AMAZINGTOYS® Store year in review 2024
Thomas Sr. (Captain Collector)Last updated: 8 January 2025 approx. 3 min read
Oops! A year in review is overdue again. The last one covered 2021, and three years have passed since then. Good old Captain Collector seems to have let something slip here. That absolutely has to be made up for. So let us turn the wheel of time back three dozen months and take a look at everything that went on behind (and in front of) the scenes at AMAZINGTOYS®.
2022 and 2023 were intense, stormy years and brought a lot that was new. It would probably not be wrong to say that we turned practically the whole operation upside down and reorganised it completely. That really affected every aspect. Migrating the online shop and the redesign of the website that came with it cost a lot of time and energy. But it was worth it.
One really fundamental change concerned the warehouse, where the goods multiplied at an unimagined speed, so much so that as the unofficial head of logistics I almost threw in the towel. There was simply too much on too few square metres, correction: in too few cubic metres.
Then finally, in the summer of 2023, we were able to move into a new location for logistics that is infinitely bigger than the old warehouse. A modern packing and shipping station was set up here step by step, and it started operating almost seamlessly. That took at least part of the load off Captain Collector and freed him from the daily dispatch.
Automation was the motto. Every step that saves time through automation and a standardised way of working was implemented, so that the daily dispatch takes considerably less time today than in the years before. In less than three years the Stone Age thus turned into the information age.
The shelves in the AMAZINGTOYS® Store gradually parted with books and comics and made room for a new generation of products that were snapped up faster than we could reorder them: original plush toys from Japanese Pokémon Centers! We also extended our range to the certification of trading cards (PSA) and comics (CGC).
Oh yes, and then there was the matter of the conventions. Until then we regularly visited the Zürcher Comicbörse, but that was about it. Not so from 2023 on. Our CEO aka Thomas, aka Sparkojote, aka Spielkojote decided that it was time to turn the volume right up. It was kicked off by our first visit to Fantasy Basel, closely followed by PopCon in Zurich. Both events were a complete success, so stopping is out of the question. Amazing has been represented at three important pop culture events every year since!
All of this was only possible thanks to an increase in manpower. At the moment Team Amazing is made up of great people, and the trend is inevitably upwards. But anyone who now thinks that is all is thinking wrong. Project follows project, and usually several run in parallel. And that at a time when I had slowly but surely been thinking about winding down. Amazing has existed since the summer of 2004, so around 20 years. For me it is time to step back at least partially. The booming business will not allow me to do so entirely. But here is a message for everyone who has got used to seeing me at the AMAZINGTOYS® Store: over the coming months I will make myself a little scarcer. Start getting used to it. You will not be rid of me completely, but I will let go of you a little.
Thomas Sr. aka Captain Collector
The Gengar Sitting Cuties Plush is weighted with microbeads, so it sits up when you put it on a flat surface. This palm-sized plush is a fun, charming way to show off a favourite Ghost- and Poison-type Pokémon originally discovered in Kanto! Measures about 11 cm tall and 11.5 cm wide Sits up easily on a desk, shelf, or other flat surface Where will you set Gengar? Part of the Sitting Cuties collection—known as Pokémon fit in Japan Includes Gengar Sitting Cuties Plush (other pictured items not included) Pokémon Center Original More Details: Item Dimensions: 11 x 11.5 x 8.5 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China. Materials: All new material / polyester fiber / polyethylene Care Instructions: Surface Wash Only Recommended Age: 4+ Years Item Weight: 68 g
The Pikachu Sitting Cuties Plush is weighted with microbeads, so it sits up when you put it on a flat surface. This palm-sized plush is a fun, charming way to show off a favourite Electric-type Pokémon originally discovered in Kanto! Measures about 12 cm tall and 12 cm long Sits up easily on a desk, shelf, or other flat surface Where will you set Pikachu? Part of the Sitting Cuties collection—known as Pokémon fit in Japan Includes Pikachu Sitting Cuties Plush (other pictured items not included) Pokémon Center Original More Details: Item Dimensions: 12 x 12 x 8 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China Materials: All new material / polyester / polyethylene Care Instructions: Surface Wash Only Recommended Age: 4+ Years
A Pikachu plush toy enjoying Halloween in the Paldea region!Who's riding on the hat...?
