75192 - UCS: Millennium Falcon 2017

[Floriano]

Just now, klo1978 said:

is "backordered" considered moving forward? lol

hehehe, in this case, I hope so!

[Pokeshop]

3 minutes ago, klo1978 said:

is "backordered" considered moving forward? lol

It is definitely better than "Cancelled"  Even though I placed my order through minutes from launch, my order moved to Processing, to Waiting for Inventory to now Back Ordered...  Wonder how they decided which orders went first.

[MarleyMoose]

I just picked my My from the PO. TLG sent my freebies through FedEx which may be a problem since I use a PO Box.

1 minute ago, Pokeshop said:

It is definitely better than "Cancelled"  Even though I placed my order through minutes from launch, my order moved to Processing, to Waiting for Inventory to now Back Ordered...  Wonder how they decided which orders went first.

Lego has be known to go backwards.

[Val-E]

8 minutes ago, klo1978 said:

is "backordered" considered moving forward? lol

Yes, but not at 12 parsecs.

[Rodeogeorge]

The list is almost longer than the number of people who got the new Falcon on release day.

I'm having iron brick flashbacks.

[Deadfraggle]

21 minutes ago, Rodeogeorge said:

I'm having iron brick flashbacks.

WRONG......INCORRECT

[inversion]

1 hour ago, flynnibus said:

You guys are funny to read. Next time I'm hanging out with the new CFO I'll try to get her take on the significance of the speculative resellers.  She's actually a former colleague of mine.

 'hardcore collectors' - how many real hardcore Lego people admire their collection of unopened boxes?  The folks spending thousands on bulk bricks to build a MOC are far more of an impact than speculators I bet.   

Want to theorize how how important you are to the business?  Try looking at where the company actually invests hard dollars... like space in the retail stores.  How much shelf and floor space is dedicated to you?  When have you ever seen Lego promote the residual value of any of their sets?

Lego overshot... they've been spending heavily to enable growth.. and when they finally spluttered.. they were exposed.  Hence the 'reset' they announced.  It's going to be a turbulent time anyway for TLG with the change in leadership.  It will be interesting to see how the upcoming Movies help the toys or not.. or if they just become interesting sidebars.

And the company can get it wrong, as it did many times. No, I am not expecting soccer moms stashing away unopened boxes. 

First, what matters for a success of a major non-necessity product is mind share and public perception. In the recent years LEGO has been perceived as a premium product, that has a good value even being used. People don't need to have the intention to sell it, it is enough if they know that they can sell it if they want to. That is the important bit here, which changes the nature of the purchase. Instead of burning money, you are still at your money when purchasing. All the articles and social media feedback ensured that people knew this. This has a huge influence on purchasing decisions, even if just subconsciously.

Second, LEGO overshooting and mismanaging its product pipeline is mostly a separate issue. They missed the focus and fail to notice some trends. They were too late with catering to the adult market, and were releasing too much dinky crap (Nexo, SH Girls, Chima, etc.). These fail to pass the 'parent test', where they are approved for purchase. In many families purchase of a large LEGO set is a significant expense and gets considered carefully which one to buy. The enduring popularity of classic and ordinary themes such as Creator, City, Friends and a few SW sets are clearly explained by the parent influence on purchasing decisions.

Third, nobody realizes that people are getting tired of Star Wars and Super Heroes by now. An endless wave of movies, accompanied by sets of questionable design quality. The SW and Marvel brands are squeezed dry by Disney, there is just too many movies and other products coming. The people cannot keep up anymore by the new heroes and vehicles, and are losing interest. Less is more, but the managers have to show the profits now for the fat bonus. Disney is not killing these by quality, but by quantity, and the signs are alarming already. LEGO is caught up in this disease big time, and the amount of sets they cannot get rid of even with a 50% discount is shocking. LEGO should at least halve the amount of sets in these themes and put more effort into the design.

Fourth, the market research they do is a glorious mess, the whole department should be fired. Consecutively misses the mark in terms of which sets should be advertised and produced in large quantity. The literal gold mines are left unexploited. Millions were spent on marketing Nexo, however it is the sets like the Saturn V that already should have TV ads and mass production to capitalize on the public reception. That could be toy of the year this Christmas, but the company has grown too incompetent to catch on. And from which dark hole did they get the stupid idea that anybody would want SH Girls? Seriously.

