Buying/Selling LEGO's in Bulk

One day, while searching on eBay, I decided to have a little bit of fun and search the term “LEGO” and sort by Highest Price + Shipping. What I came across was mind blowing! The most interesting listing I came across was about a person selling their whole store, for about $30,000 including the stock of LEGO’s that they had. Now I wondered, was there a key to buying in bulk? Did you buy small lots, then sort them by color then send them off to some other person who would have to sort through them, or did you buy a huge lot of completed sets, the sell each off in individual lots? Forget about selling, how are you going to even buy it? How much should you look for per pound, what color, what theme?

When buying LEGO’s that are used, you should look for a price per pound ratio of less than $7.50. Depending on the theme of LEGO and color, the price per pound ratio also is different. For example, lots that primarily have gray or black, would sell for up to $15, and lots that include pieces from themes such as Star Wars, Castle, or Harry Potter go for more than a pile of miscellaneous bricks.

Before buying, you need to establish the combination that you will take when selling the lot of LEGO’s:

• R1: Instant resale
• R2: Picking through for a few pieces then reselling
• R3: Long-ish term investing
• R4: Buy big, then sell in small lots
• T1: Find a good deal then immediately sell it again for a higher price
• T2: Buy several smaller lots and then combine them to sell in a larger lot
• T3: Buy a lot, then sort by color

The BIG question is what is most profitable? That depends on the type of lot you are buying (complicated, right?).

If you are buying a large lot of pieces (35+ lbs) that are of no apparent interest to you, but it was too good a deal to pass then the best combination for you is:

• Selling instantly, sort by color, each color lot having no more than 7 lbs of LEGO’s.
• Selling instantly, but aim for a higher price than you originally sold for to make less money, but less effort.
• Selling instantly then selling it in smaller lots that are randomly assembled in lots no less than 5 lbs each.

Of these three options, option 2 is the most profitable, because you have small lots, and by sorting it by color, buyers know exactly what they are getting. The color that generally is most sought after is darker colors, mainly gray and black. These are in more demand than others because of their use in MOC’s. Another color in demand is white, though it is significantly rarer than other colors such as gray.

If you are buying a large lot of pieces (35+ lbs) that was bought because a portion of the pieces are of interest to you, and the deal was only decent deal, then you will probably lose money. To sell this kind of lot, I would also sort by color. If there is a small amount of a certain color (~1-2 lbs) then combine it with a different color.

If you are buying a small lot of pieces (1-10 lbs) that was bought for the pieces, and you plan on using 50% or more of the pieces, then I recommend just keeping the pieces.

One of the big reasons why people buy bulks of LEGO bricks is because there are often many valuable sets in the lot that are simply waiting to be claimed. This is a very difficult and laborious process, but it is possible. I do not recommend doing this with more than 15 lbs of bricks because there is simply too much to sort through, and is not efficient on your part. Also if the seller is selling multiple lots that originate from the same lot, the odds of having a complete set is low, because there are that many pieces.

Once in a while, however, you will come across a large lot of complete sets that are sold for a lower price than their actual value. If you are successful in these highly competitive auctions, then it is best to sell the sets valued $300+, such as MTT’s, and UCS sets individually, selling smaller sets that are valued at $50 or less, such as battle packs and other small sets in small bundles, but make sure that the bundles make sense. When I say this, I mean that the bundles should be from the approximate same era of storyline, or same theme. By doing this, your listing is more desirable to buyers looking for a certain series of sets. Medium sized sets should also be sold individually to maximize profits.

Before selling a “complete” set, make sure to verify its completion, or else your reputation could suffer.

I hope this helps you when buying and selling your LEGO’s in bulk!! Good luck!