"Why are BJDs so expensive?"

I know I'm preaching to the choir, but I firmly believe you get what you pay for, and that the Walmart Effect is one of the worse things that's ever happened. Americans have this expectation that things should be mass-produced and cheap... I'm a part-time seamstress, and I can't make an outfit for less than, on average, $250. Some people balk at this, but people who actually know what goes into it find it somewhat surprising that I can make a profit charging that little. BJDs are the same thing on a slightly bigger scale. I do not think they're overpriced, even though many are out of my budget.

But... this totally wasn't the topic of this thread anyway ^^;; In terms of Volks vs. other companies, I'm rather surprised that the price difference is so small. The Korean companies have lower overhead, whereas Volks has the really nice showrooms, museum, full "artists village", famous faceup artists for LEs, etc. The cost of those has to come from somewhere... It's something of a wonder that Super Dollfies don't cost $900+, especially considering how time-consumming it is to just make them.

 

Donn- i knew you would pull through since you're making your own BJD.

whoa.. so espenxive just to make the mold! wow! XD Kudos to you for making your own BJD! lol I think i'll have to stick to clay :P

 

That's because SDs aren't Volks' only business. Like Paulkaiju said, Volks produces other model kits and they also produce a lot of 1/6 dollfie items. Outside of the whole SD world, Volks is well-known for these and are regarded as one of or the best in the business. If you think about it, Volks set the price standards for these ball jointed dolls we love. The koreans just followed suit with the prices.

 

The wooden dolls are not HAND carved. They are machine carved w/ a machine that uses a cast-metal (bronze?) head/body/part as a template and the block of wood is ground down to match the metal piece.

 

True, but SDs aren't a loss-leader item like a jewelry sale at Walmart. They're priced given what they cost Volks to make, especially since their dollfie stores are basically exclusively that -- dollfie stores. (I haven't been to one, but I've been told that they don't really sell other Volks stuff there). I'd definitely say the Korean dolls are following suit in pricing, because logically their overhead *must* be lower, but their dolls cost just as much as Volk's.

 

Actually, having just gone to six Volks stores, most of them carry more non-SD stuff. In most stores, the first thing you see when entering are model kits and have to go to the back to find the SD section, the size of which really varied. Akihabara was a pretty big store and about 1/3 SD, 1/3 Dollfie and 1/3 models & other toys, whereas Shinjuku was about 1/5 SD and was a tiny store in general. Ikebukuro and Nagaoka-kyo were both about 1/4 SD. Osaka had 4.5 floors of models, 1/2 floor of Dollfies and 1 floor of SD. Of course, the store in the basement at Tenshi no Sato was all SD. Volks' overhead must have been incredible, especially for the stores in Tokyo.

Does anyone know if any of the Korean companies have actual store fronts?

 

cause they rox and are perfect and worth every coin.
IF need to be more explained:
'cause it is hand made
resin is expansive
comes from korea

 

I'm actually quite GLAD they are so expensive! LOL! I know im mad but... if they were any less i think everyone would have one and they would begin to turn up on every street corner... as cool as that might sound... i dont want a million teeny-bopper townies, like the ones who live in my area... grumpy ungrateful kids!! (No offence to the younger members here who want these dolls for the same reason as the rest of us.) walking around with something so precous, and talking about it like its some new fashion accessory.
And also, the fact that im having to work my ass of to get the dolls i want just makes me appreciate them all teh more! I couldnt even *think* of life without Valentine now.... and i know ill feel the same about Marius and Ari (when they arrive ^_^) and all my other future dolls!

 

I don't think they're all that expensive, actually. For the workmanship and quality involved, I'm frankly suprised to get them so cheaply. I showed Conchobhair to my father over Thanksgiving, and after he'd looked over Conchobhair's articulation and the resin quality, my father's guess as to what I'd spent on him was twice what I'd actually spent. Keep in mind, this is coming from someone who thinks $50 shoes (for humans) are expensive.

