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Succinctly put, and a decent analogy. Mostly because I’m Dog Daft.

Nobody is saying GW shouldn’t have made this gesture, at all. What people are saying is that sadly, the execution is lacking.

The original article was cool, exciting and appreciated by all. Shiny new rare model? Yes Please, Santa. And we can get it whilst helping our FLGS get back on its feet following a mess far beyond their control? Excellent!

But.....it didn’t say how few would be going out. And from what I’ve read, it was announced before FLGS were informed.

So we, The Nerd Herd, were expecting something GW simply weren’t going to deliver. And it’s the FLGS having to deal with that fall out.

Those putting it up on eBay? Seems distasteful, but in these strangest of strange days, gotta keep the Wolf from the door. And this isn’t Stinky O’Neckbeard clearing the shelves but for the stale Dorito crumbs, dear reader. Not some selfish sod denying others so they can buy a new full body waifu pillow. Oh no.

These are small, often vulnerable businesses thrown a bone, trying to make what they can from it.

So whilst I won’t be bidding? I cannot fairly fault those putting them on eBay. More fool those who have put in £200+ bids.

And the answer here is so, so simple - and rests entirely with GW. Make Them Available To Order.

Even at standard rates, it’s giving FLGS something shiny we can’t get anywhere else. Even if it’s a strict limit per store, it’s giving them a fat old lure to get customers back through the door when government restrictions allow.

Why does that matter? Few people ever go Hobby shopping and only ever come back with exactly what they wanted. There’s always ancillaries like paint, brushes, glue, let alone ‘sod it, another box of Mortek Guard won’t hurt’ type things.

This could’ve been a more sustained way to get cash flow, erm, flowing for FLGS. But at the moment? The noble intention just isn’t working.

I think, perhaps, the only criticism I can apply to GW is regarding the way the miniature was communicated to the community.

It felt like this was going to be similar to store birthdays or events where we could buy/order for one day only and the store would get 100% of the sales.

However, in hindsight, it looks to be they had 10,000 produced ready for the anniversary before lockdown happened and they have decided to give them to independents, free of charge, instead.

That is a very nice gesture, and kudos to them for it, but 10,000 worldwide is not a lot and probably does equate to approx 4 per store.

This isn't GW's fault as they currently have no means to produce any more but some in the community may, rightly or not, be left feeling let down.

But the independent retailers in a few (so far rare cases) also have to take some criticism in the way they are going about selling them. And it's entirely up to them how they do this, GW haven't recommended a best practice (which maybe they should have).

Knowing these minis are going to be incredibly rare could actually work in the retailers favour.

They could sell their 4 copies at retail and make approx £80 - £100. They could put them on ebay and make £200 each. Either way this is not a huge sum of money and probably wouldn't help them.

If it was my store I would give out a raffle ticket for every £100 you spent which entered you into a prize draw. If 100 people entered that's £10,000 in sales that have cost you nothing. Or, as others have said, make it a prize in a painting comp or tournament.

Maybe GW should have explained on WarCom how limited these were, and maybe they should have given guidelines to stores as to how to sell them. But this was meant to be a nice gesture, maybe it just needed a tad more planning.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Succinctly put, and a decent analogy. Mostly because I’m Dog Daft.

Nobody is saying GW shouldn’t have made this gesture, at all. What people are saying is that sadly, the execution is lacking.

The original article was cool, exciting and appreciated by all. Shiny new rare model? Yes Please, Santa. And we can get it whilst helping our FLGS get back on its feet following a mess far beyond their control? Excellent!

But.....it didn’t say how few would be going out. And from what I’ve read, it was announced before FLGS were informed.

So we, The Nerd Herd, were expecting something GW simply weren’t going to deliver. And it’s the FLGS having to deal with that fall out.

Those putting it up on eBay? Seems distasteful, but in these strangest of strange days, gotta keep the Wolf from the door. And this isn’t Stinky O’Neckbeard clearing the shelves but for the stale Dorito crumbs, dear reader. Not some selfish sod denying others so they can buy a new full body waifu pillow. Oh no.

These are small, often vulnerable businesses thrown a bone, trying to make what they can from it.

So whilst I won’t be bidding? I cannot fairly fault those putting them on eBay. More fool those who have put in £200+ bids.

And the answer here is so, so simple - and rests entirely with GW. Make Them Available To Order.

Even at standard rates, it’s giving FLGS something shiny we can’t get anywhere else. Even if it’s a strict limit per store, it’s giving them a fat old lure to get customers back through the door when government restrictions allow.

