ZURU Mini Brands Advent Calendar Looks Like a Great Flip

If you haven’t heard, novelty advent calendars are one of the hottest new flips for the 2025 season. ZURU’s 2024 Mini Brands Advent Calendar is sitting on shelves at major retailers right now, and collectors who know what they’re looking for are quietly scooping them up for the four exclusive minis you can’t get any other way. This might not be the flashiest flip out there, but it’s plenty lucrative and easy to find.

Mini Brands have built a collector base that rivals Funko Pops for dedication. The brand makes ultra-detailed miniature replicas of real products like Campbell’s soup, Tabasco, Crayola markers, and Rubik’s Cubes. Each tiny package is meticulously detailed down to the nutritional labels.

The advent calendar format gives collectors 24 minis pulled from multiple series, but the real draw is those four exclusives. ZURU confirms these specific minis exist nowhere else in their product line. For completionists trying to fill their collector cases, this calendar is the only way to get them.

We’ve seen past Mini Brands collections flip for a profit. In 2024, we tracked their Ulta collab flipping for two times over retail. Shortly after, their Halloween collection was reselling for up to $80 at a time.

Mini Brands operates on scarcity. Regular blind ball capsules retail for around $10 and contain five random minis. Collector cases hold 30 minis and include their own exclusives. The advent calendar sits in a sweet spot with decent value per mini plus those four you can’t get elsewhere.

Serious collectors track series releases, hunt for rare metallics and glow-in-the-dark variants, and complete full sets displayed in custom cases. The exclusives create urgency because missing them means an incomplete collection.

Amazon has the standard 2024 Mini Brands Advent Calendar in stock at $29.99 with Prime shipping. Walmart shows availability both online and in stores at the same price. Target carries it as well, though stock varies by location.

The Disney version (also $29.99) includes 24 Disney Store minis from Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars, and Disney Princesses with its own set of exclusives. That one’s been harder to find consistently, with some sellers marking it up to $43 on eBay.

There’s also a Toy Mini Brands version featuring miniature versions of Nickelodeon characters, Rubik’s Cubes, and Crayola products. Same price point, different exclusives.

Three groups are grabbing these calendars. Parents buying them for kids who collect Mini Brands see it as a countdown to Christmas with built-in entertainment. Adult collectors want those exclusives to complete their sets. Resellers are banking on post-holiday scarcity driving secondary market prices up.

The resell angle is trickier than it looks. You’re competing with major retailers who can restock easily. The profit margin at retail exists, but it’s thin unless you’re holding until these go out of stock everywhere and collectors start panicking about missed exclusives.

Five Below previously carried a Retro variant for cheaper, but that one’s currently out of stock. When budget retailers clear out, that’s usually when eBay prices start climbing.

Most major retailers accept returns on toys, but advent calendars are often final sale once opened. Check the specific store’s policy before buying to flip. Amazon’s generally flexible, Walmart less so on seasonal items.

The market for these is real but niche. You’re not moving volume like you would with mainstream toys. It’s collectors driving demand, and collectors are patient. They’ll wait for deals rather than overpay unless they absolutely need those exclusives before the calendar disappears from retail.

We’re in the window where these are readily available but won’t be forever. ZURU produces limited quantities of advent calendars compared to their regular blind ball capsules. Once major retailers sell through their holiday allocation, that’s it until next year’s version.

If you’re already plugged into the Mini Brands collector community or you’ve got kids who collect them, grabbing one at retail makes sense. The exclusives have value to the right buyer.

For resellers, the play is probably holding sealed calendars until February or March when retail stock is gone and collectors realize they missed their window. The profit’s not huge, but it’s there if you’re patient.