My in-laws haven't seen him yet, but I imagine my father-in-law will say the same thing when I get around to sending photos to them. He does RC toys, and I know some of those jets and larger toys cost over $1000. Not to mention that the non-electric RC stuff, you have to keep buying fuel. We get our dolls, and that's it unless you want to buy more clothes or wigs or eyes, none of which are necessary to continue playing with the doll.


Basically, if the person you're talking to doesn't get why anyone would spend so much on a hobby, they don't have any hobbies. So, don't worry about it.

 

Volks actually have two showrooms in Shinjuku -- the second one, on the 8th floor of the Studio Alta building, is a Tenshi no Sumika and is exclusively SD items. It's not huge but it IS devoted entirely to SD. The Volks showroom at Ginza is also a Tenshi no Sumika showroom only, and is devoted entirely to SD. Again, it's not large, but like the Shinjuku Sumika it's big enough to have separate sections for clothes for each of the SD types, for wigs, for optional parts, for accessories, for eyes, and for the FCS ordering itself. As well as display models, one-offs, etc, etc.

(Neither store is as big as the SD section at Akiba, though.. I'd say they're maybe around the size of the SD section at the Nagoya store.)

The Studio Alta showroom must cost them a pretty penny, and I doubt the rent at Ginza is cheap, either.

 

You know, I totally agree with you. I'm the type of person that would like to be unique (as hard as that might be) and have hobbies to call my own. And you're right. If everyone can afford BJDs and actually own them, they'll just be a new fad. As selfish as this may sound, I'm also glad that these dolls are expensive. This way they will be appreciated as they should be, and not just tossed around like some $5 action figures you buy from Toys R Us.

 

I don't know if this has been said or not, but for Volks at least, in Japan everything is just more expensive comparitively than America. They expect much higher quality and have alot less space so it drives the prices up. They also have to import alot of materials which makes it more expensive.

 

That is very true... that and in Japan, any kind of hand made art is horridly expensive. Go into a traditional doll shop and you'll find dolls that cost way, way more than a BJD, I promise. I went into a ningyou store in a more out of the way part of Kyoto and the lowest price Ichimatsu doll (about the same height as a bjd, can be undressed and sometimes posed) was about $850US... They were really, really beautiful, but really, really expensive.

 

Why do BJDs cost so much? I was asked this question, but I couldn't provide an answer.

 

Because of production costs and people will pay that much. ;3

 

Because of the cost of the resin, added in with the time it takes to make and the parts that don't come out exactly right.

It's art. It's handmade. Each BJD was carefully and lovingly made by someone, instead of a machine. So, naturally, hand-made things are more expensive when they are art of this quality. ^_^

 

yup basically just that. they're hand made out of a pricey but very worthwhile medium. =)
(although it's good to keep in mind a higher price doesn't nessisarily mean a better product.)

 

Because of image. I think Volks had a lot to do with starting it off, treating Super Dollfies are something extra-special, having parties and ceremonies, a club, promoting a lot of personification. It's not only Volks, of course, but they're the grand-daddy. It's "brand-equity" without necessarily being just a brand. BJD companies have built up intangible attributes around their dolls that have created an added value in the consumer psyche. And our communities really help to drive the point. It's one thing for a company to tell you a doll is worth five hundred dollars but it's another to see dozens or hundreds of people who have paid that much, are satisfied with their purchases, and hold their dolls in a lot of esteem and endearment.

And... yeah. I'm an advertising major.

 

because it's a friend ahahahahaha so lame sorry.

but the fact its more posable than barbie, i like.
i used to tell myself " dont buy it! you'll die of starvation" coz i'm already lililala-ing spending alot on blythes.
but i'm hooked XD.
yeah, i got nothing to contribute that its art, its posable, it's nicer to play with because it's posable, great to creat story with because its posable,
you can change the character with make up, eyes and wigs...

i guess its also expensive because they dont use one mold to do the whole body. there's the hand mold, torso mold, and the hole through to get the string through.. and reshaping it as what comes out of the mold dont look good autimatically,
the resin quality, the amount of people working on it..
and the electricity and water bill... XXXXDDDD

 

Because not only are they made by hand, they are made by hand by highly skilled, specialised artisans. And those kinda folks are not minimum-wage workers! Not to mention that the raw materials are expensive and temperamental.