Green Machine vs. Banished Marauder

[Magnus913]

From what I have seen on Reddit.


There was several dozen box sets at flea markets in Mexico, and Amazon not even a week ago just got a small handful.


My best guess, besides assuming scalpers shipments got lost and product didnt get sent to the right companies, why the one company that I wont name is the only one with series 10th anniv blind bags and charging them with 8.99 shipping.

Only takes 1 greedy gus to "requisition" shipment boxes, but this is all theory. And to continue with this, I assume along with the distribution problems aside, it is probobly why smaller sets like the Heroes line have been a focus instead of larger scale sets. I only assume because I have worked retail, some of which didn't even put cameras in the stock room.


Baseline is, no one is perfect, people arent the nicest. But hey. I raise my wine glass for all the hard effort and detail done with the Halo franchise in general. Then there is the sensitivity of the Call of Duty line, Guys arent having the best of luck but you still push on and I can respect that.

[charliebucket]

Thanks for the update. Hopefully this means I can buy the sets in New Zealand!

[Rogue-Elite]

Thanks for the update. Hopefully this means I can buy the sets in New Zealand!

if all else fails at least you have the greatest tank ever made the bob Semple Tank

[MichaelSlayder]

As a long time Mega Bloks/ Mega Construx fan I’m glad that Mega is being upfront and honest with their fans and I really hope that they can find a way to improve their distribution so we can get more of their amazin products but like another user previously mentioned currently a big threat for their current distribution state is scalpers taking away sets and heroes packs from people and reselling them at a higher price from the original so people have no option than pay upfront 30$ for one single figurine, it’s ridiculous and there needs to be something done to avoid this. I remember there was an idea for Mega to create an online store so they can distribute things digitally to those who want to buy it and possibly put restrictions on how many things you can buy at once to deal with scalpers but I haven’t heard information about that or know if that’s a viable solution for them. Either way I will continue to be positive and try to support them in anyway shape or form because I don’t want to see such great talented people go away anytime soon

[charliebucket]

I'm mildly disappointed in myself that I had to look up what that was...

[GreenSpartan082]

I prefer the Abrams myself.

[Hicks_Royel]

OK, this is as good a place as any to post this.

First, yes, our distribution sucks. We are aware. We are working on it. It's going to get better.

About the Banished Marauder, that one especially hurt. Our design team does such an amazing job with our toys and the fact that there are people out there who want to buy them and can't access them is extremely frustrating. I know a lot of you are angry or upset, but let me tell you - no one is more upset than we are! We don't just make toys for fun, so we can post pictures online and then not sell them. We're actually trying to run a business here!

So yeah. That was a bad situation. I'm working with our production team and our global brand team to find out what happened. We want to be transparent with you, but I need to check what we can share. (Welcome to the wonderful world of corporate communications.)

Stay tuned. I'm going to post more info about this specific situation but also about our overall distribution challenges and what we're doing to address them. We heard the feedback - loud and clear.

Thanks for your patience.

Thank you.

Please understand that this is the single best option for fans to provide feedback. Mattel's "contact us" methods are [I suspect, intentionally] terrible for everything. Especially complaints.

When we complain here, it's because we don't have a better way of making our opinions heard directly at the company who should be hearing them.

Anything you can do to pass along our frustrations to those who should be hearing them is appreciated.

In this regard, your products are at an all time high but what good is that if we can't buy them?

It would be different if the Marauder set was the first example of this type but the Tenth Anniversary Halo Heroes wave, the MC heroes wave five, the Builder's Forge, Halo Heroes series five... there's an ongoing trend of things just not happening.

[JoanEstradaCollector]

I really enjoy these products, all of megaconstrux is awesome... tnx for the post and speak about the distribution.... hugs from México... We wait for it... all of the sets...!!!!

[TheSSMotionTom]

OK, this is as good a place as any to post this.

First, yes, our distribution sucks. We are aware. We are working on it. It's going to get better.

About the Banished Marauder, that one especially hurt. Our design team does such an amazing job with our toys and the fact that there are people out there who want to buy them and can't access them is extremely frustrating. I know a lot of you are angry or upset, but let me tell you - no one is more upset than we are! We don't just make toys for fun, so we can post pictures online and then not sell them. We're actually trying to run a business here!

So yeah. That was a bad situation. I'm working with our production team and our global brand team to find out what happened. We want to be transparent with you, but I need to check what we can share. (Welcome to the wonderful world of corporate communications.)

Stay tuned. I'm going to post more info about this specific situation but also about our overall distribution challenges and what we're doing to address them. We heard the feedback - loud and clear.

Thanks for your patience.

Yan, thank you so much for finally giving us a direct address towards the problem. It's been rough as for about four years or so it felt as if the problem was being ignored all together, so it is really reassuring to see you actively acknowledging and addressing the issue!

For the UK, am I right in assuming Online Stores may be the more likely solution in terms of both international shipping and store space? The only real toy-shop here now TRU has faded is Smyths. I know they carried Mega Bloks and MANY exclusives back in the day, but not sure if that is re-attainable right now.

Always down for supporting with getting product to market in the UK if there is anything I can do to assist.

