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Showing content with the highest reputation on 04/10/2016 in all areas

  1. Some deals at Target.com: http://www.target.com/c/lego-toys-featured-brands/-/N-56h33#navigation=true&category=180009&view_type=medium&sort_by=bestselling&facets=d_deals%3ASale&offset=0&pageCount=60&page=1&response_group=Items%2CVariationSummary&zone=PLP&isLeaf=false&custom_price=false&min_price=from&max_price=to Some highlights: Birds $31.50: http://www.target.com/p/lego-ideas-birds-21301/-/A-16752394#prodSlot=_1_3 Amazon PM'd Birds:http://www.amazon.com/LEGO-Ideas-21301-Birds-Model/dp/B00PE12ZJO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1460290287&sr=8-1&keywords=lego+birds Technic container truck $56: http://www.target.com/p/lego-technic-container-truck-42024/-/A-15647711#prodSlot=_1_13 Crook's hideout $42: http://www.target.com/p/lego-city-police-crooks-hideout-60068/-/A-16751056#prodSlot=_1_17 There are several others that may be worth it, too.
    15 points
  2. Twice a year Walmart resets all the toys (periodically they send additional updates, but nothing major). Those times of year are February & August. 30 days before they changeover you can view the Addition & Deletion list. This list says everything going to be added and deleted to/from the shelves. When this happens stores are encouraged to identify the newly deleted items and mark them down 10% at the store level. They are "supposed" to be left in the section they belong (called the home from here on) until the changeover happens. Shortly before the changeover the home office will then send price changes for the deleted items. Because the number of price changes number in the thousands, they usually download them over the course of a week. Dept managers are supposed to make the changes within 48 hours. many times they don't sometimes days or weeks pass by. Stores didn't proactively markdown the deleted items will be sitting on higher quantities and will likely see additional home office markdowns (usually no more than 3 total markdowns at the home office level). The small updates I mentioned above are why you see a random item suddenly show up in clearance. For example say Lego releases a product line too late for the February changeover but all they can have it on the shelf in April. Sure enough April will roll around and a update comes through. Everything I said above applies to these updates Walmart likely ordered the Millennium Falcon for all stores before Christmas knowing a $150 item would only sell in select stores after Christmas. Once the changeover occurred it got the axe in many stores. I never saw a $35 Falcon but the fact that everyone saw the same $35 tells me it was a home office markdown. I am not sure if it saw multiple drops or went straight to $35. The Spaceport is a similar concept which went to $89, $59 and then $30. Walmart just wants what it views dead inventory gone. From our standpoint we see a $150 awesome item for $35. Walmart sees a big boxed item that won't sell taking up space of something that will sell. It also doesn't want these items taking up its valuable backroom space. This past year Walmart did the same thing with the Meccano Mechanoid robot. A $159 item ended up at $40. In my opinion since the new CEO took over we have seen faster and lower clearance prices. It seems like they are actually trying to move out old inventory. Individual Store Price Changes The above covers what is supposed to happen, now I will address a few good and bad things stores do. Each store is allotted a certain amount of money for in-store markdowns (not home office changes). It is up to the store manager how this money is spent. Some store managers don't want to spend it since it counts against the bottom line. So when a changeover occurs they ignore the 10% markdown idea, they wait for the home office price change to come which doesn't count against the bottom line.This is why some stores have clearance with only a $.02 discount (or even $.01). Some stores go the opposite direction, 30 days ahead of the changeover they do 10%, then each week or every other week they will do an additional amount. Problem for us investors these stores usually never have much for big markdowns since they methodically marked down the items. It would have sold at the 10,20 or 30% off. Nothing is left for a second or third home office markdown. Some stores ignore the 10% thing and just start marking down clearance to whatever the feel like. These are the stores that cause us all the confusion but provide the best deals. They strictly want freight gone. You will notice the biggest markdowns are literally on the biggest boxes. The general rule is department managers are supposed to take care of their own clearance merchandise. Some stores have one person in charge of clearance. You can usually tell the difference by how well organized it is and how often the markdowns are down. Department managers have other priorities, they often neglect to change prices or even bother with clearance. Sometimes a one shot cardboard display will arrive (usually on a pallet). They call this a feature, it comes in deleted. Some stores mistakenly immediately clearance it. Other stores may actually carry a few of the items. Last fall there was one of these for Lego Friends. Some of the items stores carried, some didn't. Since this was a feature, there wouldn't be any home office markdowns to get rid of it. Any price changes were at the store level. While we all think Walmart could make more money by dropping prices slower and certain items, they aren't collectors. They strictly look at moving through product and getting something in that will sell. Saving $1000 by slowly selling Legos and jamming up clearance sections and backrooms while waiting for them to sell is not their model. The average Walmart does $70-110 million a year, they have bigger fish to worry about than clearance. The headaches associated with clearance are not worth the extra money in slowing down the sales to get every cent of profit. Ever seen the items that have been in clearance for months, they are damaged, ripped or open. Walmart get no credit if these get claimed out (aside from a tax credit).
