Help Please - Limited Edition Dolls, When to Buy?

[Neferi]

Hello all! I'm new to this forum and new to Disney LE dolls.

So new that I sadly missed both Elsa dolls (the most recent one by a week!). So unfortunately I must resort to Ebay and similar sites to find them, but I had a question that I was hoping someone could help me with.

When is the best time to buy limited edition dolls? (assuming you're unable to buy them for the original sale price, of course)

Obviously the fewer the dolls, the more expensive they are, but it seems like the Frozen dolls are much more expensive than you would expect given their number. Is that just because they're new? Would you expect the prices to go down after some time? Or would you expect them to stay much higher than other dolls due to popularity? Do you think the current prices (~$1000 for Snow Queen Elsa and ~$400 for Coronation Elsa on Ebay) will remain relatively stable? I know the newest LE dolls have only been pre-ordered. Would you expect the price to drop once they have been delivered? Or since they're coming out the same time as the movie, will there be a spike in popularity causing the price to go up again?

Any help in figuring out the limited edition doll market, particularly Elsa, would be greatly appreciated.

And I'll definitely be watching for upcoming LE dolls much more closely now that I'm aware of them! Don't want to go through this again!

 

[Matthewlondon]

I'm sure someone else will be able to give you a more detailed answer, but I don't think the Snow Queen Elsa will come down in price, due to her being in the iconic outfit and how popular she is. Not only that even in a few years if she isn't as popular she will still be a very pretty doll. 2500 is a low number for a popular character look at all the other princess's they are usually limited to 5000 and still fetch good money I.e Tiana, Belle, blonde Rapunzel, Snow so I don't see Elsa coming down in price.
The coronation Elsa will be worth something similar to Tiana or belle maybe? So still expensive but not as expensive as the Sq Elsa .

I think the best time to buy them is obviously when they first come out but if you miss them I find prices in the spring are lower than they are in the fall. Although last year I got some good deals online in December!

I wouldn't expect the price to drop once the new Frozen dolls are released, it will probably increase.

I think the popularity is down to frozen being such a huge success, the lower edition size of the first set and they are much prettier than recent LE dolls. I think Sq Elsa will just go up in price like Snow whites has.
Anna I'm unsure with as she doesn't seem as popular as Elsa, but they form a set so many people will still get her.

I think from now on most of the LE dolls will sell out faster than usual.

 

[RoxyHime]

Honestly you never know, keep searching and maybe wait a little. Today she really is pricey if you look at eBay or Amazon, but that depends also on who is selling the doll.

I just saw that someone here on DPF just grabbed the LE Alice doll around the 200 us dollar, and that doll is really expensive now days, Alice have even lower edition number 1 of 500, Elsa has 1 of 2 500.
Don't say that you never can get this LE Elsa doll in her iconic version,there will always be a chance at getting her. ^^

 

[Matthewlondon]

I hope that's true, and that I can get Snow White eventually. Yes their maybe a chance you will get anyone of the dolls on a good deal, just keep looking. But it was a rare and lucky find with regarding Alice. But best of luck

 

[starry_solo]

I actually expect Snow Queen Elsa and Coronation Anna to go down in price, obviously not soon, but in the next few years or so.

If you have any friends in Europe that can order the Coronation Elsa and Snow Anna (that don't want it themselves), you might consider going that route (although it's kind of pricier over there than it is here).

 

[Maleficent913]

I actually expect Snow Queen Elsa and Coronation Anna to go down in price, obviously not soon, but in the next few years or so.

If you have any friends in Europe that can order the Coronation Elsa and Snow Anna (that don't want it themselves), you might consider going that route (although it's kind of pricier over there than it is here).

Are they still available in Europe?? I missed the newer set, and I'd be totally willing to fork out the money to ship them as long as I'm not paying $600 for a set like on eBay.

 

[katelouise]

Are they still available in Europe?? I missed the newer set, and I'd be totally willing to fork out the money to ship them as long as I'm not paying $600 for a set like on eBay.

There was no pre-order for Europe so on the 18th (I believe) they will go on sale, can't remember their allocation of the edition though, I think it might be 500?

 

[Polaris]

Are they still available in Europe?? I missed the newer set, and I'd be totally willing to fork out the money to ship them as long as I'm not paying $600 for a set like on eBay.

There was no pre-order for Europe so on the 18th (I believe) they will go on sale, can't remember their allocation of the edition though, I think it might be 500?

That is right what Katelouise said the UK will only be getting an allocation of 500 of each doll so not that much when compared to the US as it is only 10% of the total stock released.

Also you can only order from the UK if you have a UK/Euro address as they only deliver within the Euros.

