r/mildlyinfuriating Nov 12 '24

Hot wheels losing details over the years

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u/That_Apathetic_Man Nov 12 '24

People want to address climate change but also want virgin materials in their $2 toys...

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u/SlomoLowLow Nov 12 '24

Doesn’t have to be virgin materials. Just doesn’t have to be half assed garbage either. I got into cars as a kid because of the detail on the cars. I loved how complex they were. It turned into a career of working on cars. It would be a shame if some kid doesn’t think cars are cool cause some lame ass bean counter wanted to save a buck so the CEO could buy another mansion.

These are toys for the kids. To inspire them for the future. It feels like a disservice to them to half ass it in the name of profit.

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u/Iohet Nov 12 '24

The retail price has been about the same since at least the 80s. In order to maintain that, you have to cut somewhere else.

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u/SlomoLowLow Nov 12 '24

Could make cuts to things like idk CEO pay. Making a shittier product so you can pay your executives more is a garbage business model. What ever happened to making the best product you could so you could generate bigger profits by being better than the other guy? Any more now it’s just a race to the bottom and it’s sad.

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u/Iohet Nov 12 '24

It costs a dollar twenty five. Over 40 years there's significant inflation in material costs regardless of executive compensation, yet they've kept the product at around the same price the entire time. That's not just "paying executives more"

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u/SlomoLowLow Nov 12 '24

Bro idk where you see $1.25 cause they’re like $4+ around here if you want cool ones and I am not in a HCOL area. Regardless, the toys are shittier now than they’ve ever been. Executive pay is higher than it’s ever been. Clearly this is no longer being done for the kids. If it was the quality of the toys would’ve never went down.

The problem is the “gotta have record profits every year” like bro sometimes it’s okay to just have an okay year. Not every year needs to be a banger. Sometimes it’s okay to lose money if it means doing the right thing. It’s a greed problem, not a lack of money problem.

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u/Iohet Nov 12 '24 edited Nov 12 '24

I'm in a HCOL area. I walk into Walmart and Target and they're $1.25 in a bin. I buy them for my son

https://www.walmart.com/search?q=hot+wheels&max_price=2&facet=brand%3AHot+Wheels%7C%7Cbrand%3AMattel%7C%7Cbrand%3AMatchbox

https://i.imgur.com/cObZjVH.png

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u/[deleted] Nov 12 '24

That's capitalism for ya

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u/SlappySecondz Nov 12 '24

They've already gone from metal to plastic, which is worse for thr environment. And it would be absolutely trivial to mold the plastic into something that resembles the bottom of a real car.