If you collect anything, you’re more than familiar with the struggles faced by collectors around the globe when it comes to protecting your investment.
Of course, when it comes to pop culture merch, there’s a multitude of different ways to collect, with some people opting to keep their collections in box and minty fresh, while others crack the pack and display their goods loose. In the past decade, no other company has revolutionized collecting the way that Funko has, and for in-box collectors, that’s created some additional expense.
By design, Funko’s iconic square packaging for its Pop! Vinyl figures makes display pretty easy, but there are dangers in putting stress on the boxes when stacking, largely due to the thin display windows. To counter that, Funko eventually released its own premium hard plastic protector cases, which sell for around $8 each. They’re great, but when you’re looking at an $8 protector for a $10 figure (at minimum), that can add up very quickly.
But what if you could get similar quality at a $1 savings per unit? If you have 100 Pop! figures to protect, that’s $100 in savings, and I believe Benjamin Franklin would approve of staying in your wallet.
Recently, Entertainment Earth (EE) debuted its own private-label equivalent — the EE Stackable Vinyl Figure Hard Protector Box — and it’s a buck cheaper per unit.
Each stackable hard protector box measures 6 3/5-inches tall by 4 9/10-inches wide by 3 4/5-inches long and is 2.6 millimeters thick. With the exception of not having a Funko logo on the top as the official ones do (and EE sells those as well), the EE boxes are comparable and include openings at the top and bottom for you to store your most-prized figures. In addition to featuring clear, acid-free plastic for optimal viewing, the boxes are stackable and interlocking for a flawless display.
This is arguably the best way to keep standard size in-box Pop! Vinyl figures in pristine condition, particularly if you collect limited-edition pieces, such as chase variants, or the many convention exclusives, such as the 2019 Star Wars Celebration exclusive blue chrome Boba Fett (shown above from my personal stash).
Collecting on a budget? For the ultra, budget-conscious collector, EE also sells collapsible protectors in 20-packs, but they’re flexible, so there’s a big difference in quality and durability since they’re only .45 millimeters thick.
Photos: the Pop Insider
