we say that toys wont be collectable because they are mass produced, but star wars was mass produced and its highly collectable. I think mass produced toys creates the nostalgia factor because it was something you all, or many of you shared in. It was deemed 'acceptable' to own these things and thus the market can be revisted. I do think that since my generation of 35-45 who lived through the OT, transformers, and other related 80s movies have a certain collectable nature. Then approaching the 90s, it was computers and consoles started to dominate and films didn't have that huge marketing pull aside from a few films like Toy Story where people fought over Buzz Lightyear - that franchise was brilliant because toys came to life in the film and you could own those toys and dream that they were real. 20 years on, Toy Story is still an acceptable franchise, but was it mass? There were excellent films in the 90s, but nothing outside maybe Jurassic Park could sum up that decade.
The 90s kids will hark back to consoles & computers. Maybe the hand held electronic devices. Tamagotchi's and gameboy's with their accessories. Nintendo appeared to churn out some crazy stuff.. printers etc.
Other lines like pokemon could become a future high priced collectable. There was so much produced in the card range that mint and graded card prices will rise as they were items bought and played with, plus its an easy to display item. There were plenty of scarce cards, and because there isnt a terrific value to them, there will be people chucking them away until that generation gets the nostalgia bug. "I really want to finish that line".. or a high priced card goes for 1000s at auction and then it all starts.
lego is the big thing for me, licensee lego lines such as star wars, marvel etc. ive been selling these sets from the mid 2000s and it doesnt hang around more than 48 hours when i list it on ebay. Its multi generational, its cross generational. For cash investment I think its there.
Dr Who is an interesting one. As long as the US market continues to become engaged in it, then the stuff Daplo produced in the years Dr Who was off air could start to become collectable across the ocean. At the moment in comparison to star wars its a little niche and not many people had Dr Who toys when young. Whilst theres an affection for it across the largest span of ages, its not defined by its toys and collectables.
in conclusion: I do think a lot of parents today, due to the collectable nature in our youth we valued what we had because there wasnt that much stuff and our parents were more careful as they came from a period of austerity. My father was a teenager in the 50s, saw the war as a child, had no toys or much childhood joy. Kids today have a lot more choice and parents who satisfy those tend to add to the disposablilty of toys as kids move from coloured box to coloured box, from film fad to tv fad. My friends with children they have rooms full to the brim of toys, nothing is valued, its disposable. So, its up to the likes of Disney to create these new toylines and engage a modern generation.