Why does that matter? Few people ever go Hobby shopping and only ever come back with exactly what they wanted. There’s always ancillaries like paint, brushes, glue, let alone ‘sod it, another box of Mortek Guard won’t hurt’ type things.

This could’ve been a more sustained way to get cash flow, erm, flowing for FLGS. But at the moment? The noble intention just isn’t working.

We know that even before Covid GWs factories were running full steam. This will only exacerbate their supply problems. I doubt they have time to add more product to their already saturated backlog. In the future they might make this guy available trough other means, but I doubt its any kind of priority right now.

People should understand that it's this few or nothing.

Yeah, using it as a prize for a loyalty buy type deal seems like a more financially productive option than just auctioning it.

It’s simply not ‘these few or nothing’. At all.

The new factory is complete, and so far as I’m aware, up and running (well, it was!).

Even if it it takes them some weeks to fulfil orders? So what? I’d rather wait three, four, five, six weeks and support my FLGS, than have to wait for a GW Store Opening for my chance.

Taking time to fulfil the orders is no reason not to take the orders, provided the delay is made clear.

 Kid_Kyoto wrote:
Free puppies are not gifts, they require a lot of work and upkeep and disruption in your life. Especially if you're not expecting or prepared for it and have a lot of other stuff going on in your life.

With these GW has dropped a load of free puppies in the laps of FLGSs and asked them to figure out how to deal with them.

A kind gesture may have been free stock or army boxes or extending credit or better wholesale rates or something, or as I and others have said, allowing them to preorder the Sgt.

Instead stores have to put in extra work and take the heat when folks can't get this product.

And that's the issue. A half-baked plan to help can do more harm than good.

aye, if it would've been sufficently large quantity like 100000 or even more, then it'd been a great plan because the margine for earning on that mini would be extremely high and decent availability means that there is actual financial impact to a degree for the FLGs.

Koveras wrote:

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Succinctly put, and a decent analogy. Mostly because I’m Dog Daft.

Nobody is saying GW shouldn’t have made this gesture, at all. What people are saying is that sadly, the execution is lacking.

The original article was cool, exciting and appreciated by all. Shiny new rare model? Yes Please, Santa. And we can get it whilst helping our FLGS get back on its feet following a mess far beyond their control? Excellent!

But.....it didn’t say how few would be going out. And from what I’ve read, it was announced before FLGS were informed.

So we, The Nerd Herd, were expecting something GW simply weren’t going to deliver. And it’s the FLGS having to deal with that fall out.

Those putting it up on eBay? Seems distasteful, but in these strangest of strange days, gotta keep the Wolf from the door. And this isn’t Stinky O’Neckbeard clearing the shelves but for the stale Dorito crumbs, dear reader. Not some selfish sod denying others so they can buy a new full body waifu pillow. Oh no.

These are small, often vulnerable businesses thrown a bone, trying to make what they can from it.

So whilst I won’t be bidding? I cannot fairly fault those putting them on eBay. More fool those who have put in £200+ bids.

And the answer here is so, so simple - and rests entirely with GW. Make Them Available To Order.

Even at standard rates, it’s giving FLGS something shiny we can’t get anywhere else. Even if it’s a strict limit per store, it’s giving them a fat old lure to get customers back through the door when government restrictions allow.

Why does that matter? Few people ever go Hobby shopping and only ever come back with exactly what they wanted. There’s always ancillaries like paint, brushes, glue, let alone ‘sod it, another box of Mortek Guard won’t hurt’ type things.

This could’ve been a more sustained way to get cash flow, erm, flowing for FLGS. But at the moment? The noble intention just isn’t working.

We know that even before Covid GWs factories were running full steam. This will only exacerbate their supply problems. I doubt they have time to add more product to their already saturated backlog. In the future they might make this guy available trough other means, but I doubt its any kind of priority right now.

People should understand that it's this few or nothing.

The idea of "they can't change their plans to make more of them" doesn't seem to be quite the case as that's exactly what they did with 3 other limited edition miniatures recently.

The difference is that we don't know when the Lieutenant, Sister, or Terminator Librarians will actually be getting fulfilled.

Stores are getting these models in hand, right now, because they were already produced.

10k models would equate to roughly 15-20 models per GW store, of which there's around 500ish...which means these are the initial models that stores would have had on hand before they would have to take orders.

