LEGO Events

[pickleboy]

I have no problem with anything Pickleboy said - even if he is jabbing at me - because he does have a point. If Lego reads these forums it wouldn't be too hard at all. And I agree it is kind of ironic.

 

Now I just got my Ebay link in my posting, so I am sure that my issue was something else. And I am not banned yet from my own research of people who have been. I bought something yesterday in store which included an exclusive, but it was one I have never bought before.

 

Honestly I am fine if Ebay figures that out and bans me. I think it would make me feel pretty good about my Ebay store if it was even close to on TLG's radar. lol. I very much doubt it is though.

Good.  B/c while you were the one who posted about it here, you are certainly not the first despite what others think.  Even if you were, my post certainly shouldn't be taken as a jab. 

 

[asharerin]

So as resellers should we be happy with the bans (less competition) or upset with the bans (scared we will get banned ourselves)?

 

It is an interesting dilemma as if you are smart about your buys then TLG is doing you a huge favor.

[cissi]

OK, good advice.  So far, all my orders have gone straight to "In Process" apart from my 2x 41999 which said "Customer Service" assuming this was because they were backordered.  I was thinking about becoming an independent retailer but I heard that you need an opening order of

[@rtisan]

So as resellers should we be happy with the bans (less competition) or upset with the bans (scared we will get banned ourselves)?

 

It is an interesting dilemma as if you are smart about your buys then TLG is doing you a huge favor.

Only sets I buy from TLG are large ones. I have not purchased, to date, more then one of any set over $150. That`s because they are for me. I`m not interested at this time buy the large sets to store, because quite frankly, I don`t wish to utilize the capital to buy the emazers way, despite a very good job. I`d love 10 HH are, but I don`t need them for a collection. Being a collector first, I`d rather spend my money buying smaller sets and gaining a wider variety of items. This translate over to my investments. My involvement, though I`d like to make some profit, is not primarily for that. 

 

I`m not making a personal confession, though it may sound like that, the point being made is this. Buy smaller numbers of larger items if you are concerned. Buy using multiple VIP accounts/friends/family/etc. Don`t buy your small investment sets from TLC, but most of them can be found cheaper elsewhere at some point. Keep the total quantity (not necessarily order quantity) down and you won`t have any issues. Lego loves repeat customers, yet they don`t like those who buy to resell because frankly it undermines their business. They want to have as much control over their product as possible. It`s not a personal attack when your order gets cancelled, it`s a reaction from the company that they deem unfavourable to their brand. Buy during double VIP points and x3 VIP points to maximize your value, but don`t try and order 3, or 5, or 10 of an SSD or HH, because it`s highly unlikely that it will wash. 

[DoNotInsertIntoMouth]

Good.  B/c while you were the one who posted about it here, you are certainly not the first despite what others think.  Even if you were, my post certainly shouldn't be taken as a jab. 

 

 

Definitely. When I researched I found others banned who mentioned it on other websites. Definitely no where near the first.

 

And I definitely didn't post it to say "come feel sorry for me". I am not worried about it (I was about getting my VIP points out) and while apprecaite sympathy, don't necessarily deserve it. Whatever rules there are, I did violate them. I am going to call Lego again Monday and try to pull some info from them about it.

 

Obviously there are others who have been smarter about purchases I guess.

 

If I am banned, I plan to post my purchase history as well.

[boxofcorey]

I have no problem with anything Pickleboy said - even if he is jabbing at me - because he does have a point. If Lego reads these forums it wouldn't be too hard at all. And I agree it is kind of ironic.

 

Now I just got my Ebay link in my posting, so I am sure that my issue was something else. And I am not banned yet from my own research of people who have been. I bought something yesterday in store which included an exclusive, but it was one I have never bought before.

 

Honestly I am fine if Ebay figures that out and bans me. I think it would make me feel pretty good about my Ebay store if it was even close to on TLG's radar. lol. I very much doubt it is though.

 

Not to spam this topic, but I love the new ebay links in people's signatures. I would much rather buy from you guys and since I'm buying to collect, not resell, I think it's going to work for both parties fairly well.

