Toy Hunters: Do you call stores to find toys you're after?

[1AZRAEL1]

I lol'd at that comic. I seriously read that ninja like some kind of karate master

But I tend to agree, I don't call because they hardly know what they have in front of them. I like to hunt myself, even though the last few months have been dissapointing.

[jaydisc]

1. Don't call.
2. If you must, have the store's native product code. Then you don't need a toy specialist.

[ITZTRU]

I guess it's different when the item you're looking for is on sale. (And a good sale at that)

The money you spend on petrol driving around looking for the toys on sale could more than make up what you would have spent if you bought the toy full price anyway.

New or rare toys would be a different story and obviously the kind of situation the majority of you are relating to.

The hunt is fun though. So those of you in Melbourne looking for toys like Generations Wreck-Gar, Perceptor - come to South East. You're hunt will be over

[griffin]

Kmart seemed to be pretty good, when I rang around for any remaining Op/Jetfire 2-packs at the start of the year. Since the kmart near me has a toys 'manager', I'm assuming kmarts at least have dedicated people who have a better idea of what you are asking for (because they probably specifically order in the stuff themselves).
But I think if they talk to you while in the toy section, you can get them to verify words on the packaging, and mention if it is a boxed or a carded figure you are after, and/or its price. In my case, I was telling them it was a huge box with 2 figures called Optimus and Jetfire, for about $100. It took four stores, but I was able to get the person to describe details that verified that they actually had it.

Maybe it's easier for one-off items like that exclusive 2-pack though, as a general release item in a common size class might be trickier to get them to identify... especially if the toy you want is something like a Bumblebee or Optimus.

[GoktimusPrime]

Japanese department store staff are the best. They can tell you the exact time of when the next shipment of Transformers toys are coming in! I remember the first time I asked -- it was at a Daimaru or Itoyakado (most of my Japanese TFs are from those stores)... and she just said something like, "This Sunday 12:00." I was like, holy cow... I would've just been happy with the day! And she didn't even have to look it up, she spent like a few seconds to think about it, then answered me straight off the bat.

[Seraphim Prime]

I have rung stores before. Not very frequently, but I have done it (particularly when I was at school and my ability to go to different shops was limited). When i got my car/started working at Target it was easier to drive around, and the phone calls were reduced.

Like Griffin said, if they've got a cordless phone on them, they can walk around and describe a product to you. I've never really had any problems with ringing, though that is probably because I've been fairly exact, and progressive in my details.

Not: Do you have deluxe Tracks?

Instead: I was wondering if you had a particular Transformers figure. It's a Deluxe figure, in the yellow packaging. It's name is Turbo Tracks. It should be a blue sports car.

The bits in bold are the individual identifiers, and can of course be changed depending on what figure you're looking for. By guiding them through, you often get a better result. It's their job to work the toy department, but that doesn't mean that they are going to learn the names and basic qualities of every toy that they stock.

I work in the games/movie department of my local Target. Doesn't mean I've watched every movie or played every game that we stock.

[5FDP]

I work in the games/movie department of my local Target. Doesn't mean I've watched every movie or played every game that we stock.

I see the point you are trying to make, but I'm sure if someone were to ask you if you sold a particular movie surely you'd be able to tell them if it was in stock. If not, it's no wonder that consumers are taking their business online.

No one can expect you to describe the plot-line of a movie much in the same way I wouldn't expect store staff to describe to me how to transform a Transformer, but they should be able to tell you if they have the one you are after if mentioned by name. If they can't, you can only assume that they can't read or can't be bothered looking.

[Seraphim Prime]

I see the point you are trying to make, but I'm sure if someone were to ask you if you sold a particular movie surely you'd be able to tell them if it was in stock. If not, it's no wonder that consumers are taking their business online.

No one can expect you to describe the plot-line of a movie much in the same way I wouldn't expect store staff to describe to me how to transform a Transformer, but they should be able to tell you if they have the one you are after if mentioned by name. If they can't, you can only assume that they can't read or can't be bothered looking.

I see your point, but let me clarify. I was more equating it to the idea that I know the movie titles like they know toy lines, but probably wouldn't off the top of my head tell you the individual actors in it. In a similar way, the toy staff might know they have Transformers/Beyblades/Ben 10 toys, but may not know the individual figure by name the way that we would.

Do you know the name of all the Ben10 aliens? Probably not, but a 10 year old fan does. In the same way, we may know the TFs by name, but the assistant (unless a TF fan themselves) probably won't, which is why you generally need to provide a bit of hand-holding.

[GoktimusPrime]

I was more equating it to the idea that I know the movie titles like they know toy lines, but probably wouldn't off the top of my head tell you the individual actors in it. In a similar way, the toy staff might know they have Transformers/Beyblades/Ben 10 toys, but may not know the individual figure by name the way that we would.

I tend to agree with 5FDP here. If you tell them the name of the toy line and the name of the individual figure, it's not that hard to go look for it. Obviously the more information you can give the better... but one would imagine that the name of the product line and the actual product itself would suffice...

Do you know the name of all the Ben10 aliens? Probably not, but a 10 year old fan does. In the same way, we may know the TFs by name, but the assistant (unless a TF fan themselves) probably won't, which is why you generally need to provide a bit of hand-holding.

I wouldn't know, but let's say someone asked me to buy a Ben 10 toy for their kid, and he wanted the Ben 10 Alien Force Ripjaws & Ghostfreak set, I would simply look for a set matching this description and get it. Unless there's several different sets fitting this same description, it shouldn't be hard.

How many different toys would be called "Transformers Reveal The Shield Turbo Tracks"?

[Thanatos]

You guys are missing the simple fact that most people who work for Kmart are now younger than me (aging between 14 and 19), and let's be honest, they're casual and they just don't care if they have it in stock. A phone call is simply an inconvenience to their slacking off. It's not the way it should be, it's the way it is.

I would only bother calling if it's a toy store - ie. Toyworld or Toys R Us. They aren't much better, but at least they have no excuse for not knowing a product they hold since they're all toys not like Kmart which is "general".

Suffice it to say, I don't bother calling.