 

[Maleficent913]

Ok I'm totally excited... my friends in England are coming out at the end of March, I'm going to ask them to get them for me and bring them when they come! That way no worry about shipping, just pack em up on the plane! Omg I really hope this works.

 

[Polaris]

Ok I'm totally excited... my friends in England are coming out at the end of March, I'm going to ask them to get them for me and bring them when they come! That way no worry about shipping, just pack em up on the plane! Omg I really hope this works.

Just make sure that they are aware that it is only one per person per household which means that as soon as they order one of each doll they will not be able to order another as Disney Store UK will cancel any additional orders made to the same address.

 

[milaya]

Are they still available in Europe?? I missed the newer set, and I'd be totally willing to fork out the money to ship them as long as I'm not paying $600 for a set like on eBay.

Due to the dolls being more expensive on the European market, plus expensive shipping, you could expect to pay around 400 USD for the set - if you find someone who will order them. At least I know the Danish price is around 300 dollars for the set - not 200 dollars like in the US.

Also it's not just the UK which gets 500 - it's whole Europe, so I expect them to sell out extremely fast. The Fairies (meaning Tinkerbell) didn't last long, and there was 1000 of Tinkerbell and she's less popular than the Frozen sisters.

 

[milaya]

Honestly you never know, keep searching and maybe wait a little. Today she really is pricey if you look at eBay or Amazon, but that depends also on who is selling the doll.

I just saw that someone here on DPF just grabbed the LE Alice doll around the 200 us dollar, and that doll is really expensive now days, Alice have even lower edition number 1 of 500, Elsa has 1 of 2 500.
Don't say that you never can get this LE Elsa doll in her iconic version,there will always be a chance at getting her. ^^

Yeah... that was me and like Matthewlondon says, it was a really rare find - in Japan, meaning a chance not available to many. I don't expect to ever be that lucky again.

 

[Polaris]

Due to the dolls being more expensive on the European market, plus expensive shipping, you could expect to pay around 400 USD for the set - if you find someone who will order them. At least I know the Danish price is around 300 dollars for the set - not 200 dollars like in the US.

Also it's not just the UK which gets 500 - it's whole Europe, so I expect them to sell out extremely fast. The Fairies (meaning Tinkerbell) didn't last long, and there was 1000 of Tinkerbell and she's less popular than the Frozen sisters.

Not actually correct with the current exchange rate the dolls actually work out to be relatively similar in cost in the US and the UK. They are priced at £60 per doll which is about $100 USD. Also the US prices do not reflect the tax whereas the UK store does so the price you are paying ie £60 is what you will pay as tax is inclusive. In the US the dolls will generally work out to be a bit over $100 inclusive of tax.

If Maleficent913 is able to get their friends to bring the dolls with them instead of having them shipped then it should work out to be the same as shipping within the UK is free. (Unless they are shipping it outside of the UK and the free shipping code doesn't apply).

Also when I refer to the UK I generally mean the entire Euros as I use it interchangeably since they all share the same stock allocation.

I do agree though that these dolls are selling faster than usual especially with all the Frozen hype. The 500 allocated to the Euro market is still actually a reasonable amount especially based of previous sales but with Frozen it is just crazy with all the hype and I am just hoping that it will not remain that way going forward. Sort of glad that this year is Sleeping Beauty which is not as popular as last year's Little Mermaid.

 

[lulemee]

I´m sorry to say this, but in my opinion it´s kind of unfair, that now also US people try to get the LE dolls who are thought to be for the european market. I mean, USA got much more dolls, than Europe, we only get 500 of 5000, this is like nothing, so many people in Europe, who wish for the dolls will not have a chance of getting them, even without the "help" of US people to sell them out :sad:

 

[Maleficent913]

I´m sorry to say this, but in my opinion it´s kind of unfair, that now also US people try to get the LE dolls who are thought to be for the european market. I mean, USA got much more dolls, than Europe, we only get 500 of 5000, this is like nothing, so many people in Europe, who wish for the dolls will not have a chance of getting them, even without the "help" of US people to sell them out :sad:

I'm sorry you feel that way and I can understand and appreciate why. I forgot to set my alarm when this newest set came out and couldn't get to a store to preorder them in person. I had already pretty much given up on getting them, but if I have the opportunity, I am at least gonna try.

 

[ladyroselie]

I'm pretty sure that the US store ships worldwide? So they generally get more stock, but it goes a lot more places. I wish the UK store shipped worldwide, they are some lovely playline dolls that we don't get in the US.