[gregpj]

I don't think we've had popcorn for at least 3 or 4 days now...

[Alpinemaps]

20 minutes ago, inversion said:

Third, nobody realizes that people are getting tired of Star Wars and Super Heroes by now. An endless wave of movies, accompanied by sets of questionable design quality. The SW and Marvel brands are squeezed dry by Disney, there is just too many movies and other products coming. The people cannot keep up anymore by the new heroes and vehicles, and are losing interest. Less is more, but the managers have to show the profits now for the fat bonus. Disney is not killing these by quality, but by quantity, and the signs are alarming already. LEGO is caught up in this disease big time, and the amount of sets they cannot get rid of even with a 50% discount is shocking. LEGO should at least halve the amount of sets in these themes and put more effort into the design.

Fourth, the market research they do is a glorious mess, the whole department should be fired. Consecutively misses the mark in terms of which sets should be advertised and produced in large quantity. The literal gold mines are left unexploited. Millions were spent on marketing Nexo, however it is the sets like the Saturn V that already should have TV ads and mass production to capitalize on the public reception. That could be toy of the year this Christmas, but the company has grown too incompetent to catch on. And from which dark hole did they get the stupid idea that anybody would want SH Girls? Seriously.

I'll say this - your market and my market are two different markets.  You say sets can't be gotten rid of at 50% off.  Meanwhile, in my market, sets go on clearance at 20%, and you're lucky if there's anything left.  Definitely not in mass quantities, and multiple stores.  Not in my market.

As for SH Girls - first, look to DC.  It's a brand.  They wanted to put it out there.  It is a mass marketed, across many different lines product.  Books, cartoons, comics, clothing, toys.  There's already a natural relationship between LEGO and DC.  So of course DC would want to have LEGO involved in the merchandising.

[flynnibus]

38 minutes ago, inversion said:

And the company can get it wrong, as it did many times. No, I am not expecting soccer moms stashing away unopened boxes. 

First, what matters for a success of a major non-necessity product is mind share and public perception. In the recent years LEGO has been perceived as a premium product, that has a good value even being used

Lego is perceived as having a 'good value' in terms of a premium toy.  The vast vast vast vast majority of buyers have no evaluation of resell value when buying their children's toys.  No parent goes "hrmm.. which will have more resell 3yrs from now, xbox or playstation??" - They know Lego is a premium product and the value is in what they get from it as a toy.  They know the product will be good quality, won't break, will be fun, and has lots of possibilities.  They know the quality of the bricks and complete picture will probably be better than the competitor blocks and will pay Lego's premium because of it.  Not because they think they can get 30% more for the used lego brick vs the Megablock.  The affluent buyers of Lego are already affluent  

It's the same in every hobby, the heavily engaged enthusiasts far overstate their importance in the market.  The folks selling MISB kits or "complete with box" used kits are not the center of the market.  It's the enthusiasts who like to go through a lot of sets and the speculators.  For these first group, knowing the sets have good residual value helps them justify the price because they know they will buy, sell, and buy the next set.  These guys don't need increased values to be happy, they are just diffusing costs.  The speculators only want appreciation or they are underwater.  The resell market is still trivially small compared to the full retail presence of Lego - its why Lego retail has no price pressure from it.  The 'bulk' and incomplete sets still dominate the non-enthusiasts used sales.

38 minutes ago, inversion said:

Second, LEGO overshooting and mismanaging its product pipeline is mostly a separate issue. They missed the focus and fail to notice some trends. They were too late with catering to the adult market, and were releasing too much dinky crap (Nexo, SH Girls, Chima, etc.). [...]

Third, nobody realizes that people are getting tired of Star Wars and Super Heroes by now. An endless wave of movies, accompanied by sets of questionable design quality. The SW and Marvel brands are squeezed dry by Disney, there is just too many movies and other products coming.

I agree on the misses in many of the recent lines (I wanted to mention the SuperHeros.. but didn't have anything to back it up) but I think this is more localized to Lego's products.  The 'super hero fatigue' is not as imminent as many would want you to believe.

