LEGO S@H "Black Listing": Did you ever receive this re-sale warning from Shop at Home?

[Deez_Brickz]

makes you wonder if those self proclaimed heavy hitters are so heavy after all! Anyways I think this is BS. If you are ordering within their limit then there is no problem. I have not been warned by email but I do think i have been flagged. I have noticed a considerable difference in customer service since my orders have been piling up. I am still waiting for someone to contact me about an issue i had 2 weeks ago. The email i received from them 14 days ago said someone would be in contact with me in 24 hours or less, still nothing.

Exactly Stephen! I kind of always thought in the back of mind that I would be hit with this one day. If I am truly banned I will take that as my Red Badge of Courage. Perhaps banned from shop at home can be a new user icon here.

I'll find out once the new technic crawler and BTTF CUSSOO sets are finally for sale. Because I will be loading up on those exclusives. Backup option seems like new credit card and no VIP account. I can live with the 5%.

Thanks to all for the discussion.

Yours Truly,

Evil reseller.

[stephen_rockefeller]

When Lego price DeLoreans at $69.99 here then they are pricing themselves out of the toy market

I think they need to be very careful in how they are placing their prices. Online shopping has exploded and people constantly check now to see if they can get rarer or cheaper items. If they increase the costs in the cheaper countries, then international buyers might simply stop buying Lego altogether.

The B-Wing for example has a $350 price tag here, which for the parts is simply ludicrous. I was able to get one imported for $150 (and yes others to resell). If I couldn't have picked it up cheaper though, I simply would have not acquired it at all. Lego is supposed to be a child's toy after all. I am seeing more and more Lego here left on the shelves waiting for store discounts due to current pricing. Once decent discounts kick in then it starts to move.

 

Lego had a fair run with what they were charging internationally for smaller markets, but a lot of people are looking harder for better deals now. Lego themselves had to start offering free shipping (the minimum here previously was $40 I believe) to even be competitive.

This logic is not incorrect but you are talking about two different markets. The resellers and investors of course are looking elsewhere for better deals, the average buyer of LEGO (parents and kids) could care less.

[Quacs]

Nope. The only reason Lego investing is viable is because of the large group of consumers, not resellers. Otherwise who else is going to buy up your stock of EOLed sets? Lego wants to retain their focus on buyers, not resellers.

 

I also see it as a way for Lego to make it fair to their sellers/merchants who actually follow the reselling program guidelines.

 

Agreed, Jane.  Regarding the number of resellers, think of it this way - of all Lego fans, there is a small percentage that buy resale.  For there to be any viable resale market, there would have to be a very small fraction of resellers to secondary buyers.  At that point, you're talking about fractions of a percentage (and probably fractions of fractions of a percentage) of resellers to the entire group of Lego fans.

[Pirate]

So why is this discriminative measures from TLG? How they can PROVE it that the merchandise I buy will be re-sold? Its like a car dealership wont sell you a popular car because you might dare selling it to someone later on...

Total BS!

They don't have to prove anything. If they don't want to sell you something, they have every right to go tell you to take a hike.

[stephen_rockefeller]

They don't have to prove anything. If they don't want to sell you something, they have every right to go tell you to take a hike.

100% agree but by the same token, I don't think they should be messing with people who are buying within their set limits.

[Guest AnnexBrett]

They don't have to prove anything. If they don't want to sell you something, they have every right to go tell you to take a hike.

True that! I am happily take my colorful canuck money to somewhere else than...

[stephen_rockefeller]

If I ever get an email like this from LEGO I will kindly advise them that if I was a reseller, I most definitely would not be buying from S@H since most everything they sell is available through other channels for way cheaper. Wouldnt help my cause much but its pretty much true.

[Ed Mack]

When Lego price DeLoreans at $69.99 here then they are pricing themselves out of the toy market

I think they need to be very careful in how they are placing their prices. Online shopping has exploded and people constantly check now to see if they can get rarer or cheaper items. If they increase the costs in the cheaper countries, then international buyers might simply stop buying Lego altogether.

The B-Wing for example has a $350 price tag here, which for the parts is simply ludicrous. I was able to get one imported for $150 (and yes others to resell). If I couldn't have picked it up cheaper though, I simply would have not acquired it at all. Lego is supposed to be a child's toy after all. I am seeing more and more Lego here left on the shelves waiting for store discounts due to current pricing. Once decent discounts kick in then it starts to move.

 

Lego had a fair run with what they were charging internationally for smaller markets, but a lot of people are looking harder for better deals now. Lego themselves had to start offering free shipping (the minimum here previously was $40 I believe) to even be competitive.

Australia was not the part of the world I was referring to, but the prices LEGO charges to Australians are outrageous, so I guess it could apply.  I was thinking a little less fortunate parts of the world.