Measures about 16 cm high and 11 cm long Pokémon Center Original More Details: Item Dimensions: 16 x 11 x 8 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China Materials: Polyester / polyethylene Care Instructions: Hand Wash Only. Line Dry. Item Weight: 31 g
The Snorlax Sitting Cuties Plush is weighted with microbeads, so it sits up when you put it on a flat surface. This palm-sized plush is a fun, charming way to show off a favourite Normal-type Pokémon originally discovered in Kanto! Measures about 12 cm tall and 11 cm wide Sits up easily on a desk, shelf, or other flat surface Where will you set Snorlax? Part of the Sitting Cuties collection—known as Pokémon fit in Japan Includes Snorlax Sitting Cuties Plush (other pictured items not included) Pokémon Center Original More Details: Item Dimensions: 12 x 11 x 7.5 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China Materials: All new material / polyester fibre / polyethylene Care Instructions: Surface Wash Only Recommended Age: 4+ Years
The “POKÉMON DOLLS” series has become a mascot! It feels so soft! More Details: Item Dimensions: 12 × 10 × 8 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China Materials: All new material / polyester / polyethylene / polyurethane foam Care Instructions: Hand Wash Only. Line Dry. Recommended Age: 4+ Years Item Weight: 31.5 g
The Charizard Sitting Cuties Plush is weighted with microbeads, so it sits up when you put it on a flat surface. This palm-sized plush is a fun, charming way to show off a favourite Fire- and Flying-type Pokémon originally discovered in Kanto! Measures about 14 cm tall and 17 cm wide Sits up easily on a desk, shelf, or other flat surface Where will you set Charizard? Part of the Sitting Cuties collection—known as Pokémon fit in Japan Includes Charizard Sitting Cuties Plush (other pictured items not included) Pokémon Center Original More Details: Item Dimensions: 14 x 17 x 9.5 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China Materials: All new material / polyester fiber / polyethylene / polypropylene / polyurethane foam Care Instructions: Surface Wash Only Recommended Age: 4+ Years Item Weight: 96.3 g
The Suicune Sitting Cuties Plush is weighted with microbeads, so it sits up when you put it on a flat surface. This palm-sized plush is a fun, charming way to show off a favorite Water-type Legendary Pokémon originally discovered in Johto! Sits up easily on a desk, shelf, or other flat surface Where will you set Suicune? Part of the Sitting Cuties collection—known as Pokémon fit in Japan Includes Suicune Sitting Cuties Plush (other pictured items not included) Pokémon Center Original More Details: Item Dimensions: 16 x 11 x 6.5 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China. Materials: All new material / polyester fiber / polyethylene Care Instructions: Surface Wash Only Recommended Age: 4+ Years
Measures about 17 cm high and 11.5 cm long Pokémon Center Original More Details: Item Dimensions: 17 x 11.5 x 12 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China Materials: Polyester / polyethylene Care Instructions: Hand Wash Only. Line Dry. Item Weight: 40 g
Measures about 17 cm high and 11.5 cm long Pokémon Center Original More Details: Item Dimensions: 17 x 11.5 x 12 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China Materials: Polyester / polyethylene Care Instructions: Hand Wash Only. Line Dry. Item Weight: 40 g
Measures about 17 cm high and 12.5 cm long Pokémon Center Original More Details: Item Dimensions: 17 x 12.5 x 9 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China Materials: Polyester / polyethylene Care Instructions: Hand Wash Only. Line Dry. Item Weight: 34 g
Measures about 15.5 cm high and 10 cm long Pokémon Center Original More Details: Item Dimensions: 15.5 x 10 x 8 cm Country Of Origin: Made in China Materials: Polyester / polyethylene Care Instructions: Hand Wash Only. Line Dry. Item Weight: 29 g