Casual Collector? Hard-Core Horror Fan? Time Travelin’ Trekkie? Get Your Fix At Johns Toy Store!
Written: Dec 19 '03
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| Full Review |
When I started my holiday shopping there were a lot of collectables on the list, my brood are die-hard Star Wars and Harry Potter fans and Chris loves The Nightmare Before Christmas series merchandise as well as anything horror related. When I started looking for items on their lists of things they wanted to find under the tree, the most difficult items were the Doctor Finklestein Cookie Jar, The Nightmare Before Christmas character set and the Clone Wars Federation Tank Bank. Thanks to this well stocked site, I was able to find two of the three “must have” items on their lists and saved a bit of time buying them online over having to try and track them down at local retail stores. When my order arrived I was impressed with how the items were packed, the quality of the products and how quickly they arrived. As far as price goes, they are average [some things a little more, some things a little less] when compared to sites that are selling the same type products however it’s the customer service, low shipping fees and fast delivery time that keep me coming back [four times so far].
With so many different online sites offering collectables, you have to really know what the fair market value is on what you are shopping for. At John’s you will find a plethora of items so chances are you’ll find at least a few things that you’ll fall in love with. Personally I fell in love with the Hellraiser items and freaked out when I saw that they were one of the few sites to carry the puzzle boxes. I wish I would have held out and searched around a little more for this item because I paid about ten dollars more for it at another site. There are a lot of sub sections to the site so prepare to spend the better part of an hour getting around the major sections, reading the descriptions and checking out the cool collectables they carry. If you don’t see something listed, give them a call to see if its something that they will be adding to the site or if they can place a special order for it.
Navigation
Getting around the site is pretty easy but the first time you hit it you might get a little confused when using the navigation bar on the left hand side. Things are broken down in to sections such as music, television, movies etc. From there you can browse the various sub sections like Star Wars, Muppets, Buffy The Vampire Slayer and a very cool section for comic characters. Once you go to a section the navigation bar will return to the default setting but you don’t have to use your back button on your browser, just go to the section headings and select another option. Almost all of the items at the site are shown with a full color photo, description, price, special shipping instructions and availability. I’ve never encountered a broken link, pop up or offensive content when I’ve been at the site but I haven’t made it to each and every section so there might be a few figures or items that could offend – but the only thing that really comes to mind are the figures of adult film stars like Brianna Banks, Jasmine St. Claire and Jenna Jameson. From what I have seen all these figures are clothed but are still things you might not want the younger crowd gawking at. As far as whether this is kid friendly or not – that’s a personal call. There are some horror related items that might scare younger kids so you might want to poke around the site first before you give your children permission to cruise it.
Selection
WOW! I was really impressed the first time I hit the site, everything from The Muppets to television series [Star Trek, Buffy, Scooby Doo], movies and music [lots of Marilyn Manson paraphernalia] and even retro items can be found at the site. A bulk of what they deal in are collectable figures and toys but you’ll also find limited edition things like the ultra cool six foot tall Jack Skelington, Hellraiser puzzle box, Star Wars busts and more. There are some sections that are a little thin – like the music section – there are listings for Ozzy, KISS, Madonna etc but when you hit their individual pages there’s nothing listed. If this is something that you are interested in then check those sections often since they are continually adding new items. A great way to stay on top of things is to sign up for their free newsletter so you will be notified when thing are added. For the most part the site carries a lot of unique items – not so much so that they can’t be found elsewhere but you’d be hard pressed to beat not only their prices but their customer service as well.
But that isn’t even the tip of the iceberg, the site also carries a wide variety of Cartoon Network items, sports memorabilia, science fiction related products [Alien, Matrix, Terminator, Dr. Who etc] and even G.I. Joe figures, busts and toys. The section I hit the most is the ‘horror & monsters’ area since they are one of the few sites that carry Hellraiser and Hellboy collectables as well as the old school monsters like Frankenstein, Phantom of the Opera and a variety of Dracula items from different eras. My all time favorite has to be the Dracula water globe [http://www.johns-toys-store.com/store/images/UMWG2.JPG]. The largest sections deal with television and film with selections that include Scooby-Doo, Charmed, Bruce Lee, The Munsters and Ghostbusters. As I mentioned, some sections will pop up showing no listings so make sure you check back often to see when new items are added or stock is replenished.
Prices
I am a firm believer that you get what you pay for – most of the time that is. From the orders I’ve received from this site not a single piece has been flawed, damaged or opened. While some might look at the prices of certain items and shake their head wondering why someone would pay so much for a piece of plastic – the prices overall are in the good to great range. I always shop around for the same price but if I see something that’s a dollar or two more at Johns Toys I’d probably order from this site over others because of the satisfaction guarantee, quick shipping and exceptional customer service. I’m not saying that this site has the best prices – but you have to factor into the mix the cost for shipping, how returns are handled and how you are treated before, during and after the sale. Have you ever had someone from an online site call you a week after your order shipped to see if you were happy with what you received?
Customer Service
JohnsToys.com
1323 Main Street
Leicester, MA 01524
www.johns-toys-store.com
service@johns-toys.com
[800] 505-8697
[508] 852-0005
Payment Options
The site accepts MasterCard, Visa, American Express and Discover Card however if you don’t have a major credit card [or debit card with a MasterCard or Visa logo] you can also pay for your order using PayPal, personal check or funds transfer [wire / electronic transfer]. I’ve used both my MasterCard and Visa at the site and had no trouble with processing, approval or billing. If you are going to pay with a money order or personal check you might want to call ahead to make sure the items you want will be set aside for you until your payment arrives and the order can be processed. Wire transfers are usually for larger orders or those that are being shipped overseas but if this is how you choose to pay for your order, call them to ask about the fees that are associated with it.
Shipping Fees
Shipping fees are calculated according to the total dollar amount of your order and most of the orders are shipping using Federal Express Ground Shipping unless you request otherwise. You can opt to bump your order up to second or third day shipping but you will be responsible for the additional fees. The base fee for shipping is $5.95 for orders up to $25.00 and anything over $300.00 is 5% of the total order amount. To me the shipping fees are extremely reasonable when you are ordering things in the $50.00 - $100.00 price range, orders of this dollar amount will set you back $7.95 to $8.95 which is a lot less than other sites. There are some exceptions to the shipping fee schedule – things that are oversized, require special delivery or are being shipped overseas will cost more but you are always notified of these before the order is confirmed, processed and billed to your credit card.
Return Policy
If you aren’t happy with what you ordered you have thirty days to return it for a full refund or exchange minus the cost of shipping. Damaged, defective or incorrect items will be exchanged providing that you contact them within thirty days to arrange a return. While I’ve never had to return an item I did have to call tem to ask about the Nightmare Before Christmas character set when I thought I received the wrong item. It turns out it was the correct item but I thought that it would be a different set – totally my fault but they said that they would be more than happy to exchange it for a different set [with different figures and accessories] if they carried it and had it in stock. Thirty days is pretty much the industry standard and when you combine this with their satisfaction guarantee – you know that you are going to be happy with your order or they’ll try their best to remedy the situation.
As always, thanks for the read!
~^V^~ Freak ~^V^~
© 2003 Freak369
Looking for other collectibles?
Things From Another World
Westfield Comics
Happy Toy Depot Online Store
Hobbytron
Lunchboxes Online Store
Recommended:
Yes
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