[Ed Mack]

So as resellers should we be happy with the bans (less competition) or upset with the bans (scared we will get banned ourselves)?

 

It is an interesting dilemma as if you are smart about your buys then TLG is doing you a huge favor.

Yes, some can view this as a positive for LEGO investing.  

[asharerin]

Yes, some can view this as a positive for LEGO investing.  

 

It must be a hard choice for you Ed. Obviously you would like to see big hitters on this site go thru the affiliate link and be able to buy 99 HHs. On the other hand without limits and the periodic cullings the market would stagnate completely.

 

Are we so sure TLG did not see where we were headed and moved to maintain the very important secondary market for their product?

[cissi]

You would think in all of this, they could just set actual limits and enforce them. Then the ones that get around them, they would take care of in the back ground. Maybe they aren't doing that because they want to find out who these people are.

 

To me it seems like it would be way easier to just enforce limits than to investigate people and make guesses, etc.

i second the idea. I wonder why on earth they didn't just adjust their ordering system to only allow certain amount of the same items being ordered to one address if they ought to make some limited quantities for people to purchase. On the other hand, we know people will come up with ideas ordering with different credit cards/names/addresses and make the whole effort obsolete...

 

And please, LEGO, don't make this nasty move. I don't want to go through troubles if I'm just ordering the toy I have liked!

[dbost01]

Although I personally don't like restrictions on my personal buying habits but I do see a positive side to TLGs practices. Like many of you have said, this might help the secondary market for exclusive sets because less are being purchases for resale. But does this now mean people will flood the secondary market with smaller/medium size sets and now it will take longer to sale/flip those?

[Ed Mack]

Not to spam this topic, but I love the new ebay links in people's signatures. I would much rather buy from you guys and since I'm buying to collect, not resell, I think it's going to work for both parties fairly well.

Jeff is working on the Classifieds as I write this, but in the meantime, if you want to advertise your eBay store, contact Jeff and he will insert it in your signature. 

[legofreeman]

I've not heard of a UK "reseller" being banned but, I'd be very happy to take LEGO to court, and let every UK newspaper know if they removed my VIP points as I have not broken any published policy and (I think) this would be against UK law if they did.  To comply with UK law, I would expect a reduced purchasing limit on LEGO Shop at Home, an advisory email sent to those that exceed limits via multiple orders and finally a warning before an outright ban.  They may be starting with the US as investing has been going on there for several years while it's still quite new in the UK.

 

LEGO will have no proof to justify me being banned as I have not sold one single set that I have bought from LEGO Shop at Home so there's no way that they can prove that I'm a reseller.  Of course, the time will come when I do sell set from LEGO Shop at Home but, that's years away.

 

I'm aware that people have had VIP points removed so, I plan to spend all mine next weekend.

 

If LEGO want to get funny with me, bring it on!

 

Little do they know that I have space and the funds for another 396 Haunted Houses (99 limit each on all 4 days of Brick Weekend).  It'll be worth it just to make Emazers jealous! ;-)

 

If those points were part of an completed transaction, then taking them away is akin to breaking a contract or even could be considered a form of theft, since the points were 'delivered' and then removed.

[boxofcorey]

Jeff is working on the Classifieds as I write this, but in the meantime, if you want to advertise your eBay store, contact Jeff and he will insert it in your signature. 

 

Don't want to sound... lazy?... but is there a way you can have a place where the eBay stores are listed in the downtime before the Classifieds?

 

Not asking as a seller but as a buyer. Found some stuff in DNIIM's store that I'm going to buy shortly... just wondering what I'm missing from the other sellers.

[cissi]

Although I personally don't like restrictions on my personal buying habits but I do see a positive side to TLGs practices. Like many of you have said, this might help the secondary market for exclusive sets because less are being purchases for resale. But does this now mean people will flood the secondary market with smaller/medium size sets and now it will take longer to sale/flip those?

