So Long Vinylmation Trading

So in case you haven't heard, Disney released information about the annual Pin Trade event at EPCOT this September. Note that I said Pin Event. It appears that Vinylmation trading, previews, officially sanctioned trading with the big boxes or event exclusives for sale will not occur at the event. However guests are allowed to bring their own traders to trade with other guests.

Can't get worse, right?

And then on that same day, Vinylmation World received reliable information that as of February 5, all Vinylmation trading at all the merchandising locations at Walt Disney World will cease, the report claiming how "Guests who buy them tend to collect them as keepsakes". A fun part of the hobby since spring 2010, gone.

Terrible is an understatement IMO.

And as the last week of Vinylmation trading closes in tonight, I can't help but ask myself...why? Why the decision to remove vinyl trading? It seems that it will only happen at WDW but rumors persist that Disneyland will also foresee the trade box removals too. So as someone that likes theories, I concocted several explanations that could explain the 'why':

1. Dissatisfaction from guests and Cast Members

We've seen this over the years. We know that guests complain about the quality of vinyls in the trade box but we also buy them from the outlets to trade. Same basis with pins. It's unavoidable. With excess vinyls being discounted to crazy low prices (hey there Zooper Heroes at $1) or shipped to the outlets around Florida and California..., Suddenly you didn't have to trade in that expensive vinyl you bought in for a cheapo from the outlets. Just buy up on trade fodder in person or - hey they do phone orders too, isn't that neat!? - and BOOM you can now trade for nicer stuff while saving your hard earned cash. So easy!

And from my experience I've seen CMs that would rather do anything else than lug out the heavy box and listen to tourists pick numbers. I theorized in the past that the original 24 slot trade box was reduced to 15 because of complaints that it was too heavy to carry and would sometimes drop it, the repairs forcing the change to a smaller (and more manageable) box.

But what if the removal was due to management concern about efficiency, if that's the right word to say? What if it was cut in order to keep a certain level of standards, without distractions? It may not have been a lot of time wasted in trading with guests, but management probably doesn't care. From what I've seen, leaders that manned a trade box almost always were strict or hasty, in a rush to not stay and interact. This is compared to the lax attitude I've seen in your basic CM. It's somewhat biased but it does make sense. Why trade with a family of four not buying anything when you could ring up a customer waiting right behind with something to buy?

2. Abuse of the system

Now this was one of the supposed reasons that I read on Twitter. But no mention what kind. And this is theoretical on its own, for there were multiple forms of abuse I and others witnessed through the years. Maybe it referred to figure abuse, where Vinylmations that were scuffed, marked, scratched, blotched, dropped, eaten, disfigured (I still have a Aquaramouse with the back of the left foot actually dug in like someone carved a knife in it!!) and even missing its feet (poor Skiff Lando...the Mouse Gear CMs didn't even realize it had none until I pointed it out)! Maybe abuse referred to how the Vinylmations tend to not come with its accessory. Abuse could even referred to the treatment of CMs from obnoxious or unruly guests, who were angry about being forced to trade it in at D-Street - rare as it is, it does happen unfortunately.

And then there's the sneaky kind of abuse that no one likes to talk about but it's somewhat well known....this is a photo of the selection at Pin Traders. If you take a close look at it, you'll notice something unusual about the wide variety, especially if you're a seasoned park trader, someone who knows what's good or what's the UGLY clearance ones.

via Vinylamtion World

A good majority of the Vinylmations are decent! Older series, cute ones, recognizable characters, MONORAIL CAST CHASERS. Why is this? Every time I've ever traded at Pin Traders the selection was always terrible with the exact same rejects seen everywhere else, even on the last trip there January 24. The truth is, during the peak time Vinylmation was super popular a couple years ago, some CMs savvy enough to know what was valuable or not intentionally pocketed them to resell on eBay as a second paycheck or to help out their friends with finding a select vinyl. This is not allowed but being it's a unwritten rule, these CMs would take every opportunity to snatch the good ones from the trade box and refill with uglier ones.

Now I know this could be controversial but I have sources that confirmed this, one admitting they did it when they worked at Mouse Gear in 2012. So I'll be fair and talk about the sneaky guests that would perform what I call the Two Way. Simply put, one person would ask the CM to 'play'. The second person would stand behind or to the side of the desk and pretend to shop, but unbeknownst to the CM, would signal numbers to the first person so they can choose and pull the nicer vinyls. Over time, the CMs that manned the box would take note of it and would turn around when it happens, calling out the person. Another tactic, though very rare, was simply pulling the lid up from the back of the trade box and either sneaking a peek or blatantly taking out a vinyl and running. I've never seen that latter happen myself (a source saw it happened at Emporium in 2012 which explained how the Emporium CMs later placed it far back from the registers).

3. Plummeted interest = Plummeted quality

This is a no brainer for sure. After all with the changes to Vinylmation, many collectors dropped out, not wanting to bother with the brand again. Most like to pinpoint the mold change as a major reason, the idea that it's 'no longer Mickey Mouse', followed by the increase of prices from $9.95 to $12.95 and the increased LE quantity, intended to have enough to meet the constant demand of consumers at the peak of its popularity. Even though Vinylmation trading always had least favorite vinyls in its trade boxes, there was still a chance at pulling out desirable figures like chasers, variants or that one vinyl everyone wanted to get.

