I do not shop much at tru mainly because the prices are so high. I also find the practice of raising the price just to mark the item down and say it is on "Sale" very deceptive...My main question is why so many people bash them for having higher than retail prices on Lego.These same peple want to buy Lego cheap so they can charge higher than retail prices. I just dont buy there and choose cheaper outlets unless there is a great promo or gift.I dont have any problem with a store charging more than retail and would not be mad at them if that is what I was planning on doing also. There is money to made on lego even at MSRP Toy R Us Knows this they are a fellow competitor and carry some sets EOL and some Exclusives. Next time your panties are in a bunch about TRU pricing just think some of the markups on your own items, aka profits...    

I do not shop much at tru mainly because the prices are so high. I also find the practice of raising the price just to mark the item down and say it is on "Sale" very deceptive...My main question is why so many people bash them for having higher than retail prices on Lego.These same peple want to buy Lego cheap so they can charge higher than retail prices. I just dont buy there and choose cheaper outlets unless there is a great promo or gift.I dont have any problem with a store charging more than retail and would not be mad at them if that is what I was planning on doing also. There is money to made on lego even at MSRP Toy R Us Knows this they are a fellow competitor and carry some sets EOL and some Exclusives. Next time your panties are in a bunch about TRU pricing just think some of the markups on your own items, aka profits...

This message has been brought to you by your local TRU store manager...

On a serious note, I think the majority of members here would agree that TRU is free to operate their business as they choose. The reason why people get upset and "bash" them is when they jack up their prices right before a "sale" begins, so you really are not saving anything. That practice is extremely deceptive, and it relies on the general public not realizing that they are being duped to be successful. I think most people here are smart enough to realize that this is their business model and to shop elsewhere. It's when TRU starts to prey upon the uneducated public such as soccer moms, grandparents buying a birthday gift, or the 8 year old kid who saved his allowance for ten months to buy that TRU exclusive, to make a buck that gets people upset.

WH Smith in the UK inflate their RRP even more than TRU. I actually hate Argos more due to shocking condition of boxes and careless packing when shipping.

Well... I am not an expert on so many things, but I make sure to educated myself as much as possible about something I will be purchasing in the future. It's my money I am spending, after all, so it's up to me to make an effort and evaluate the best way to reduce my costs by shopping around.

the uneducated public such as soccer moms

Let it slide

Let it slide

Kohl's does this thing all the time. I find nothing wrong w/ it. Spend your $ elsewhere if it bothers you.

I do not hate TRU. I hate the system that they use. They jack up the prices on Lego sets so that when a sale comes along, unsuspecting people will think that they are getting a great discount, when they are not.

Why hate Toys R Us? Gee, let me count the ways.... Lousy locations, filthy stores, high markups, lack of actual sales, and so on. I'm not only talking about Lego either. I've never walked into a Toys R Us to find a sale on anything. Even old video games were still full retail which was as bad as Circuit City when they were still around. Toys R Us is much like the novelty store at an amusement park. They offer something you can buy anywhere else for dang near 2x-3x the actual price. It's as though you were paying for the novelty of purchasing the item there.

In any case, Toys R Us' pricing policy is a leftover remnant of the 90's before the internet, preying on the general populace's ignorance as to how much something actually costs. Funny though because it's pretty bad when Kmart looks like a dream store compared to Toys R Us.

Too bad LowestFormOfWit doesn't seem to post anymore cause there would be some choice words from him as well.

The worst thing about TRU is that it's the only toy store still around. My family loves to wander the aisles and look, but we don't usually spend more than $20.

I'm thankful to the ignorant people who keep TRU in business so we have a place to check out new toys.

The worst thing about TRU is that it's the only toy store still around. My family loves to wander the aisles and look, but we don't usually spend more than $20.

I'm thankful to the ignorant people who keep TRU in business so we have a place to check out new toys.

The most I ever spent at TRU was $120 for a Republic Frigate. That was the price after their "special" sale of 25% off any Lego set. But it is cool to look around, they do have a great selection of Lego sets.

Just wondering is it ok for us resellers to target the uneducated public and gouge them on the secondary market with inflated prices on ebay and amazon but not ok for TRU to do it? I agree with the thought if you dont like it shop elsewhere and they will find the success or failure in their bottom line. Just find it hypocritical for resellers to complain about TRU pricing because they cant wait to get their hands on it to mark it up even more...LOL

Just wondering is it ok for us resellers to target the uneducated public and gouge them on the secondary market with inflated prices on ebay and amazon but not ok for TRU to do it? I agree with the thought if you dont like it shop elsewhere and they will find the success or failure in their bottom line. Just find it hypocritical for resellers to complain about TRU pricing because they cant wait to get their hands on it to mark it up even more...LOL

Unfortunately, I have to agree 100%. This is very sound logic. I would count myself in as one of the TRU haters, but as you pointed out, that is essentially exactly what I do when I sell my stuff. What's more, as I am in no rush to move inventory I usually post slightly higher than average prices on eBay, and then if I decide I need to move it I will keep the higher prices, but put everything "on sale" @ 10-15% off with the markdown manager. 