It will probably also make EOL of LEGO sets feel like they'll never come. lol

I'm not sure if that's LEGO's plan making EOL like eternity or coz the limited quantity makes it so.

[Ed Mack]

It must be a hard choice for you Ed. Obviously you would like to see big hitters on this site go thru the affiliate link and be able to buy 99 HHs. On the other hand without limits and the periodic cullings the market would stagnate completely.

 

Are we so sure TLG did not see where we were headed and moved to maintain the very important secondary market for their product?

Excellent points and theory.  From a site standpoint, I think this helps prolong the life of LEGO investing.  In a way, it has put a damper on the entire world of LEGO investing and some can argue that is a good thing.  Your point about LEGO doing this to actually help the LEGO secondary market remain viable opens up a whole new way of viewing this banning situation.  Maybe by cooling down the market, it removes some of the tire kickers and dilettante investors from the mix, preventing a speculative bubble from ever forming.

 

Unfortunately, we never see "big hitters" buy that many sets.  Either people are full of crap or avoid our affiliate links for something else.  It's a shame, because eventually, those members who never want to click on our links to support the site will find that we will have to charge for this data.  Throwing us a bone once in awhile keeps the site free.  

 

From a personal standpoint, I miss the discounts on big sets from an affiliate point of view and personal buying aspect.  If people are buying less big sets, then we make less money.  Also, I have to pay more for the ones I buy as well.  Restrictive limits are a nuisance to me.  I really spread my investments around, but I do feel for people wanting to buy large quantities of sets.  If they buy within the given limits, then they should not be banned.  This is just a silly topic in general...I mean...a company complaining about people buying their products.  LOL

[Ed Mack]

Don't want to sound... lazy?... but is there a way you can have a place where the eBay stores are listed in the downtime before the Classifieds?

 

Not asking as a seller but as a buyer. Found some stuff in DNIIM's store that I'm going to buy shortly... just wondering what I'm missing from the other sellers.

Maybe I can come up with a thread...

[legofreeman]

Most importantly, and specifically in regards to this forum, we shouldn't condone nor passively support TLC turning labels like reseller, collector, or investor into perjoratives.  A person who finds a way to make some money from their hobby shouldn't be regarded as unethical.  They should be appauled for their ingenuity.

 

All of this just goes to show how clueless TLG are (and have always been) about their customers.  The most die-hard fans of any toy or collectable will naturally evolve in to a collector who buys multiple sets (not some ill-intended 're-seller' looking to 'hurt' the LEGO brand).  Most of us are fans first.

 

This reminds me of the statistics that came out of TLC a few years ago showing that over 30% of LEGO sets are purchased by adults, for themselves.  Before they compiled that data, they had no clue what their customer base looked like.  Clearly they still don't understand us.

[justafrog]

Most importantly, and specifically in regards to this forum, we shouldn't condone nor passively support TLC turning labels like reseller, collector, or investor into perjoratives.  

 

I'm afraid that ship has sailed. While there may not be anyone here openly contemptuous of all levels of Lego selling, there are a nice steady flow of those who set the "unacceptable" mark right above what they themselves are doing. 

 

Re: affiliate links. Although I am by no means a heavy hitter (yet, she chortled evilly...) I will apologize for not using the click throughs more reliably in my own purchasing. My only defense for everything that is not Lego LEGO Shop at Home is I'm a ditz and I just forget. I promise to try to get better. Lego LEGO Shop at Home I just won't do - I understand that I'm paranoid, but that doesn't mean they're not out to get me. Fortunately, I do very little buying from LEGO Shop at Home so you're not missing much from me. 

 

AND, if this site charges money sometime, I am totally on board with that. Especially some kind of prime area. Maybe in that paid area we can realize something a bit closer to Legofreeman's ideal at the top of this post.

[Ed Mack]

Most importantly, and specifically in regards to this forum, we shouldn't condone nor passively support TLC turning labels like reseller, collector, or investor into perjoratives.  A person who finds a way to make some money from their hobby shouldn't be regarded as unethical.  They should be appauled for their ingenuity.

