because something is the case doesn't means it should be, doesn't mean it's justified.
I think it is indeed problematic that we have a form of only thinking within the ranges of what we call personal possession. We are greedy. For example, how do high prices on collectors items even come to be? Because people think oh well, this item is rare, so the person won't find it anywhere else, so I can force them to pay that much money. And then others jump on the bandwagon. And after all, people just spend that much because they give in. And people know that others give in so they can increase the price. Just look how much for example some Pokedolls have risen in price, it's insane.. It's definitely something to be critical about.
I am not condemning anyone for spending a lot on an item they really really love and want. But one should be able to look behind that and see the actual mechanics of why this is possible at all, why one HAS to pay so much and cannot buy things one loves for a reasonable price? The sad thing is not that people go as far as spending so much, but rather, that they have to. That the whole system of collecting makes them have to spend so much money because it's no possible to get something they deeply love otherwise. One kind of feels proud... I was finally able to get the money to be able to afford this.. look at this grail, so rare and expensive. Is this really good? How do others feel about it who are poor and cannot afford so much? Should the value of a thing one loves be measured in money.
Your critique of pikabulbachu gave me the impression that one should basically be uncritical, and I don't agree with that. When it comes to money and how we use it and our relationship to what we consume, it's vital to be very ciritical. It's vital to our planet and our fellow people.
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I get what you're saying about resellers, it can be frustrating that a product is sold for way more than we expect to pay. I've experienced that frustration myself. And I agree with what others say, it may be that the best thing to do is to not buy it for that high price. I've had to let rare Umbreon goods I want go because I couldnt justify paying the asking price. And that item may never sell for the asking price. It's definitely frustrating, but I certainly don't want to assume negative things about the seller. It could be they're trying to make back the money they spend, or they're honestly believing that's the fair price. I don't know, so I gotta give them the benefit of the doubt rather than assume they're greedy or whatever. *And* if someone *else* buys the item for that price, I personally can't hold it against them. Which was my main problem with the way OPs comments seemed to be coming across (now I know she has no rude intentions). If someone wanted to pay $800 for a kid figure, good for them, they obviously really wanted it and now they have it, and we should all be courteous enough not to say things that might shame them (on a community about collecting of all places!).
As far as the Pokemon Companys prices go, they're honestly pretty fair. Its about $9 for mascot plush, $12 for pokedolls, and $20 for large plush. The necklaces were under $200 and honestly that's not that expensive for made-to-order jewelry that's rare metals.
It's importing it that's expensive. Yes some pick-uppers do charge a lot, but luckily there's a lot of fair prices out there IMO.
Anyway my point was less that we shouldn't criticize anything at all, but that we should try not to criticize our fellow individual members. It's just really not cool to criticize an individual for spending $X on an item on a community about collecting.
It seems to me like some of these posts are people getting so wrapped up in the guilt of their overspending or overcollecting that they are projecting that negativity onto the rest of the community and it's members.
It's one thing to think: hey, I've been spending too much on Pokemon stuff and it's begun to affect my life in a negative way, I should cut back! <- That kind of thinking is healthy.
It's a *very* different thing to think: hey, I've been spending too much and it negatively affects me, others are doing the same! I cant believe they spend $X00 on these items. And all these sales posts seem so greedy, and these gets posts are bragging, they're just being materialistic!
^ The second way of thinking is just being negative and judgemental towards others for their collecting practises. Now I know this wasnt pikabulbchu's intention, so I don't mean to accuse her of such. But this is just my point in general, and it seems like a lot of comments seem to be leading in this direction. It's not even a healthy mindset if you're looking at your hobby, the community, and its members in such negative light.
Now can we be critical of ourselves and each other? Sure. But let's please do it respectfully. For instance, your comment is critical of collecting practices without attempting to call out and shame anyone for spending too much money. That's the kind of discussion I enjoy reading <3 Some other comments where users are calling others greedy and insecure are just making me really uncomfortable.
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