The only issue I'm seeing right now is that they did not say "We'll be taking orders for more" or "this is intended as a fundraising item for shops, where they can set their own price now and then we'll take orders later".

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
It’s simply not ‘these few or nothing’. At all.

The new factory is complete, and so far as I’m aware, up and running (well, it was!).

Even if it it takes them some weeks to fulfil orders? So what? I’d rather wait three, four, five, six weeks and support my FLGS, than have to wait for a GW Store Opening for my chance.

Taking time to fulfil the orders is no reason not to take the orders, provided the delay is made clear.

GW's brand new warehouse space is shared with AmazonUK which might currently be an issue. Amazon are still trading, probably more than ever and it's possible they have co-opted GW's space right now?

It might also make it tricky from a Health and safety/Risk point of view with exactly who has oversight right now and how both companies could manage social distancing?

GW were also embarking on one of the most potentially risky processes for a retail business just when lockdown kicked in. They were completed replacing all of their warehousing and sales systems which was due to happen in March/April I believe.

So I think it will be a while before they fully recover from this and I really hope it doesn't affect them too badly but they must have lost a lot of money globally in the last 6 weeks.

While I agree this is currently doing more harm than good, where are people buying their crystal balls from?

So many posts to the tune of “why can’t they do X or Y in the future” and followed by a barrage of stupidity.
Considering none of us can see into the future, we don’t know what they will do or how they will handle it.
Judging it all based on your own predictions of future events is just pointless and a complete strawman argument.

Only thing people can do is voice their complaint about the limited (very limited) availability and hope that GW actually listens.
It honestly wouldn’t surprise me if they did drop more, but that’s just my take.
I’m hoping they do, but I can only see the current time.

 BroodSpawn wrote:
It's almost like GW losing money on a nice gesture isn't enough for some people.

It ain't gonna be that much money now. We know their margins are huge...

 Kanluwen wrote:
Stores are getting these models in hand, right now, because they were already produced.

Or, more likely, stores are getting these models in hand, right now, because they were taking up warehouse space and that can be quite bad for the all bank balance in the long run.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Those putting it up on eBay? Seems distasteful, but in these strangest of strange days, gotta keep the Wolf from the door.

It is disrespectful to take a super-rare (at the moment) mini and put it up on eBay for a stupid starting price.

Note I said starting price. If people want to bid up to US$300 to get one, then let the fool be parted with their money, but starting the bidding at a level above what most clampack single minis cost is the disrespectful part. Unless it's a charity, as you said. Hard to bitch about people using this mini to raise funds for a good cause.

Jackal90 wrote:
While I agree this is currently doing more harm than good, where are people buying their crystal balls from?

So many posts to the tune of “why can’t they do X or Y in the future” and followed by a barrage of stupidity.
Considering none of us can see into the future, we don’t know what they will do or how they will handle it.
Judging it all based on your own predictions of future events is just pointless and a complete strawman argument.

Only thing people can do is voice their complaint about the limited (very limited) availability and hope that GW actually listens.
It honestly wouldn’t surprise me if they did drop more, but that’s just my take.
I’m hoping they do, but I can only see the current time.

Which is why several peeps I know of have emailed GW.

 BroodSpawn wrote:

 Yodhrin wrote:
Right, for all the people hopping up on their majestic white chargers to ride to the defence of Milady GW, let me try and explain this issue to you in a nice simple way:

Firstly, GW are not doing this out of the goodness of their hearts. Every FLGS in the world could go bankrupt tomorrow and nobody making these decisions at GW would even bother to pretend to be sad, were it not for the fact they themselves would lose revenue. They are doing this for exactly two reasons: to keep FLGS owners on-side so they'll keep ordering GW products after this whole fiasco is over, and to garner some positive PR by presenting themselves as the Caring Corporate Daddy who looks after their Valued Partners etc. The fact that their motivation is so obviously cynical immediately invalidates any of your "but they're doing a nice thing so you should shut up and stop being a meanie-weenie!!!!1" guff.

Secondly, regardless of what their actual motivations are, GW gave a clear stated goal for this course of action to achieve, and it's entirely valid and fair to point out that the course of action is a rubbish way to achieve said goal. By failing to indicate in the marketing material how rare these are going to be, rather than making customers better disposed towards FLGS they are in fact engendering ill-will towards them by making them be the ones who have to repeatedly disappoint people who call up trying to order one. And as for the idea literally less-than-a-handful of free miniatures is going to make any meaningful difference to their income - ahaha. Given the previous, it could do the reverse, as people who *would* have made purchases go off in a huff because they can't get the fancy Catachan model(and don't start moralising - whether they're justified in throwing a hissy is irrelevant, plenty of them will do so, and that fact is entirely foreseeable).