    12 points
  3. Trailers are kind of like your garage, you put things in it with a plan to take care of it later and then one day you realize you have on overwhelming problem. The store I work for rents the trailers at about $500 per month. An average Walmart store will generate around $500,000 in profit per month, on sales of 6-11 million. Trailers costs are a trivial (assuming you only have a few). The manpower involved in taking care of the problem once you created it is huge. There are a few legitimate reasons for trailers. Anytime there is a remodel you will get 10-30 trailers, Black Friday is 5-10 and layaway is 5-10. I know of one nearby store that owns its own trailer and it uses it to store fixtures. I suppose its possible that some stores own their trailers. I imagine that if Walmart builds a location that is much busier than the building was designed for they will need additional space in perpetuity. The backroom of my store has slots for around 400 pallets. Each truck gives you another 26 slots, though highly inefficient space. Lets use Black Friday as an example. You have 10 truckloads of freight that need to be in the store by Thanksgiving day. These are currently stored outside in trailers (legitimately due to space issues). That means you need to clear space in the store for 260-400 pallets (assuming some came double stacked). Two weeks before Black Friday you start thinning out the main aisles of the store (called action alley) but the reality is you can't clear that much space. You put as many as you can in the backroom but that clogs aisles so it is rather limited. The easy answer is to pull the Black Friday freight out of trailers and put the inventory currently on the sales floor into the trailers. If you have great sales on a Black Friday then you will sell through the product and can pull your freight back to the floor. If not, you have a serious space problem. Given the sales at Christmas, the freight doesn't stop coming in. You barely have enough staffing to process the new freight let alone 5 trailers of old. If you don't get those trailers emptied Black Friday weekend it is too late. Its quite possible that space or time become an issue in the run up to Christmas and additional pallets are put into the trailers. So the trailers sit with a mess of freight until January. Now in January your staffing is dramatically cut for about 3 weeks, not to mention the sales are lower so not as much merchandise is moving. Now you are looking at February. I assume you see where I am going. February & March the priority is resetting shelves (called mods). Now you are looking at 4 months of merchandise getting older. The stuff in the trailer just isn't that valuable to the company. An interesting note is everything in the trailers needs to be listed (called trailer listing) or it is not covered by insurance. This is rarely done because it is time consuming and because no one was planning on leaving the trailer full for 4-400 months. This is why a store shows 20 in stock but has no location. Usually the trailer problem is an indicator of bigger problems in the store. So when a Market Manger (like a District Manager) finds out what is going on, his/her priority is not emptying trailers that cost a few thousand a month. It is fixing the overall store and the management. Eventually the merchandise will be split up between all the stores in the market. So our 5 trucks of freight is spread out between 10 stores. The 13 pallets one store got is likely completely different merchandise than anyone else got. This is one of the reasons why we randomly find old stuff in one store but not others. You asked if other large retailers do this, I don't know but I do know there are no retailers as large as Walmart. There may be some Targets that rival sales of specific Walmarts, but as a whole Walmart is in a different volume category. Sam's Club, Costco and Home Depot have sales numbers per store as high but don't deal with anywhere near the volume of freight.
