Idea For A Line Of Collectibles | FerrariChat

Idea For A Line Of Collectibles

Discussion in 'Collectables, Literature, & Models' started by anunakki, Nov 20, 2020.

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  1. anunakki

    anunakki Seven Time F1 World Champ
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    Oct 8, 2005
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    Jerry
    Hi everyone.

    Im a collectibles designer/manufacturer that has specialized in pop culture collectibles the past 25 years. Mostly based on video games, comics, movies, music.

    But its recently occurred to me that i could take that skillset and infrastructure, and apply it to another of my loves, automobiles.

    There are gorgeous perfectly accurate models of our favorite vehicles out there, but if someone wants more than the vehicle, say a diorama, the only thing im aware of are the 'pitstop' ones or else you need to commission an artist to create a custom diorama for you.

    So I see a market for pre-made high quality dioramas. For example, an F1 car on Eau Rouge-Raidilon at Spa-Francorchamps in the rain with water streaming off it. Or, a Jeep climbing some crazy rocks on the Rubicon.

    Artists have been making customs of these, but theres nothing I can find thats off-the-shelf.

    My former company, PCS Collectibles (Its been sold ) was known as a leader in collectibles innovation and I believe i can bring some of that to this new area.

    Im attaching some images of customs ive found that illustrate the type of thing Im considering, except Id want to do it even better.

    Im also attaching some links of my work so you can check it out.

    I started this thread to see your thoughts on my idea.





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  2. energy88

    energy88 Two Time F1 World Champ
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    The model railroad industry has been covering this niche for the past 50 years as far as dirt, rocks, trees, bushes, roads, signs, people, etc. They also have many different types of buildings, which a hobbyist could cut down for 2-D diorama purposes. These are typically in 1/38, 1/43, 1/50, and O-gauge scales. A lot of the diecast merchants provide many of these offering along with the model railroad shops.

    But all is not lost. I've never seen anything created for 1/8 or 1/12 scale.
     
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  3. SmokyDave

    SmokyDave Karting

    Jul 13, 2015
    136
    England
    Just for my own musings, are you proposing to create diorama for purchasers to use with their existing models, or are you hoping to supply / integrate the model with the diorama?

    The former strikes me as something that could very well fill a gap in the market if your scenes were generic enough, whereas the latter seems like a minefield of matching the right model to the right setting and hitting the right pricepoint. That said, the latter approach allows for all the rain / snow / dust / dirt on the car that can make a diorama so appealing.

    My worry is that if you create the right diorama, but with the wrong model, you lose a lot of appeal. I'd point to the Bang / Best / Art Model 1:43 dioramas which, although nicely put together, are somewhat held back by the quality of the models themselves.
     
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  4. Lusso123

    Lusso123 Formula 3
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    Oct 18, 2010
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    Marshall Buck
    There so many variables to consider, and much also depends on scale, subject matter, pricing, quality, detailing, etc, etc. I also pretty much agree with what John and SmokyDave wrote. My full time business is high end automobile models in various scales. Ltd. editions, custom builts and scratch builts. That said, I absolutely love dioramas....BUT... only if they are done exceptionally well, which so many are not. I have some in my own collection, and have also bought and sold others in various scales - all car related. There is a fine line with replicating - catching an action moment in time and doing it really very well. Most of the finer details people miss, and do not get right or are heavy handed, etc. Some of the custom action diorama scenes you've shown look really good and some do not... Like I said, many variables.
     
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  5. bigodino

    bigodino F1 World Champ
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    Maybe you could use your skills to make some very realistic figurines. 1/18 scale figurines right now are often very cartoonish. The advantage of figurines is that you can use them with about any model.
     
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  6. spirot

    spirot F1 World Champ

    Dec 12, 2005
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    I like the examples but I think the market would be extremely limited. Amalgam and BBR may have clients who would like those dioramas... at F-1 races the Paddock club has a "souvenir" shop that has high end models, usually Amalgam, and other driver signed items... I could see something working there. or at collectors studio.
     
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  7. anunakki

    anunakki Seven Time F1 World Champ
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    This would be fully assembled dioramas not items to create your own diorama. As you say, plenty of companies making the parts for someone to create a diorama, but no one making dios you just take out of the box and display.


    The later. Fully finished dioramas including the vehicles because the interactive debris/water/etc would be an integral part of making the diorama cool. Scale is something Im musing over now.

    These would be quite expensive, probably $700+ but we were also worried when we started making statues of characters like Spiderman at $600+ but found customers still bought them. In fact we found sales didnt really slow until we exceeded $1200.

    I think the same thing will be found in this category. At first people will be put off by the price and even mock it (thats what happened when i started making prices over $500) but once they see other people who did buy and love them, they start to change their tune.


    yes of course. Quality has to be top notch, but thats what i do so im confident on that end. What we are doing in the pop culture collectible world is very innovative with environmental effects, Leds, etc.

    Scale is my biggest unknown as i think the smallest you can go without sacrificing detail is 1/18. Anything smaller and it looks like a toy to me. When i look at what Amalgam does in the $800 range thats what Im thinking as far as vehicle quality.

    At 1/18 scale its hard to make them realistic as if you dont exaggerate a bit they look bland. But as an example of what we can do at 1:10 scale, here is a pic.

    Appreciate everyones input!

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  8. anunakki

    anunakki Seven Time F1 World Champ
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    Limited is okay. All of my products have a very limited market. I generally sell 250-1500 pcs worldwide of a product.
     
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  9. energy88

    energy88 Two Time F1 World Champ
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  10. bigodino

    bigodino F1 World Champ
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    anunakki, jm2 and energy88 like this.
  11. anunakki

    anunakki Seven Time F1 World Champ
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    That ones great thanks for sharing it
     

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