Thirdly, this pantomime act that you have going about poor GW just trying to do their best with a limited resource, oh noes they only have 10,000, oh boo-hoo it's a limited anniversary model so what more could any right thinking person expect them to do etc, is bad comedy.

GW own the design. GW own the molds. GW made the decision what kind of model it would be and how it would be sold. They are evidently capable of changing any of those previously made decisions, as evidenced by the fact they already did when they chose to give them to FLGS. There is nothing whatsoever preventing them from going further if they wanted to.

No, they can't crank out extras right now at this exact moment, but what exactly is stopping them from making this product Made To Order exclusively through independent retailers, giving them the models wholesale(or even, whisper it, at-cost), with the understanding orders will be fulfilled when the lockdown ends and the factory is up & running again? They are in complete and total control of all the factors that would allow such a course of action, and they're sitting on a giant pile of cash reserves so it's not like it would bankrupt the company(hell, if they were doing them at wholesale prices, they'd likely make far more money than they would have selling a few thousand exclusively at store anniversaries).

If they were actually interested in boosting the incomes of poor defenceless FLGS owners, that's the kind of thing they'd be doing, not this ineffectual PR stunt.

Criticism is entirely warranted.

Oh I'm sorry, we should only criticise GW no matter what moves they do. You're right, they should have totally waited until they had a production slot available in the future, then sell models to stores assuming those stores would still be open instead of giving out items and losing money in the process.

It's almost like GW losing money on a nice gesture isn't enough for some people.

(Is my sarcasm at your complaint too strong here? With all due respect I sincerely hope it's not.)

The long and short of it is this: it's a nice gesture by a supplier/manufacturer to independent stockists of there product. It's not perfect, but then again nothing GW is. If you (and others like you) want to be angry over this direct it at GW's email box.

Oh and on that whole 'white-knight' comment you've gone with: surely those of us in the community that have shrugged and went 'okay, guess it's not for me/not getting one but I can live with it' or are more accepting of this situation don't deserve to be, frankly, insulted for not joining in with the pitch-forks of the 'GW Hate Mob', or did you intentionally write that out knowing you'd get a bite from someone?

This being something GW are doing for "free" doesn't mean no criticism of the way it's been handled so far is allowed and it's all perfectly fine.

Games Workshop generously announce that they will be sending independent stores who are struggling at the moment free miniatures to, in their own words "help support them". A commendable thing for them to do.

However, the amount of these miniatures shops are receiving are such small numbers as 1 or 4. No-where near enough for staff, a portion of their regulars, or other customers who might want it - they can't make more currently though, so that's fine if they're able to pre-order/made-to-order more for later on! Except they can't do that either. That single miniature being sent to that shop seems like, at least at the moment, that will be it for them, as there's nothing to suggest at all that there will be more of these made available at a later date.

The idea of getting people into the shop to buy other things while there is unlikely to apply much here, as people will ask about the miniature and end up being disappointed at how few there are, and just not bother going or may direct their feelings towards the independant shop itself, as they're the one having to disappoint them. So customers are going to be unhappy because they don't even have a reasonable chance of getting this limited-edition miniature and shops aren't going to be pleased because the pitiful amount of the miniatures being sent, combined with the annoyance to those customers who want it, is not going to have any sort of positive impact towards financial support for them.

Games Workshop claim this is being done to help independent shops, but then have this done it in a way that isn't going to support them much at all and may potentially do the opposite, when there's an way to easily avoid all that. They could do the exact same thing they've done with several other recent limited-edition miniatures that they've changed their initial plans with - have them available as made-to-order, just via those independent shops - but there's nothing at all to indicate that will be the case. That's the problem.

They changed their plans for several other limited edition miniatures (after manufacture) to make a made-to-order item for a limited time, which will be made and sent once they're able to start production again. I would have thought that if they really wanted to support local shops, as they say they want to do, it would have been a similar situation here. If they really wanted to support those independent shops, then they could have them orderable via those shops as a made-to-order item, and even if those places had to pay at least manufacture cost or around that, that would be far more of a beneficial way to do.Customers would be happy with it being more readily available, shops would be happy as they get an exclusive miniature to sell to help them financially, and at manufacture price the cost for GW would be somewhat offset.