    9 points
  4. Wake me up when they hit 70% off.
    6 points
  5. Buying a large exclusive set is like eating at a buffet: take what you want and eat what you take. When you're done with your first plate though, you can't take the uneaten food back to the buffet line and exchange it for something different that looks better. On a serious note either keep your Tower Bridge, try to trade it, unload on Craigslist for minimal loss, etc, but don't return it 9 months after you bought it. It's a practice known as stock manipulation. In all honesty, if you can't afford to hold on to one TB AND acquire other sets, you probably aren't ready to jump into LEGO investing right now. This games takes LOTS of capital.
    6 points
  6. And voila all MSRP...... And of course I find this in the worst week... gotta wait till the 14...
    5 points
  7. Getting party favors for my daughter's 7th birthday party...
    5 points
  8. But you didn't post a deal.. You posted some vague reference to a potential deal we're apparently not thinking about correctly. I'm trying to say it politely, but you aren't exactly being helpful. And if you don't want to share, I truly have no objection to that - I don't always share everything either - but I won't tell people to just try harder. I personally think it's condescending and unhelpful to the BP community.
    5 points
  9. I have been an assistant manager for Walmart for the past 2 1/2 years, I have overseen several areas of the store including toys. Before I came to Walmart I spent 3.5 years selling on eBay to support my family (not exclusively Lego). Since working at Walmart I use Amazon FBA as my method of selling. Due to financial constraints my Lego experience is only of the quick flip variety (problematic to some of you, I know). I would be more than happy to try to answer any questions or clear up any confusion you may have regarding Walmart and how it affects our lives as investors and collectors. I can only answer based on my experience and I certainly am not speaking for the company. I have gained a great deal of knowledge from this site and would be happy to give back. I have disclosed my name and the store I work for to Jeff & Ed but I will not be posting that info here. I also have a wife and two kids so I likely will only be able to answer questions nightly.
    4 points
  10. So some years ago I bought a few Mill Village sets #7189 and broke them down for Bricklink. But I didn't list the goats on Bricklink because I was going to list them on eBay, but never did. Thankfully, in the meantime the set retired, no more sets with little white goats, and I didn't sell them for cheap. Nice to find a bag of 30 of them in a drawer Also, I thought I just had a single Delorean #21103 set, but when moving a few things around earlier this evening, I found two more. Woot! Any stories you have of finding forgotten goodies?
    4 points
  11. Only 3.5 weeks early this year. Must be slacking...
    4 points
  12. 4 points
  13. I'm not making the trip unless I get free healthcare too.
    4 points
  14. You said you bought as investment. How does a used one from Craigslist replace that investment item? If any, that CL one is a "build, perhaps later resell' option, not an investment option per se. Sounds to me like you rather have a case buyers remorse - but returning something 9 months after you bought it sounds weird to me - not sure a store manager is going to agree to this.
    4 points
  15. 4 points
  16. I don't know where Target found these Tow Trucks (and they are in stock), but that thing retired over a year ago. The price doesn't really make it worth the purchase, but... weird. http://www.target.com/p/lego-city-tow-truck/-/A-14922497#prodSlot=_1_14
    4 points
  17. You are right I was not being helpful at all. Go to BrickLink and find the lowest price, usually in the $150 range. Talk to the seller about large quantities, usually if you order more they will go down on the individual per piece price. Depending on how many you order and the shipping methods used you can get them within the $160 range. Import taxes and duties will depend on the country you purchase from. If you want to know exact duties paid use a duty calculator. Also you can make a good amount of money on parting out sets if you use the pieces to complete Monthly builds or SDCC exclusives or any other small exclusive style set. The instructions are free on the LEGO website and as long as you are not selling the instructions and you let the customer know where and how to get the instructions for free then I don't see anything unethical about that. I hope that clears everything up.