38 minutes ago, inversion said:

Fourth, the market research they do is a glorious mess, the whole department should be fired. Consecutively misses the mark in terms of which sets should be advertised and produced in large quantity. The literal gold mines are left unexploited. Millions were spent on marketing Nexo, however it is the sets like the Saturn V that already should have TV ads and mass production to capitalize on the public reception

Marketing is one that is very difficult for many to evaluate objectively.... especially without the power of hindsight.  I don't agree sets like the Saturn V would be household items if promoted on TV.  At the end of the day it's still a 3' long display piece with limited play potential compared to sets costing less and taking up far less space.  Be objective, the market is more than our individual preferences.  

Back to the topic of the thread - No I don't think UCS reissues and other snubs at the speculator's market are suddenly to blame for Lego's recent 6 month performance.  The numbers are just insane.  Even by the contributor here who speculated that there would have only been 800 75192 sets sold in the US at launch... look at the scales involved here.  800 sets at 800 dollars is only 640k in revenue.  Lego does over 41 MILLION a month in revenue.  So even at 130 stores at 10 each.. or roughly 1 million in sales revenue.. that's still only 2.5% of the total activity going on.  So while it's a huge amount of money... it's still just a minor contributor to the bigger picture.  So it's gonna take a WHOLE LOT MORE to have the 'hit on speculators' to magically be responsible for a 12+month trend that Lego has been experiencing in the US.

Issues with expensive programs like Lego Dimension failing to gain traction, the long term outlook of Digital, and other items I wager are FAR more important to TLG leadership than worrying about the burn a few hundred Lego hoarders are feeling over the 10179 being reissued.

Edited September 18, 2017 by flynnibus

[Val-E]

20 minutes ago, Alpinemaps said:

I'll say this - your market and my market are two different markets.  You say sets can't be gotten rid of at 50% off.  Meanwhile, in my market, sets go on clearance at 20%, and you're lucky if there's anything left.  Definitely not in mass quantities, and multiple stores.  Not in my market.

As for SH Girls - first, look to DC.  It's a brand.  They wanted to put it out there.  It is a mass marketed, across many different lines product.  Books, cartoons, comics, clothing, toys.  There's already a natural relationship between LEGO and DC.  So of course DC would want to have LEGO involved in the merchandising.

The US and Europe have everything in common except for the buy-in and sold prices of Lego.

Edited September 18, 2017 by Val-E

[Ed Mack]

2 hours ago, flynnibus said:

You guys are funny to read. Next time I'm hanging out with the new CFO I'll try to get her take on the significance of the speculative resellers.  She's actually a former colleague of mine.

 'hardcore collectors' - how many real hardcore Lego people admire their collection of unopened boxes?  The folks spending thousands on bulk bricks to build a MOC are far more of an impact than speculators I bet.   

Want to theorize how how important you are to the business?  Try looking at where the company actually invests hard dollars... like space in the retail stores.  How much shelf and floor space is dedicated to you?  When have you ever seen Lego promote the residual value of any of their sets?

Lego overshot... they've been spending heavily to enable growth.. and when they finally spluttered.. they were exposed.  Hence the 'reset' they announced.  It's going to be a turbulent time anyway for TLG with the change in leadership.  It will be interesting to see how the upcoming Movies help the toys or not.. or if they just become interesting sidebars.

All I have to do is look at every front window display of the LEGO store and the new 75192 and its "floor space" to realize who LEGO is targeting.   

On a side note...Invite me to the dinner with the new CFO...I will educate both of you as to what the LEGO fan wants.

[Val-E]

5 minutes ago, Ed Mack said:

All I have to do is look at every front window display of the LEGO store and the new 75192 and its "floor space" to realize who LEGO is targeting.   

On a side note...Invite me to the dinner with the new CFO...I will educate both of you as to what the LEGO fan wants.

Better make it quick, 6 months is all they get in the job these days.

[Ed Mack]

Just now, Val-E said:

Better make it quick, 6 months is all they get in the job these days.

Maybe because they don't have a clue as to what LEGO fans want and how to protect their brand from counterfeiters and apathy.