But no, the current way of handling it of that appears to be "here's 1 miniature you can raffle or auction or something, that's all you're getting" is something that shouldn't be criticized and everyone should be grateful for just on the basis of it being "free"? It's a nice gesture, yes. That doesn't mean it's being handled in a reasonable way for those who want the miniature, or will support the shops in a meaningful way.

I don't see an issue with people who want to support their FLGS complaining that something that's said to be to a move by GW to support FLGS isn't really supporting them and instead leaves them in a bad situation.

The issue with your comparison is that the models in question that you're using as an example are limited to specific events that are no longer happening.
Amulius? He was going to be at Adepticon before he 'went away forevers'.
Lexicanum Varos and the Sister were likely intended for Adepticon or the UK Games Expo or Warhammer Day.


Colonel is an anniversary model, and once again for those in the back, this is stock that isbeing made available to shops right now. Not next month or "when things get back to normal". It's right now. Otherwise he would have been allocated to GW/ Warhammer shops and once he sold through at the store level, would have had order sheets in-store. Wouldn't have been available via the webstore even.

If people want the model and they want to support their local independent? Then realize that the independents probably are having issues thanks to stock chain issues or people opting to purchase things online instead and they would not have had these models, even in a Made to Order format unless they specifically made group orders for people. You lot damned well should be wanting shops to do these as an 'auction' style thing rather than just the normal $35 pricetag(which you'd be complaining about as "too much" anyways) to pump a bit more cash into them.

If an independent is only getting 1-2 models they should ebay them. An extra $200-400... is helpful.

If an independent is getting 4 or more then should sell them for $30 with when you spend over $100 on GW product. This will probably help the independant more. Giving them away as a prize isn’t going to help them. Regardless free merchandise by ANY company to an independent is a nice gesture regardless of how many they got. Almost every other game company in the world are giving these stores nothing.

But.....it didn’t say how few would be going out. And from what I’ve read, it was announced before FLGS were informed.

The owner of my FLGS also wasn't aware, i hit him up on FB with the reddit article and bought a few gift cards to secure mine.

Honestly i haven't played Catachan in almost a year, i might not even use the model, i'll most likely just give it away as a door prize when my league opens back up, but i agree GW had the right intentions.

I know people are hurting right now so it's hard to criticize anyone trying to make extra coin but seeing these models go for 3 - 5 times MSRP (ebay) is disheartening to say the least.

gungo wrote:
Giving them away as a prize isn’t going to help them.

It is if it brings in more orders that would have been placed elsewhere. Profit is profit, and more, now, is what they need.

Just to underscore the lack of communication, this it the message i got today from my FLGS:

I'm still waiting for an definitive answer from GW. Right now, our reps understanding is that the figure is just for their standalone GW stores.

A lot of people don't realize that the GW branded stores are actually independent retailers. I believe it's a franchise style agreement

If this is true and GW only branded stores are getting these minis that would be pretty self serving to say the least. Not exactly the FLGS saviors reddit portrayed.

The FLGS have posted how many they have been told to expect.
These are non-GW stores that stock GW products.

 Skinnereal wrote:
The FLGS have posted how many they have been told to expect..

The? Independent UK stores?

Asgard Wargames are raffling one off, with all proceeds going to Captain Tom’s fundraiser for the NHS.

£1 an entry, details on FB (search Asgard Wargames). I’m in for £35, because charity.

MiguelFelstone wrote:
Just to underscore the lack of communication, this it the message i got today from my FLGS:

I'm still waiting for an definitive answer from GW. Right now, our reps understanding is that the figure is just for their standalone GW stores.

A lot of people don't realize that the GW branded stores are actually independent retailers. I believe it's a franchise style agreement

If this is true and GW only branded stores are getting these minis that would be pretty self serving to say the least. Not exactly the FLGS saviors reddit portrayed.

Franchise? Since when? It isn’t at all run like a franchise so that would surprise me..
There is a big push from GW when they open a store, generally a franchise doesn’t do that in their H/O announcing it on a community page etc
(See subway for how franchises commonly work).

Also there is no information I’ve ever seen on become a franchisee, just become a stockist etc..
Never looked for it, but it would shock me if that’s the case..


(Also, we know independents Are getting them..)


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:
Asgard Wargames are raffling one off, with all proceeds going to Captain Tom’s fundraiser for the NHS.

£1 an entry, details on FB (search Asgard Wargames). I’m in for £35, because charity.

