Hi Rob,
You ask a very interesting question and, yes, I have a bit of a routine. I am assuming your question is directed toward K&C collectors. I shall attempt to describe my routine to you based on how I approach purchasing K&C items.
Let me begin with the first of the month. I wait to order any figures until the Dispatches are issued. The first thing in the dispatches I check are the retirements. At this point in my collecting, retirements are far more important to me than new introductions. Once I have obtained the information regarding retirements, I will act in one of the following two ways:
1.) If there are K&C retirements that affect my collecting interests, I will attempt to obtain the figures I want before they disappear from dealers' shelves. Hopefully, there will not be more retirements than my budget can handle. If there are too many retirements, I will make choices and obtain those figures I most want.
2.) If there are no K&C retirements affecting my collecting interests, then I will wait until later in the month to place an order. When I do place an order, I will order figures in the lines I collect so I might gain breathing room before the next announcement of retirements. Or,...I will order figures that fit my interests that are manufactured by another company.
There are some exceptions to the above strategy. They are:
1.) If figures/sets produced by a competing company are being retired, I may choose to obtain them, rather than K&C figures, before they disappear from dealers' shelves.
2.) If a Strictly Limited Set that interests me is produced by one of the companies I collect, I may choose to obtain the limited set in order to ensure I am able to add the set to my collection instead of expending any of my budget on K&C sets.
If the above were not complicated enough, I also follow the auctions offered on eBay. Sometimes, an elusive figure/set becomes available on eBay that I simply cannot resist. In this case, I may choose to compete in this auction at the risk of expending some or all of my monthly toy soldier budget.
This is a choice I do not make lightly as it can easily result in not having the funds available to obtain figures that will be retired the following month.
As you can see, I must make choices each month, but the retirements play a significant role in the final choices I make. If any of my discussion is not clear, please feel free to ask for clarification.
Warmest personal regards,
Pat
