[RETRO] Wrestling Megastars by Epic Toys

[guster]

So I've reached out to Chella to try and figure out the status of my order. I ordered day 1 or 2 here in the States. They refunded me the shipping difference when they found a "US distributor" a couple months back, but I've heard nothing since.

I mentioned this to my fiancee who said she was going to pre-order the Meanie 2-Pack for my Birthday via this new distributor in the US. I was under the impression all things were good until I told her about my Aldis debacle today and she said the US distributor on Instagram (jbtoys) ghosted her after one message. Such a debacle. This guy, jbtoys, is already shady af to begin with (claims to be a belt maker, but it's pretty clear to everyone in the know, that he just re-sells Pakistan bootlegs).

I just don't understand why they thought going with an Instagram account as their US distributor was a good idea. As someone who manages a relatively small custom belt business, I can operate out of my IG DMs. It's not ideal and occasionally I get behind on my messages. But potentially 100s of orders and no e-commerce site set up? You're just asking for trouble.

Not a good start Chella.

[Ruby Fusion]

Dec 28, 2020 16:05:50 GMT -5 guster said:

So I've reached out to Chella to try and figure out the status of my order. I ordered day 1 or 2 here in the States. They refunded me the shipping difference when they found a "US distributor" a couple months back, but I've heard nothing since.

I mentioned this to my fiancee who said she was going to pre-order the Meanie 2-Pack for my Birthday via this new distributor in the US. I was under the impression all things were good until I told her about my Aldis debacle today and she said the US distributor on Instagram (jbtoys) ghosted her after one message. Such a debacle. This guy, jbtoys, is already shady af to begin with (claims to be a belt maker, but it's pretty clear to everyone in the know, that he just re-sells Pakistan bootlegs).

I just don't understand why they thought going with an Instagram account as their US distributor was a good idea. As someone who manages a relatively small custom belt business, I can operate out of my IG DMs. It's not ideal and occasionally I get behind on my messages. But potentially 100s of orders and no e-commerce site set up? You're just asking for trouble.

Not a good start Chella.

Well, there is a site, not just an Instagram account... However, the site is made with Shopify. In my neck of the woods we get warned to not buy from sites built with Shopify, as most are actually based in China trying to sell you stuff at prices that are too good to be true...

Bodyslamclothing might've been an alternative for the US, but Aldis is sold out there.

[guster]

Dec 28, 2020 17:18:00 GMT -5 Ruby Fusion said:

Dec 28, 2020 16:05:50 GMT -5 guster said:

So I've reached out to Chella to try and figure out the status of my order. I ordered day 1 or 2 here in the States. They refunded me the shipping difference when they found a "US distributor" a couple months back, but I've heard nothing since.

I mentioned this to my fiancee who said she was going to pre-order the Meanie 2-Pack for my Birthday via this new distributor in the US. I was under the impression all things were good until I told her about my Aldis debacle today and she said the US distributor on Instagram (jbtoys) ghosted her after one message. Such a debacle. This guy, jbtoys, is already shady af to begin with (claims to be a belt maker, but it's pretty clear to everyone in the know, that he just re-sells Pakistan bootlegs).

I just don't understand why they thought going with an Instagram account as their US distributor was a good idea. As someone who manages a relatively small custom belt business, I can operate out of my IG DMs. It's not ideal and occasionally I get behind on my messages. But potentially 100s of orders and no e-commerce site set up? You're just asking for trouble.

Not a good start Chella.

Well, there is a site, not just an Instagram account... However, the site is made with Shopify. In my neck of the woods we get warned to not buy from sites built with Shopify, as most are actually based in China trying to sell you stuff at prices that are too good to be true...

Bodyslamclothing might've been an alternative for the US, but Aldis is sold out there.

Interesting. All of the information on Chella's website says to DM that guy to pre-order. He evidently did a poor job of communicating to my fiancee about the shopify site as this is the first I'm hearing about it. But even on the pre-order page, it says to contact that via DM despite having an ordering option above. Like...what?

