Its been awhile since we had anything to post regarding Forces of Valor and with good reason — nothing new has surfaced. While we’ve been pestering them regarding new and re-purposed products, they seem to have been reluctant to share information with us — until now.
Earlier today, we checked their revamped web site to see if anything new was being announced. Lo and behold, a new Sherman tank was added to their product portfolio, one based upon a Sherman tank commanded by Lt. Colonel Creighton Abrams. “Thunderbolt VII” as it came be known was one of the last tanks he led into battle, largely because his previous vehicles were shot out from under him. But now, the bad. According to the Waltersons’ owned web site, Thunderbolt will carry a MSRP of $289.00, well above even their recently released Ferdinand heavy tank destroyer. Now, I can understand that this is a new tooling, but a near $300 price tag is a bit much considering the series started out twenty or so years ago with tanks fetching $40 apiece.
Then there’s the ugly. Its not clear if this latest 1:32 scale vehicle will be available as a web exclusive or if it will be made available to retailers such as ourselves at some point during its product development cycle. Thus far, the Company has remained mum regarding their marketing plans and quite possibly is exploring other means of getting their products into the hands of collectors, at least here in North America. The vehicle does not appear on any of their other web sites, although that could change as more information is disseminated. If they do go the exclusive route, it could mean they are parting ways with their dealers and looking to market all of their latest products direct-to-consumers. Other companies have opted to go that route over the years, using the Internet as a means of reaching the consumer at an affordable rate. It does, however, leave a bad taste in the mouth’s of their retail network and takes quite a bit of work getting them back into the fold should they decide to reverse course down-the-road.
In any event, we’ve reached out to the powers that be to determine when this product will become available and if it will be offered to retailers. So, we will hold off listing it on our web site until we have a better idea of their marketing plans going forward.
Update: We heard back from the manufacturer this morning and they indicated that “Thunderbolt VII” wasn’t mass-produced and will therefore be made available to customers only through their web site. Frankly, the costs associated with making a new vehicle are quite high and it oftentimes takes a large production run to recoup an initial investment. Add to that the fact that the bulk of FOV collectors have traditionally spent no more than $150 or so for a new vehicle, so pegging this product at almost twice that figure is a somewhat questionable marketing strategy that will no doubt cause backlash from both collectors and their retail network. “The die is cast” so-to-speak, and its now up to Waltersons to weather the storm.