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Funko Pops

Collectables

By Charmaine van der MerwePublished 4 years ago 8 min read
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We all have something that we collect, Stamps, Coins, Comic books, Classic cars, trading Cards, Dolls and I’m sure by now you got the point.

Something I stumbled across which caught my attention recently was the Funko pops.

I had seen these numerous times in my daughter Shirlee’s room but didn’t realize until now that they are actually a collectible that can be an investment.

That's if the right ones are bought and kept in immaculate condition.

These sometimes cute, gory or just plain cool pops have really become popular.

So before I start, I am not a professional collector of these items and I did this blog for fun.

I am not sponsored by anyone and pricing below were at the time of my blog.

Let’s do this!!

When did Funko Pop Come about?

Funko was founded in 1998 by toy collector Mike Becker.

He started the business after failing to find an affordable coin bank of the Big Boy Restaurants mascot

He went on to get licensing for the rights to make his own coin banks from a Big Boy franchise in Michigan.

The coin banks failed to sell and the franchise filed for bankruptcy protection.

Luckily Funko remained in business after licensing the rights to the bobbleheads for Austin Powers, which sold 80,000 units.

Funko had some other characters that they released, The Grinch, Tony the Tiger, and Honeybee the Cheerios mascot.

How did Funko pop become so big?

In 2005, Mike Becker sold Funko to Brian Mariotti.

Brian Mariotti moved its offices to Lynnwood, Washington in the United States.

He significantly expanded the company's licensed product lines.

2011, Funko began selling their Pop! Vinyl line of figurines.

By 2012, the company had sold more than $20 million worth of merchandise.

2013 the company was sold to Fundamental Capital a private equity firm.

2015 they sold to ACON Investments.

2016 Funko pops generated a revenue of $425 million, it had to be moved to a building with more space due to outgrowing its original headquarters in Everett.

They opened August 19, 2017, with a 17,000-square-foot (1,600 m2) flagship store.

While focusing on the new premises Funko acquired British toy maker Underground Toys, also its European distributor, in early 2017.

Funko was listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange on November 2, 2017, but suffered the worst initial public offering of the 21st century, with shares falling by 40 per cent and only raising $125 million.

Today they are still going strong and looks like 2020 have a lot of new characters coming our way.

Here are 10 rare Funko Pop Vinyl figures.

I have used poppriceguide.com just to show value over the below items so this is just an indication of price.

Disney Dumbo (Gold) 50

This is one of the hardest to find, but currently, there are 2 for sale on the Pop Price Guide Marketplace.

That's if you willing to pay between $2800 and $4180

Released 2013

Excl. to San Diego Comic-Con

Edition Size: 48

Estimated $4180

Batman (Silver) 01

Released 2015

Excl. to Hot Topic Employee Reward

Edition Size: 108

Estimated $2000

Star Wars Shadow Trooper 14

There is one up for sale on the Pop Price Guide Marketplace, for $1847.00.

Released 2011

Excl. to San Diego Comic-Con

Edition Size: 480

Estimated $1220

Planet Arlia Vegeta 10

There are two up for sale on the Pop Price Guide Marketplace, one at $1900 including shipping and another for $3000 with free shipping.

Released 2014

Excl. to New York Comic-Con/Toy Tokyo

Estimated $2500

Batman (Blue Metallic) 01

There is one for sale on the Pop Price Guide Marketplace for $1004 including shipping.

Released 2010

Excl. to San Diego Comic-Con

Edition Size: 480

Estimated $1170

Silver Superman

Released 2015

Excl. to Hot Topic Employee Reward

Edition Size: 144

Estimated $850

Genie (Metallic Blue) 54

There are three for sale on Pop Price Guide Marketplace, $256, and $215, the other one which is photographed outside of its box is $120. 

All of these include shipping.

5945 people have indicated that they want this Genie.

Released 2013

Excl. to San Diego Comic-Con

Edition Size: 480

Estimated $160

Holographic Darth Maul 23

There are two for sale here too I'm sure by now you all know from where.

One for $2540 and the other for $3000.

Released 2012

Excl. to San Diego Comic-Con

Edition Size: 480

Estimated $2650

Ad Icons Big Boy 04

Two for sale one at $1503.99 and the other at $1550.

