Kiyoka released this blog entry in regards to some pretty shady claims over the past couple of years. What's more interesting are the comments in the second half of the blog post in regards to certain manufacturers taking advantage of their fans.

http://blog.livedoor.jp/gargamel/archives/55161291.html

I enjoyed that. I love Gargamel, and it's good to read something like this on the blog.

"You must assess the value of toys by your own eyes, you must make sure its value by yourself."

Absolutely.

I love Gargamel, and I think this blog post just made me love Gargamel more.
We always gripe here about how much resellers hurt collecting, but it's hard to realize how much it affects the actual creator. Someone is making a profit off of your creation with little to no effort at all, when the creator has gone through so much to bring their vision into a soft vinyl figure.
It's also great to know that Kiyoka feels the same way we feel (at least most of us) about selling toys... Keep it in the community the best you can. Trade and sell to other collectors instead of rushing to an auction site. I'm a believer in toy karma within a community, and it keeps resellers looking like over-valuing idiots.
Too many people have this "buy it now" mentality, where they NEED to have the latest releases to tickle their toy-buying needs. I think those people need to step back and remember that toy collecting is not just about purchases, but also about the hunt. Looking for that one special piece for months, sometimes years, puts value on a toy. Not monetary value, but sentimental value... And let's face it, that's what most of us are looking for. The satisfaction of knowing that a toy is yours and being able to hold something that appeals to you in your own hands is the main reason we collect. That feeling is hollow when you can get anything you want with a few extra bucks.

I think there will always be flippers, but seeing manufacturers becoming more proactive and essentially "banning" some buyers is a great step in the right direction. If other manufacturers truly care about their craft, hopefully they will follow suit.

Just the fact that Kiyoka, as a respectful Japanese guy with 'traditional' ethics, felt compelled enough to write and post this online demonstrates how pissed he is about the situation!

Unfortunately the career flippers don't care about tradition or respect.

Those videos were so bullshit.. the second video was even unpacked off camera. And what are the chances that the only two LB unboxing videos on Youtube are coincidentally "faulty" bags with missing items. The stories that unravelled through emails after they were questioned about them (some guy stole our email password, we can't return the replacement because he stole the toy, etc etc) would have been so frustrating to deal with for the Gargamel guys.

Gargamel shouldn't have to deal with greedy people who want to take advantage of them so kudos for posting about it. You want to be able to trust your customers and do the best you can for them without dodgy behaviour like this affecting your business, mood, and genuine collectors.

They should have sent Unchi as a replacement. Those collectors in Singapore are hardcore! In the states people just complain about getting Conifas rather than stage an elaborate hoax to blackmail Gargamel for some Miboras. Speaking of parasites, did anyone see Amethystcape trying to show his face around here recently ?

Kiyoka 1/1 brown Unchi maybe...

It sadden me to no end that there are such idoit f**kers from Singapore. What a disgrace.
I hope kiyoka will name and shame these idoits.

I'm so pissed now! I know there are tons of shady characters around but such a major douchebag in my backyard?!!!!!!? Joe. , if you ever get a name please let me know. I hope to cross path with him.

Also anyone know anything about burn_burnt on ebay? That's a douchebag flipper for sure.

And I'm sure they're lurking here. Bugger off!

parasites

much love gargamel!

Is that picture from a board member? And as always great post by Kiyoka.

Funny

Ive also had similar experiences with a customer from Singapore. Same type of video of the opening of a box with a missing item.

The thing with me is, I knew 100% the item was in the box as it was the last one I packed and was still fresh in my mind. Plus the buyers name was unusual so I remembered it. Ive also been scammed and also sent replacement items in the past, this was before I started keeping a sharp record.

Once I told him this was BS, and that I knew for a fact this was a scam, they came back telling me that they checked with customs and they took it out the box and they now have it.

Its caused me to really think before I sell to Singapore. And most of China as well. Many addresses are so close in numbers that its amazing they don't understand its obvious.

^^
Interesting. I know Paul Kaiju mentioned something about this in a few of his threads whenever it's lottery time.

Such a shame. It's hard enough getting some of these toys, so seeing this is a bummer.
I'm sure they are not the only ones getting hit by these guys and for all we know, it could be a ring of people doing this scam with other makers.

