Club Hopping

When Breyer came out with their Collectors Clubs in 2012, 2016, and 2019, they really latched on to a good thing.  They're good for collectors, who like the lure of exclusive issues, and they're good for Breyer as they more or less guarantee themselves regular sales throughout the year.

It's not a slam-dunk for Breyer, though: collectors can choose to just join the Collectors Club (CC) in order to have access to those limited models, but may stay out of the more specialized Premier, Vintage, Stablemate and/or Fairytale Friends clubs.  Also, people who join the specialty clubs are not obliged to buy all the models offered, but they do pay a non-refundable deposit for joining and if they pass on one model then they're out of that particular club for the remainder of the year, so the incentive to buy all the specialty club offerings is strong.

I was in the Stablemate CC for its first two years (2016 and 2017), dropping out in year three as I didn't particularly care for the majority of the molds on offer that year.  I rejoined this year and also joined the Premier CC for the first time, lured in by the Welsh Ponies.  As it happened, I liked the Saddlebred much more than I thought I would, and I'm very much looking forward to finding room for the Rhenish German Coldblood on my shelves.

"Georg," the third release for the 2019 Premier Club

All CC models are exclusive to some extent, but some are moreso than others.  The Vintage Club, for instance, is the only one I know of that has a subscription limit, making those models statistically rarer than the others.  Also the horses offered exclusively to general CC membership have historically varied in numbers offered, from one (Pot O' Gold) to virtually unlimited (or so it seems).

So are the Collectors Clubs "worth it"?  Depends on what you're looking for.  I haven't heard too much feedback on the newest Fairytale Friends club.  I have heard that some of the companion Mini Whinnies don't stand too well, and I've heard that there are some who love and some who are a little tired of all the glitter.  It's not a club that interests me much at this point -- I don't need any more unicorns in my life.  If, however, they start to issue little winged horses, I might give them a try.  Never say never, I've learned to my cost.

"Trailblazer," one of the releases slated for the 2020 Vintage Club

Having never been part of the Vintage Club either, I can't say too much about it.  It's a fun way to revel in Breyer history and nostalgia, but it seems to me that it's for the collector who loves the ephemera just as much as the horses -- the stickers, the fact sheets, the old time boxes are all as much a part of the Vintage Collection as the horses themselves.

"Altynai," one of the releases slated for the 2020 Premier Club

When it comes to the Premier Club, although I've been really pleased with this year's offerings I'm not sure if I'll be coming back next year.  The Akhal-Teke that's been revealed as the first model for 2020 doesn't really push any of my buttons -- I'm not a big fan of shelf hogs and three-point horses, and he looks to be a bit of both.  Although I'm intrigued by the idea of a Lynn Fraley sculpture as the second offering, without knowing in advance what breed it might be, I hesitate to make the leap.  Also, I'm beginning to think that, for my tastes anyway, the first issues on these molds do not always come in my favourite colours.  For instance I prefer Carrick in his Brass Hat colours as opposed to the original sabino palomino, Wyatt in Babyflo chestnut rather than the original rose grey, Forever Saige as Namid, and Duende as Dominante XXIX.  I've been lucky so far in that I prefer my grey Welsh pair to Honour and Valour and my pinto Hamilton to the dappled palomino that's been revealed on the cover of the 2020 calendar, but I certainly can't count on that always being the case.

I should add here the interesting fact that a lot of people purchase the first Premier Club releases just to have new bodies for customizing.  This might make some of the original finish models a bit more exclusive, but there's just no way of telling how many of these models end up in customizer's hands.

"Klaus," one of the releases slated for the 2020 Stablemate Club

As for the Stablemate Club -- they might just have me back again next year.  I've been wanting that little Lipizzaner ever since I first saw him as the Premier Club freebie, and while I probably would have preferred white or bay to Klaus's "historic" leopard appaloosa, I'll take what I can get.  I hope there will be few more reveals before I have to make the "stay or go" decision on this one, though.

As for the general CC models, I think the only one I've purchased over the years  was Coeur de Lion on the Terrang mold (and that one may have actually just been a web special, not limited to CC members).  I entered the lottery for Benasque (and was not drawn) and the lottery for Muir Woods (ditto).  So simply becoming a CC member without joining one of the specialty clubs would not be worth it for me.

I still think the CC is a good thing, regardless of what may be its limited appeal to some collectors.  As they say, you can't please all of the people all of the time.  All in all, I think Breyer does a pretty good job of pleasing a wide variety of collectors most of the time.  And that's a pretty good cub to be in if you're a creator and retailer of what are, let's face it, deluxe toys for distinctive tastes.

* all photos courtesy of breyerhorses.com