I mentioned earlier in the first theory about how people took the opportunity to buy and trade cheaper outlet vinyls for nicer finds. But as inevitable as it is, something happened. Nothing overnight, but as the years of outlet vinyl trading lagged on, the selection in trade boxes felt...stagnant. The same $4 vinyls were now found in every of the 15 slots and in the clear boxes. It would be pointless at times to wait in a line and take a chance, as you'd know that it'll be the very same vinyls from a series on clearance. And suddenly, the same people who stopped buying the figures also began to stop trading. Now there were still many people like myself who still checked trade boxes and traded. But it seems to me the eagerness to trade disappeared by 2015, where less people would wait and trade like the occasional family or lone wolf, compared to the groups of collectors and families that simultaneously traded in the parks, resort hotels and DTD back then. But of course it means there's still popularity with trading, no matter the decrease of traders, so decline in popularity isn't a good excuse.

via @Attractions

So one strange thought still lingers....why was the decision so sudden?

4. Intentional to observe the impact it'll have

That's right, my final theory proposes that the move was on purpose, the rumors behind why is all pure speculation when the real reason was simply just for experimentation.

First off, as said, it's a sudden decision. This move to stop trading in the parks was quietly announced the same week as the 2015 trade event at EPCOT was announced, almost like a brief afterthought. And as you see through the pictures in this blog post, notice how locations like Pin Traders, Mouse Gears and D-Street are displaying their stock of vinyls in the open? No mystery guessing, just pick and choose. Simple as that. I think this totally should've been how Vinylmation trading was meant to be, just sticking to the 15 clear box or even creating a clear 24 box to choose from. Now if this was at the beginning of the week I would've theorized it was to create an entirely different trade format that would debut later in the year as a surprise. But all of these pictures are from within February 4 and 5. A very short time period. So what's the reason for this theory to make sense?

via Vinylmation Exchange

What if it was to take note of how many of these traders in the final week came to the parks or DTD to trade? To get a final bit of data of all the Vinylmation fans that traded, looked at the merchandise, talked to CMs about it? After all, research is a major part of Walt Disney World in determining overall guest satisfaction, the mindset now, and I like this quote in a Twitter convo, "if it improves the overall guest experience then be open to discussing it". You're asking now, where's the satisfaction in taking away something that was fun? What if research discovered that the people who traded the most were the locals, not out of state tourists? What if the move to cater to the millions of guests that visit the Vacation Kingdom around the world yearly has now expanded to even the more simple things like vinyl trading?

And no that isn't speculation, there has been a shift in the past decade or so to the vacationers that spend 4, 5 figures on a once in a lifetime vacation at WDW - little magical moments, personal experiences with roaming characters, unique merchandise, disappeared in favor of generic quality stuff but the masses that visit once or twice ever would find "magical". Why would they care for vinyl trading? Why when they could be BUYING the little creatures instead? They have money. I've earned $100 bills in the past just looking down in a store. And even then there's other multitudes of merchandise to choose from. Vinylmation is just one of hundreds souvenirs to select, since its inception. It has always been about profit. Now, more than ever, thanks to the franchises like Star Wars and Marvel that Disney is trying to push to get them billions back, And if it means cutting back in the parks in order to increase revenue, so be it.

So the impact that I refer to? Most likely to compare the earnings of Vinylmation sold within the last year, and with these current changes, with the number of these things sold by this time in 2016. This will probably establish a timeline of any increase or decrease of profit and based off the results, will pinpoint a track plan regarding the future of Vinylmation. And this can be compared to past years too, along with sideline comparisons to other 'collectibles' like Tsums Tsums. OR a new collectible line not known at this time... See where I'm going with this? I mean, I've heard rumors since 2013 that Vinylmation won't last a decade. Let's see what will happen with these changes implemented.

~

Wow did I wrote a lot....

Look.

We've seen how Disney has mishandled the brand over the years, through price hikes, oversaturation, hundreds of series that wound up on clearance or at the outlets, and even with new ideas like Park Starz and Eachez, it is clear that the "glory days" of the hobby from 2009-2012 will probably never be attainable again.

But I don't believe this is the end of Vinylmation either.

via Vinylmation World

I firmly believe the rumor is wrong: Vinylmation will continue through the decade. But in the grand scale that was several years ago? Hell no. Not as sought after anymore, But it's still fun to take your chance to chase after what you like, regardless the price tag, like with Eachez. And after being a eyewitness in the hobby for six years (Six. Years.), people probably will never change when it comes to collectibles. There'll always be a supply and demand. There'll be great items and less desirable items. There'll always be a initial interest in new items until the next new item or the next big thing to collect. And most important, people will still buy and collect and keep what they love.

I know that I will be keeping my collection that I believe is 500+ strong, according to Chasing Vinylmation. But I've bought less and traded more. With trading gone, then I shall continue to buy less. Looking is free. And if I really want it, there's always eBay and when the vinyl is out after 2-6 months. However the one impact this has against me now is that I won't be posting Vinylmation selection updates from the parks anymore. If I do it'll be as pictures on Twitter under @VinylPup.

I truly enjoyed Vinylmation trading, Disney. I loved trading vinyls. I always made sure I took some time in each trip just to go trade, even taking multiple trips through the day in case the box was refreshed. I loved meeting other people trading and exchanging vinyls or talking about anything, as well as meeting Cast Members that were also enthusiastic about the hobby. Though half the time I declined a trade because the selection wasn't 100% great, it was the idea to take a chance that was enticing and fun.

I really hope that I'm proven wrong with any of these explanations that I thought up, and that it will return later in 2015, no matter how radically altered it'd be. Until then, I am glad that I was able to trade since June 2010 to February 2015. It really was fun.

RIP Vinylmation Trading.