[TheDarkness]

Australia was not the part of the world I was referring to, but the prices LEGO charges to Australians are outrageous, so I guess it could apply.  I was thinking a little less fortunate parts of the world.

 

I was just using it as an example more than the rule. Large B&M stores here were trying to get the government to implement an internet sale tax so they could compete pricewise with online buying.

As stephen pointed out though, LEGO Shop at Home isn't exactly the place where people would buy huge quantities of Lego all the time due to their lack of discounting.

[sadowsk1]

I was just using it as an example more than the rule. Large B&M stores here were trying to get the government to implement an internet sale tax so they could compete pricewise with online buying.

As stephen pointed out though, LEGO Shop at Home isn't exactly the place where people would buy huge quantities of Lego all the time due to their lack of discounting.

I considered that myself, but I think resellers might be able to get VIP points, credit card bonuses, ******, free shipping on all orders of 75 and exclusive polybags for resale to make it worthwhile.  Making numerous purchases that breach 75.00 might work out well.

[TheDarkness]

I considered that myself, but I think resellers might be able to get VIP points, credit card bonuses, ******, free shipping on all orders of 75 and exclusive polybags for resale to make it worthwhile.  Making numerous purchases that breach 75.00 might work out well.

 

They will get some back, but can it truly match the B1G50% sort of deals? (an honest question and yes TRU are hit and miss)

[JoshTX]

Interesting discussion. I don't have anything particularly insightful to contribute, but this has been a good read.

 

If anything, I would say that all of this reminds me of the whole Microsoft used game debacle in which people argued that once they buy the game it was their property to do as they pleased with but the game publishers were crying foul that the used game market killed their sales. In this case, Lego is trying to dictate what people do with their property, to a degree, I suppose, though its different in that they aren't trying to control what we already have but more so just stop us from being able to continue to do so.

[Ed Mack]

Somebody at the TLG CS office, sitting in a cubicle, had a lot of time to F@K around between two coffees... Myself dont buy a lot from S@H either anyways ( I also wont order 50 copies of the same set at the time).

What I dont understand is the following:

The buyer pays full price and tax and shipping (optional) for the order, gets what he wanted =happy

TLG gets a tremendous amount money from investors - full retail price paid, got rid of inventory=happy

Government gets sales tax (in my case 13%)=happy

Shipping couriers gets orders to fulfill=happy

 

So why is this discriminative measures from TLG? How they can PROVE it that the merchandise I buy will be re-sold? Its like a car dealership wont sell you a popular car because you might dare selling it to someone later on...

 

Total BS!

 

Luckily there are some sources out there that only cares revenue and they dont care if Johhny and Jane's parents buying them one by one or Mr. Investor who gets 50 at the time.

Many of your points make sense, but there is more to it than meets the eye.  I think that TLG is putting out a warning shot to many big time resellers, or those who purchase a large amount from LEGO S@H.  On many levels, it is a sort of discrimination and doesn't make a lot of sense from a dollars and cents perspective, but obviously, there must be enough complaints or data that says different.  Just like I know what affects my business, LEGO knows what affects theirs.  Obviously, they are willing to sacrifice a few for the greater good.  The question is, what is the true LEGO definition and of a reseller and what are the limits that trigger the ban?

[DoNotInsertIntoMouth]

Many of your points make sense, but there is more to it than meets the eye.  I think that TLG is putting out a warning shot to many big time resellers, or those who purchase a large amount from LEGO LEGO Shop at Home.  On many levels, it is a sort of discrimination and doesn't make a lot of sense from a dollars and cents perspective, but obviously, there must be enough complaints or data that says different.  Just like I know what affects my business, LEGO knows what affects theirs.  Obviously, they are willing to sacrifice a few for the greater good.  The question is, what is the true LEGO definition and of a reseller and what are the limits that trigger the ban?

 

I think a lot of it is being proactive. I know when I used to manage a retail place in a mall, we didn't like for people to buy us out of certain stuff because it would look bad not having stock. Also, being somewhat proactive, the less you are selling to people who want something and the more you are selling to resellers, the less you are actually interacting with the people who buy your product for the product. Not sure how much that matters, but when you are profitable, losing a few sales may not make as much difference to block people acting as a middleman on your product.

 

Not sure how relevant this is, but I was at Walmart for Black Friday last year trying to get a video game for my wife for $15. I was 3rd in line and there were 15. The first person in line grabbed all 15, obviously to resell for $40 each. I was more mad at Walmart for not having a limit.

 

But then I would say, why wouldn't they just limit you here? Well, I guess they want to find out who these resellers are.

[sadowsk1]

They will get some back, but can it truly match the B1G50% sort of deals? (an honest question and yes TRU are hit and miss)

I don't think they would be buying directly from Lego in large quantities unless there was some consistent advantage to it.

