- 1,824
- Posts
- 5
- Years
- Age 37
- Seen Nov 4, 2018
Hello there! Absolutely, you can visit the dollhouse to ask questions! ^_^
Well, on prices there isn't one simple answer so sit tight. But it is to some extent quality cost, the dolls are still very elaborate ball-jointed, poseable fashion dolls. They have eye complicated mechanisms in the back of the head to allow them to open and close their eyes. Putting these dolls together is intimidating even for me.
Though there are hundreds of different dolls, each release has an unique and individual faceup. The face plate is the same no two dolls releases have the same facial features, expressions or eye chips.
Also these dolls are pretty manufactured in Korea, and the cost to import them internationally is no doubt added to the sell price. I don't believe that there a dollmaking plants in Europe or the U.S. They are larg and tend to be weighty to ship, and very fragile, requiring more care and attention to pack.
In addition to that the stock clothing and accessories for the dolls are known for being very realistic. In the past dolls were even manufactured with real silk clothing and genuine fur trims, pearls, swarovski crystals. There stock may include items ranging from replicas of musical instruments to fully-functional backpacks, doll furniture and miniatures dolls and plushies.
The. Factor in that sometimes fashion labels or companies like Marvel, Disney and Sanrio will enter into collaborations with Groove, further incressing the price due to licensing. These dolls are intended to be collector's pieces so they have always cost more. For me they were the cheaper alternative to Luts dolls, which I think are beautiful but unaffordable for me.
However, saying all that, Groove has begun inflating their prices beyond what was previously needed to sustain production costs. When I first started collecting pullip dolls years ago the average price was about 70-80 collar. You might find an older doll for 49.99 or get a deal on Black Friday for a similar price. Pullip's friends used to be cheaper like 39.99 for an older model byul or dal doll. You never heard of dolls being sold for more than 150 dollars, including limited edition dolls and collaboration. However, now 150+ is the starting price for a new pullip doll. 2016 was kinda the beginning of the end for Groove in my opinion. This was when the prices skyrocketed. Yet while the prices soared the quality of the dolls did not, and in some cases we even saw quality decline.
In spite of all of this I still love Pullip. She herself is full of charm, despite the greed of her manufacturers. There are still some beautiful brand new dolls that I will probably collect over the years like Pullip Princess Kakyuu, Pullip Etoille, Pullip Anthy and maybe Taeyang Higekiri, but yes, you are totally right, they want too much for these. Don't trouble yourself with buying one unless you really would like your own Pullip :) These are costly things that I buy selectively on special occasions.
If you do get into this hobby then check your local Tuesday Morning if there is one in your city. There are a lucky, select few Tuesday Mornings throughout the country that carry Pullip dolls, though the one in my town doesn't regrettably :(
Tuesday Morning dolls are awesome because while they usually only have a handful of older models Pullips they sell them for the rock bottom price of 39.99, not knowing what they have! So you can get a steal. I have friends in Cali who have gotten some real jewels there, and am jealous.
You should also know the name Pullipstyle if you ever want to purchase a doll for yourself, they are the most familiar and friendly website to doll collectors in The United States is the website Pullipstyle. They have very fast, modest shipping and flexible customer service. If you are going to buy online their prices are the most fair, but the dolls are still going to be 100 and up.
Where I buy most of my Pullip dolls is from JpGroove. There prices are generally higher than Pullipstyle with also higher shipping rates and longer wait times, but they have the bigger collection and when they have a specials they are unparalleled. What I live for is an event called the sample doll sale. Unboxed dolls that have been displayed at conventions are resold for dirt cheap, dolls sell at 30 dollars, 50 dollars, 19 dollars. Its mayhem! These sales are usually flash, small selection and limited quality, but they have helped me grow my collection with inexpensive dolls that are often rare and out of stock.
You might get a deal on Amazon. Since Amazon uses sellers there is a really wide range of prices, some are are very competitive, others are grossly over-priced, so approach with caution. The collections are also smaller as these are usually not licensed pullip retailers. I normally reserve shopping there for dolls that are in stock at other retailers, that is when you are more likely to see prices slightly undercut. I like the seller Tea_Party a lot.
I shop at Ebay too, but I don't recommend EBay for buying your first Pullip doll because there are many international sellers who have rare and out of stock but inflate the prices. Though you may see a doll for 1,000 dollars on eBay only a select number of Pullip dolls can justify a price of more than 200 dollars. It is the same problem that you can run into with Amazon but just more extreme in my opinion. You can find some great deals on eBay but I recommend them only if you know exactly what you want, have extensive knowledge of what the doll should sell for and have set a budget. Its very easy for prices to spiral out of control with EBay especially if you are bidding at an auction.
EDIT: This is my third and last edit, but if you are interested in learning more about Pullips these are some of the hippest doll collectors on the net. These ladies are known for their Pullip reviews, which helped me make buying decisions for dolls when I was a novice. They have fun tutorials to help you make your own dolls, they share news about doll releases and sales, keep video journals, tour doll stores and of course showcase their dolly collection.
Klein
https://pullipsandjunk.com
Omocha Crush (Angie)
https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCvwaXorGii56h32GnYDCiEQ
Scarlet B
https://m.youtube.com/user/rockerchick748
Hopefully someone else can use all this detailed info, because I'm not interested in dolls or Pullips apart from just YOUR interest, haha.
Hopefully you understand. I'm not a doll guy, but I'm interested in the fact you're interested, more than anything.