Glad Kiyoka got wise to it and called them out. Even if he posted names, they could be fake names and it won't matter anyway(something fraudsters do)... this hurts legit buyers in that region and the rest of the world for that matter.
If a real issue like this does occur with buyers, it will make it hard on the Toy Makers to trust that there are in fact things missing from the box.

it's so sad to see how much frustration this caused. I'm glad they spoke their mind instead of giving up or something along those lines. "resellers" are huge floppy d**ks, and i got to admit that it was good to read G's 2 cents about the matter though I wish the situation never called for it in the first place. I do appreciate those who always have had the fans in mind and the retailers who never take advantage. Gargamel. yeah.

I think most of the creators in this business acknowledge that there will be people buying their works with the sole purpose of flipping for profit. It's happened from the beginning and will never stop. It goes hand in hand with anything that is or becomes collectible. I believe this instance really irked Kiyoka because it went beyond flipping and into perpetuating fraud and taking advantage of their trust and good customer service. Credit Kiyoka and the crew for getting the item back and receiving a confession. I'm sure hearing them admit it will go a long way in soothing his own mind.

This made for a good read while I wait at the DMV. I started collecting the bags back in 2013 because I saw it as the best way to get standard sized figures. The conifer became one of my favorites right away. Its comforting knowing that the creators follow their toys and get excited seeing collections. Its also comforting knowing how far they would go to make everything fair, from investigating bogus claims to discussing quantity of bags released. They even talked about people who buy more than one bag for themselves. I like the gargamel family even more now and can't wait until next year.

A very unfortunate situation. I would like to say I can't believe how far people will go but then again, really, there will always be people who will go too far with their sense of entitlement.

Very pleased to see Kiyoka dealing out much needed chastisement to not only Resellers/Flippers, but to toy companies that take advantage of their fan base.

The second half of that post was, to me, very personal. I am glad he shared it with all of us. I am happy to know that he enjoys seeing fans of Gargamel enjoying their toys.

Much respect to the Gargamel crew and I cannot wait to see them this year at SDCC! I hope this whole experience has not soured them for going overseas and meeting their fans.

Says the company that sells $400 one-off customs en masse, I guess.

That Singapore incident is unfortunate though. I have to imagine these types of shenanigans are what keep a lot of JP toy companies from offering overseas sales.

This is one of the best things, Ive read in awhile. I have an even higher respect for this man now, thank you for sharing..

Gargamel got me started here and they will get me finished! Excellent read.

Wise words from Kiyoka: an ethics lesson which unfortunately some people don't assimilate.

I had to read the "Resell of Lucky Bag" post on Gargamel Blog. Even though I never got a Lucky Bag from Gargamel, I collect the toys and respect the Company and its creators.

I hope Gargamel ban these parasites, and make sure they don't buy from Gargamel again.

I am certain Kiyoka's family is proud of him. And we fans are proud of him, too.

Please, Kiyoka: look at the sun, and live with confidence! We support you and Gargamel! BIG RESPECT!

Interesting read. A month ago at WonFes 2015, I saw a customer being questioned on whether or not the rare sofvi he had just won by lottery was for his collection or for reselling. By his accent and clothing style I would guess he was from HK or Singapore. Seems there's a pretty common theme here among toy makers.

I'm also genuinely curious what toy creators he is calling out for colluding with resellers to inflate prices.

Also, he declined to translate this part into English, but the last paragraph about his personal opinion says he learned that bit about the Old Testament from the video game 'Seaman 2'. What a guy.

Didn't he say that they had issues with resellers in Japan as well? I find it sort of sad that people/companies resort to banning whole countries because of a few assholes. The comment above about the Chinese guy winning an auction and being questionned by the seller is pretty awful. I hope they did that with everyone, though I cynically doubt it.

There are definitely resellers in Japan, though in some cases I think it's legitimized as a proxy service with (somewhat) reasonable mark-up for overseas fans who can't make it to shows like SuFes or WonFes. On the other hand, going to SuFes 67 to buy a Kumon, them vanishing in the blink of an eye as soon as the doors open, then seeing them up for sale on the web while I'm still walking around the event is frustrating.

I can't comment on whether or not they asked other people the same question at WonFes. I don't want to call anyone out here on that incident, as I think it was just a misunderstanding and both the buyer and seller are members of this community.