How can I buy the Hitachi Magic Wand in bulk?
October 23, 2018 1:01 PM Subscribe
For an art project, I need a lot of (around 50) Hitachi Magic Wands. I have never bought anything like this in bulk before. I would prefer not to pay retail for each and every wand. I know there are bulk purchase minimums though. If necessary I could go up to 100 wands. To people who regularly buy items in bulk, what would you suggest I do in terms of acquiring these wands?
Do you need name brand Magic Wands, or are generic branded ones okay? I can check later (once I'm home from work) on a source related to a summer job I worked if generic branded wands are okay for this.
posted by augustimagination at 1:08 PM on October 23, 2018 [6 favorites]
posted by augustimagination at 1:08 PM on October 23, 2018 [6 favorites]
Contact the company’s marketing department and pitch your idea, ask if they will sponsor your art piece entirely, or at least sell you the wands at a steep discount.
If the wands will not be used, maybe they can ship you their defective or rejected ones?
posted by jbenben at 1:14 PM on October 23, 2018 [2 favorites]
If the wands will not be used, maybe they can ship you their defective or rejected ones?
posted by jbenben at 1:14 PM on October 23, 2018 [2 favorites]
If you don't need branded ones, you could try Alibaba and negotiate a order from there.
posted by JoeZydeco at 1:19 PM on October 23, 2018 [5 favorites]
posted by JoeZydeco at 1:19 PM on October 23, 2018 [5 favorites]
If you’re just looking for the look, you can get knockoffs for $14.
posted by bradf at 1:24 PM on October 23, 2018 [7 favorites]
posted by bradf at 1:24 PM on October 23, 2018 [7 favorites]
i would try ebay (or sellers on amazon) and negotiate with a seller to list a qty 50 lot.
posted by zippy at 1:58 PM on October 23, 2018
posted by zippy at 1:58 PM on October 23, 2018
I work for a retail company that sells most of its clothing wholesale. I can guarantee that you would be asking these resellers to violate their sales agreement with Hitachi. Bulk sales are typically prohibited to discourage unauthorized resellers.
If you want the brand, go to their sales and marketing department. They sell through tons of mom and pop sex shops. They have some way to deal with a small purchaser like you, even if it’s through a distributor.
posted by politikitty at 2:24 PM on October 23, 2018 [3 favorites]
If you want the brand, go to their sales and marketing department. They sell through tons of mom and pop sex shops. They have some way to deal with a small purchaser like you, even if it’s through a distributor.
posted by politikitty at 2:24 PM on October 23, 2018 [3 favorites]
Do you need them to vibrate/move? If you just want the look but don’t need them to move I would consider doing cast sculptures out of plastic or resin.
posted by shalom at 3:07 PM on October 23, 2018
posted by shalom at 3:07 PM on October 23, 2018
Amazon is full of knockoffs and they may be cheaper than the wholesale prices on the real thing. A friend got a bunch for an art project as well and decorated them to go with a group's costumes, and they looked pretty indistinguishable from the real thing.
posted by twoplussix at 4:34 PM on October 23, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by twoplussix at 4:34 PM on October 23, 2018 [2 favorites]
2nding Alibaba. You can get knock offs for under $10 in your lot size there.
IIRC, if your project involves them as sex toys, Hitachi does not like them being explicitly promoted as such and probably would not facilitate such a project.
posted by Candleman at 4:46 PM on October 23, 2018 [2 favorites]
IIRC, if your project involves them as sex toys, Hitachi does not like them being explicitly promoted as such and probably would not facilitate such a project.
posted by Candleman at 4:46 PM on October 23, 2018 [2 favorites]
Mom and Pop stores generally operate through wholesalers, and Hitachi are notorious about their wands being BODY MASSAGE ONLY. Don't bother with going to them directly. Experience: working a mom and pop sex shop as a buyer. Not worth trying.
Knockoffs are the way to go here for an art project. It would probably help if we knew what sort of project it is.
If it's sculpture, you're probably better off getting a handful and either making a mould and casting them in a lightweight resin (like expanding foam) or using a vacuform. Those wands are freaking heavy and for sculptural work it'll be much easier to wire or glue a non-functional replica.
If the motor is part of the deal, get a battery operated replica so you're not sucking down massive amounts of power in your work. Fifty wands is a lot of juice. For performance art you'll also be more mobile than using the corded original.
posted by Jilder at 7:59 PM on October 23, 2018 [2 favorites]
Knockoffs are the way to go here for an art project. It would probably help if we knew what sort of project it is.
If it's sculpture, you're probably better off getting a handful and either making a mould and casting them in a lightweight resin (like expanding foam) or using a vacuform. Those wands are freaking heavy and for sculptural work it'll be much easier to wire or glue a non-functional replica.
If the motor is part of the deal, get a battery operated replica so you're not sucking down massive amounts of power in your work. Fifty wands is a lot of juice. For performance art you'll also be more mobile than using the corded original.
posted by Jilder at 7:59 PM on October 23, 2018 [2 favorites]
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posted by DarlingBri at 1:07 PM on October 23, 2018 [1 favorite]