[freaqualizer]

I did order both the Aldis figure and Mind of the Meanie pack from JBToys on Insta. And my Aldis figure did arrive. I’m sorry you’ve had difficulties with receiving yours. But, I can say that my transaction was smooth. But, now it does cause a little concern for me because I’m not sure how my next transaction with him will go.

[guster]

Dec 29, 2020 8:42:39 GMT -5 freaqualizer said:

I did order both the Aldis figure and Mind of the Meanie pack from JBToys on Insta. And my Aldis figure did arrive. I’m sorry you’ve had difficulties with receiving yours. But, I can say that my transaction was smooth. But, now it does cause a little concern for me because I’m not sure how my next transaction with him will go.

It's possible my fiancee contacted him before he had the store set up. I'm not sure. If you got your Aldis, I wouldn't worry too much then. I work in advertising and marketing, so this sorta stuff bugs the hell out of me. Clear, concise messaging about how to buy your product shouldn't be difficult. If you go to his IG page now, he hasn't posted about Chella in over a week, nor has a link to his online store in his profile info. Just seems really bush-league to me.

Edit: Of course after I post this, he posts prototype photos of the Meanie pack 10 minutes later. First Chella post in 10+ days. Still saying to DM him in the post instead of linking to the store.

[freaqualizer]

Dec 29, 2020 15:19:04 GMT -5 guster said:

Dec 29, 2020 8:42:39 GMT -5 freaqualizer said:

I did order both the Aldis figure and Mind of the Meanie pack from JBToys on Insta. And my Aldis figure did arrive. I’m sorry you’ve had difficulties with receiving yours. But, I can say that my transaction was smooth. But, now it does cause a little concern for me because I’m not sure how my next transaction with him will go.

It's possible my fiancee contacted him before he had the store set up. I'm not sure. If you got your Aldis, I wouldn't worry too much then. I work in advertising and marketing, so this sorta stuff bugs the hell out of me. Clear, concise messaging about how to buy your product shouldn't be difficult. If you go to his IG page now, he hasn't posted about Chella in over a week, nor has a link to his online store in his profile info. Just seems really bush-league to me.

Edit: Of course after I post this, he posts prototype photos of the Meanie pack 10 minutes later. First Chella post in 10+ days. Still saying to DM him in the post instead of linking to the store.

Yeah, I agree it felt a bit sketch to just send this broseph a DM and then send him money. But, as long as this first transaction went moderately smoothly, I shouldn’t worry as much as I have been.

Thanks for the heads up on the MotM prototype pics. They look awesome. Looks like they fixed my two biggest complaints: tiny feet and big ass head. Everything looks more in scale with the Hasbros now.

[britishbrickfan]

not sure if it's the same guy, but wasn't there some trouble with someone (I thought it was JB) selling figures on social media and Zack Ryder a while back?

[micco]

Dec 28, 2020 16:05:50 GMT -5 guster said:

So I've reached out to Chella to try and figure out the status of my order. I ordered day 1 or 2 here in the States. They refunded me the shipping difference when they found a "US distributor" a couple months back, but I've heard nothing since.

I mentioned this to my fiancee who said she was going to pre-order the Meanie 2-Pack for my Birthday via this new distributor in the US. I was under the impression all things were good until I told her about my Aldis debacle today and she said the US distributor on Instagram (jbtoys) ghosted her after one message. Such a debacle. This guy, jbtoys, is already shady af to begin with (claims to be a belt maker, but it's pretty clear to everyone in the know, that he just re-sells Pakistan bootlegs).

I just don't understand why they thought going with an Instagram account as their US distributor was a good idea. As someone who manages a relatively small custom belt business, I can operate out of my IG DMs. It's not ideal and occasionally I get behind on my messages. But potentially 100s of orders and no e-commerce site set up? You're just asking for trouble.

Not a good start Chella.

To be clear, if you ordered day one like myself, jb toys isn’t the distributor your aldis figure will be coming from. It’s bodyslam clothing. They posted an update the other day.