 

All of this just goes to show how clueless TLG are (and have always been) about their customers.  The most die-hard fans of any toy or collectable will naturally evolve in to a collector who buys multiple sets (not some ill-intended 're-seller' looking to 'hurt' the LEGO brand).  Most of us are fans first.

 

This reminds me of the statistics that came out of TLC a few years ago showing that over 30% of LEGO sets are purchased by adults, for themselves.  Before they compiled that data, they had no clue what their customer base looked like.  Clearly they still don't understand us.

Jeff and I talk all the time about being the "Bad Boys" of LEGO websites.  With over 20,000 members(and growing at a good clip), we will never get the same respect as other sites will.  Even though we help sell millions of dollars of LEGO sets, I doubt LEGO really wants to give us any props.  They appreciate the business, but they dislike what we promote to a degree.  

 

Whether you are a reseller, collector, investor or whatever...we are all in the same boat.  Most of us are fans first, businessmen/women second.  At times, it feels like we are in some kind of Bizzaro World, being somewhat "punished" for promoting a product and being creative making money from them.  I'm really curious to see how this all plays out and if LEGO and its new policies will hurt their bottom line.  Maybe in 6 months, LEGO will run "Investment Specials" if sales drop off too much.  

[Ed Mack]

I'm afraid that ship has sailed. While there may not be anyone here openly contemptuous of all levels of Lego selling, there are a nice steady flow of those who set the "unacceptable" mark right above what they themselves are doing. 

 

Re: affiliate links. Although I am by no means a heavy hitter (yet, she chortled evilly...) I will apologize for not using the click throughs more reliably in my own purchasing. My only defense for everything that is not Lego S@H is I'm a ditz and I just forget. I promise to try to get better. Lego S@H I just won't do - I understand that I'm paranoid, but that doesn't mean they're not out to get me. Fortunately, I do very little buying from S@H so you're not missing much from me. 

 

AND, if this site charges money sometime, I am totally on board with that. Especially some kind of prime area. Maybe in that paid area we can realize something a bit closer to Legofreeman's ideal at the top of this post.

Damn you to Hades!!!  LOL.  We also get some change from eBay, Walmart, Target, Barnes and Noble and most of all...Amazon.  So feel free to buy that big screen TV after you click on our Amazon links.  

[dbost01]

I need help with understanding how the secondary market hurts their brand? Specifics if you could please and not just "they need to control" it.

[krayzie]

I find it pretty funny that the Haunted House I ordered yesterday has a status of "customer service."

[justafrog]

I need help with understanding how the secondary market hurts their brand? Specifics if you could please and not just "they need to control" it.

 

There may be more examples, but:

 

1) Availability of current sets. Last fall when the Minecraft sets came out, Lego wildly underestimated their desirability. With resellers scooping up as many as humanly and computer-ally possible, actual fans found themselves unable to find them in stock, the secondary market saw a huge boom for a bit, but Lego feels (and not unreasonably so), that fans and kids got a bit hosed in the bargain.

 

2) Availability of buyer dollars on discontinued sets. If I am a lego fan and I have $500 to buy sets with this month, I can spend that $500 on currently available sets from Lego and/or their authorized retailers (either of which help Lego's bottom line at this time), or I can spend my $500 on discontinued set from two years ago that Lego originally sold for $200. Not only is that taking money from Lego's bottom line this year, but insult to injury the $500 I spend only ever gained Lego $200 (at the time the reseller bought it from Lego or authorized reseller).

 

3) Brand protection. If I'm a chain-smoking crackhead with bad breath and warts who regularly treats my customers like dirt and I'm also a Lego reseller, I give Lego a bit of a black eye by association of my fugliness with their product. Of course in my case I'm a glamorous 47 year old who doesn't look a day over 23 (or, if you ask my sister, a day over 83...) with beautiful merchant manners and a winning smile, but not everyone is so awesome.

[Anakinisvader]

You know if LEGO doesn't want your money, I'll take it. 

[Anakinisvader]

If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: