D14D
05-03-2007, 01:49 AM
May 2007 Ambassador Report
Thanks to all who submitted questions. I have attempted to address the most frequently asked.
As I have seen, Matchbox has continued to make great strides and win over support from longtime collectors and surprisingly I have witnessed Hot Wheel Collectors starting to cross over and start Matchbox collections. Is this the trend in your areas? I would be interested to know. The 2008 line is being worked on and I can say that one model being rumored is the Honda Civic Type R. My fingers are crossed on this one. Other updates and model choices will be discussed later this summer.
Mattel is looking to expand the line to 100 models with 25 recolors for the 2008 line. This is in response to an increased product demand and an opportunity to increase the product space. The line will consist of 10 series with 10 models in each series. This will allow a collector to collect the whole line of 125 models/colors or decide for themselves to pursue certain series selections. This higher number will also allow a more frequent complete product refresh of about every three months.
The numbering will not revert to keeping a particular number throughout the life of a model, as with an increased number of models and between 18 and 21 new tools coming out the old system just would not work.
Thanks to the team for getting the London Taxi out and a few variation surprises on this one. Two base variations (chromed-un-chromed) as well as the two wheel variations. This model will be produced in normal quantities even though it got a late start.
The Trash Titan with the green base was a run and was changed to black for the remainder of the run.
For the wheel enthusiasts, the NSF 4X4 wheel is almost ready to go and will be released as planned. The same goes for the regular line 4X4 wheel as pictures on the Beetle 4X4 and the Bronco in the poster.
BMW and Mattel have been unable to reach an agreement on tampo printing so they have agreed to disagree and will not be part of the line for now.
ROW collectors will continue to see the 3-packs, which have been in the shops for a while. These will not come to the US at this time, as there is really no retail outlet, which has expressed interest in carrying them.
The next batch of NSF Best of the US series should be out soon at Wal Mart. The runs on these models are very low and have been difficult to get for many. The series will be completed so not to worry.
In this series, an El Camino and a Porsche 959 were planned. The El Camino will appear in the last batch but the Porsche 959 has been taken out of the line due to tooling issues. A replacement will be announced later.
The Best of British series was a real hit and there are plans to expand this series. Initial ideas are several series of five car themes. These will be detailed more at a later date.
Did anyone notice that the #4 5-Pack (Fire) was released before the #3 (Airport) 5-pack? This happened because assortment numbers are selected well in advance. There was a tooling change, which can cause things like this to occur.
Hitch and Haul releases are scheduled for June and will include a Farm Set with the new MB704 Tractor pulling a brand new MB717 Farm Trailer, and a Vacation set with the MB672 Chevy Silverado pulling a brand new MB718 Travel Trailer. I see a lot of play value and possibilities with these.
Battle Kings will continue to be released with two vehicles instead of three as before but will have more accessories than before.
No changes from last report on Convoys although the Pipe Truck, Container Truck, McDonalds and Yamaha models have been released and I think they have great play value. Ryu’s new Forklift adds to the play value of these models and I hope the interactive series continues and grows.
Great news for those of you who are not aware yet. There are a few hobby dealers who I ask you to give your first line of support to. If you are unable to get the Dinky models through them, there is a back-up plan. Get your favorite Dinky models for $19.99 at Target on line.
http://www.target.com/gp/search.htm...t&ref=sr_bx_1_1
The Dinky line is being reviewed for a possible 2008 re-launch.
There are no updates on Play sets although the latest ones are now appearing in the shops.
There will be a holiday set coming out later this year and it should have exclusive models.
Other licensing are Sponge Bob, Nintendo, Cartoon Network for starters.
Look for the US Matchbox web site to be updated in the next few weeks.
Now for some convention news. The 5th Annual MCCH Gathering Convention in Albuquerque will be the event to kick off The Matchbox 55th Anniversary. There will be 3 exciting models including the introduction of two new castings in beautiful convention exclusive schemes. More on the two new castings at a later date. I can announce the first of three 2007 Gathering Convention models to be released. It is the Route Master Bus, which is being titled the Dealer model and will be limited to about 200 models +/-. This beautiful recreation was designed by Michael Heralda and represents the early “Rainbow” bus we all know from the early Lesney days. These will be available for purchase at the Albuquerque Gathering in July. It will come in a reworked special box. Attached please find the sample prints.
Sincerely,
Jim Gallegos
Matchbox Ambassador
Thanks to all who submitted questions. I have attempted to address the most frequently asked.
As I have seen, Matchbox has continued to make great strides and win over support from longtime collectors and surprisingly I have witnessed Hot Wheel Collectors starting to cross over and start Matchbox collections. Is this the trend in your areas? I would be interested to know. The 2008 line is being worked on and I can say that one model being rumored is the Honda Civic Type R. My fingers are crossed on this one. Other updates and model choices will be discussed later this summer.
Mattel is looking to expand the line to 100 models with 25 recolors for the 2008 line. This is in response to an increased product demand and an opportunity to increase the product space. The line will consist of 10 series with 10 models in each series. This will allow a collector to collect the whole line of 125 models/colors or decide for themselves to pursue certain series selections. This higher number will also allow a more frequent complete product refresh of about every three months.
The numbering will not revert to keeping a particular number throughout the life of a model, as with an increased number of models and between 18 and 21 new tools coming out the old system just would not work.
Thanks to the team for getting the London Taxi out and a few variation surprises on this one. Two base variations (chromed-un-chromed) as well as the two wheel variations. This model will be produced in normal quantities even though it got a late start.
The Trash Titan with the green base was a run and was changed to black for the remainder of the run.
For the wheel enthusiasts, the NSF 4X4 wheel is almost ready to go and will be released as planned. The same goes for the regular line 4X4 wheel as pictures on the Beetle 4X4 and the Bronco in the poster.
BMW and Mattel have been unable to reach an agreement on tampo printing so they have agreed to disagree and will not be part of the line for now.
ROW collectors will continue to see the 3-packs, which have been in the shops for a while. These will not come to the US at this time, as there is really no retail outlet, which has expressed interest in carrying them.
The next batch of NSF Best of the US series should be out soon at Wal Mart. The runs on these models are very low and have been difficult to get for many. The series will be completed so not to worry.
In this series, an El Camino and a Porsche 959 were planned. The El Camino will appear in the last batch but the Porsche 959 has been taken out of the line due to tooling issues. A replacement will be announced later.
The Best of British series was a real hit and there are plans to expand this series. Initial ideas are several series of five car themes. These will be detailed more at a later date.
Did anyone notice that the #4 5-Pack (Fire) was released before the #3 (Airport) 5-pack? This happened because assortment numbers are selected well in advance. There was a tooling change, which can cause things like this to occur.
Hitch and Haul releases are scheduled for June and will include a Farm Set with the new MB704 Tractor pulling a brand new MB717 Farm Trailer, and a Vacation set with the MB672 Chevy Silverado pulling a brand new MB718 Travel Trailer. I see a lot of play value and possibilities with these.
Battle Kings will continue to be released with two vehicles instead of three as before but will have more accessories than before.
No changes from last report on Convoys although the Pipe Truck, Container Truck, McDonalds and Yamaha models have been released and I think they have great play value. Ryu’s new Forklift adds to the play value of these models and I hope the interactive series continues and grows.
Great news for those of you who are not aware yet. There are a few hobby dealers who I ask you to give your first line of support to. If you are unable to get the Dinky models through them, there is a back-up plan. Get your favorite Dinky models for $19.99 at Target on line.
http://www.target.com/gp/search.htm...t&ref=sr_bx_1_1
The Dinky line is being reviewed for a possible 2008 re-launch.
There are no updates on Play sets although the latest ones are now appearing in the shops.
There will be a holiday set coming out later this year and it should have exclusive models.
Other licensing are Sponge Bob, Nintendo, Cartoon Network for starters.
Look for the US Matchbox web site to be updated in the next few weeks.
Now for some convention news. The 5th Annual MCCH Gathering Convention in Albuquerque will be the event to kick off The Matchbox 55th Anniversary. There will be 3 exciting models including the introduction of two new castings in beautiful convention exclusive schemes. More on the two new castings at a later date. I can announce the first of three 2007 Gathering Convention models to be released. It is the Route Master Bus, which is being titled the Dealer model and will be limited to about 200 models +/-. This beautiful recreation was designed by Michael Heralda and represents the early “Rainbow” bus we all know from the early Lesney days. These will be available for purchase at the Albuquerque Gathering in July. It will come in a reworked special box. Attached please find the sample prints.
Sincerely,
Jim Gallegos
Matchbox Ambassador