Tom's Toy & Goods Trading Closing Down

If you go to the website you will see this:

I have no other information.

"Why I still believe in Kazue" posted by Denise Travers

This was posted by Denise Travers on the gogomomoko Yahoo site on May 15, 2011. I have reproduced her post here for those who may not have access to that board.

I have been staying away from posting about this mostly because I have no new information and I freely admit I may not be able to think clearly about this. Kazue is my Best Friend and my biggest concern is the hope of seeing her again. I have to share my reasons for still believing in Kazue as far as BIC is concerned. I don't believe Kazue meant to lose BIC; I have already posted about BIC meaning so much to Kazue and how hard she worked. But there are events and opinions that enforce my belief that Kazue did not plan on BIC closing.
I will share the most relevant.

The biggest thing is those who worked with her for many years. Her distributors, suppliers etc. None have bad to say about Kazue or BIC. Only concern for her well being. Kazue made large payments on pre-orders taken. Paying debts usually isn't a sign of bad intentions. She asked me to help her get some items for her customers about the same time she disappeared and she would not have benefited from this until much later. Again it didn't seem like something that would be done if you planned to take off with the money. The last time her (April 5) and I talked it involved long conversation and excitement about future plans including upcoming conventions.

Those who lost money have every right to be upset, I still hope for some type of settlement for all involved but only Kazue can do this unless it is a forced bankruptcy in her absence. I wish I knew the answers. I know I don't know all the details. In fact I admit I know very little and it is very frustrating. But I do believe the information I have received as fact and contrary to many nasty rumors.
I still believe in Kazue.
Denise

I hope Denise is correct. My concern is that Kazue may not be alive. Someone would have seen or heard from her by now. Surely there is a missing persons bureau that has this case. Perhaps I watch too many episodes of Without A Trace. I'm sure they are totally inundated (no pun intended) since the earthquake/tsunami disasters by searches for missing persons.
Was Kazue running every aspect of BIC alone? Is that even possible that only she had the keys so to speak? That's quite a burden even for a supermom.  Denise said that "paying debts usually isn't a sign of bad intentions."Putting affairs in order including the paying of debts is sometimes a sign of something else.

News About Kazue and Tom of Toy & Goods Trading

It was confirmed this past week by a good friend of Kazue, that her husband is Tom of Toy & Goods Trading. That shop appears to be up and running.

Please note, if you order from them that they accept only Paypal. Do not pay with a balance, pay with a credit card through Paypal. That way even if Paypal denies your claim (if you have to make one) you can always turn to your credit card company and do a chargeback. Paypal hates that but you are protected.

I thought it was very, very strange that no one except the person who confirmed the information to collectors knew this. It's rather unusual for a husband and wife to have very similar but separate businesses in the same area. Perhaps Kazue  was trying to prove to Tom that she could do it better.

Some who regularly order from T&G Trading are understandably concerned that he might go under as well. All I can say is that if you have a major credit card, use it through Paypal. Get all your funds out of your account before ordering and use as your back up funding source a credit card - not a bank account.

Tom has the prettiest duo for sale. They are "Good Morning Amelie" and "Good Night Misaki" from the Secret Code Collection. His price is 32,600 yen for the set. That's $403.31 USD; 244.59 British Pounds; or 270.50 Euros.  They are also available separately but they look so pretty together.

Link to Toy& Goods Trading

BIC Removed From Official Integrity Dealer List

Kazue Shimoyama 

  ______________

A notice was sent out to W Club members earlier today regarding the end of business with BIC in Japan. I requested permission to reproduce parts of the email but was asked by Alain to please stay out of it.  (?)
 The letter asks collectors to pass on the information to other collectors who may have ordered from BIC.

What I can say (I've said this already) is that if you had a pre-order for any (Integrity Toys or other) products placed with a deposit to BIC, get your money back.  IT is offering to help you get the doll you pre-ordered if possible. You will need a receipt of sorts proving that you did have a confirmed pre-order.

 ______

Kazue, if you happen to read this, please know that my husband and I are pulling for you. Rudy, too.

BIC Co. Ltd. Japan: "WE ALL ARE OK!!!"

Email message sent out by BIC and Kazue a few minutes ago.

Dear Customers

We thank you for your patronage.
As reported in the media worldwide, there was a massive earthquake.
Fortunately, WE ALL ARE OK, our office and the warehouse is NOT in the area suffered from the earthquake.
We really appreciate that many people sent us the heartfelt messages to cheer up our spirits, and many countries from all over the world have proposed to support our country to rescue the people.
Now our business operates as usual, but due to the obstacles inherent to the disaster, there are some points which we have to ask you to understand.

