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“No running in the exhibit hall,” a voice boomed over the PA.
This, of course, seems to only serve as permission for runners to turn their jog into raceas they raced across the floor of the San Diego Convention Center and made their way to what is likely Comic-Con’s hottest destination, the Funko installation.
Funko occupies a massive physical footprint in a tucked away corner of the convention center at SDCC, the annual pop culture festival that attracts more than 130,000 fans and geeks from around the world. While there are still comic artists and writers sitting at small tables signing and drawing, and dealers selling original artwork from tomes in boxes, much of the space is taken up by media and gaming companies, trying to outdo each other. Yes, Marvel and DC are here, but so are Lego, Hasbro, Nickelodeon, Mattel and more.
The maze-like displays attract fans, who methodically scan upcoming product lines and who also eagerly open their wallets to not only acquire early collectibles, but also items that won’t be sold anywhere else.
The company has mastered the art of generating demand for Funko Pops!, those big-headed figurines found everywhere in office cubicles and teenagers’ bedroom shelves, as well as their posters and vinyl records from the Mondo art department, and then making some of those items as rare as possible. But even as it sells its limited-edition collectibles, the company, which started as an online retailer, sees the convention and its booth as an opportunity to connect with real fans, not necessarily bots trying to game the system in favor of distributors.
“With Comic Con, real fans have access to these unique products. We know these will go to real humans, who we can see and talk to,” Funko CEO Josh Simon said. “It’s a real way to engage with our real fans and make sure our product gets into the hands of real people.”
This year, Funko has a slew of convention exclusives, and even an expanded guide to keep track of them all. There is grey Wizard of Oz Poster from Mondo, limited to only 100 prints…and to make it even rarer, a small percentage of them are in Wicked Witch green. One of the most important elements is the trio of Pops based on DC’s hugely successful Ultimate line, which reinvents Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman.
But causing more noise are pops of invinciblebased on the popular Amazon animated series based on the comic story by Robert Kirkman. This is due to the company skillfully providing a new character every day, for one day only. On Wednesday, the Movincihawk variant figure, which was limited to fewer than 500 pieces, sold for $60.
But even though daily sales destroy fan morale, Funko has found ways to offset the phenomenon. This year, part of his installation is dedicated to Spider-Man-themed pop music! DIY, allowing attendees to make the pops themselves, including the packaging.
There’s a new pop! Puzzle, a new line previewed at the convention that features figurines encased in blind bags in the middle Kpop Demon Hunters, One Pieceand horror characters and plants from Warner Bros. (Yes, plants). The special feature here is that the line will feature a single number of one… which the company said it would buy back for $10,000.
“The thrill of the chase and a little bit of the hunt is what the community seems to like,” Simon said.
The company will also be bringing back Funko Fun Days, a themed party for fans that attracts plenty of industry players and gaming competitors who partake in food, drinks, games, and, of course, a “Fun Box” containing items exclusive to the event. The event, which took place on Friday, saw tickets sell out within minutes in April. Adding to the hype factor of the event, Funko has been known to give away prototypes of its characters via raffles or trivia contests.
“Most of the stalls here are about selling,” Simon said. Although acknowledging that it is also focused on retail and limited editions, the CEO says “we just want to make it more experimental.”
To emphasize that it’s not making money, Funko is keeping the prices of its Comic-Con exclusives in line with real-world posters. “We are maintaining our normal pricing structure, even though we know some will resell it at a higher price,” Simon said.
This Movincihawk figure? By Friday, several of them were selling on eBay for upwards of $3,000.