[Alcarin]

I think its good...

 

If i were LEGO I would enforce everyone who buys LEGO must have a CARD to register their buyings and limit to 2-3 of each set country wide

[DoNotInsertIntoMouth]

I think its good...

 

If i were LEGO I would enforce everyone who buys LEGO must have a CARD to register their buyings and limit to 2-3 of each set country wide

 

Why do you think its good? More deals for everyone else? Not a fan of investors?

[Alcarin]

Why do you think its good? More deals for everyone else? Not a fan of investors?

 

Nah neither... limiting buying for reselling is good...

 

I would not be for removing it but limiting severely... having 50 or 100 or even 200 sets (you remember that Orc Forge purchase?) is just wrong imo...

 

Not because I can/want not to do it but because of the bigger view...

 

 

 

Its a kids toy afterall isnt it?

[stephen_rockefeller]

Why do you think its good? More deals for everyone else? Not a fan of investors?

Alcarin just likes to troll.

[Alcarin]

Alcarin just likes to troll.

 

Sure... just for having a different opinion = trolling... way to go for a mod.

[Diabolos80]

If anyone who wanted them could buy 50 of anything, I'd find something else to resell. If you think buying limits are a bust on your market, you might have a blemished understanding of supply and demand. Not to say the market won't sustain the supply; obviously the demand for Lego is high. But do you really want 200 sellers with 50 funhouses each all trying to move them on ebay? As big as it is, Lego reselling is a niche market, and buying limits (and bans) help to spread the field, which makes it easier for 500 of us to make $50 instead of of 50 of us making $500. Make sense? To the point, I like when you big dogs get flagged because I'm small-time. And any sane big dog would also cheer a rival dog getting clipped. Not trying to rub your nose in it (heh), but it's fair.

Another reason limits are good for our market is even better: Limits limit the amount of product Lego produces. 50 fewer sets you buy is 50 fewer sets Lego makes is 50 fewer sets. Think your funhouse will be worth a 100% ROI in two years if investors extended the production run 50 sets at a time? What if every 50 sets Lego sold to another investor resulted in a 2% loss on your ROI? What if 20 investors bought 50 sets each? Say goodbye to 40% of your ROI. (Please don't analyze the exact numbers, you're focusing on the wrong part of the story.)

And consider that maybe Lego just doesn't want you telling kids and parents that a $40 set from the Lego shop is worth $60 from you. Especially if they only plan on making 100 of them and you want half.

Finally, Deez. Why were you buying 50 funhouses at full retail in the first place? The third rule of BrickPicker is: Never pay full retail B)

[Alcarin]

+1 for Diabolos80

[stephen_rockefeller]

If anyone who wanted them could buy 50 of anything, I'd find something else to resell. If you think buying limits are a bust on your market, you might have a blemished understanding of supply and demand. Not to say the market won't sustain the supply; obviously the demand for Lego is high. But do you really want 200 sellers with 50 funhouses each all trying to move them on ebay? As big as it is, Lego reselling is a niche market, and buying limits (and bans) help to spread the field, which makes it easier for 500 of us to make $50 instead of of 50 of us making $500. Make sense? To the point, I like when you big dogs get flagged because I'm small-time. And any sane big dog would also cheer a rival dog getting clipped. Not trying to rub your nose in it (heh), but it's fair.

Another reason limits are good for our market is even better: Limits limit the amount of product Lego produces. 50 fewer sets you buy is 50 fewer sets Lego makes is 50 fewer sets. Think your funhouse will be worth a 100% ROI in two years if investors extended the production run 50 sets at a time? What if every 50 sets Lego sold to another investor resulted in a 2% loss on your ROI? What if 20 investors bought 50 sets each? Say goodbye to 40% of your ROI. (Please don't analyze the exact numbers, you're focusing on the wrong part of the story.)

And consider that maybe Lego just doesn't want you telling kids and parents that a $40 set from the Lego shop is worth $60 from you. Especially if they only plan on making 100 of them and you want half.

Finally, Deez. Why were you buying 50 funhouses at full retail in the first place? The third rule of BrickPicker is: Never pay full retail

I have paid full retail for all of my FHs.......when are they ever on sale? TRU usually jacks up the price during their BOGOs dont they?

[Diabolos80]

I have paid full retail for all of my FHs.......when are they ever on sale? TRU usually jacks up the price during their BOGOs dont they?

lol yeah. Well in my case, I got them at $40 w/bogo during one of those odd times they forget to raise the price. But then they cancelled my order. But then the local store honored the deal. It's a mad, mad, mad, market.

[stephen_rockefeller]

lol yeah. Well in my case, I got them at $40 w/bogo during one of those odd times they forget to raise the price. But then they cancelled my order. But then the local store honored the deal. It's a mad, mad, mad, market.

40 is msrp.....