(1) Delay in delivery
The airfreight transportation depart from our area is working almost normally.
But because of the changed flight schedules, and the traffic regulations to the airport from our central post office, there would be a few days delay in delivery.
(2) Shorter actual business hours
Due to the significant electricity shortage throughout the country, our area will be subjected to the planned power cutting by 6 hours a day, and it is expected to continue until April.
It would confine our operation (which needs PC & internet) 3-4 hours shorter than usual.
We are afraid that it might lead to some delay in order fulfillment and shipment, but we will endeavor to complete and send out all orders as soon as possible.

We are really sorry for any inconvenience this may have caused you, and we hope your kind understanding in this matter.

Sincerely yours,
Ms Masumi Tokumoto, on behalf of Ms Kazue Shimoyama

P.S from KAZUE
We will perform a clearance sale including charity within several days, in order to support to people of a stricken area through all activities. I t will be 40-50% OFF...
Please wait for next information.

Do You Lurk?

Having done so much traveling this past week without my laptop, I often turned to the web on my phone  for the latest happenings in the doll world. I got to thinking how doll boards have changed my collecting experience.
When I was collecting Bratz dolls I found a Yahoo board that specialized in Bratz. That was my first. It was so much fun. I created my first doll story and had a very positive experience sharing my photos and looking at the photos other collectors posted.  I was already a collector of Tonner's Tiny Kitty, Tyler and Sydney dolls but looking back, I don't know how I survived without a network of collectors at my fingertips! The Tonner site, eBay and dealers' websites were all I had.
Sometime in 2004, I purchased my first Fashion Royalty doll on eBay and after that from other collectors. As I look back through my database, I see names of sellers that I could only have met on the boards.  Many have moved on to other pursuits or are collecting other types of dolls. One is running his own doll forum. Several have gone out of business.
One amazing experience was reading someone's post about a BIC exclusive Kyori coming out soon.  I wrote to BIC and that got me on the pre-order list to get the Ginza Kyori Gift Set. I had no idea what I was doing as I wasn't familiar with the big scramble for Fashion Royalty dolls. I think Ginza was the first FR doll I got at retail and that was no mean feat for a beginning FR collector back then. It was also the first year I attended a Fashion Royalty convention. That was in Toronto. If I hadn't been a board member, I wouldn't have known anyone in advance.

Like so many other collectors I became addicted to FR and the rest is pretty much history but I wanted to give a plug to the public doll boards I frequent most often.

The board which I have been a member of for the longest time is the Pink Parlor. The management has changed and the board is getting back to it's former lively self again. The (unstated) focus of the board is 1/6 scale dolls such as Fashion Royalty, Barbie and similar but many of the collectors have dolls that run the gamut. Registration is necessary and is free.

Logo Property of Pink Parlor. Click on it to go to the Pink Parlor.

Prego is the doll board I go to for the larger dolls like Tonner's Tyler, Sydney, Character Figures, Antoinette and similar 1/4 scale dolls. Again, the collectors there have eclectic collections and enjoy seeing pictures of other dolls. For a long time I thought that I couldn't post anything but repaints because many of the members have the most gorgeous collections of dolls that have been repainted.
I have learned that Prego is a safe board and that "factory" dolls are welcome as well as OOAK.  Many post pictures of Sybarite, Deva and Asian BJD dolls as well. If I post a question about something Tonner related, someone is bound to come up with the answer in minutes.  Registration is necessary and is free.
Here is the link to register to post at Prego:
http://tools.boardhost.com/reg/user=prego

Logo Property of Prego. Click on it to go to Prego.

If you collect Gene Marshall dolls and love fashions from that era, check out The Studio Commissary.
Every day the board posts a different vintage image in the header of either models or movie stars.
The Studio Commissary also hosts a link to the Fashion Sleuth which is a collection of images of real fashions which have been inspirations for doll fashions. For example, Azalea Ice Zita's gown was inspired by a Valentino. Board owner,  Mike Basala, has a great Flickr collection to which many sleuths have contributed. The board is open to all.

Valentino

Zita "Azalea Ice"

Dolly Daily is a forum as opposed to a message board. One big difference is that on an active message board, a topic can scroll off quickly. On a forum, there are tools to see the latest posts in a threaded or hierarchical structure. Here is a link to Wikipedia's explanation of the different types of on-line discussion sites.
Dolly Daily has areas for all different types of dolls, general questions, birthdays and introductions, selling and buying, member blogs and more. Contributors get access to a game arcade and a steam room.
Posts do not scroll off and are searchable by topic and poster's name.
Although I am a member there, I mostly lurk, but I do recommend this forum for it's huge resource of collectors and information. Registration is required and general membership is free.

