Since our interview with Barnes and Noble for their event went so well, Funko Trading administrator Lauren Britton sat down for her second interview! This time with a Hot Topic District Manager to answer questions about their upcoming SDCC Pop Vinyl Exclusives!
Onto the questions!
Lauren: So we have heard so many rumors about which SDCC exclusives Hot Topic will carry for 2014, can you confirm these for me?
DM: We are getting: Anna from Frozen, Walking Dead Headless Hershel, Flocked Rocket Raccoon, Olaf from Frozen, Bloody Buffy as well as Dragonball-Z Goku who didn’t actually make it to SDCC and Rey Mysterio, who is already in some stores!
Lauren: So there is NO Elsa coming to Hot Topic?
DM: Not to my knowledge, I believe Barnes and Noble received Elsa, so there is probably not enough to give us Elsa availability also.
Lauren: Rumor has it that these will be online at Hot Topic before they will be available in stores, is this true?
DM: I don’t know if they will ever make it online, but if they did, it would be after they start arriving in stores and it would be very limited availability.
Lauren: The Pop! community seems to have a problem with people picking up all the exclusives, I heard Hot Topic may make strides to stop that, do you have a comment?
DM: We have tried to stop people from buying all of the limited merchandise, the problem is, certain stores do not follow the protocol. We are trying to find ways to keep the exclusives in the hands of collectors though, some stores will be placing limits on the number of exclusives a person can buy.
Lauren: Will the limits be 1 of each pop person? We had problems with some Barnes and Noble limiting to 1 exclusive per person, not one Pop!
DM: The limit, for the stores that follow instructions, will be 1 exclusive Pop! per person per day.
Lauren: Do you have any idea when these SDCC exclusives will start showing up in stores?
DM: I don’t know for certain, there’s no real way to predict when we will receive them. The answer is, soon. We should start seeing them late this coming week or early the following week.
Lauren: Some Hot Topics seem to get a lot more of the exclusives then others, will this be true of SDCC exclusives?
DM: Yes, this will continue to hold true for SDCC exclusives. Unfortunately, we don’t get enough to give an equal number to all stores, and from a business standpoint, we send more exclusive Pops to the stores that sell them better.
Lauren: What about employees? Will they be able to scoop up all the exclusives?
DM: This is not true in all districts, but in our district, employees have to wait 14 days for exclusive items before they can use their employee discount. That is not to say, they can’t hand it to someone and have them pay. If they get caught being an employee of Hot Topic and trying to resell product on ebay, or in your group, they can be reprimanded by the company.
Lauren: Since I already started bending your ear, can we talk about upcoming Hot Topic exclusives?
DM: Of course we can.
Lauren: I hear there is a Flocked Simba coming, is he actually coming?
DM: Yes, actually, he is coming. We have a really good lineup of exclusive pops on the way. Simba is upcoming quickly, he should start showing up within the next 2 weeks. I can’t really give anything else away right now, but keep an eye on your local store, there are many exclusives in the works that will be hitting stores within the next 3-4 weeks.
Lauren: There are going to be people that insist their stores know nothing of the SDCC exclusives, why is that?
DM: Some stores don’t pay attention to their emails, honestly. Some stores fear they won’t get them either, so they push their customers to believe it may not happen (Which they shouldn’t). I can assure you, they are coming.
Lauren: SDCC Anna is selling like a hotcake on ebay right now, do you have an opinion on that?
DM: We WILL get Anna, so if people hold tight, they should be able to snag her at their local store! If you’re worried about a store not getting enough, ask the store manager if they know where they fall in the rankings of their Hot Topic region in terms of sales of collectibles. The stores that rank higher, will get more exclusives.
Lauren: Do you know prices of the exclusives?
DM: I actually don’t. I believe they will be our standard $12.50 but they may be as much as $15. I am also not sure if our B1G1 40% deal will apply. That is one question, I’m not sure what the answer is.
Lauren: Thank you, I really appreciate the answers!
DM: Hopefully we’ll see some readers in our stores to take advantage of these offers!