The EctoLabs Smart Queue works in a similar to way to queue systems you may have encountered on ticketing websites such as TicketMaster or AXS. Rather than letting unlimited people through to the checkout as soon as a sale begins, customers are held in a virtual queue. Our system dynamically manages the queue in the background, only allowing a limited number of customers through to the checkout process at once. Stock levels are checked at the beginning of each cycle which means only in-stock items can be allocated and never oversold.

No. We will only implement the Smart Queue for the most in-demand items likely to sell out quickly. All other products can be purchased using the standard shopping cart system. The use of the Smart Queue will be clearly mentioned on the relevant product pages and on our promotional emails and social media posts.

The start time of a sale or pre-sale will be stated on the relevant product pages and across our promotional emails and social posts. Bear in mind, this is the time sales will start so we recommend joining the 'Waiting Room' a short while before this time. This will give you the greatest chance of being allocated a good position in the queue. To join the Waiting Room or Queue, simply click on the button that will appear on the product page in place of the traditional 'Add To Cart'. This will be displayed as soon as the countdown timer has reached zero.

The Waiting Room eliminates the need for any mad dashes to the checkout. You will be able to choose the items you are interested in purchasing before joining - this information will then be stored in our system so all you have to do is sit back and wait for sales to begin. The page will be frequently updated and will reload automatically, so there is no need to refresh your browser. Once sales begin, a virtual queue will be formed - everyone already in the Waiting Room at this time will be allocated a random place in this queue and given an estimated wait time.

No. Joining the Waiting Room 30 minutes before the start of a sale gives you exactly the same chance of a good place in queue as joining 30 seconds before. This is because the initial queue order is randomised to make things as fair as possible for everyone. Bear in mind, joining the queue after the sales open will place you at the back, so it is always a good idea to enter the Waiting Room prior to the start time.

The standard shopping cart system tends to favour those with the fastest internet connections and reflexes, so implementing a queue in this way gives everyone an equal chance to purchase the items they want when there is a very high demand. Eliminating the 'fastest finger first' situation also helps those who are unable to type fast due to disability or reduced dexterity.

No, it is important to remember that available stock can't be guaranteed and can only be allocated to a customer once they reach the front of the queue. The Smart Queue system continually checks our stock levels during the sale and this information is displayed clearly before checkout. If an item becomes unavailable before you reach the front of the queue, you will be given the chance to purchase the remainder of your requested items. The Smart Queue will automatically close as soon as all stock has been sold.

The Smart Queue system has been designed so that your browser window will automatically reload when required and status information (such as your position in the queue) will be displayed in real time. However, you will NOT lose your place in the queue if you refresh your browser manually. Once you have joined the queue, you will be assigned a unique ID which will be saved as a cookie - this will enable you to regain your position, even if your browser closes unexpectedly. For this reason, make sure you have enabled cookies in your browser software, otherwise your place may be lost and your checkout unable to be displayed.

While this new system is designed to ease the traffic, we still need the queue to move reasonably quickly. In order to avoid abandoned checkouts, you will have a full 5 minutes to enter your shipping details and complete your purchase. Items will be held in your checkout during this time and will not be allocated to another customer until the time has run out. If you allow your checkout to timeout, your items will be cleared and you will be removed from the queue. We highly recommend using Shopify's Shop app to save your shipping and payment details ahead of time. Be sure to enter the same email address before joining the queue and you will be able to speed through the checkout process in seconds!

We believe the Smart Queue eases many of the frustrations experienced during previous sales, but we obviously have no control over the level of demand for our products. This means that demand can often outstrip supply so products can sell out fast. If you have been unsuccessful at securing the item you want this time, please do try again for the next sale or pre-sale.

The start time for our sales and pre-sales is always in UK time. Bear in mind this is GMT in our winter months and BST in the summer, so we understand it can be a little confusing when working out what time this will be in your part of the world. We would recommend using this World Clock Converter to get the correct time for your zone. Just enter in the UK start time of the sale next to 'London, United Kingdom' and then search for your global location to perform an instant conversion. Remember, the Waiting Room will open 15-30 minutes before this time, so make sure you arrive early!

Please bear in mind that EctoLabs is a very small operation and, as such, producing the levels of stock to satisfy demand is a very difficult thing to achieve. Each run represents many hours of research, design and physical assembly so we ask for your patience if you are unable to purchase our products right away. We want our stuff proudly displayed on as many Ghostbusters uniforms as possible, so rest assured we will continue to do everything we can to offer as many runs as possible throughout the year.

If you are still not sure how to use the Smart Queue, please feel free to contact us at help@ectolabs.net before the start of a sale and we will try to assist you as quickly as possible.