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Box Lunch - whaaaaaaaat?

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Box Lunch - whaaaaaaaat?
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Briscoefilms

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Sorry guys, been out for a while and reestablishing by Pin footing. Box Lunch pins? What? Are hey official Disney Pins? What’s the deal? I’ve looked through some info and still a bit lost.


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Disney makes pins themselves. Disney also licenses other companies to make merchandise including pins. Some of the licensees from the past were Monogram, Jerry Leigh, I think Applause had some back in the day. Loungefly is a Disney licensee who makes a variety of products including pins. Their products are often sold through Hot Topic and their new sister store Box Lunch.

They are official Disney pins because there is a proper and legal licensing agreement. They don't have the logos on the back of the pin like pins sold at Disney retail outlets do (Disney Store, Parks, etc.) but they are ©Disney and are tradeable (as long as they are metal, and you don't get a CM who doesn't understand the rules).

Another recent licensee is a company called Junk Food who produced a few sets of pins that were sold at Target as part of their new Disney line of merchandise.
 
Here are some pics of Box Lunch pins... they can be really cute.
9e4a27ba325a0c378bd84d0f55f52d96.jpg
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Shelterkat said:
Sadly my Boxlunch store had zero Disney pins when I went May 31. (Brea Mall). They look nice though.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately for us in So Cal, it seems that all our stores suffer from a few folks who call or come in and buy out every single Disney pin that comes in... At my local store the manager there has told me she knows of one woman who does this, and so she tries to put out only so many for when she comes in and saves some aside for regular customers who come asking. But not all the other employees do. They don't mind if someone comes in and buys a couple of each design (I explained to her about trading) but agrees it's no fun if one person just comes in and buys them all out.

PS. Random fun fact, Lounge Fly is owned by Funko!
 
I have also found what I think are licensed pins on EMP which is basically a European hot topic!

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pretty Omi said:
Unfortunately for us in So Cal, it seems that all our stores suffer from a few folks who call or come in and buy out every single Disney pin that comes in... At my local store the manager there has told me she knows of one woman who does this, and so she tries to put out only so many for when she comes in and saves some aside for regular customers who come asking. But not all the other employees do. They don't mind if someone comes in and buys a couple of each design (I explained to her about trading) but agrees it's no fun if one person just comes in and buys them all out.

PS. Random fun fact, Lounge Fly is owned by Funko!
Click to expand...
So that explains why there never are any pins when I go in and ask. I was wondering. If the employees don't mind if someone buys a couple of each design (but not buys out the whole supply), why not just implement limits on how many a person can buy (like Disney does)?
 
If you live close enough to a Hot Topic or Box Lunch, they both have free shipping to stores. So if you find a pin on their website (esp. if you have a coupon code!), you could pick that option (the thought of paying full shipping for just one little pin kills me! :confused: lol). I've been eyeing that new Box Lunch Mulan pin...
11422077_hi
 
I have quite a few box lunch pins up for trade on Pinpics (and I have the recent Dumbo and Aristocat pins... which are not in Pinpics). If anyone is interested in trading.
I routinely check out random box lunches that are not in SoCal, so usually can find multiples of the pins I am looking for.
 
My local Box Lunch only had the Mickey hands heart and a Minnie icon. I've seen others there in the past but their selection now is lacking. It's soCal so the pin pincher must be lurking.
 
dancecats said:
So that explains why there never are any pins when I go in and ask. I was wondering. If the employees don't mind if someone buys a couple of each design (but not buys out the whole supply), why not just implement limits on how many a person can buy (like Disney does)?
Click to expand...

I asked her about this, and they’re not allowed to as employees just enforce a rule, it has to come from corporate. They do impose limits on things like Funko POPs.
 
pretty Omi said:
Unfortunately for us in So Cal, it seems that all our stores suffer from a few folks who call or come in and buy out every single Disney pin that comes in... At my local store the manager there has told me she knows of one woman who does this, and so she tries to put out only so many for when she comes in and saves some aside for regular customers who come asking. But not all the other employees do. They don't mind if someone comes in and buys a couple of each design (I explained to her about trading) but agrees it's no fun if one person just comes in and buys them all out.