 

[RoxyHime]

I hope that's true, and that I can get Snow White eventually. Yes their maybe a chance you will get anyone of the dolls on a good deal, just keep looking. But it was a rare and lucky find with regarding Alice. But best of luck

I have my fingers crossed for you to find Snow for a reasonable price!

 

[milaya]

When it comes to being unfair or not, I guess it's understandable. I guess in most cases, if you forget to set your alarm or the date of the release it means you lose out on the dolls to the people who set their alarms or stayed up to buy these. On the other hand, many non-US people buy the US dolls - myself included. I bought 4 dolls from the US - despite the fact that I'm European, then I of course won't order any of the 500 dolls available in Europe. There's nothing fair about the whole thing, since we then also have to consider all the scalpers buying several dolls to sell - especially in the US, since their don't have the one per household rule.

Not actually correct with the current exchange rate the dolls actually work out to be relatively similar in cost in the US and the UK. They are priced at £60 per doll which is about $100 USD. Also the US prices do not reflect the tax whereas the UK store does so the price you are paying ie £60 is what you will pay as tax is inclusive. In the US the dolls will generally work out to be a bit over $100 inclusive of tax.

I didn't mean the UK price - since each Disney store in Europe has their own individual price tag - I just meant if somebody asks a non-UK person to order the dolls in Europe. The price for the dolls in Denmark is actually 150 USD per. doll, not 60 pounds. Then shipping from the disney store is 15 dollars and shipping from Europe to the US is around 70 USD - that's 385 USD. I did mention in my post that I was talking about the Danish price - not the UK one. I wasn't talking specifically about maleficent's plan - more in general, since I've seen a lot of non-European people contemplate to buy the dolls in Europe.

Also Maleficent913 - I hope your friend is aware of the size of the dolls - not the easiest item to bring with you.

 

[Polaris]

When it comes to being unfair or not, I guess it's understandable. I guess in most cases, if you forget to set your alarm or the date of the release it means you lose out on the dolls to the people who set their alarms or stayed up to buy these. On the other hand, many non-US people buy the US dolls - myself included. I bought 4 dolls from the US - despite the fact that I'm European, then I of course won't order any of the 500 dolls available in Europe. There's nothing fair about the whole thing, since we then also have to consider all the scalpers buying several dolls to sell - especially in the US, since their don't have the one per household rule.


I didn't mean the UK price - since each Disney store in Europe has their own individual price tag - I just meant if somebody asks a non-UK person to order the dolls in Europe. The price for the dolls in Denmark is actually 150 USD per. doll, not 60 pounds. Then shipping from the disney store is 15 dollars and shipping from Europe to the US is around 70 USD - that's 385 USD. I did mention in my post that I was talking about the Danish price - not the UK one. I wasn't talking specifically about maleficent's plan - more in general, since I've seen a lot of non-European people contemplate to buy the dolls in Europe.

Also Maleficent913 - I hope your friend is aware of the size of the dolls - not the easiest item to bring with you.

I definitely agree with the allocation issue not being so much as an issue especially since like you said a lot of people can order from the US site as they ship worldwide. Personally there are no Disney Stores in Australia online or physical so I have to always incur shipping, duties and taxes so I don't really have sympathy for those that say that it is not fair about the allocation since because really the Euro market gets the most stock allocation since they can still order from the US.

I do apologise that you did not mean the UK as it was not very clear since everything written is always open to interpretation and I just interpreted what you said in a different manner to how you may have intended it to sound, but that being said doesnt the UK deliver to all the Euros? Sort of like how the US delivers worldwide? I could never understand it I always thought that in the UK it was £60 and in the rest of Europe it was 70 Euros because that seemed fair but I did notice that the pricing between several Euro sites were different for some odd reason. However i'm sure most people would rather spend $385USD for both dolls rather than the $500USD that they are currently going at on Ebay.

Also in terms of allocation yes 500 does sound like a small number but usually as long as if you are online early enough you should be fine. The Euro stores usually get the online exclusive pins and they are usually about 350 if not less and they seem to at least last about 10-15 minutes so really if you can just get your order within the first 15 minutes then hopefully you should be fine. They arent instant sell out because 500 is quite a bit, also it may be worthwhile checking back every now and then because the Euro stores actually cancel multiple orders which happens frequently.

 

[milaya]

I do apologise that you did not mean the UK as it was not very clear since everything written is always open to interpretation and I just interpreted what you said in a different manner to how you may have intended it to sound, but that being said doesnt the UK deliver to all the Euros? Sort of like how the US delivers worldwide? I could never understand it I always thought that in the UK it was £60 and in the rest of Europe it was 70 Euros because that seemed fair but I did notice that the pricing between several Euro sites were different for some odd reason. However i'm sure most people would rather spend $385USD for both dolls rather than the $500USD that they are currently going at on Ebay.