This is how I think they should all be done. Whether charity or for themselves. Raffles, fair for all, can raise the ‘shocking £150 eBay price’ and then some, but doesn’t cut anyone out from possibly winning..

MiguelFelstone wrote:
Just to underscore the lack of communication, this it the message i got today from my FLGS:

I'm still waiting for an definitive answer from GW. Right now, our reps understanding is that the figure is just for their standalone GW stores.

A lot of people don't realize that the GW branded stores are actually independent retailers. I believe it's a franchise style agreement

If this is true and GW only branded stores are getting these minis that would be pretty self serving to say the least. Not exactly the FLGS saviors reddit portrayed.

No.

It’s not true. At all. GW do NOT operate as a franchise. Go look at their annual report. Show whomever made this claim. Ask them to point out their ‘franchise’ income.

So they went from Rambo to Predator. Neat.
Maybe we'll get the Expendables at some point.

Danny76 wrote:
This is how I think they should all be done. Whether charity or for themselves. Raffles, fair for all, can raise the ‘shocking £150 eBay price’ and then some, but doesn’t cut anyone out from possibly winning..

Doing a raffle for themselves might fall foul of gambling regulations.

beast_gts wrote:

Danny76 wrote:
This is how I think they should all be done. Whether charity or for themselves. Raffles, fair for all, can raise the ‘shocking £150 eBay price’ and then some, but doesn’t cut anyone out from possibly winning..

Doing a raffle for themselves might fall foul of gambling regulations.

Seemingly no license required if the money is for charity.

MiguelFelstone wrote:
Just to underscore the lack of communication, this it the message i got today from my FLGS:

I'm still waiting for an definitive answer from GW. Right now, our reps understanding is that the figure is just for their standalone GW stores.

A lot of people don't realize that the GW branded stores are actually independent retailers. I believe it's a franchise style agreement

If this is true and GW only branded stores are getting these minis that would be pretty self serving to say the least. Not exactly the FLGS saviors reddit portrayed.

This isn't true, and GW stores are literally never referred to nor have they ever been referred to as "Independent Retailers".
These figures were intended for their shops. That's how these anniversary events work.

Frankly, I wouldn't be shocked if your store is trying to pull one over on you because they use a distributor rather than a GW trade account...because it seems like it's trade accounts that are getting them rather than distributor based stockists.

 Kanluwen wrote:
it seems like it's trade accounts that are getting them rather than distributor based stockists

If true that's pretty

Why would you even remotely think that distributor based stockists would get them?

There's 10k of these models, physically available to be shipped out right now. GW knows that they haven't been getting orders from their trade accounts--they also know that their trade accounts haven't been getting restocks, because GW's warehouses are effectively shuttered.

Distributors on the other hand haven't necessarily been idle, nor have the shops that utilize them--which trend towards being online storefronts rather than physically based ones.

 Kanluwen wrote:
The issue with your comparison is that the models in question that you're using as an example are limited to specific events that are no longer happening.
Amulius? He was going to be at Adepticon before he 'went away forevers'.
Lexicanum Varos and the Sister were likely intended for Adepticon or the UK Games Expo or Warhammer Day.


Colonel is an anniversary model, and once again for those in the back, this is stock that isbeing made available to shops right now. Not next month or "when things get back to normal". It's right now. Otherwise he would have been allocated to GW/ Warhammer shops and once he sold through at the store level, would have had order sheets in-store. Wouldn't have been available via the webstore even.

If people want the model and they want to support their local independent? Then realize that the independents probably are having issues thanks to stock chain issues or people opting to purchase things online instead and they would not have had these models, even in a Made to Order format unless they specifically made group orders for people. You lot damned well should be wanting shops to do these as an 'auction' style thing rather than just the normal $35 pricetag(which you'd be complaining about as "too much" anyways) to pump a bit more cash into them.

I don't get what you're saying about the comparison. Amulius was a model that had stock already manufactured, being available last year and intended to be at his years Adepticon, and so was Varos. Adepticon was cancelled around 2 weeks before they were announced as being made-to-order miniatures instead, so quite a short time frame. Those wouldn't have been on the webstore either, until the plan suddenly changed. All 4 of the miniatures (Amulius, Varos, Sister, Catachan) were intended for events that were cancelled. They say the Catachan will be only available via independent shops and is being given to support them, so why should that be the only one of those that isn't made-to-order, just via those independent shops instead of webstore? How is it a different situation?