[guster]

Dec 30, 2020 17:36:36 GMT -5 britishbrickfan said:

not sure if it's the same guy, but wasn't there some trouble with someone (I thought it was JB) selling figures on social media and Zack Ryder a while back?

It is the same guy Ryder has beef with. Been going on for like 3 years.

Dec 30, 2020 19:45:15 GMT -5 micco said:

Dec 28, 2020 16:05:50 GMT -5 guster said:

So I've reached out to Chella to try and figure out the status of my order. I ordered day 1 or 2 here in the States. They refunded me the shipping difference when they found a "US distributor" a couple months back, but I've heard nothing since.

I mentioned this to my fiancee who said she was going to pre-order the Meanie 2-Pack for my Birthday via this new distributor in the US. I was under the impression all things were good until I told her about my Aldis debacle today and she said the US distributor on Instagram (jbtoys) ghosted her after one message. Such a debacle. This guy, jbtoys, is already shady af to begin with (claims to be a belt maker, but it's pretty clear to everyone in the know, that he just re-sells Pakistan bootlegs).

I just don't understand why they thought going with an Instagram account as their US distributor was a good idea. As someone who manages a relatively small custom belt business, I can operate out of my IG DMs. It's not ideal and occasionally I get behind on my messages. But potentially 100s of orders and no e-commerce site set up? You're just asking for trouble.

Not a good start Chella.

To be clear, if you ordered day one like myself, jb toys isn’t the distributor your aldis figure will be coming from. It’s bodyslam clothing. They posted an update the other day.

Yes, thank you. I was able to get a response from Chella yesterday and they apologized profusely for the delay and it should be shipped this week.

As for jbtoys, dude literally posted a video this week threatening to point a gun at someone who exposed the direct source of his belts he repeatedly claims he makes (Pakistan), deleted the video and is now claiming he never said that. I'm personally really having a hard time with the idea of giving that guy my money.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CJbf0MTJI3N

[Nivro™]

I like jbtoys, Ive done deals with him and we follow each other on IG but I think anyone/everyone knows his belts are coming from Pakistan. Ive even gone to Usman or whatever his name is himself to try and "skip" the middle man but there was no way we could agree on payment (Pakistan doesnt have paypal)

[micco]

Jan 3, 2021 18:30:21 GMT -5 Nivro™ said:

I like jbtoys, Ive done deals with him and we follow each other on IG but I think anyone/everyone knows his belts are coming from Pakistan. Ive even gone to Usman or whatever his name is himself to try and "skip" the middle man but there was no way we could agree on payment (Pakistan doesnt have paypal)

Are they just manufactured there? Is jbtoys not designing the belts and planning the construction of them? Sourcing the materials etc? Almost every company outsources the actual manufacturing.

[guster]

Jan 4, 2021 12:01:24 GMT -5 micco said:

Jan 3, 2021 18:30:21 GMT -5 Nivro™ said:

I like jbtoys, Ive done deals with him and we follow each other on IG but I think anyone/everyone knows his belts are coming from Pakistan. Ive even gone to Usman or whatever his name is himself to try and "skip" the middle man but there was no way we could agree on payment (Pakistan doesnt have paypal)

Are they just manufactured there? Is jbtoys not designing the belts and planning the construction of them? Sourcing the materials etc? Almost every company outsources the actual manufacturing.

He claims he 100% makes the belts and has a belt shop, CNC machine (super expensive piece of equipment), ect. For a dude who posts like 20X times a day with pics of his belts, ring-worn ring gear, cars and whatever else...it's really odd that he's NEVER posted a picture of his belt shop. I mean we know why, but still...

So this is obviously my viewpoint, but I work in a creative field. Taking credit for something you claim to make, that you actually didn't, is plagiarism. Plain and simple. Double, Triple, Quadrupling down on the fact that you make something when it's clear as day you don't, shows a major character flaw. Blocking anyone the second they bring it up to cover up the truth is a major character flaw. Not only that, but it's basically an admission he's knows what he's doing is wrong. He could easily shut up "all the haters" if he were telling the truth and just post a picture of his belt shop. But he can't because it doesn't exist. So the only course of action he has is to block people, attack the source of discussion instead of disputing the actual allegations.

