Do you think it's wrong for people to buy must have toys and sell them at huge profit on EBay etc?

[lottieandmia22]

I do. I think it’s pretty mercenary.

No,it’s pretty enterprising to buy and sell on for profit.good luck to em
The mugs are folk who pay £300 for a £45 toy,cause they simply must have it
Tell your kid Santa elves are still making it,and buy at rrp when in stock

how can parents control the impact Christmas has on children who are bombarded with adverts and talk of presents at school! hmm

You manage their expectations. Teach them what Christmas is about. Remind them they don’t always get what they want. Point out that “because everyone has one” is never a good reason to want something. It’s about raising responsible citizens and is entirely possible.

As others have said it's just capitalism. I have in the past bought two of something when I saw it on special offer with a view to selling the second one at the full price later. It's a gamble because you don't know for sure it will sell so it's a risk you are taking. Doing that with Innotabs one year meant we ended up getting a lot of the money we had paid for it back and could buy some other things for the kids we couldn't have otherwise. We have also had fails where my husband bought two of a limited edition steel book on the assumption it will go up in price, and then not been able to sell it for a profit. So like I said it's a risk.

I think it depends on how much they sell them for. It should always be for a reasonable price. But business wise, so long as people buys it or needs it there's nothing wrong.

Op you seem nice but the world is not a nice place. I don't have a problem with people bulk buying the toys because it's a business opportunity. Do you have a problem with the owner of a soft play making a profit over and above the salary they need to live on? Everything is business unfortunately. Do you think Toys r us should dontate profits to charity? It's just not how things work. If you feel so bad for these parents, you could list the toy you have on eBay for it's RRP and help one of them out of their problem. But you don't feel bad enough to do that, you just think other people should be amending their behaviour.

water is a must have. Food is a must have. Toys are a treat, and whilst I agree it is very cynical to resell these toys, it ain't gonna kill the kids to not get the "must have" toy of the year if their parents cannot afford it. Kids in the third world... etc etc you know.....

I agree with the OP. Each to their own but I just don't think it's very moral, and would never do it myself.
To get the toy I needed in the past I have driven 30 miles in the past to pick up a reservation as I couldn't get a nearby Argos. I have queued as stores open, and I have rang round stores and used stock informer, and have had all presents by November every year. I have however never paid over the odds to someone who has stripped the shelves and potentially spoilt it for other people. I have to be honest that I do get an inner gloat when I see people on eBay etc stuck with something in January that no one wants or you can now get cheaper, but I guess that's the risk they take.

But surely if you know your kid is going to want the must have thing and you leave it until December then it’s your own gaffe...if someone capitalises on that with a bit of forward planning and makes a profit (to fund their own kids Christmas potentially) then good for them really.

Not something I would ever do and I’d think pretty poorly of anyone who did it. Yes, people who pay the crazy prices are mugs but so what? That doesn’t justify taking advantage. Nor do I think that the fact we live in a capitalist society justify it, unless your view of capitalism is that any shitty behaviour goes as long as it’s legal and you’re lining your pockets. Urgh.

Marble - I think it’s different when people just happen to bid high. I don’t have a problem with that.

Do you really think that the people who spend £300 on a £50 toy because that's the BuyItNow price wouldn't bid up that high if they were buying in an auction? There's zero difference - you sell for what the market determines an item is worth.

I bought one of those 'most wanted' toys for a family member a while ago. I didn't know they were a sought after item until I saw that I would be restricted to buying only two. I discounted the idea of buying one just to make a profit, I'm no saint certainly, but it just didn't seem right.

Oh yes, Lottie. It was Argos reservation numbers being sold, for between £30 and £50, for the Nintendo classic I think, last year.

Les, didn't seem right or couldn't be arsed for the sake of a few quod and a load of hassle.

Ridiculous to do it in the first place and to buy it at some mental price too is just as bad.

My son wants the paw patrol sea patroller which is plastic crap and a small fortune for what it is so we are waiting till after Christmas to see if it comes down in price and if he has any Christmas money he wants to buy it. Kids can’t alwahs have something just because everyone else wants it. It’s also only one day toys etc are on sale 365 days of the year online etc

No one is taking advantage of,if they pay an inflated price.have option to decline
Seller sets a price,if it’s too high it won’t sell.if price meets demand someone will pay
If parents can’t explain to kids their preferred toy is unavailable,that’s a problem.

Yep it’s so out of order

I’ve bought multiple of in demand item and sold on for hefty +++profit.happy to do so
I’m meeting a demand, securing myself a profit. Everyone wins
If there wasn’t a demand I wouldn’t do it.no one compels buyers to pay the inflated price

If a toy is hard to come by and you buy it and sell it at an inflated price to a parent who isn’t well off you are not meeting a demand. The original retailer was already doing that.

I've been trying to get an lol suprise toy since September. Not because it's this year's "must have" or were jumping on a bandwagon but because my dd had collected the lol dolls for over a year. And play's with them every single day. She sold alot of her old toys so she should buy some more when the new season came out in the summer. They really fuel her imagination. Those little dolls have do all sorts everyday. She even writes scripts for there plays. Yes she could that with any dolls but there's just something about these dolls she loves. Of course it's the also the frill and exitment of unboxing them but it's not just that as I said they come out every day. She'll play for hours with them.
I still wouldn't pay over the odds out of prinscable. If I dont get one for Christmas she will just have to have one after Christmas. I've already explained to get how hard they are to find. She asked if she's been good then father Christmas will get her one. I just explained that father Christmas doesn't get big presents like that.

I did manage to get her a luvebella though. As soon as I saw them I was sure she would love it. But she told me yesterday she thinks there freaky

Selling a popular item on is indeed meeting demand,price is what seller will bear
And an item only sells at a price someone is willing to pay,if doesn’t sell price too high

Where are you in the U.K. funnyfarmer?

Yes.

Les, didn't seem right or couldn't be arsed for the sake of a few quod and a load of hassle

Are you calling me lazy
Well, I don’t desperately need a few quid and have never bought to sell on eBay. But, yes, I think there would be an element of guilt taking an inflated amount of money, for a cheap £14.99 toy (they’re selling at over £40 currently) from somebody who didn’t or couldn’t do their shopping in Sept.

I ordered one from Amazon in Italy. It came today. So if anyone is dubious about ordering from Amazon abroad. Roughly converted to same about as what they in the shops including p&p. There really aswell not LQL

It's the concept of a 'must have toy' that needs criticism, not the general dynamics of supply and demand.

Do you not manage your children's expectations?

I’d like to bet that in a few cases it’s all about the adults wanting to get the ‘must have’ toy and the children know very little about it.