I know that the Fora discussions have been 'round and 'round this topic many times.

Yes, HLs needs revenue to stay in business. But does it have to be in the form of Limited Editions? They have been developing other lines to extend their reach and add to their revenue stream. Anchor Bay, not so good, but not dead. GLOWS, pretty good I think. LLOM, also pretty good if the rate of new introductions is a good indicator.

My trial balloons for fewer releases each year and mandatory retirements are in fact two different, but probably connected, ideas. I am not sure at all that 12 releases a year is the right number, although I like it. Easy to mangage, easy to budget for. Or that retirement after 12 to 18 months is the right time frame. But knowing that there's a limited time for availabilty does make the decision to buy or not to buy a bit more immediate. It seems to me though that these two steps might restore some of the excitement and exclusivity that long term collectors of HLs are missing at this stage of the process.

I think that GLOWs have filled holes in collections that otherwise would have been secondary market transactions. I think that dealers selling brand new inventory on ebay for less than retail has tarnished the lines reputation and wiped out much of the exclusivity of the collection. How can HLs recover? How can they rekindle the flame?

I'm just floating a few balloons to see if they catch anyone's eye. Here's another one. Let's rethink the 'no GLOW before LE' thing. If HLs can do a piece as GLOW first, then they could release a piece that has strong regional appeal (Pottawatomie maybe, sorry Jim) as a GLOW in the Great Lakes area and not have it sitting on dealer's shelves in Florida or California for months or years. Then the idea of 12 new national LE releases per year might be more appealing or workable.

Just food for thought. Heck, maybe we'll even draw a lurker or two into the conversation to share their ideas.

Rick