I'm in something of a mental pickle. I've been working on some sculpts that I very much want to be able to share a shelf with old popy minis. In my mind, they need that Japan stamp to feel legitimate. However it seems like that goal post moves from toy maker to toy maker. Can the molds be Japanese and the vinyl be poured in the US? Can the molds be Chinese and the vinyl poured in Japan? The whole shebang need to be Japanese? Does being an American sculptor disqualify me completely regardless of what I do? I guess I could just fake it, but even if no one knew, I would and that'd set heavy on me. Thoughts and insults?
Do you mean a Made in Japan foot stamp? Then should be made in Japan. If you are getting your vinyl poured in the US, put a USA stamp on the foot. That seems pretty cool to me.
I'd say "Made in Japan" means just that—manufactured in a factory located in Japan. Don't overthink it.
I would ask why the need for Japan? Yes you aren’t Japanese but even if you made it in Japan it’s not the same era, the same facility, the same workers. You could make it China with Japanese style joints and Japanese style vinyl. The goal is a toy with similar aesthetics. Nothing is going to make it a Popy, so maybe don’t sweat something like that so much and just make the toy with whatever route is available and works for you.
Outside of design and the tactile feel, emotional feel is something I'm mentally invested in. My main collecting focus is showa henshin hero tokusatsu minis. The Popy/Bandai style really speaks to me top to bottom and that includes the Japan stamp. These figures spark an emotional response I can't pin down. You guys have experienced this no doubt. A toy checks boxes and you dont even know what those boxes are. I want to somehow communicate this feeling with my sculpts. Reverent and not derivative. It's been a real challenge. True it won't be handled by the same makers or the same vinyl, but I want these to be as legitimate as possible. Oooonn the flip side, it's very expensive to produce in Japan so I'm definitely weighing my options and seeing what wiggle room I have.
Who cares? 10 years ago there was this huge...anti kidrobot/no chinese vinyl/only jp...but I feel that that narrative has completely changed. Look at Maruhachi gang and Headlock studio. I lot of finger puppet toys don't have any stamped labels. I think you have to make a great looking toy, market it well and it will do fine.
A lot has changed because the quality of vinyl has gotten so much better. There's so many more makers now, and toys are being made everywhere. If it's a good toy, and it appeals to me, it's worth buying. Ask me this 10 years ago, and I'd be the ride or die for vinyl from Japan. All said, the Japan footstamp should be limited to toys made in Japan. If it is important, you'll find a way to get it made there. If not, I'd say you can get 98% of the same appeal, minus that tiny stamp.
Honestly it sounds like you personally want it to be Japanese made no matter what anyone else says which is perfectly fine. Do what makes you the absolute happiest since it is your money and time and energy. There are makers in China who use exactly the same raw vinyl as makers in Japan and can do the same style molds if that's what you request. The made in America stuff feels a bit different in a few ways but the quality seems to be really good and it does feel like good vinyl. The days of Japan being the only option for good quality authentic vinyl are long gone. Hell even getting great vinyl paints from the US is a legit thing now. The last few years I've had more issues with air bubbles and thin spots in vinyl from Japan than with the vinyl from China. At the end of the day any toy can be "legitimate" regardless of what it is made from or where it is made. If you put in the effort and time and respect for what you're doing the materials are secondary. Look at how the bogxsquad dwellers are in most of the toy collections we see. A simple design and sculpt but so expertly pulled in resin in tons of colors. Always packed with stickers and accessories. Imagine how many hundreds of molds they go through instead of pulling too many from one mold and sacrificing the quality of the figure. Treat your product and customers with respect and you will be legit regardless of the stamp.