Released 2016

Excl. to San Diego Comic-Con

Edition Size: 480

Estimated $1140

Ned Stark (Headless) 02

Currently seven for sale between $1030 and $3035.

Released 2013

Excl. to San Diego Comic-Con

Edition Size: 1008

Estimated $1050

10 Top Sellers in no specific order

Game of Thrones Ned Stark (Headless)

Ads Icons Big Boy

Ghost Rider (Metallic)

Freddy Funko Skeletor

Disney Dumbo (Metallic)

Freddy Funko Night King

Television Skeletor (Black Hood)

Promotional Items Freddy Funko

Game of Thrones Tyrion Lannister (Scarred)

Game of Thrones White Walker (Glow in the Dark)

Are Funko pops worth collecting?

Funko Pop figures that have value as a collector's item are usually the ones that Funko vaulted after a short period as well as limited editions.

These are the models that you can expect to appreciate in value and are worth collecting.

The best is to look out for the special editions they are going to be worth more.

How many Funko Pop figures are there?

There are so many and they still adding to the collection over time.

There are over 8000 characters and most characters have a few different variations.

Should you keep Funko Pop in the box?

Yes and No.

If you are wanting to sell them I know that collectors can be very picky and will want them in an immaculate box as the box is as much of a collectible as the figure itself.

Some collectors do not sell them but keep them in the box anyway.

What do the numbers on Funko Pop mean?

The lower the number the older the Pop.

Funko will retire a character to the vault when they feel the time is right.

Some of the older stuff was only out for a year or two before they vaulted it and its value has risen significantly.

What size are Funko Pops?

Funko Pop! Vinyl boxes are roughly 3.5 x 4.5 x 6.25” in size.

Protecting your Funko Pop

Best way to protect your Funko Pops is to use PopShield.

It is acid-free PET plastic, there are others on the market however this one is thicker.

My Daughter's Funko Pops

Currently, she has the below two Funko Pops, she bought them in South Africa for R250 each, one of them she can make money on however the other is a little lower.

Shirlee' however, bought them because she liked them not as a collector or reseller.

Guardians of the Galaxy Gamora 199 is estimated at $52.00.

Guardians of the Galaxy Nebula 203 is only estimated at $14.00.

Popular Funko pops trending currently?

Forky Funko pop seems to be trending at the moment this character is already in the market and sells between $16.90 and $22.00 depending on the retailer you purchase from.

BT21 is another Funko pop that is trending high, this is a collection of 7 in a pack and starts from $104.99 to $149.85 depending once again on where you purchase it from.

They can also be bought separately from $16.99 each.

Other items under the Funko Pop umbrella

Pop Pez, Key Chains and Plush Toys

What really took me by surprise was that they had brought out a Funko Pop makeup range.

They have teamed up with Disney to bring the beauty routines of some of your favorite villains.

Available at Ulta Beauty or online since September, they focused the range around four famous villains:

Maleficent, the Evil Queen, Ursula and Cruella de Vil.

The products are gluten-free and cruelty-free.

Each villain has a palette, lip gloss, eyeliner, and a brush set.

The choice of coloring stays true to the identity of each villain.

Maleficent's palette includes plenty of purple and shades of light blue.

The Evil Queen's palette has more neutral colored eye shadows.

Cruella's palette includes a lot of bold, bright reds.

Ursula's collection features shades reminiscent of the sand and sea.

Wanna start shopping then here are some details.

If you wish to see the full collection which will range from $10 to $24 pop over to https://ulta.com/

If you want to learn more about Funko their website is https://funko.com/

You can also follow Funko on Instagram and Twitter (@OriginalFunko)

If you want to check out some Funko pricing then go to https://www.poppriceguide.com/

I hope that you found this blog to be interesting.

If you thought that this was a really strange topic - You Not Alone

If you do have a collection feel free to tell me about it would love to hear from you.

I think I'm going to try to get the Dalek for hubby and Stitch for myself we need some entertainment on our desks.

collectibles
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About the Creator

Charmaine van der Merwe

I am a mother of 4, and soon to be a grandmother. Family is very important to me. I love sharing my life experiences with everyone, its a way for me to express myself.

I don't have a specific niche' and write about whatever is on my mind.

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