Collectors pay a lot of money for the models of Jazzinc Dioramas, the company of Assink and his family. The prices of the models start at 400 euros and go up to around 2000 euros.
Out of stock
Despite the prices, several models are sold out, such as the Batmobile from the movie The Batman (2022), it searchlight from the movie Batman versus Superman (2016) and the Batmobile I forget the TV series Batman and Robin (1966).
A limited edition of each model is limited to 250 pieces and they are almost always worn out. Last year the company’s turnover amounted to 5.7 million euros.
Larger scale
Assink mainly makes models on a scale of 1:6. That is larger than the action figures you often see in toy stores, which are usually made on a scale of 1:12.
“The larger scale is more unique and actually not very popular in the Netherlands,” says Assink. According to him, this is the case in countries such as the US, Germany and England. The entrepreneur makes his models with materials such as aluminum, perspex, plastic and rubber.
In this video you see a Batmobile from Jazzinc Dioramas from the film: The Batman (2022).
How it started?
“My uncle was the first collector I met, he was a huge fan of Star Wars,” says Assink, who learned his trade this way. The entrepreneur previously also built guitars and worked for a long time on many hobby projects in addition to a permanent job at his company in HR services. He occasionally shared the scale models he built on Facebook groups with collectors. There the crowd of fans grew who wanted to see more of his work.
Those fans, now around 15,000 people, also raised money so that Assink could make his first models for fans. “That was very special,” he says. “Now we have a good reputation, but people then transferred about 15,000 euros, purely on the basis of trust. So that I could make that first model. Even though a large part of our customers are outside Europe.”
The fans still play a major role. That’s how it is sometimes Facebook voted on which models should be made. Assink also receives feedback from collectors. “That can be very specific, for example about the angle of the turbine blades of a 1989 Batmobile,” he says. “It has to be as accurate as possible.”
300 parts
Once the decision is made to make something, the design process takes at least a year. Assink received the designs for one of his Batmobile models from Zack Snyder, director of Batman v. Superman (2016). But it is often more difficult to get good source material, he says, which can also mean that designing can take longer.
After designing, the first physical test model is made. That will take about eight months. Before all 250 pieces have been made, it will take two to five years, says Assink. It is a process that takes years.
Swiss watch
“Such a Batmobile often has more parts than an average high-quality Swiss watch,” says the entrepreneur. There are easily more than three hundred. Ultimately, in such a Batmobile replica, the rubber tires can move, the headlights light up and there are sound and smoke effects.
Fans can order and reserve the models during the production process, says Assink. He also ensures that only what people order is made, with a maximum of around 250 items. He always sells out that number.
In this video you can see part of the design and production process.
Running a business
In 2017, Jazzinc Dioramas became a real BV and from 2021 Assink will dedicate all his time to the company. And not just him, his father, wife and children also work in the company.
“My father Hans had just retired when I started and enjoyed starting work too,” says Assink. “I taught him everything, including painting and assembling the models.”
Wife and sons also participate
Wife Janneke and sons Luuk and Leon also produce and paint. Jazzinc does everything in-house, from production to advertising, and now has twelve employees, according to Assink.
According to the entrepreneur, 70 to 75 percent of the proceeds from a product go directly to the company, for example because he does not use stores or other intermediaries. Assink says this also keeps its products affordable and does not require thousands of units to be sold to be profitable.
Future
Through the collaboration with Zack Snyder, Jazzinc has also come to the attention of Warner Bros. and DC, the film and comic studios behind Batman. Assink now works with the companies and has an official license to make the models, approximately 5,000 pieces per year.
Assink is especially happy with the way fans respond to his products. “We sometimes receive emotional emails from grandfathers who feel like a child under the Christmas tree for the first time in sixty years when they receive the products,” he says. “Some people also come especially from other countries to visit our studio.”
Which model is still high on the wish list to make? “I am also in discussions with Universal about the KITT car from the Knight Rider series,” says Assink.
2024-01-20 08:26:46
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