 

Damn. I am TRU. Thanks for ruining it!

 

-PB

 

p.s. You didn't really ruin it, I've always known this... just never shared my thoughts on it. Glad to see I'm not the only one. Oh, I and this doesn't mean I still don't hate TRU, but I have been know to pull deals outta there on rare occasions, and I never turn away from a good deal.

I like TRU for the free LEGO builds every other Saturday. Sometimes they have something worth while to buy but usually not for resellers. My kids like to ride the bikes and scooters all over the store and sit in all the power wheels and pretend they are racing. Its actually a pretty cool place to have a good time for free if you don't like spending money there. Almost like an indoor playground.

I like TRU for the free LEGO builds every other Saturday. Sometimes they have something worth while to buy but usually not for resellers. My kids like to ride the bikes and scooters all over the store and sit in all the power wheels and pretend they are racing. Its actually a pretty cool place to have a good time for free if you don't like spending money there. Almost like an indoor playground.

LOL. That's why I like big stores like Home Depot. Always fun to slide around on their floors. I brought a Scooter once and rode around while my dad found a few things. It was great! (Of course, I probably can't do that now!)

Just wondering is it ok for us resellers to target the uneducated public and gouge them on the secondary market with inflated prices on ebay and amazon but not ok for TRU to do it? I agree with the thought if you dont like it shop elsewhere and they will find the success or failure in their bottom line. Just find it hypocritical for resellers to complain about TRU pricing because they cant wait to get their hands on it to mark it up even more...LOL

I don't agree with your logic. When i resell my items I sell them at the market price, which the market determines on eBay. The items I sell over normal retail price are retired sets that are no longer available in retail establishments, so the market determines their value through an auction. If I am selling an item that is still available in retail stores, it is at retail price because I was able to acquire it at a discount. I don't think there are many resellers selling sets that are not retired at a high markup.

LOL. That's why I like big stores like Home Depot. Always fun to slide around on their floors. I brought a Scooter once and rode around while my dad found a few things. It was great! (Of course, I probably can't do that now!)

I remember doing something like that once or twice, then an employee got angry at me for doing that.

I don't agree with your logic. When i resell my items I sell them at the market price, which the market determines on eBay. The items I sell over normal retail price are retired sets that are no longer available in retail establishments, so the market determines their value through an auction. If I am selling an item that is still available in retail stores, it is at retail price because I was able to acquire it at a discount. I don't think there are many resellers selling sets that are not retired at a high markup.

That's a good point, but by the same token TRUs sells their item at the price they want and then the market decides if that price is justified. People who buy in TRU think those sets are worth the money they paid, or they would otherwise not get them.

Sorry I completely disagree with your point because you make it seem like we are ALL jacking up prices on people. Its just not true. Yes, there may be a few people on this site that try to take advantage of buyers, but most of us don't.

 

All of my prices on ebay are fair market value determined by ebay sold listings AND I use Best offer and consistently take less for items, especially on bulk orders.

 

TRU absolutely hands down takes advantage of people who don't know better ON PURPOSE. Thats the difference. I shop there are all the time and I like the place, but their business practices are shady. They can price things the way they want. However, what most people never do is actually change the RETAIL PRICES to make people thing they are getting a deal.

 

Brickshopper - I know you are a big ebay seller and assume you have an EBAY store. When you have a sale, do you change the retail price so it looks like you are having a big one but it is the same price? Justafrog - do you do it? I very much doubt it because to me both of you seem like honest people with integrity.

 

I worked for a company that used stupid high retail prices to make women think they were getting insane deals on cloths with 70% off sales. While a little irritating that people fall for it, the NEVER changed their retail prices. EVER.

 

Since I have watched TRU, the Millenium falcons list price has been 129.99, 139.99, 145.99, 159.99, 169.99 and 179.99. Its shady, bad business and they shouldn't be allowed to do it.

 

If they want to price it at 179.99 forever, I am fine with it. Have your sales, whatever else. Don't try to fleece buyers. 

That's a good point, but by the same token TRUs sells their item at the price they want and then the market decides if that price is justified. People who buy in TRU think those sets are worth the money they paid, or they would otherwise not get them.

