The Star Wars market and leaving the EU

[Dorsetmark]

Anyhow heard the yanks are buying up London houses now as exchange rate so good and bringing their inferior Kenner products with them

 

[spoons]

I think that a recession is very likely and as others have said that means luxuries go. We'll see a drop in SW values as people sell up and the market becomes flooded.

The rarer high end items will hold their value but the more common stuff will drop.

In our industry redundancies have already started as house building has stalled until after the vote. I don't see it starting up again soon and do expect the worst.

As to the value of the pound it doesn't seem that long ago that the pound was worth 2$ and a lot of us benefitted from that. Time for Todd and co to benefit from us

 

[olisuds]

Not being funny but if you can spend £3100 on vintage star wars, you can spend £3800 without going bust.

Man talk about sweeping judgmental statements!

Its not about going bust. Just because you can spend £3,100 on star wars doesn't mean you have money to throw away. I buy reasonably expensive high end items, but I don't make purchases frequently like a lot of collectors. Adding an extra 25% or more on to an item when you are already stretched on a purchase can make a big difference. This year i've already had to turn down a couple of major purchases because that extra 25% on the exchange rate just tipped the scales too high.

OK I know there is a bigger agenda than the price on star wars toys when it comes to leaving the EU, but that doesn't mean the effects won't be felt in the star wars collecting markets and those effects are definitely worth discussing on a star wars forum.

 

[olisuds]

The hyper inflation inside the hobby is far more damaging than the pound:dollar argument. $5000 a few years ago wouldve got you a nice set of 12 backs. That same $5000 these days would do well to get you a couple of decent 85's.

Big difference between inflated prices and currency losing value. Inflated prices are felt by everyone and at least your collection increases in value too. When currency loses value you are taking an instant loss on your money that you'll never get back. Unless of course the currency drops further.

 

[palitoyjunky]

Not being funny but if you can spend £3100 on vintage star wars, you can spend £3800 without going bust.

Man talk about sweeping judgmental statements!

Its not about going bust. Just because you can spend £3,100 on star wars doesn't mean you have money to throw away. I buy reasonably expensive high end items, but I don't make purchases frequently like a lot of collectors. Adding an extra 25% or more on to an item when you are already stretched on a purchase can make a big difference. This year i've already had to turn down a couple of major purchases because that extra 25% on the exchange rate just tipped the scales too high.

25% on top of a stretched price, sounds like bloody Vectis to me :lol: :lol:

 

[itfciain]

I think this thread was started as one questioning what effect leaving the EU would have on the market - so making generalised statement seems a bit silly

Case in point regarding prices increasing - one of the lads asked me to look at buying him a carded figure on eBay - yesterday it was marked at $299 which equated to 202GBP according to eBay - today the same card is still $299 but that now equates to 220GBP - that is a heck of a jump

 

[olisuds]

Exactly Iain, and the pound is already 20% lower than 2 years ago. That extra 10% just rubs salt in the wound as is pretty hard to swallow. If it drops further I'd seriously hold back on any major purchases from overseas.

I think it's a lot more noticeable if you're buying high value items less frequently.

 

[M4K3R1]

It sucks when the exchange rate can influence a purchase or not,
welcome to an aussie collectors life.
For the UK guys an added 10% is manageable, but when it reaches an added 30% to 40% like it does for us,
then that makes you really think twice about a purchase.

 

[yoda]

I think my dream of ever buying a jawa and carded han have now all but gone by reading these views
Hopefully not though they cold all dtop in price someday i convince myself.

 

[olisuds]

Well to be fair that 30-40% drop on the Aussie $ is just a small part of the recovery from the other currencies collapsing during the GFC in 2008. Prior to that it was common to see $2.5 or more to the £. Even with the moderate recovery we are nowhere near that value. As some one that has lived and worked between Australia and the UK for the last 14 years I can tell you the Aussie $ is still painfully over valued and still due for some major correction. Although right now goodness knows how long it will be before we see any sign of that.

 

[rdpla]

For me, it was the icing on the cake..
i had a side business selling individulas items overseas, and taking a small cut that went back into the community, but the pound has gone from a high of 190 from 6 months ago, to 136 on friday.So pretty much wiped that line of business out..
Plus side is, now things are a lot cheaper to buy, maybe worth picking up some bargains as others have mentioned here...

i think the americans are snapping up property in case Trump wins...!

Robert.

 

[olisuds]

The pound has only been as high as $1.5 this year and that was achieved last week before the referendum. It hasn't been above $1.8 since before the GFC.

Let's just hope $1.36 is a low as it gets.

 

[rdpla]

The pound has only been as high as $1.5 this year and that was achieved last week before the referendum. It hasn't been above $1.8 since before the GFC.

Let's just hope $1.36 is a low as it gets.

Sorry for not making myself clear...
I`m in Japan...i was talking about Yen...

 

[Frunkstar]

It maybe $1.36 but check out what the PP exchange rate is, you can slice a further 6 cents off that, bring back the golden days of buying from the states when it was $2

As for the OP question, IMO it will have a big impact on the way we collect & what we buy, I myself was looking to have a go at something on a US auction site in a few days & have been madly saving up in hopes of standing a chance, I fear that chance is now a distant memory.

 

[jared007]

A lot of variables to this one. My guess is that people buying from overseas is only a fraction of those buying in the local market. If leaving the euro-zone does put some people in a position of having less "luxury spending money", then prices may come down considerably due to less competition for the item locally.

