Pre-orders - Fine, or do you avoid them?

I have a pretty solid mix of preordered and secondhand buys, and a couple that were bought in stock from a dealer along the way. Most of the time when I'm buying a doll on preorder, it's because a) I fell for a limited/about to be discontinued doll and will be fine waiting however long to get it, or b) I've thought about it for a good long while and know for sure that it's one I want.

Often, when making a secondhand purchase, it's not that I wouldn't preorder something (I've waited a full year for dolls because I had to order with long layaway, and I adore them). It's that I get drawn into that specific doll (as an example, if they have a unique faceup), or it's one that's no longer available or was a past event head. Or it's one that I would preorder eventually but it's being sold secondhand at an unbeatable price.

I certainly will seek instant gratification dolls sometimes. But I'm not stopped from ordering via preorder.

 

I don't mind pre-orders straight from the company or the artist. I got used to having to wait a very long time. It has some drawbacks though. Since some companies have a very long waiting time it could be that your tastes have changed by the time the doll arrives. I also had a case of me creating a character for the doll I ordered and absolutely falling in love. When the doll eventually arrived it totally didn't fit the character I created leaving me dissapointed because I was hyped about the character I made and wouldn't be able to shell right away.

I really dislike pre-ordering through dealers, perhaps because I've only had bad experiences with them so far. Dolls not arriving, broken resin, items missing, wrong body types, ... It can happen whether ordering through a dealer or straight from the company but all my headaches have been dealer-related so far. I'm currently praying for a full refund at a certain dealer so I can hopefully re-order through the company before the availability of this doll ends. So if I can possibly avoid it I will not go through dealers unless they have extremely good feedback. Don't get me wrong, I don't discourage ordering through dealers because I know there are fabulous ones out there. I've just been mighty unlucky.

My favorites however are preloved dolls. Not because they offer near-instant gratification but because they just seem to have more character than new dolls for me. They often have their little quirks and defects that make them unique. And if the seller is truthful then what you see is what you get. It's quite enjoyable.

 

I have no problem with preorders and waiting, besides they are unavoidable. Not many dolls are in stock and I can't be sure for how long they were in stock and how they were stored -- I don't mind yellowing but to buy a doll which is already yellowed despite it's not secondhand is something I don't want to experience.

I have to admit, my patience with Dollshe is wearing thin. I prefer new dolls, right from company, artist, or dealer, but I'll make an exception and search only for their secondhand sculpts. Waiting for 2 years is too much, even for me. Not again.

 

I'm great with preorders and waiting as long as the time is consistent. If they say it is a four month wait I expect a four month wait, but there are always uncontrollable events that can occur so I'm quite okay with extended times. Though I am probably gonna avoid preorders for Dollzone, 8 month wait to receive defects that needed to be fixed, and that's another six month already and still counting.

 

I’ll preorder if there’s a doll I really want but overall I do prefer buying in-stock or secondhand. I hate long wait times and it always stresses me out when it takes more than two months. Like, I just want my doll here already what’s taking so long?!?!

 

I ordered my first preordered doll in November 2019, and it has been hell. I'm not sure if I'll be preordering a doll again for a long while.

 

A little of both. If it is something I really want and it is not in stock anywhere, I will pre order. I'll do this for dolls that I really like, and for doll bodies that I want to match the heads I got either second hand or in stock. If I know I am going to be waiting, I just put my mind into it that I am in for the long haul on this one, and then I don't get so stressed, it helps if the dealer can give me an estimate on the waiting time, then I can shove it to the back of my head while waiting on that particular doll or body.

If I get that 'doll craving' I do like to look for the instock dolls first, if I can, I'll comb some of my favourite shops and dealers looking for instock dolls at those times that I have to have a doll 'right now'. I would have to say that the majority of my dolls were instock.

After my first doll a pre-order taking eight months, I had told myself I didn't want to do that again, but I think I am starting to get better at waiting. I kind of like it a little bit, because maybe I wont be able to afford something to splurge on in six or so months, and I will still get a nice package with a doll in it! Kind of exciting for me to know I will have a doll coming to me eventually. Also I can have the wig and shoes waiting, and sew up a lot of new clothes for the doll while I am waiting on it to get home to me.

 

Pre-orders are fun because they're like giving your future self a gift!
Pre-orders aren't fun because future you is 3-?? months away.

 

I think pre-order is alright, especially for a good company that just need a little bit of money to improve their products.
But for myself, I'll do no pre-orders. I need to have an eye on all of my orders and I like to forget things easily. Often I forget to pay the shipping or maybe a second payment. I'm extremely impassioned about waiting. hahaha, so this is not a good way for me to get my dolls. If it's in stock destiny wants that I and the doll find together.

Except for dolls that just need a long time to get produced, who are not a real pre-order but the company only sells the dolls like this.

 

Almost all of my dolls are new from the company, wait times included, and for the most part I don't really mind... unless the wait time goes on longer than normal. I'm currently on month nine of waiting for an order from a company that normally has a two month turnaround... ordering through a dealer, issues with some other part of the dealer's order, and now shipping issues are all adding to the delay. With the wait being almost five times the normal duration at this point, yeah, I'm a little antsy about it finally just showing up please. Worse, that's impacting how I feel about other orders, including the one I put in only two days ago...

But the wait period is part of the hobby, honestly, and what's in the second-hand market is typically not what I'm looking for.

I see people bring this up fairly often in conjunction with long wait times, and to be honest, I do not understand it. If your tastes have changed by the time your doll arrived, they were going to change if it came sooner anyway, so either way you're selling that doll.

 

Regretting buying the doll is my main concern with preorders. On the other hand, I simply forget about the order until the time comes. Waiting is something we all MUST get used to in this hobby if we buy new from the company. Like I preordered a DD from Volks in December 2018...I still don't have the doll. One year and a half waiting and when they sent me the email to finish paying it (last week) I did NOT want it anymore but I had to pay and now I'm not even excited for it. I'm just thinking of selling it as soon as it gets here.

 

A few of my floating heads and dolls are secondhand, but I mostly do pre-orders. I'm pretty patient with the waits (unless they are like 10+ months lol). Also, most of the dolls I usually want I never see on the secondhand market, so I have to pre-order them.