Q. We thought that eFX was going to introduce its first products at Comic Con in July. How come you are offering the A New Hope Stormtrooper Helmet now?
A. Yes, that was the original plan to introduce our first products at San Diego Comic Con; however, as you know, many collectors were extremely disappointed when their order for a Stormtrooper Helmet was cancelled by either Master Replicas or their Authorized Retailers. Unfortunately not enough helmets were made and shipped before MR’s license expired and as a result a large number of customers were unable to own this iconic helmet.
Lucasfilm became aware of this issue and discussed it with us to determine a way to help out the fans and fix this short fall.
Rather than see disappointed fans facing high prices on e-Bay, etc., Lucasfilm granted eFX special permission to make additional helmets at this time, even though it was not part of our original product plan.
Q. Where can we purchase one of these helmets?
A. Due to the very limited quantity that we are producing, our U.S. customers will only be able to purchase them directly from us.
A very small quantity will be available internationally since, some of those orders were cancelled, as well.
In an effort to minimize the cost of shipping to our international customers, we will identify where they will be available if you live outside the U.S.
Q. Can you ensure that a collector who had their order cancelled is able to obtain one of your helmets?
A. Obviously, we cannot guarantee that everyone who had their order cancelled will be able to purchase one of ours since we do not have access to the database of cancelled orders.
For those who ordered a helmet directly from Master Replicas and your order was cancelled, simply send to us your cancellation e-mail you received from MR and you will be given the first opportunity to order one from us. The complete instructions will be available on our website as we get closer to the ordering day.
If you ordered your helmet from an Authorized Retailer, we are very sorry that we will not be able to offer you priority ordering since we will not be able to verify the authenticity of any orders cancelled by Authorized Retailers.
Q. What will be the cost and edition size of your Stormtooper Helmet?
A. The suggested retail price of this helmet will be the same as MR, US$399, and the edition size will be strictly limited to 500 pieces. This is substantially less than the 1,452 shortage of Master Replicas’ original published edition size of 2,500. However, 500 is the approximate number of MR direct and Authorized Retailer’s pre-orders that were cancelled and this number is consistent with the eFX philosophy of keeping collectibles, collectible.
Q. What is the difference between eFX’s helmet and the one that Master Replicas made?
A.
The helmet will be the same one that Master Replicas made - the hero version from Episode IV: A New Hope - complete with all the ”wonky” details of the original. It will also include both green and grey lenses. Remember that this is not a new product, simply the completion of orders for those disappointed collectors. However, the eFX Stormtrooper Helmet will come with our new base and plaque design, and an eFX Certificate of Authenticity.
Many collectors have expressed a concern about their ability to display eFX’s new products with their existing Master Replicas collection.
We are very excited about our new base and plaque design and believe that it can easily be displayed side by side with your current Master Replicas collection.
Q. Have you determined the pre-order and ship dates yet?
A. The pre-order date is scheduled to be on May 5, 2008 with shipment in early June, and believe it or not, perhaps earlier. We are currently working with the vendor on the production schedule, since this item was not part of our original production plan with them.
One of the biggest issues that eFX is trying to address is the time between pre-order and delivery dates of our products.
It is our goal to give customers the most accurate dates we expect a product to ship so they can plan and budget for their purchases. Of course, there may be exceptions to this rule, for example if we offer special low run items that require advance pre-orders.
The details and procedures for pre-orders will appear on our website so don’t forget to check
www.efxcollectibles.com regularly.
You may also enter your e-mail address to join our mailing list, so that we can inform you of the details of the pre-order date and other important eFX announcements
