Questions about the store

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RatFarmer
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Questions about the store

Post by RatFarmer »

Hello! I've been making purchases at this site for the past few months, a decent chunk of my collection is from here. I have a few questions that have been nagging me for a while, just out of curiosity.

1. Is Transformerland a physical store? Like is this a place I could visit? (Well not really bc of covid but you know what I mean).
2. Is the shop run by just a few people? Or is it a larger operation (if that makes sense)?
3. How long has TFL been around?
4. Do you stock newer figures normally (like how retailers do)? Or do you just get ones sold from previous owners.

Not really sure if anyone will see this post anyway, just thought I'd throw some questions out there. Absolutely LOVE this site and I take literally any opportunity I can to suggest it to others. Your Generations and Bayverse selections have been wonderful for my childhood nostalgia. Customer service is great, shipping has been easy, figures all in great condition. The Guides section has been so helpful for unlocking childhood memories of toys long forgotten. TFL is definitely the website I buy most of my Transformers from, aside from finding them in stores irl. Love this shop and I'll continue to support it and promote it to others as long as I'm a TF collector. Didn't mean for this post to become a review lol
you know what they say

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Ultra Magnus
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Re: Questions about the store

Post by Ultra Magnus »

Hey there, RF.

I am sure TT (Time Traveler) will be along shortly to better answer your questions, but here is a brief overview.

1. It is not a traditional brick and mortar storefront, but if you hang out here long enough you will probably garner an invitation to at least have lunch with the crew if you find yourself in their area, or if they happen to have reason to be in your neck of the woods.

2. It was started by Matt (username Trance) and run almost exclusively by him with a little help from friends until he convinced an actual human female to be his much better half in marriage and she joined in on the fun. After that, circa 2010 TT devoted some of his time to opening TFL north. Eventually the two operations merged and TT had to move from the north pole to an actually hospitable environment with actual swamps and alligators. When TT somehow convinced Minerva to join in him the states and marriage (my money is still on blackmail), she joined in on some of the fun as well. Note, my info in this area is limited to brief conversations and a large amount of fan-fiction that I penned myself. So, it is very much a mom and pop (with a weird uncle from Wisconsin) organization run on bubble gum, duct tape, and love. At least, in my mind it is.

3. I am pretty sure it has been over 20 years now.

4. Most of the stock on TFL is second hand from buying out the collections of former collectors. While the odd recent figure shows up from time to time, there are no direct dealings with Takra/Tomy nor Hasbro. And, frankly, there is no retail incentive in trying to compete with Amazon, BBTS, Walmart, etc. when it comes to first hand stock. While I would love to be able to get all of my new stuff from trance and TT, I fully understand and support the decision not to go there as it is just not something that they could turn a profit on while trying to remain competitive.

My personal collection does include many items that came from the store here. It is always my first stop when hunting an elusive figure. G1 Jetfire, RiD Optimus and Magnus, Titaniums Megatron, are some of the big hitters that I would not have otherwise. My HoC Magnus was gifted to me by another forum member here some time back and is one of my favorite display piece (miss you, Roar). And the service here has never been anything other than top notch.

I am sure both trance and TT will be by any moment to both separate fan fiction from reality, and to properly welcome you to the forums.

In the meantime, kick back, relax, and have fun here. I have a review of the new Scream movie in the works for the General Discussions area, and have many boneheaded takes dating back 15 years that probably still need to be refuted.
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Time Traveller
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Re: Questions about the store

Post by Time Traveller »

Hi RatFarmer!

Magnus has provided a fantastic (and flattering) accounting of all your questions, but I'll make a few comments as well :)

1. Correct. We don't have a commercially-zoned building, and we have been discouraging visitors during the cosmic rust outbreak, but if you are someday going to be in the Gainesville, FL area (or traveling down I-75), give us a call in advance, and we'll set something up!

2. Gonna have to check out that fanfiction.... Currently, the shop is staffed full-time by Trance, myself, and Jake (who is not yet on the forum). Minerva is at the shop 2 days a week to work on MOTU and other non-TF sales, and we have a recent hire product photographer who is at the shop the other 3 days. Mrs. Trance no longer has an active role, as she is back to full-time teaching middle school and raising the three Trancelings :lol: You might be surprised that none of the Trancelets are interested in TFs!

3. Trance started buying TFs from his classmates around 1997, and registered the website domain around 1999 or 2000. He and I both quit our day jobs and went full time around 2012/13.

4. We tried with retailing/pre-ordering Masterpiece and Fans Toys back in the day, but it honestly didn't pan out. The wholesale channels are difficult to obtain (i.e. Hasbro does not accept any new wholesale customers - either you got in before 2006, or you're out of luck, similar with TakaraTomy; 3rd Parties all have a huge variety of different procedures). We basically offered the MPs at-cost, and despite that, got surprisingly few orders. Granted, we never went whole-hog into retail, so we probably couldn't get that clientele with our toe-dipping. Currently, as Magnus said, the newest figures we get are from collectors who buy something and decide to sell it off to us shortly thereafter. That, and my own occasional double-preordering :lol:

Your unintentional review was welcome, we always like hearing feedback! If you really want to be generous with your time, you could hit the FB like at the top of our main page, and put your review on our Google profile ;) I hope we'll continue to earn your business, and continue to see you around the forum!
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RatFarmer
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Re: Questions about the store

Post by RatFarmer »

Thank you both so much for the replies! So cool to learn more about the shop. If I ever end up around the Gainesville area I'll definitely give yall a call! I think I left a Google review a while back, I'll like the page on Facebook too.

I'll probably be hanging around these forums more often now that I've discovered them. Really appreciate your time!
you know what they say

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Time Traveller
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Re: Questions about the store

Post by Time Traveller »

Glad to have you! I've always found the forums to be more like home than FB. I spend very little time on there.
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