[Armageist]

From what I have seen on Reddit.


There was several dozen box sets at flea markets in Mexico, and Amazon not even a week ago just got a small handful.


My best guess, besides assuming scalpers shipments got lost and product didnt get sent to the right companies, why the one company that I wont name is the only one with series 10th anniv blind bags and charging them with 8.99 shipping.

Only takes 1 greedy gus to "requisition" shipment boxes, but this is all theory. And to continue with this, I assume along with the distribution problems aside, it is probobly why smaller sets like the Heroes line have been a focus instead of larger scale sets. I only assume because I have worked retail, some of which didn't even put cameras in the stock room.


Baseline is, no one is perfect, people arent the nicest. But hey. I raise my wine glass for all the hard effort and detail done with the Halo franchise in general. Then there is the sensitivity of the Call of Duty line, Guys arent having the best of luck but you still push on and I can respect that.

Your theory of insider inventory "requisition" is incredibly specific, which worries me including your ponderings on the ethics of "people that aren't nice".

In any case, the problem with your theory; as alarming as it may be to me about you, is that the Banished Marauder isn't just readily available in Flea Markets, its readily available at Walmart Mexico. Right on their website. The Banished Turret and UNSC Radar Towers are readily available on Walmart Canada.

Now try to look for them on Walmart USA, let a lone in any physical Walmart. Amazon, online retailer of EVERYTHING, can't even find stock to sell with their "currently unavailable" or "will ship in 1-2 months" aka "we'll notify you in 6 months that your order has been canceled because there never was any stock to sell".

You can't even find them on ebay (unless they're sourced from Canada), which tells you even the scalpers couldn't get them.

That means they weren't DISTRIBUTED here, unless it was some hole in the wall store or mom & pop store. Not mass retail.

And when they were, National retail like Walmart decides to evidently ship whole stock of specific sets to specific countries (Marauder to Mexico, Turret/Radar to Canada)

That has ZERO to do with scalpers. It's pretty clear TRU was the biggest purchaser and supporter of MCx and Mattel, and that is a primary reason for distribution woes from that monumental collapse.

Walmart and Target would be the next national retailers (w/physical stores excluding Amazon), but the shelf space has gone from half an isle wall down to nothing within the last 3 years regardless if TRU. Walmart still attempts to at least sale online. You can purchase sets just as easily as Amazon. Target, not so much.

But I think we know people purchase online 80% of the time from Amazon, and look to Target and Walmart for physical. So these stores don't sell product online, and choose to carry less. And they evidently couldn't sell in store, and so carry less in store.

If the product was selling or in demand, you'd think both would be clawing at the chance to fill the Vacuum of TRU. But that's not happening. They have been SHRINKING, not growing stock.

This looks like two separate but interwoven issues.

1. MCx isn't selling at stores, so the stores are purchasing less. Stores such as Gamestop carry less and less product and are now usually online only because product goes to clearance because no one buys it.

2. The stores that do still purchase stock/have contracts(?) are regional stores like Mejiers, Dollar General, Kroger, Ollie's, etc., where the people that live on the other side of the country from these regional retailers can't get their hands on them.

I'm not knowledgeable on this inventory ins and outs, so whether this is more 1 than 2 or vice versa or both is insider corporate info, and I can completely understand why MEGA nor Mattel would want to disclose such info nor should they have to. Nobody wants to tell their customers their Company is bleeding to death as less and less national retailers choose to carry their product/inventory.

If the company is hemorrhaging, than ironically enough, scalpers are actually HELPING keeping this company a live by purchasing mass quantities of their product that would normally collect dust until it's clearanced or sold at a dollar discount like Ross, as sick as that sounds.

This is also why scalpers ARE NOT the problem. They're a byproduct, or a symptom, but not the cause or sickness.

Stores will order more product if its selling out (by scalpers or by customers). But only if there's something to order. If there's no product to carry from their distribution centers (because a store isn't purchasing due to sales or it's not available due to distribution), then there's nothing for a scalper to purchase in the first place.

And this problem plagues more than just MCx.

Why are Boomco guns sold no where other than TRU (now gone) and Amazon? Why did the M5 ODST Helljumper Assault Rifle have a label at TRU right before they shut down but never sold there and only seen on Amazon (now gone)? Why was the Boomco M6C SOCOM never sold ANYWHERE other than Mexico? Amazon had a listing but never got stock. Sound familiar?

Why were the Mattel 6 inch Halo figures wave 1.5 and 2 never readily available? The ODST can only be found on ebay going for $80. I have never seen any of them in a store, but definitely on ebay/amazon, which means thrift stores and regional stores got them, not national retail. But is this because they couldn't? Or because wave 1 didn't sell so Walmart/Target didn't bother to carry any more, if at all?

It's sad to see what's happening unfold. But this is a larger and more deeply rooted issue that either deals with Mattel and distribution, and/or the desirability/profitability of the Halo/MCx lines and brands for stores not to readily stock a full isle of the product...

I don't know what the answer is, but I hope Mattel/MCx find a solution that ensures their profitability and bolsters their product lines and distribution while ensuring the customers that want their products have the opportunity to purchase them from somewhere accessible locally or online.