The thing I worry about for some people...you notice his name is jbtoys1? That's because his first account, jbtoys, was perma-banned. His current account has been suspended multiple times. One of these days, he just might not come back and people will be SOL.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On a related note, I'm pumped to see Zombie Toy Sailor's new Cardona and Myers inspired Retros. ZTS's IG post mentioned more names to come, so maybe available wrestlers who want a retro figures can go with ZTS instead of Chella if Chella insist on using a con-artist as their main US distributor.

[Ruby Fusion]

Jan 4, 2021 16:33:16 GMT -5 guster said:

Jan 4, 2021 12:01:24 GMT -5 micco said:

Are they just manufactured there? Is jbtoys not designing the belts and planning the construction of them? Sourcing the materials etc? Almost every company outsources the actual manufacturing.

He claims he 100% makes the belts and has a belt shop, CNC machine (super expensive piece of equipment), ect. For a dude who posts like 20X times a day with pics of his belts, ring-worn ring gear, cars and whatever else...it's really odd that he's NEVER posted a picture of his belt shop. I mean we know why, but still...

So this is obviously my viewpoint, but I work in a creative field. Taking credit for something you claim to make, that you actually didn't, is plagiarism. Plain and simple. Double, Triple, Quadrupling down on the fact that you make something when it's clear as day you don't, shows a major character flaw. Blocking anyone the second they bring it up to cover up the truth is a major character flaw. Not only that, but it's basically an admission he's knows what he's doing is wrong. He could easily shut up "all the haters" if he were telling the truth and just post a picture of his belt shop. But he can't because it doesn't exist. So the only course of action he has is to block people, attack the source of discussion instead of disputing the actual allegations.

The thing I worry about for some people...you notice his name is jbtoys1? That's because his first account, jbtoys, was perma-banned. His current account has been suspended multiple times. One of these days, he just might not come back and people will be SOL.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On a related note, I'm pumped to see Zombie Toy Sailor's new Cardona and Myers inspired Retros. ZTS's IG post mentioned more names to come, so maybe available wrestlers who want a retro figures can go with ZTS instead of Chella if Chella insist on using a con-artist as their main US distributor.

Well a CNC Machine is NOT a super expensive piece of equipment; for around $500 one can buy one that cuts alluminum...

[guster]

Jan 5, 2021 4:57:36 GMT -5 Ruby Fusion said:

Jan 4, 2021 16:33:16 GMT -5 guster said:

He claims he 100% makes the belts and has a belt shop, CNC machine (super expensive piece of equipment), ect. For a dude who posts like 20X times a day with pics of his belts, ring-worn ring gear, cars and whatever else...it's really odd that he's NEVER posted a picture of his belt shop. I mean we know why, but still...

So this is obviously my viewpoint, but I work in a creative field. Taking credit for something you claim to make, that you actually didn't, is plagiarism. Plain and simple. Double, Triple, Quadrupling down on the fact that you make something when it's clear as day you don't, shows a major character flaw. Blocking anyone the second they bring it up to cover up the truth is a major character flaw. Not only that, but it's basically an admission he's knows what he's doing is wrong. He could easily shut up "all the haters" if he were telling the truth and just post a picture of his belt shop. But he can't because it doesn't exist. So the only course of action he has is to block people, attack the source of discussion instead of disputing the actual allegations.

The thing I worry about for some people...you notice his name is jbtoys1? That's because his first account, jbtoys, was perma-banned. His current account has been suspended multiple times. One of these days, he just might not come back and people will be SOL.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On a related note, I'm pumped to see Zombie Toy Sailor's new Cardona and Myers inspired Retros. ZTS's IG post mentioned more names to come, so maybe available wrestlers who want a retro figures can go with ZTS instead of Chella if Chella insist on using a con-artist as their main US distributor.

Well a CNC Machine is NOT a super expensive piece of equipment; for around $500 one can buy one that cuts alluminum...

Belt plates aren't made from aluminum. They're made of brass or zinc and require a serious heavy duty CNC machine.

