71006 - The Simpsons House

[fossilrock]

I have to agree about the TOOS status for regular, non-seasonal exclusives.  SSD and R2 both had that status and then were only briefly available at a later date.  Over the past year, TOOS has been a precursor to Sold Out.

 

If Lego wanted to generate more sales of and interest in Simpsons house, then I would think Lego would want to have Simpsons house available for sale when Kwik-E-Mart goes on sale.  Otherwise, if Simpsons house is not in production for several months and demand is generated by Kwik-E-Mart, Lego is only playing into resellers' hands.

Ewok Village is another one that just had that "OOS will ship on April 13th", but just came back in stock today.   Will be interesting to see if that stays in stock for a while, but if it goes out again, I think it's telling that its end is near too. 

Although, I think the Simpsons House could be back come fall.  I really do, and it wouldn't surprise me.  If they are going to have a Simpsons line that goes on for a while, I sort of suspect we might see one large exclusive and a round of minifigure series every year for a few years. However, it makes sense that they sort of need a flagship, and the house would be it.   Although, if it does retire, it might really jump in price, because the Simpsons series 1 minifigure line has done fairly well.  You could barely find those in the stores, and when they were in a store, they didn't tend to last very long.  But, what will be interesting is how popular this theme would be if we are in 2018, and it's the fifth series of minifigures, and a new big exclusive modular...  By then it's welcome may have worn out, especially if it's just another rehash of the Simpsons family, and a smattering of characters that only appeared in a few epsiodes, or just a bunch of figures that were cameo's.  Personally, I think the Simpsons lines will do ok.

[bricketycricket]

Nothing about this set is making any sense to me. I'll be watching it closely though because it's got "anomaly" written all over it. Glad I've got one already

[Neosphinx]

lol. This set was the one I regretted most buying so early.

[Sandwraith]

Yikes, still available at a couple retailers here in Canada, and in store at LEGO B&M, may need to burn some VIP points on 1 just to be safe.

[Kenxxx]

So OOS at LEGO Shop at Home here in US, probably more coming in the fall... I just don't believe the SH is going EOL so soon.  I believe there is shelf space for at least 2 Simpsons exclusives at the same time, and one will boost the sales of the other. I suppose it is possible that the next batch in the fall will be the last... but that would make it exit at only about 19 or 20 months of age.  Still too young for the flagship of the theme.

 

I was hoping the short term shortage could open up a quick flip play... but I already see that TRU has them at $250. Target will probably boost the price soon. That kills the flip.

[brickolodon]

First i didnt believe TH will be EOL so soon....and R2D2.

[meowsmeowsmeows]

This is the new message on the Lego web page:

"We are sorry that this set is not available. Please check back in September for product availability."

 

http://shop.lego.com/en-US/The-Simpsons-House-71006?fromListing=listing

 

So, more may be coming in September.  Once stock is gone from Target, Amazon, Wal-mart, and TRU in the short term, that may be it for several months.

[waddamon]

I just picked up two from amazon.  I had none.  Lego is doing weird things these days.  Never retiring products.  Forever sold out.

[exciter1]

I have to say, I was skeptical when I saw everyone jumping on those cases of minifigures when they were released, the market was saturated, and then they were discounted.  Now I see a nice recovery and sets of 16 are going for an easy $75 and up.  This theme might have some legs, but for how long?

[mmatthie]

Just in case...grabbed another 4

[Sprocket77]

I have to say, I was skeptical when I saw everyone jumping on those cases of minifigures when they were released, the market was saturated, and then they were discounted.  Now I see a nice recovery and sets of 16 are going for an easy $75 and up.  This theme might have some legs, but for how long?

 

By my count there's at least 70 easily recogniseable characters you could do minifigures for and that's without repeating characters in different outfits, so there could be a few years of minifigures yet.

[brickolodon]

IMO, LEGO can keep SH in B&M stores and retailer like AMZ and keep KM exclusivlely in LEGO Shop at Home and LEGO stores....

[meowsmeowsmeows]

Figured I'd e-mail Lego customer service and ask about availability of Simpsons house given Lego's message about being out of stock and check back in September.  I also asked if SH would be available through the holidays.  I received this response:

 

"Thanks for getting in touch with us.

We are planning to have stock of the Simpson's House in September when it is available again! As to how long it will last or if it is retiring, I am not able to say! All sets do have a retire date once they come out but they are kept secret. I would image we will have enough to last through the holiday season! I hope this helps and I hope you have a great day!"

 

 

This could also go into the "What a Lego employee told me today" thread

 

I do like the abundant use of exclamation points in their message!

Edited April 8, 2015 by meowsmeowsmeows

[brickolodon]

They have enough for holiday season means SH will be sold out way before it....i am in for at least 10...is it double VIPs in May....???

[GhostDad]

Yes, just like Lego had enough SSD to carry them through the whole calendar period covered by the summer catalog, in which the set was prominently displayed.  Or enough HH to last through Halloween.  SH might be back for a day or two in September, but otherwise that's it for buying it through LEGO Shop at Home.  You still have lots of other options though.  It's at least a good sign for the set's desirability that it isn't marked as retiring soon like the poor ol' Maersk ship.

 

To reply to an earlier post, I did expect the Mini Cooper to take out T1, and that didn't happen.  I also expected the Tumbler to take out AA, and that did happen.  The reward for being right is greater than the penalty for being wrong, and I'll tell you, the thrill of F5ing to nab sets on the last possible day gets old fast.  Regardless, the Cooper and T1, being manufactured by two different automotive companies, are not technically in the same licensed theme.  Neither are the Tower Bridge and Sydney Opera House.  But a more specific rule might be better, so how's this: for licensed themes (other than SW) that feature minifigure-scale sets, there will be a maximum of one exclusive in production at any given time.  One Diagon Alley for Harry Potter, one AA or Tumbler for DC Comics, and so on.  Marvel is a separate license, so they can have Helicarrier run concurrently with Tumbler.  You could even toss in Haunted House for the Monster Fighters, though it's not licensed.  

[meowsmeowsmeows]

Yeah, that's basically how I read it.  It will be back in stock briefly in September, then likely not available much longer.

[Ed Mack]

What if LEGO is just messing with the resellers and they have these in warehouses, yet choose to hold onto them? A little delayed retirement here, a little delay there. Flippers will flip their lids.

[brickolodon]

I dont think so...cause every time they messing (aka holding sets) around they loosing time and money....

[baldilocks]

Ed is this inside information that you are trying to tell us here?

[GhostDad]

Lego wouldn't do that to us.  They respect us too much.

[brickolodon]

http://offer.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewBidsLogin&item=301561961922&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2564

target via ebay sold 15 today vs average of 5-7 last week.

[meowsmeowsmeows]

What if LEGO is just messing with the resellers and they have these in warehouses, yet choose to hold onto them? A little delayed retirement here, a little delay there. Flippers will flip their lids.

That would be a very odd way to do business and maximize profits.  It's possible if Lego really wanted to mess with short-term flippers, but what business would hold stock for possibly several months with the possibility of sales between April-September in order to sell them later as opposed to now?  

 

I guess it's possible, but I feel a need to go watch an episode of the X-files now. thetruthisoutthere

 

The fun is all about speculation, so I guess the next several months will prove what happens with this set.

[brickolodon]

First of all, i dont think its poor seller...#42 in top selling eBay LEGO sets (not too bad for large, expensive set avail everywhere else)...second, TLG want  to keep it on a shelves in B&M with limit of 1 last 2 month until KM arrive,,,3rd, SH keep selling this set with other retailers (WMT, AMZ, TRGT)....

very odd WMT make a bundle SH + 20.00 gift card. http://www.walmart.com/ip/LEGO-The-Simpsons-House-Play-Set-with-20-Walmart-Gift-Card/43675111?affp1=|apk|&affilsrc=api&u1=&oid=223073.7200&wmlspartner=jfOcdvfTNg4&sourceid=07451004440659451599&affillinktype=14&veh=aff

[jaylay]

First of all, i dont think its poor seller...#42 in top selling eBay LEGO sets (not too bad for large, expensive set avail everywhere else)...second, TLG want  to keep it on a shelves in B&M with limit of 1 last 2 month until KM arrive,,,3rd, SH keep selling this set with other retailers (WMT, AMZ, TRGT)....

very odd WMT make a bundle SH + 20.00 gift card. http://www.walmart.com/ip/LEGO-The-Simpsons-House-Play-Set-with-20-Walmart-Gift-Card/43675111?affp1=|apk|&affilsrc=api&u1=&oid=223073.7200&wmlspartner=jfOcdvfTNg4&sourceid=07451004440659451599&affillinktype=14&veh=aff

that GC cancels there inflated price ...

on the other hand, all this crazy talk about SH .... bought another one from Target ...

[biking_tiger]

"Excellent"