The sight of freshly opened trays of Furry Friends vinylmation occupied shelves in Disney Stores across the country on Monday. Although it does appear that the London Disney Stores released the series on Saturday in order to capitalise on potential sales over the busy weekend period.
Instead of a few Have a Laugh or Urban 5 vinyls being crammed on to the ends of displays with PEZ dispensers or being thrown in to a transparent tube by the till, there were boxes of Furry Friends prominently displayed in stores which clearly drew attention to the vinylmation concept and this series in particular.
The Disney marketing department really hit bullseye with the concept of this series, and the style of the tray and boxes, it certainly generated interest amongst cast member and guests alike. It is just a shame that when the marketing department at Disney exceeded expectations, the operations department failed miserably.
I am saddened to say that Furry Friends have now been recalled in the USA, UK and France. There are widespread reports of poor quality issues, with figures appearing to be carelessly painted, and defects also including chipped hands and ears.
Disney said that they were recalling the series, to prove that they cared about vinylmation collectors.
The whole statement read:
Dear Disney Store Guests:
It is our commitment to offer high-quality
merchandise and unfortunately the application of the Furry Friends Vinylmation
artwork did not meet our standards. As such, we are no longer selling the
product.
We have not yet decided whether or not the collection will be
re-released in the future, but we are offering a full refund to any Guest who is
dissatisfied with his or her Furry Friends Vinylmation purchase. If you would
like to return your Furry Friends Vinylmation figure(s), please return the
merchandise to the nearest Disney Store or via DisneyStore.com and we will
happily provide a refund for the full amount (or we will exchange your Furry
Friends figurine for a Vinylmation figurine from any other series, if
available).
Disney Store is still committed to supporting ASPCA’s work
and will donate $1 for each Furry Friend Vinylmation produced, for a magical
donation of $60,000. We apologize to our Guests for any inconvenience.
The figures can be taken back to stores for a full refund or exchanged for another vinylmation figure from another series. However, many people are holding on to the figures after it emerged that Disney may not re-release the series, and therefore people are frantically trying to complete their set in case of the unthinkable happening.
It is such a shame that this series which promised so much for the UK vinylmation cause is being discontinued. However, we must remember that we can look forward to the release of Animation 2 in the UK on 27th January 2012.
Did you manage to get any of the Furry Friends? What was the quality like on your figures?
Have a magical day!!