No worries. Sorry I didn't make it clear.
Just wanted to state that it would be 400 USD in some European countries and no unfortunately UK doesn't deliver to all European countries - European countries with their own disney stores (which is, Denmark, Germany, Spain, Sweden, France and Italy) cannot order from the UK - especially because for some European countries it would be a lot cheaper to order from the UK - including my own Disney store.
Even with the included shipping price, ordering from UK would be cheaper than to buy from the Danish Disney store. So the dolls are individually priced according to the country's economy and tax - in Denmark the price is 795 DKK - which is around 147 USD, so close to the 150 USD I said.

 

[Polaris]

No worries. Sorry I didn't make it clear.
Just wanted to state that it would be 400 USD in some European countries and no unfortunately UK doesn't deliver to all European countries - European countries with their own disney stores (which is, Denmark, Germany, Spain, Sweden, France and Italy) cannot order from the UK - especially because for some European countries it would be a lot cheaper to order from the UK - including my own Disney store.
Even with the included shipping price, ordering from UK would be cheaper than to buy from the Danish Disney store. So the dolls are individually priced according to the country's economy and tax - in Denmark the price is 795 DKK - which is around 147 USD, so close to the 150 USD I said.

Ahh sorry excuse my ignorance but I thought that Denmark also had the Euros, I didnt realise they have their own currency but that is crazy! How can they charge that much more for the same item? We have the same problem here in Australia, to get the exact same thing here in Australia that is the exact same thing in the US we get charged more which is fair enough for goods that need to be imported but get this even iTunes songs and other digital media we are required to pay significantly more than what you can get it for in other countries. It is just ridiculous sometimes so I can understand why you bought it from the US rather than getting it from your hometown store.

 

[OlafOlaf]

I would buy any Frozen merchendise as quickly as possible. The hype is just unbelievable so everything eventually sells out, even the listings on Ebay. I'm guessing the Snow Queen Elsa will stay at its price rn, it might spike again when the dvd gets released. I don't think it'll drop any time soon so if you do have a chance of getting her, through Ebay or some seller, just go for it.

 

[milaya]

Ahh sorry excuse my ignorance but I thought that Denmark also had the Euros, I didnt realise they have their own currency but that is crazy! How can they charge that much more for the same item? We have the same problem here in Australia, to get the exact same thing here in Australia that is the exact same thing in the US we get charged more which is fair enough for goods that need to be imported but get this even iTunes songs and other digital media we are required to pay significantly more than what you can get it for in other countries. It is just ridiculous sometimes so I can understand why you bought it from the US rather than getting it from your hometown store.

It's okay - it's a small European country anyway - but we stayed out of the Euro back when it was introduced, so did Sweden and Norway as well.
Yes, I ordered from the US store for various reasons. First is the price, since I would end up paying 315 USD for the dolls when buying them in Denmark. Then also because of the fact that I'm currently moving my stuff to Japan, so getting the dolls here in Denmark would just a huge increase of items I need to get to Japan (I need a miracle as things are already XD).
Yes, paying more for the same items is a pain - guess they try to adjust it to the different economies and taxes. The Danish taxes are crazy though - since we pay around 40% tax of our regular salary (almost 50% for the very rich) and then 25% tax on items.

Anyway... getting off topic...
I hope everyone gets the dolls they want on the 18th

 

[RoxyHime]

Same here just like milaya said. Sweden is the same as Denmark we have our own currency. We do only have the Disney store online, we don't own any stores to visit here in Stockholm etc. There are no plans on to build one in Stockholm, i dont know why they dont. The only Disney store that's near are in Denmark, Copenhagen.

To the point, they have to high up the price for those items they bougth in to the store more or less because it have been costing a lot of money for the shipment and high taxes. That's why they high up the price in store here, from not having the normal price tag that they should have cost.

I do also wish everyone the best of luck to get their dolls they really want. :hug:

 

[Chernabog666]

I'm sorry you feel that way and I can understand and appreciate why. I forgot to set my alarm when this newest set came out and couldn't get to a store to preorder them in person. I had already pretty much given up on getting them, but if I have the opportunity, I am at least gonna try.

You are always so pleasantly diplomatic with your rebuttals. Can I keep you.
Ok ok. On the subject why does this have to be a matter of fair vs. unfair. Life isn't always fair. Some people have jobs and cannot be awake on a computer at midnight or 3am instead of talking about how unfair it is , some people find a way to even the odds. Just my opinion.