[Will 4]

1 hour ago, Val-E said:

Yes, but not at 12 parsecs.

Parsec is a unit of distance.

This has become the bubble thread on steroids perhaps a certain guy with mop around here could help.

 

Edited September 18, 2017 by Will 4

[Ed Mack]

6 minutes ago, Will 4 said:

Parsec is a unit of distance.

This has become the bubble thread on steroids perhaps a certain guy with mop around here could help.

 

I will fire the mop guy if he mops anything.  Just sayin'....

[John82]

1 hour ago, Rodeogeorge said:

I'm having iron brick flashbacks.

I assumed they were the same guy lol

[Ed Mack]

1 minute ago, John82 said:

I assumed they were the same guy lol

I though so as well.  Might be a relative.

[Val-E]

29 minutes ago, Will 4 said:

Parsec is a unit of distance.

This has become the bubble thread on steroids perhaps a certain guy with mop around here could help.

 

[Val-E]

This guy deserves a prize for creativity/balls of steel.

The most exclusive Milf launch merchandise in the galaxy.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Official-Lego-Vip-75192-millenium-Falcon-launch-event-E-mail-No-lego-included-/272852921632?hash=item3f874d2d20:g:ZyUAAOSw1IlZwD4X

So, welcome to my  WORLD EXCLUSIVE  auction!

 

This auction is not for the lego Millennium Falcon set 75912, as there seem to be none left, unless you would like to pay thousands of moneys on eBay!

 

Rather, it is for my e-mail to the exclusive launch event which I missed!

 

This is a world exclusive, there is only one email addressed to me, and once I delete it, its gone forever!

 

I've included a cheeky little screen grab of the e-mail ?

 

Once the auction has ended, will the winning bidder message me with their email address, and I will immediately forward you the exclusive email!

 

As I've only set this auction up for a laugh, I've set it to donate 50% of the sale to BBC Children in Need, so even if I only get one bidder it would have been worth it ?

 

And no, of course I'm not bitter about missing out on this set ? Not paying thousands for one either!

 

So just to reiterate, you are not bidding on any physical product, just my email inviting me to the launch event! 

If you would like an actual millennium falcon 75192, then may the force be with you, you'll need all the help you can get!

 

Happy bidding my furry friends ?

Edited September 18, 2017 by Val-E

[Migration]

You guys are funny to read. Next time I'm hanging out with the new CFO I'll try to get her take on the significance of the speculative resellers.  She's actually a former colleague of mine.
 'hardcore collectors' - how many real hardcore Lego people admire their collection of unopened boxes?  The folks spending thousands on bulk bricks to build a MOC are far more of an impact than speculators I bet.   
Want to theorize how how important you are to the business?  Try looking at where the company actually invests hard dollars... like space in the retail stores.  How much shelf and floor space is dedicated to you?  When have you ever seen Lego promote the residual value of any of their sets?
Lego overshot... they've been spending heavily to enable growth.. and when they finally spluttered.. they were exposed.  Hence the 'reset' they announced.  It's going to be a turbulent time anyway for TLG with the change in leadership.  It will be interesting to see how the upcoming Movies help the toys or not.. or if they just become interesting sidebars.

They do tend to take themselves a bit ToO seriously here at times.

[Migration]

1 hour ago, Ed Mack said:

   

On a side note...Invite me to the dinner with the new CFO...I will educate both of you as to what the LEGO fan wants.

Or get educated. 

[Bold-Arrow]

10 minutes ago, Migration said:

They do tend to take themselves a bit ToO seriously here at times.

I just want to know what set she displays on her desk . 

[Alpinemaps]

57 minutes ago, Will 4 said:

This has become the bubble thread on steroids perhaps a certain guy with mop around here could help.

 

 

51 minutes ago, Ed Mack said:

I will fire the mop guy if he mops anything.  Just sayin'....

I know who pays my bills...just sayin'

(Actually, you don't pay my bills either, but still...)

[Bold-Arrow]

2 minutes ago, Alpinemaps said:

 

I know who pays my bills...just sayin'

(Actually, you don't pay my bills either, but still...)

Some of us get paid ... in likes