PS. Random fun fact, Lounge Fly is owned by Funko!
Click to expand...
Is it you ? :p
 
LadyBarclay said:
If you live close enough to a Hot Topic or Box Lunch, they both have free shipping to stores. So if you find a pin on their website (esp. if you have a coupon code!), you could pick that option (the thought of paying full shipping for just one little pin kills me! :confused: lol). I've been eyeing that new Box Lunch Mulan pin...
11422077_hi
Click to expand...
lol that is Mulan. They have it in the Moana section at my local store
 
If your local store is like mine you might want to check every Disney character section. The stuff is all mixed up also mine has a pin jar by the register as well
 
Are the box lunch pins of a different quality that traditional Disney pins. They seem to have a decent variety, but if they are of equal quality why wouldn't Disney release them in the standard way?
 
Jack Skellington said:
Are the box lunch pins of a different quality that traditional Disney pins. They seem to have a decent variety, but if they are of equal quality why wouldn't Disney release them in the standard way?
Click to expand...

What is the "standard way?" Disney licenses tons of merchandise that isn't sold via the parks or Disney Store. Pins are no different. It's all part of the Disney carpet-bombing consumer products strategy. Main Disney considers a lot of their smaller movie franchises "not worth the effort." It's not enough to simply make a profit selling something. They have to believe it will make a bazillion dollars so that's why you see them focusing on their main franchises (Princesses, Star Wars, Marvel, etc.). But a smaller place like Box Lunch can meet THEIR profit goals by selling Hercules stuff in a way that Disney will never be able to, and Disney is more than happy to let them shoulder the burden, while they take their slice of profit on the licensing agreement.

That said, the pins are made using different processes than what is used on park pins. They remind me of how Disney pins used to be in the 80s and 90s. For some people this is no big deal, for some people it's a deal breaker.
 
Jack Skellington said:
Are the box lunch pins of a different quality that traditional Disney pins. They seem to have a decent variety, but if they are of equal quality why wouldn't Disney release them in the standard way?
Click to expand...
Disney uses pins to boost their different business models in all sorts of ways... so not sure about a standard.

The hot topic/box lunch/loungefly pins are just different than what you might buy elsewhere... they definitely have a different look to them. Quality issues can present in many ways... I have see some really awful quality in park pins (take the issues with those new Star Wars helments with the black paint pealing off) and DSSH pins (dips and scratches). Perhaps style is a better way to separate these pins from other Disney pins? The style levels between park pins, DSSH, WDI, DS, etc. varies greatly.

In general LF pins are quite adorable, but a collector would need to decide if LF pins are right for their collection. I personally like the Skeleton Stitch released last year for Halloween. And the Mickey Halloween 3 pin set (w/ minnie and goofy) is also one of my favorites, with nice detail. The Cri-kee pins they have come out with are super cute too and I cannot wait to see the Mushu with wings pin in person.
 
Jack Skellington said:
Are the box lunch pins of a different quality that traditional Disney pins. They seem to have a decent variety, but if they are of equal quality why wouldn't Disney release them in the standard way?
Click to expand...
They are not considered "Official Disney Pin Trading" pins, they don't have the Mickey waffle on the back, and they don't have the Pin Trading logo on the back.
They ARE licensed Disney pins, distributed by Lounge Fly (which is now owned by Funko), and since they have a (c) Disney on the back, they can be traded to lanyards on the parks. Most of them are enamel, but tend to have that smooth epoxy coat on top. Some of them however are true enamel without the epoxy coat, more similar in quality to the pins found at the parks. Overall, the pins they release are slightly smaller than your typical rack pin, and the multiple pin sets can usually be considered mini pins.

The price point is also attractive, not to mention the range of characters that can be found so far. The 3 pin sets usually go for $16, and the cheapest ones are around $5. If you can drive to a store (which more seem to be popping up across the country regularly) they usually have an in store deal (usually anything under $10 is buy 2, get a 3rd free), or the online store seems to be pretty good about getting them in, and they usually have some sort of discount, or even the option to ship to your local store for pickup for cheaper than direct shipping to your home.
 
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