The Papo Limited Spinosaurus has finally been retired!

[Carnoking]

Forgot they made a juvenile Spinosaurus. I guess now is the time to buy!

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Isn't artificial scarcity the entire business model of Rebor and Nanmu? I'd say the same for Mattel's SDCC exclusives, for example.

I'm not sure we know enough to say if it's artificial scarcity or real scarcity. If they are truly limited and numbered then it would be real. If a company says they are limited but keeps making them like Papo here then that would be artificial. Limited edition is just a name in that case.

[Halichoeres]

Maybe we're construing the term differently. The way I see it, an item can be artificially scarce even if it it is genuinely scarce, if that scarcity is engineered and unnecessary. If a company is making things in limited numbers to create urgency among their customer base, that's still artificial. It's the Beanie Babies playbook.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Maybe we're construing the term differently. The way I see it, an item can be artificially scarce even if it it is genuinely scarce, if that scarcity is engineered and unnecessary. If a company is making things in limited numbers to create urgency among their customer base, that's still artificial. It's the Beanie Babies playbook.

Yeah I'm having a hard time seeing that reasoning I guess? Most of the big companies that produce high end collectibles state at the start that they are making limited edition pieces. If those sell out and in a year become hard to find that seems real scarcity as they were bought up.  Now if one person bought most of them to create an artificial scarcity in order to raise prices that makes sense.   I suppose if a toy company produced figures for .10 in the 1930s and over time they have become very hard to find and now worth 100s that could be considered a genuine scarcity.  Maybe the terminology is at fault?  You could have a Manufactured Scarcity and a Natural Scarcity?    Having hard to find items does increase collecting though, the hunt is usually more fun than the having. Impossible to find pieces now that can destroy a collector market.

[Halichoeres]

Well, collectors didn't invent the term artificial scarcity, it's borrowed from economics. In that context it can definitely mean making something in limited quantities to spur demand. I think that matches a lot of companies that specifically target collectors, from Lego to McFarlane to Nanmu. Natural scarcity would be something long-discontinued (Battat Diplodocus, Chialu figures) or something that is inherently hard to make in quantity because of material scarcity. The latter doesn't really apply to toys, so there is no intrinsic reason that a new release should ever be scarce. When new toys are scarce it's because companies are exploiting our psychology to make us spend more money. This is why I'll always prefer companies that just make good products without trying to make every new release feel like an urgent emergency. But my enjoyment of collecting has pretty much nothing to do with the hunt; I just want to have cool things on my shelf and if anything I'd rather they be common and accessible.

[GojiraGuy1954]

I wonder if this means we'll be seeing the second Limited Edition model in 2024, or later in 2023

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

I wonder if this means we'll be seeing the second Limited Edition model in 2024, or later in 2023

I wouldn't hold my breath. As I recall they were also more expensive to ship with some stores offering to ship it without the box to help with that price. So it doesn't seem like a great plan all around for them.   This was basically the largest Papo dino made though..perhaps right along with the Brachiosaurus but that's mostly all neck.

[DragonRider02]

I have this little pamphlet from last year, featuring some Papo figures that some figurine stores include with orders. The Spinosaurus is in it, but it's not labeled as Limited Edition, or highlighted in any way. It's treated as regular product.
This, and the fact I see it 'shelfwarming' in some online stores here, and how long it actually took them to retire this 'limited' product gave me impression that the whole 'Limited Edition' thing didn't work out for Papo in way they have hoped it would. That's why we haven't seen any more 'Limited' dinos (anyone remembers the rumor, from many years ago, of the second Limited figure being Dreadnoughtus?).

Also, whoever was in charge of translating the names to Polish for this pamphlet probably didn't know how binomial nomenclature worked and literally translated 'aegyptiacus' to 'egyptian'. Now many kids who saw online listings for this figure probably think there were 'two verions' of Spinosaurus, one 'regular' that looked like one from JP, and second 'egyptian' species, that had fish tail, short legs and diffrently shaped sail...

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

I think I recall something about a Dreadnoughtus? Can't recall if it was just a rumor or fan discussion though.

Did this figure poor paint apps later like with other Papo products?

[Lynx]

I think I recall something about a Dreadnoughtus? Can't recall if it was just a rumor or fan discussion though.

Did this figure poor paint apps later like with other Papo products?

I got it three or so months before it retired. From what I can tell, the paint quality was pretty much the same the entire run.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

I think I recall something about a Dreadnoughtus? Can't recall if it was just a rumor or fan discussion though.

Did this figure poor paint apps later like with other Papo products?

I got it three or so months before it retired. From what I can tell, the paint quality was pretty much the same the entire run.

That's good to know. If I ever sell mine it will probably just go loose to the shop.

[Fembrogon]

As I recall they were also more expensive to ship with some stores offering to ship it without the box to help with that price. So it doesn't seem like a great plan all around for them.

Papo definitely made mistakes in their packaging decisions; I can understand them wanting to embellish this release a little more, but the box they used was noticeably larger than the figure, so there was a lot of wasted space. I'm not surprised that decision backfired on them.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

As I recall they were also more expensive to ship with some stores offering to ship it without the box to help with that price. So it doesn't seem like a great plan all around for them.

Papo definitely made mistakes in their packaging decisions; I can understand them wanting to embellish this release a little more, but the box they used was noticeably larger than the figure, so there was a lot of wasted space. I'm not surprised that decision backfired on them.

Oh for sure. I mean up til them all their figures were just bagged I think? It was an experiment I guess, but it really needed more research and forethought put into it.

[Fembrogon]

It's certainly not the first time I've seen a company overcompensate with boxing space; even PNSO could probably reduce most of their boxes by 10% and still keep the models inside thoroughly protected.
Sometimes I wonder if companies are just looking for excuses to validate the high prices of their products.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

It's certainly not the first time I've seen a company overcompensate with boxing space; even PNSO could probably reduce most of their boxes by 10% and still keep the models inside thoroughly protected.
Sometimes I wonder if companies are just looking for excuses to validate the high prices of their products.

Maybe a bit they could, but PNSO are more model than toy to me. The paint at least seems quite susceptible to injury.

[Carnoking]

Well, I said I'd do it and here it is! Retire away, Papo.

[Lynx]

Is this figure still available? Gonna snatch it today before it's gone

[SidB]

Is this figure still available? Gonna snatch it today before it's gone

Go figure - I have one and I'd quite forgotten that I even have it! It's been sitting at the bottom of my Papo box for years in storage, along with the others that are no longer sufficiently current to be worthwhile for me to display.

[dragon53]

LYNX:

Amazon has it for $49.11.

LINK: https://www.amazon.com/Papo-Hand-Painted-Spinosaurus-Aegyptiacus-Collectible/dp/B07NW7QZ2Q/ref=sr_1_3?crid=2H3Z4XVT8P0E5&keywords=papo+spinosaurus&qid=1674947565&sprefix=papo+spinosaurus%2Caps%2C253&sr=8-3