Logo Property of Dolly Daily. Click on it to go to Dolly Daily

For ball jointed dolls I go to the Den of Angels. This is a very closely moderated forum containing more information than most collectors will ever need. There are many specific sub-forums so it's easy to navigate and find what you are looking for.  They have a huge membership from all over the world. Right now as I type this there are 541 users online. There are 30,852 members of which 10,319 are active members.
Membership is by invitation and free.

Logo Property of DoA. Click on it to go to Den of Angels

These are by no means all the doll boards out there. There are scores of Yahoo groups and other hosted boards in a multitude of formats. One or more is certainly right for you!

Are you still lurking?

Frogs, Toads and Dolls

I was not a child with snails and frogs in my pocket. Even now, when working in my garden, I jump every time a hippity-hoppity frog or toad surprises me. Only recently did I realize I would not die if I touched a small frog. (I'm not sure about a large one.) The babies are easy to catch in cupped hands. I catch them to show them to Rudy. He sniffs but is not terribly interested. I think they're adorable. But toads are disgusting. They appear under damp rocks and aren't terribly happy to be discovered. The feeling is mutual.

Frogs, on the other hand, aren't ugly. I've seen beautiful, colorful ones in aquariums.

The ones in my garden are mostly greenish gray. If this fellow showed up, he'd find a home with me. Meet Kermit the Frog from the Tonner Doll Co.

Kermit is 11" tall and is designed in scale to accompany the 16" Miss Piggy. He is considered a "semi-dressed" Tonner Character Figure. Very funny, indeed. His retail price is $44.99. If I put him in my garden would the rabbits clear out and stop eating everything?

For the last several years I have noticed collectors going Gaga over a frog called Wanda. I almost bought one but came to my senses after briefly imagining indulging my impulses. BIC sells them. They have been produced in lots of colors and are limited editions. The following 3 pictures are the property of Amélie Deveau aka Aminie who gave me permission to use them here. If you click on her name, you will go to her Flickr and can see more Wandas.

A special Wanda being sold now at BIC would cost you about $96. plus postage.
This collector, "irulethegalaxy" has a Flickr photostream showing a bowl filled with what seems like the largest assortment of Wonderfrogs ever.
They're cute but how do you tell the sexes apart?

The popularity of frogs are on the rise. Gaga wears them. Doll designer, Veik, adorns a Barbie with frogs.

I will not be collecting frogs any time soon but I do see the cuteness of the cartooon-like characters.

"Snow White" Kumi and "Rose Red" Yuri Price Drop!

I blogged about these Nu.Fantasy dolls here:
http://terrigoldphoto.blogspot.com/2010/05/integrity-announces-bic-exclusive-two.html

The W Club announced the price reduction on these dolls from Azone and BIC, Integrity dealers in Japan, supposedly due to the strength of the yen and negotiations with the factory. That doesn't sound honest to me. If these dolls were flying out the door, the yen could have been as strong as ever and the price would have stayed the same. The reception from collectors to this pair was quite cool and I think the lack of interest spurred the price drop more than the strength of the yen.
It's the economic principle of supply and demand in action. Consumers won't buy -> supply is great -> price drops.
Deceptive backpedaling.
Why couldn't they just say they priced the dolls too high for this market and have adjusted the price accordingly?
Would negotiations with the factory go like this? "We won't pay you and your children will starve?"

BIC Exclusive "In Yuzen Blossom"

Members of the W Club received an announcement about a new BIC exclusive. Here are excerpts from that announcement:
"Designed by Nobuko Sakayori in collaboration with Jason Wu/Integrity Toys, this Exclusive includes a Giselle head sculpt on the FR Nippon Body, a pure silk Yuzen kimono, fur stole, obi-belt and Japanese sandals. This doll is a limited edition of 300, priced at Yen 19,950 (using today's currency around $201)."

The kimono is very beautiful and I love the sandals. Real fur is a little shocking in this day and age but it wouldn't stop me from buying a doll I loved. Most likely the fur is recycled - at least I hope it is.
The bow is out of scale and looks really bad.

She's not my cup of tea - no pun intended.

UPDATE from the W Club:
Yuzen Blossom Giselle (BIC Exclusive):
"There has been some confusion over the stole that comes with this doll. As a special request for this Japanese exclusive, the stole is in fact rabbit fur. However, this was a one-time request and future releases will have only faux fur."

1-11-07 Royale Material Ensemble

This ensemble is called Royal Material. It was designed by Kate Mitsubachi and is a Japanese exclusive carried only by BIC. It is unbelievably well made. The jacket is lined in white with pink polka dot fabric! The hat is black lace that is applied in concentric circles. Everything about this outfit says quality. Most of my own clothing isn't as well made. Only the best for our dolls. Right?