[micco]

Jan 5, 2021 10:47:21 GMT -5 guster said:

Jan 5, 2021 4:57:36 GMT -5 Ruby Fusion said:

Well a CNC Machine is NOT a super expensive piece of equipment; for around $500 one can buy one that cuts alluminum...

Belt plates aren't made from aluminum. They're made of brass or zinc and require a serious heavy duty CNC machine.

Right. So maybe that machine costs a thousand or two thousand bucks. Still not super expensive. Maybe he doesn’t show his shop because it’s in Pakistan and he’s never really been there. Doesn’t mean it isn’t his. I don’t know and am not defending the guy. Just throwing out a possible scenario. Not even saying it’s probable. Who really knows.
The same people who designed the chela toys retros just showed a Switchblade render but it doesn’t seem as though it’ll be being released in association with chella.

[Ruby Fusion]

Jan 5, 2021 12:04:05 GMT -5 micco said:

Jan 5, 2021 10:47:21 GMT -5 guster said:

Belt plates aren't made from aluminum. They're made of brass or zinc and require a serious heavy duty CNC machine.

Right. So maybe that machine costs a thousand or two thousand bucks. Still not super expensive. Maybe he doesn’t show his shop because it’s in Pakistan and he’s never really been there. Doesn’t mean it isn’t his. I don’t know and am not defending the guy. Just throwing out a possible scenario. Not even saying it’s probable. Who really knows.
The same people who designed the chela toys retros just showed a Switchblade render but it doesn’t seem as though it’ll be being released in association with chella.

That I didn't see, but I saw concept art for the next Chella figure: "All Ego" Ethan Page!

[The Shiniest Wizard]

Hm, Chella was fairly quick when I emailed about where to order a product from them(24 hours) but after a week I still can't seem to get ahold of them on the status of my Aldis. Odd. I know I'm in the states so I will be waiting a little bit, but was just checking up to confirm my order was still all good.

[Ruby Fusion]

Jan 5, 2021 13:12:17 GMT -5 The Shiniest Wizard said:

Hm, Chella was fairly quick when I emailed about where to order a product from them(24 hours) but after a week I still can't seem to get ahold of them on the status of my Aldis. Odd. I know I'm in the states so I will be waiting a little bit, but was just checking up to confirm my order was still all good.

Covid and shipping can take a while; when I order from the U.S., receiving my package within three weeks is "fast" (and that was before covid!)

[The Shiniest Wizard]

Jan 5, 2021 13:16:39 GMT -5 Ruby Fusion said:

Jan 5, 2021 13:12:17 GMT -5 The Shiniest Wizard said:

Hm, Chella was fairly quick when I emailed about where to order a product from them(24 hours) but after a week I still can't seem to get ahold of them on the status of my Aldis. Odd. I know I'm in the states so I will be waiting a little bit, but was just checking up to confirm my order was still all good.

Covid and shipping can take a while; when I order from the U.S., receiving my package within three weeks is "fast" (and that was before covid!)

Oh yeah that I understand completely, I was mostly just emailing them to figure out if my order was still good to go since I saw some people were refunded when the JB Toys deal started. I haven't seen that refund yet for me so I just was looking for confirmation/timeframe mostly. I don't mind waiting as long as I have to, just making sure everything is still good.

[Ruby Fusion]

Jan 5, 2021 13:29:54 GMT -5 The Shiniest Wizard said:

Jan 5, 2021 13:16:39 GMT -5 Ruby Fusion said:

Covid and shipping can take a while; when I order from the U.S., receiving my package within three weeks is "fast" (and that was before covid!)

Oh yeah that I understand completely, I was mostly just emailing them to figure out if my order was still good to go since I saw some people were refunded when the JB Toys deal started. I haven't seen that refund yet for me so I just was looking for confirmation/timeframe mostly. I don't mind waiting as long as I have to, just making sure everything is still good.

When I ordered my 2 Nick Aldis figures I received another mail when it got shipped, that mail also had a UPS tracking-n°.