I can remember a time before Star Wars when the phrase ‘collectors edition’ didn’t really exist and folk like me who had managed to hang on to one or two items from their early years had done it by luck rather than judgement. My old toys and books had memories attached, of less complicated times when imagination was limitless and endless fun could be gleaned from a die cast car or a plastic rocket.
Nowadays, to buy a brand new ‘collectors edition’ model or toy and remove the packaging to simply enjoy it is tantamount to throwing money away. The advice is to squirrel it away and keep it in pristine condition as a future investment! Or, if you must open it, buy two! That way at least someone's making money.
Obviously it's not all down to Star Wars but I reckon a lot of people saw opportunity, and jumped onto a bandwagon that's still rolling.
Is that the way it is are am I am just being a bit cynical?
By the way, these Star Wars toys are my son’s. As a child he was quite aware of the 'value' of collectables as his Dad's old Thunderbird collection showed. I suspect in later years when he rediscovered his old toys stored in the loft he was also aware that the 'value' was in memories. They’re a bit knocked about and hardly in pristine condition but he wouldn’t part with them for the world.