Outrun Collectibles - No longer in business

[DrPowPhD]

This is the email response I got anytime I've emailed them

Update: As of October 17, Chris has unfortunately tested positive for covid. This may slightly impact our timelines on refund processing and shipping. Please be patient as we navigate this, we are trying our best given the circumstances. We'll do our best to respond within 4-5 business days. Thank you for your support!

As you have seen, Outrun Collectibles is permanently closing its doors at the end of the month. We will be fulfilling all in-stock products as soon as possible.

If you have an outstanding order, and we are unable to fulfill this, we have two options we can offer you at this time:

1. You can exchange your order for any in stock products along with an additional 20% bonus credit from what you paid toward anything in the store. We will be extremely lenient about this, so if you are only a few dollars off getting something else you would rather want, let us know and we'll work this out with you. This is the preferred method as we are able to settle this with you immediately and can have the products shipped directly out to you. You can view what is available here:
https://outruncollectibles.ca/collections/available-now

Please let us know if you would like to go this route and what you’re interested in grabbing, and we’ll get everything shipped out your way asap!

2. If you would like a cash refund for any of your outstanding orders, you will be directed to a third party who will be handling the settlement of any debts. This process will begin at the end of October and is expected to take at minimum 3-4 weeks before repayment can begin. Choosing this option is final and cannot be changed at a later date. This option will become the default choice for your orders at the end of October to assure that no debts remain unaddressed.

We truly apologize for the inconvenience and trouble this has caused. We tried to operate our store openly and honestly with the best of intentions, but severe illness and injury have made it impossible for us to operate. We appreciate the support you gave the store and wish you the best.

If this is the case, late November/early December is when the refund process will start by the third party.

[sixshot1981]

Dear customers of Outrun Collectibles,
We had hoped to secure a deal that would have allowed us to fulfill remaining orders, exchanges, and refunds that are outstanding. Unfortunately, all offers for someone else acquire the business fell through last week, which has left the company fully insolvent and on the path to bankruptcy. This may be the last chance to explain how we got here, so I’m going to take the opportunity to explain how everything transpired.
Between July and September 2022, 4 major things happened that caused the business to end:
- Several months worth of products that were set to be released in the future all released at once. We went from spending $2000-$4000 a week on inventory to that amount every single day. In July alone we paid out $90,000 in preorder inventory costs, which was more than we had spent in the previous 8 months combined. The regular cadence of the releases were not followed in any way, and we even had products that were due to arrive spring/summer of 2023 come out at that time as well.
- Sales dipped dramatically during this time as well due to recession fears and preorder fatigue, which caused us to drop to about 25% of sales that we had done in previous months. Hasbro’s price raises and changes to their packaging also was a major contributing factor, which we have only started to see the fallout from. We were forced to pay a higher price for most preorders that were already placed, but we had decided to absorb that additional cost rather than cancelling orders.
- We had a massive amount of preorder cancellations happen. Between June-August we had over $20,000 in cancelled preorders. This was money that had to be returned, and worse, we still had to pay for all of those orders from our distributor because we had zero option to cancel them. With most distributors, if you do not pay for several items, they just won’t send you any more items.
- Rising shipping costs. As you’ve seen, most stores had to raise their Free Shipping threshold. I can tell you with absolute certainty that this area is where most stores are losing money consistently. Canada’s shipping rates have always been bad, and we always had to factor them into the cost, but the cost to ship a package almost doubled at this time. Since most orders would be fulfilled at a later date, we couldn’t retroactively charge more for shipping.
I had also rolled my ankle while crossing the street at this time, which caused a major tendon in my foot to displace itself. I’m currently having to be extremely cautious with my foot until the surgery as any excessive activity can cause it to tear, resulting in lifelong mobility issues. This was the deciding factor in closing the store, as there is no way to continue operations during that recovery time.
I know I’m leaving with a lot of people upset and even hateful towards me, and I have to manage and live with that, because I’m unfortunately out of options. I’m sorry I couldn’t have done better. This will be my final sign-off and this email will be closed after this has gone out. Thank you to all who supported us.

[sixshot1981]

Copied from Cybertron.ca

The timing of things always made me laugh...I've seen so many burned by the same excuses over and over again.
Convenient health excuses = get your money back asap

Btw nice of him to send that email out to everyone...I never received it.

So long asshat. Enjoy my stuff...

[Rj64]

I thought he was sending stuff in stock? Now nothing. I was so polite and wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt. Two weeks ago I started a dispute with my credit card company. They informed me the time window to dispute starts from when the item was expected to ship to you. So if you preordered in March and it was expected to arrive in September, then the window for dispute starts in September. I was also told they have a bankruptcy option so even if they go bankrupt it's fine. Everyone should get moving asap if they haven't already by contacting their credit card companies before it's to late.
Even if he is injured which can be very well true, it seems we were being strung along. It's not our fault they didn't budget and preordered so much. It sucks, but that's the risk you take staring a business especially one dealing with toys.

[sixshot1981]

It sounds bad and no offence to those Canadian retailers who bust their butts and do great things...

But this is why I don't buy non-retail collectibles very often in Canada

[Fermix]

Wow. What a despicable end to this story. I've just filed my Sezzle disputes for the orders that I paid through them, though it looks like I'll be at least $200 in the hole.

It seems that all means of communication have been taken down as well. Or, at least they would be if the owner had not texted me directly. 416-825-1527

[sixshot1981]

Originally Posted by Fermix

Wow. What a despicable end to this story. I've just filed my Sezzle disputes for the orders that I paid through them, though it looks like I'll be at least $200 in the hole.

It seems that all means of communication have been taken down as well. Or, at least they would be if the owner had not texted me directly. 416-825-1527

Doubt he will reply. Probably a business cell phone too.

What pisses me off is the fact he held onto all those orders and didn't ship them. I mean at least get people what they purchased from you in good faith.

You text him ?

[Zeroflamez]

Wow.. Well at least another scammer has been outted.

[nighthawk]

This sucks. At least I am not out too much. But I need to go find a Classified Breaker and RAM cycle again.

[Fermix]

Originally Posted by sixshot1981

You text him ?

"The customer you are calling is unavailable at the moment."

You know that really twists the blade? He says "I am sorry I couldn't do better." What about being sorry for the thousands of dollars of customer money he isn't returning? What about being sorry for the fact that dozens of folks are out of their hard-earned cash, because they entered an agreement where they were constantly affirmed things were going to be okay? His whole email (which never landed in my inbox either, btw) reeks of "poor me." Yes, bankruptcy is hard, I get it, but there isn't a shred of anything resembling words of comfort for the poor folks that are getting tanked along with him.

I've opened my Sezzle disputes, and I can take the near-$800 loss if I need to. Chris, if you're reading this, I wish you and your wife well, but when all you had left to give were your words, you failed to do even that. Shame on you.