 

This is true - but if you dupe someone into thinking something is worth more than it is, how is this really still applicable? If I tell someone  I originally bought a car I am selling for 40K, so 20K seems like a good deal, but I am lying, that is a fabricated worth. TRU achieves this not by having inflated prices, but by changing them constantly.

Sorry I completely disagree with your point because you make it seem like we are ALL jacking up prices on people. Its just not true. Yes, there may be a few people on this site that try to take advantage of buyers, but most of us don't.

 

All of my prices on ebay are fair market value determined by ebay sold listings AND I use Best offer and consistently take less for items, especially on bulk orders.

 

TRU absolutely hands down takes advantage of people who don't know better ON PURPOSE. Thats the difference. I shop there are all the time and I like the place, but their business practices are shady. They can price things the way they want. However, what most people never do is actually change the RETAIL PRICES to make people thing they are getting a deal.

 

Brickshopper - I know you are a big ebay seller and assume you have an EBAY store. When you have a sale, do you change the retail price so it looks like you are having a big one but it is the same price? Justafrog - do you do it? I very much doubt it because to me both of you seem like honest people with integrity.

 

I worked for a company that used stupid high retail prices to make women think they were getting insane deals on cloths with 70% off sales. While a little irritating that people fall for it, the NEVER changed their retail prices. EVER.

 

Since I have watched TRU, the Millenium falcons list price has been 129.99, 139.99, 145.99, 159.99, 169.99 and 179.99. Its shady, bad business and they shouldn't be allowed to do it.

 

If they want to price it at 179.99 forever, I am fine with it. Have your sales, whatever else. Don't try to fleece buyers. 

I agree with you that their business practices are shady. I also agree that they jack up the price on purpose because people do not know what the actual retail price for the set is and that they could go to a different store like Target five minutes away and get it at a cheaper price. 

Brickshopper - I know you are a big ebay seller and assume you have an EBAY store. When you have a sale, do you change the retail price so it looks like you are having a big one but it is the same price? Justafrog - do you do it? I very much doubt it because to me both of you seem like honest people with integrity.

 

 

I don't change my base price just prior to a sale (but the reason I wouldn't consider it is it would be too much time spent for any benefit). However, in our eBay store I do charge higher than average eBay prices in many cases, and higher than average Bricklink prices in most cases, and higher than what people could spend if they went off and bought some kits and parted them out themselves in all cases. And I don't tell my buyers how to go find a better bargain.

 

And, I really wish eBay had a mark UP manager (without telling the buyers that the price had been marked up) so that at hot times of year like Christmas I could raise all my prices across the board as easily as I can currently mark them down.

 

I don't know where that puts me on the DoNot Giant Scale O'Integrity   but I'm okay with myself and my dogs still seem to like me.

Well, I think they should be allowed to do it. What should happen is they should lose the business of those people who don't agree with them and that's it. The thing is, come the time when ey are the only ones to have the 41999 in stock and a lot of people "forget" about how much they hate TRU.

I for one have purchased items for more than retail, even at TRU several years ago, but even when I realized how much they charged over "retail" I was never angry at them, but at me for not taking the time to research the prices beforehand. And in the cases where I have witnessed or known about a particular business doing something I consider wrong on moral grounds, I have stopped purchasing from them 100%, even when they had a killer deal or whatever.

I sold a HH in a damaged box for $200 to a buyer not long ago. If he considered the price was right for him, who Am I to say otherwise?

This is true - but if you dupe someone into thinking something is worth more than it is, how is this really still applicable? If I tell someone  I originally bought a car I am selling for 40K, so 20K seems like a good deal, but I am lying, that is a fabricated worth. TRU achieves this not by having inflated prices, but by changing them constantly.

Right, so the buyer should make sure that's actually true. The one spending the money is the one with an incentive to verify the seller's claims.

I do not shop much at tru mainly because the prices are so high. I also find the practice of raising the price just to mark the item down and say it is on "Sale" very deceptive...My main question is why so many people bash them for having higher than retail prices on Lego.These same peple want to buy Lego cheap so they can charge higher than retail prices. I just dont buy there and choose cheaper outlets unless there is a great promo or gift.I dont have any problem with a store charging more than retail and would not be mad at them if that is what I was planning on doing also. There is money to made on lego even at MSRP Toy R Us Knows this they are a fellow competitor and carry some sets EOL and some Exclusives. Next time your panties are in a bunch about TRU pricing just think some of the markups on your own items, aka profits...    

TRU makes there prices high because they have more toys then anywhere else, and know that kids will buy from there rather then Target.

I do not hate TRU. I hate the system that they use. They jack up the prices on Lego sets so that when a sale comes along, unsuspecting people will think that they are getting a great discount, when they are not.

Exactly