If you are lucky/fortunate enough to have some funds tucked away, then you might actually pick up some bargains. Who knows, this could turn out to be the kind of event that finally puts the brakes on the vintage market ...

 

[olisuds]

It maybe $1.36 but check out what the PP exchange rate is, you can slice a further 6 cents off that, bring back the golden days of buying from the states when it was $2

Yeah and the paypal fees and cross border fees (particularly if you send money with a credit card abroad). it all adds up! Buying from abroad is becoming a last resort.

 

[kvavik]

It maybe $1.36 but check out what the PP exchange rate is, you can slice a further 6 cents off that, bring back the golden days of buying from the states when it was $2

Yeah and the paypal fees and cross border fees (particularly if you send money with a credit card abroad). it all adds up! Buying from abroad is becoming a last resort.

It's often only resport when you have a focus like yours. ;-)

 

[maxf]

The £ plummeted. The FTSE 100 lost significant ground. But then the £ rallied past February levels, and the FTSE closed on a weekly high: 2.4% up on last Friday, its best performance in 4 months. So I think it's safe to say, our hobby and the market are both safe...

Way too early to say that. From a boring economic work perspective, I think it will take years for this all to unravel - the fact the ftse 100 rose (full of non uk companies, so the 250 is a far better barometer of uk business) is nice but simply meant the market had priced the 24th June result risk in. See the markets when we find out it isn't easy to make a trade deal, inflation rises and boris starts his brand of prime ministerial activity and Gove his attack on the working classes and we'll see what happens but it won't be pretty - markets moved based on 2 factors; fear and greed and there will be plenty of both for the forseeable future.

 

[maxf]

I can swallow an additional 10% if I really want something. But talk of slowdowns, job cuts (not mine thankfully) and general uncertainty means that I'd be keeping the money in the bank for the time being.

Anecdotally, I've cancelled a car purchase over the past week. According to the dealer, I wasn't the only one. This was based on nothing other than sentiment and not wanting to be left with a massively depreciating asset IF we went into recession - unfortunately it's mindsets like that which lead us into sentient driven recessions.

 

[scooternick]

Yep, most people will be petrified of spending anything in the short to medium term, other than essentials. Once bitten twice shy.

I can swallow an additional 10% if I really want something. But talk of slowdowns, job cuts (not mine thankfully) and general uncertainty means that I'd be keeping the money in the bank for the time being.

Anecdotally, I've cancelled a car purchase over the past week. According to the dealer, I wasn't the only one. This was based on nothing other than sentiment and not wanting to be left with a massively depreciating asset IF we went into recession - unfortunately it's mindsets like that which lead us into sentient driven recessions.

 

[edd_jedi]

I just made my first US purchase since "Brexit", and a $54 purchase cost me £42 at a rate of $1.28 per pound.

 

[olisuds]

Yikes that's terrible. Think I'll stay clear of new purchases from the US right now.

 

[Dorsetmark]

Anecdotally, I've cancelled a car purchase over the past week. According to the dealer, I wasn't the only one. This was based on nothing other than sentiment and not wanting to be left with a massively depreciating asset IF we went into recession - unfortunately it's mindsets like that which lead us into sentient driven recessions.

I just bought a Audi :?

 

[maxf]

Anecdotally, I've cancelled a car purchase over the past week. According to the dealer, I wasn't the only one. This was based on nothing other than sentiment and not wanting to be left with a massively depreciating asset IF we went into recession - unfortunately it's mindsets like that which lead us into sentient driven recessions.

I just bought a Audi :?

Nice!! No reason not to - I just work in a business which could be affected by any slowdown, or change in regulations so thought it best not to park a depreciating asset on the driveway until I knew a bit more about the situation.

I bought some SW from the US earlier in the week - $1.29/£1 - that was crap!

 

[80s_collector]

Anecdotally, I've cancelled a car purchase over the past week. According to the dealer, I wasn't the only one. This was based on nothing other than sentiment and not wanting to be left with a massively depreciating asset IF we went into recession - unfortunately it's mindsets like that which lead us into sentient driven recessions.

I just bought a Audi :?

Nice!! No reason not to - I just work in a business which could be affected by any slowdown, or change in regulations so thought it best not to park a depreciating asset on the driveway until I knew a bit more about the situation.

I bought some SW from the US earlier in the week - $1.29/£1 - that was crap!

Hope it wasn't an Aston Martin Vulcan Max.....bad move cancelling one of them...

 

[Frunkstar]

I just made my first US purchase since "Brexit", and a $54 purchase cost me £42 at a rate of $1.28 per pound.

I just checked & saw the online currency converter showing 1.33 to the dollar, meaning paypal would be round the 1.27/8 mark, very worrying for anyone considering buying anything stateside :| more worrying is it does not seem to be finished depreciating, have seen it go down from 1.36 to 1.34 & now a further cent today, we could be facing a pound to a dollar if this carries on for long, that may sound ridiculous but it's exactly whats happened to Australia.

I deal with a few guys in Oz & all of them who spend a few quid over the water have been trading in USD rather than AUD for some time now due to the crippled AUD & the exchange rares.

 

[db94]

Just bought a prop saber from the States got 1.28 if it wasn't something I'd been after for a long time i would have waited - damn that is a **** rate!

 

[Joe]

These new exchange rates really are *****

 

[tiefighterboy]

These new exchange rates really are *****

I love them.

 

[itfciain]

These new exchange rates really are *****

I love them.

You should come over to Celebration now Todd - you could buy it all with your magic dollars :lol: