Lego Wholesale?

[zRazeR]

Hey there everyone,

 

This is my first time posting on this forum, however I have spent a good 2 hours reading over some threads. A little background on myself first, and how this could be an AMAZING financial opportunity for all of us.

 

I've just moved from Los Angeles to Hong Kong (where I was actually born) - and after working in tax accounting and financial accounting I decided to try something new and move back to my home land. I am currently directing a watch manufacturing company that sells watches to department store brands across the US and Europe. And since I speak cantonese and mandarin I have tried to take advantage of what Hong Kong has to offer. It offers an opportunity to create a business from nothing, with so many products coming in and out of HK, with beginning and end destinations China most of the time...

 

So in my bid to be come independent and finally not work for someone, I met with my uncle and his business partner to explore different options. Here is where it gets interesting... 

 

The business partner's PRIMARY BUSINESS is IMPORTING LEGO sets. The market in the US is so volatile that sometimes buying bulk (I mean container loads) on-sale LEGO sets from Walmart or Target and reselling is is still more profitable than buying via official agents in Europe and reselling. The last guy wasn't very efficient and relied only on these retail sales - but with my background and experience I hope to kick this up a huge notch. 

 

I am going back to Los Angeles for a month this coming week and a main goal I have is to strike a solid LONG-TERM partnership with wholesalerS and discuss potential business opportunities. Business would be extremely stable and continuous. Keep in mind you do not have to be situated in LA for this to work. We are considering opening a new LLC in whichever state may benefit us to take these goods, use a storage unit and ship them out. We have already used a forwarder for several years now and we are just tweaking a business plan to really maximise profitability. We have minimums we require of trending models/sets, and are operating on low margins with huge quantities.

 

On a separate note, the ONE thing that would literally initiate business immediately with you guys is if we can setup a company that is EXEMPT from sales tax, as all goods will be for foreign use. With my few years in tax I have already checked the BOE for California, and there is a very small chance we may be able to qualify for this.

 

But I would rather rely at the moment on a strong business relationship to move this forward.

 

Feel free to openly discuss this, or send me a private message.

 

Admins - sorry if this post is not allowed, please advise me if I have violated any forums rules.

 

 

Thanks, and I look forward to contributing more to this forum!

[No More Monkeys]

Hey there everyone,

 

This is my first time posting on this forum, however I have spent a good 2 hours reading over some threads. A little background on myself first, and how this could be an AMAZING financial opportunity for all of us.

 

I've just moved from Los Angeles to Hong Kong (where I was actually born) - and after working in tax accounting and financial accounting I decided to try something new and move back to my home land. I am currently directing a watch manufacturing company that sells watches to department store brands across the US and Europe. And since I speak cantonese and mandarin I have tried to take advantage of what Hong Kong has to offer. It offers an opportunity to create a business from nothing, with so many products coming in and out of HK, with beginning and end destinations China most of the time...

 

So in my bid to be come independent and finally not work for someone, I met with my uncle and his business partner to explore different options. Here is where it gets interesting... 

 

The business partner's PRIMARY BUSINESS is IMPORTING LEGO sets. The market in the US is so volatile that sometimes buying bulk (I mean container loads) on-sale LEGO sets from Walmart or Target and reselling is is still more profitable than buying via official agents in Europe and reselling. The last guy wasn't very efficient and relied only on these retail sales - but with my background and experience I hope to kick this up a huge notch. 

 

I am going back to Los Angeles for a month this coming week and a main goal I have is to strike a solid LONG-TERM partnership with wholesalerS and discuss potential business opportunities. Business would be extremely stable and continuous. Keep in mind you do not have to be situated in LA for this to work. We are considering opening a new LLC in whichever state may benefit us to take these goods, use a storage unit and ship them out. We have already used a forwarder for several years now and we are just tweaking a business plan to really maximise profitability. We have minimums we require of trending models/sets, and are operating on low margins with huge quantities.

 

On a separate note, the ONE thing that would literally initiate business immediately with you guys is if we can setup a company that is EXEMPT from sales tax, as all goods will be for foreign use. With my few years in tax I have already checked the BOE for California, and there is a very small chance we may be able to qualify for this.

 

But I would rather rely at the moment on a strong business relationship to move this forward.

 

Feel free to openly discuss this, or send me a private message.

 

Admins - sorry if this post is not allowed, please advise me if I have violated any forums rules.

 

 

Thanks, and I look forward to contributing more to this forum!

Wouldn't new Lego factory in Asia counterfeit your hand?

[zRazeR]

Wouldn't new Lego factory in Asia counterfeit your hand?

 

Hi Brick Trader EDIT (clearly your alias is No More Monkeys SORRY) - yes we are aware of this. However, the main point is that large retailers in China sell at extravagant prices. Buying from USA and reselling to smaller wholesalers throughout the nation in large quantities is still sustainable and can produce a growing business. I've seen a great number of products being imported into China --- that were actually also made in China! From designer hand bags, to baby strollers. I used to buy my clothes here in HK from retailers cause there's no sales tax and they usually had good deals. I now almost never buy in HK and always buy from when I visit the US. Websites like Hautelook, My Habit, Amazon, Gilt offer extremely good deals that easily trump what Asia has to offer. Asians are wealthier now - they want luxury items, they want to live a better lifestyle. And interestingly, they want to collect LEGO sets, and will pay enough for this to work out.

[Ed Mack]

Hey there everyone,

 

This is my first time posting on this forum, however I have spent a good 2 hours reading over some threads. A little background on myself first, and how this could be an AMAZING financial opportunity for all of us.

 

I've just moved from Los Angeles to Hong Kong (where I was actually born) - and after working in tax accounting and financial accounting I decided to try something new and move back to my home land. I am currently directing a watch manufacturing company that sells watches to department store brands across the US and Europe. And since I speak cantonese and mandarin I have tried to take advantage of what Hong Kong has to offer. It offers an opportunity to create a business from nothing, with so many products coming in and out of HK, with beginning and end destinations China most of the time...

 

So in my bid to be come independent and finally not work for someone, I met with my uncle and his business partner to explore different options. Here is where it gets interesting... 

 

The business partner's PRIMARY BUSINESS is IMPORTING LEGO sets. The market in the US is so volatile that sometimes buying bulk (I mean container loads) on-sale LEGO sets from Walmart or Target and reselling is is still more profitable than buying via official agents in Europe and reselling. The last guy wasn't very efficient and relied only on these retail sales - but with my background and experience I hope to kick this up a huge notch. 

 

I am going back to Los Angeles for a month this coming week and a main goal I have is to strike a solid LONG-TERM partnership with wholesalerS and discuss potential business opportunities. Business would be extremely stable and continuous. Keep in mind you do not have to be situated in LA for this to work. We are considering opening a new LLC in whichever state may benefit us to take these goods, use a storage unit and ship them out. We have already used a forwarder for several years now and we are just tweaking a business plan to really maximise profitability. We have minimums we require of trending models/sets, and are operating on low margins with huge quantities.

 

On a separate note, the ONE thing that would literally initiate business immediately with you guys is if we can setup a company that is EXEMPT from sales tax, as all goods will be for foreign use. With my few years in tax I have already checked the BOE for California, and there is a very small chance we may be able to qualify for this.

 

But I would rather rely at the moment on a strong business relationship to move this forward.

 

Feel free to openly discuss this, or send me a private message.

 

Admins - sorry if this post is not allowed, please advise me if I have violated any forums rules.

 

 

Thanks, and I look forward to contributing more to this forum!

Hello and welcome to the site.  LEGO "wholesellers" are basically non-existent on this site.  The vast majority of members have no such connections and would not sell for "wholesale prices."  You really need to contact LEGO directly.

[No More Monkeys]

... You really need to contact LEGO directly.

Something tells me that LEGO would be strongly opposed...

[comicblast]

The business partner's PRIMARY BUSINESS is IMPORTING LEGO sets. The market in the US is so volatile that sometimes buying bulk (I mean container loads) on-sale LEGO sets from Walmart or Target and reselling is is still more profitable than buying via official agents in Europe and reselling. The last guy wasn't very efficient and relied only on these retail sales - but with my background and experience I hope to kick this up a huge notch. 

So you are suggesting having BrickPicker members buy Lego sets from US retailers, ie. Target and Walmart, then shipping to your facility where it is later shipped and sold to Asia? Interesting concept. I've actually tried this before. A BrickPicker member and I did a little joint business where I sent him things and he resold them. It hasn't really worked out, primarily because of the high shipping costs. How would you minimize other "fees" like these? How much would it cost to ship, for example, 1 pallet that is 5 feet tall full of Legos?

 

Hello and welcome to the site.  LEGO "wholesellers" are basically non-existent on this site.  The vast majority of members have no such connections and would not sell for "wholesale prices."  You really need to contact LEGO directly.

Something tells me that LEGO would be strongly opposed...

I bet they would just tell you to suck it up and buy from the Chinese LEGO Shop at Home site or another retailer at their prices.

[zRazeR]

Something tells me that LEGO would be strongly opposed...

If we were to approach LEGO directly, we would just state we are a store. There are no authorised distributors in USA for LEGO from my knowledge, and the retailers get the best deal. The brick and mortars discussed earlier in this thread probably get the next best deal - but seems there are quite a few regulations.

[zRazeR]

So you are suggesting having BrickPicker members buy Lego sets from US retailers, ie. Target and Walmart, then shipping to your facility where it is later shipped and sold to Asia? Interesting concept. I've actually tried this before. A BrickPicker member and I did a little joint business where I sent him things and he resold them. It hasn't really worked out, primarily because of the high shipping costs. How would you minimize other "fees" like these? How much would it cost to ship, for example, 1 pallet that is 5 feet tall full of Legos?

 

I bet they would just tell you to suck it up and buy from the Chinese LEGO Shop at Home site or another retailer at their prices.

 

I had a hope that of all BrickPicker members we would have a wholesaler somewhere in here. However, basically I will get a constant updated list of what models/sets are required, and a target price with a maximum price ceiling. The financial details we can work out later, main thing is getting the product at an appropriate price to be able to resale. I feel like someone who is from that show about coupon queens or something?! would be hugely beneficial here. Haha.

 

What our setup had with the previous US person was that he would actually coordinate to have all the stuff shipped to an address (at some stages even his house, up to as much as a 40ft high q container at some points) and then we have the forwarder come to pick them up. You would't just be buying 5pcs, it would reach the dozens and hundreds. Obviously we would ideally like a storage unit... thats why finding a wholesaler would be a huge catalyst for the business to continue.

 

The business partner and my uncle so far seem to be doing very well from this business, but they've noticed a large spike in the demand for these products (of course LEGO knows first hand and is the reason they're setting up an Asia factory).

[Ed Mack]

I had a hope that of all BrickPicker members we would have a wholesaler somewhere in here. However, basically I will get a constant updated list of what models/sets are required, and a target price with a maximum price ceiling. The financial details we can work out later, main thing is getting the product at an appropriate price to be able to resale. I feel like someone who is from that show about coupon queens or something?! would be hugely beneficial here. Haha.

 

What our setup had with the previous US person was that he would actually coordinate to have all the stuff shipped to an address (at some stages even his house, up to as much as a 40ft high q container at some points) and then we have the forwarder come to pick them up. You would't just be buying 5pcs, it would reach the dozens and hundreds. Obviously we would ideally like a storage unit... thats why finding a wholesaler would be a huge catalyst for the business to continue.

 

The business partner and my uncle so far seem to be doing very well from this business, but they've noticed a large spike in the demand for these products (of course LEGO knows first hand and is the reason they're setting up an Asia factory).

Try...

 

http://www.chowrentoys.com/servlet/StoreFront

 

Chowren Toys is the closest thing I know to wholeseller.

[glenbart]

Am I right by saying there are no "distributors" for Lego and whether you are a large retailer or the "mom & pop" store, you can only order direct from Lego?

[Mos_Eisley]

I'd be up for such an enterprise, but how would it work? You don't know me and I don't know you, so it seems like we would be at a bit of a standoff in terms of who is holding the money at any given time.

[No More Monkeys]

I'd be up for such an enterprise, but how would it work? You don't know me and I don't know you, so it seems like we would be at a bit of a standoff in terms of who is holding the money at any given time.

I thought the way it works is that each of you transfer certain sum of money to a bank account in Nigeria...

[zRazeR]

Try...

 

http://www.chowrentoys.com/servlet/StoreFront

 

Chowren Toys is the closest thing I know to wholeseller.

 

Thanks I'll check it out.

 

 

Am I right by saying there are no "distributors" for Lego and whether you are a large retailer or the "mom & pop" store, you can only order direct from Lego?

In the US this is correct - from my brief knowledge.

 

 

I'd be up for such an enterprise, but how would it work? You don't know me and I don't know you, so it seems like we would be at a bit of a standoff in terms of who is holding the money at any given time.

Well, this would work exactly like how business is started globally. Traders, manufacturers, importers/exporters all have to start somewhere, and the first step is communication. Once I find out more details on exactly how my business partners would like to move forward it would be very easy for me to set up a call with you, FaceTime, Skype, etc. And of course we could meet and establish legitimate legal contracts that are binding in the US. The most important thing is if both parties benefit, of course.

[gravtation]

All LEGO has to do is to tell eBay to NOT allow their products to be resold by a 3rd party.  Either that or keep thousands of sets behind post-EOL and simply undercut all of us!.  I used to sell Claber gardening equipment on eBay until they told eBay that it won't allow it's new products to be sold by a 3rd party.  They had to be sold as "used" which made it not worthwhile.  I tried and a listing was removed within the hour with a warning.  However, I sold the lot at a boot sale for over 2x what I paid and sent a sh**ty letter to the CEO of Claber telling him what I had done and to shove his company up his arse.

How come they told Ebay .. no 3rd party seller .. when you can find the same 3rd party seller on Amazon.. without any trouble ...