    4 points
  18. the problem with nexo knights is the quality of the cartoons. they aren't very good. I don't understand how they could make ninjago so well, yet bomb on chima so badly with the cartoon series. I was really hoping they would see and learn from their mistakes from chima and make nexo knights a lot better, but so far, they have not. the writing is too childish and immature, and that is from a child's perspective. my son was super excited to watch them when they initially came out (me too if being honest, I love lego cartoons typically), but now doesn't care after 4-5 episodes. the voices are weak, the storylines are lame and not following any real arc, and its quite repetitive. every episode basically has them getting their butts handed to them by the exact same bad guys every week and then they "power up nexo knight style" and win in 2 seconds and show is over. its just terrible. they really need to reset the series and writing. I write this because even though the cartoon is bad, some of the sets are terrific. the styles are unique, fun to build, very colorful, and stay together well to play with. I compare the sets against batman v superman, marvel superheroes, and even many star wars sets (ugh to battle of takonda, if you are ever having trouble sleeping, just look at that set or worse, build it), and they are just a lot better, but my goodness, the cartoon is not doing its job and gaining a fan base for anyone to want these sets. The Fortrex, Clay's Rumble blade, Moltar's Lava Smasher, and the King's Mech suit are terrific sets. I will admit Jestro's Evil Mobil was not that fun of a build and lacks playability, hence why it hit clearance first, but if they could get better writing and voices in the cartoon, these sets would be winners. I am an eternal optimist, and I hope they hold on for season 2 and fix these problems and make the cartoon series pop, which might then make the sets pop in value long term. And to end on a happy note, check out pics of Jestro's Volcana Lair. How awesome does that look?
    3 points
  19. Btw, Amazon also have Birds for $31.50 (limit 2 per order) www.amazon.com/LEGO-Ideas-21301-Birds-Model/dp/B00PE12ZJO?
    3 points
  20. Starting in 2015, there are no guaranteed winner sets anymore, no matter which theme.
    3 points
  21. No large landmarks have retired in this new age of lego investing. There are 200 TB sellers on amazon and it's not even retired. This was unheard of when the Taj and Statue of Liberty were retiring. It's going to take several years to turn a decent profit on this one and that's only if it ever retires.
    3 points
  22. This is a good point. My suggestion would be to build the set. Display the set. Enjoy the set. Keep all the boxes and instructions and resell 5 years from now for more than you paid for it...used.
    3 points
  23. I'm going to need a bigger gift card.
    3 points
  24. As long as they saturate at 2.5x my buy-in, I'm ok with it.
    3 points
  25. Remember this folks and I'm sure he'd accept a fruit basket or something during the holidays...
    3 points
  26. Discounts on a set that you already reached your quota on ... and the discount is cheaper than your avg purchase price :-/ Makes me want to give someone the Bird(s) out of spite.
    2 points
  27. Discussion about Nexo Knights has been moved to the Nexo Knights 2016 thread.
    2 points
  28. My son downloaded the Merlok app and seems to really enjoy it. He has about 8-10 hours into it this weekend. The Lava Smasher is a cool set with a really sweet looking villain. We paid full MSRP (impulse buy).
    2 points
  29. OK, fair enough. My new suggestion...put it safely in a closet and forget about it.
    2 points
  30. Agreed. The only ones I have are from the Walmart snafu
    2 points
  31. Was able to get 3x ideas birds thanks to a post in daily deals. I used discounted GC so the deal got even better. About $82 'out the door' for all 3
    2 points
  32. I found a dollar in a jacket that I hadn't worn in a year.
    2 points
  33. since i cannot buy all of this.... my pleasure to share this with you guys. Alot are doing the same here and manage to find awsome deals because of this. Thanks to all. Maitre du jeux: Granby and Sherbrooke, If some price are higher than MSRP. tell him and he will ajust.
    2 points
  34. I don't like paying tax on $0 items Doesn't mean I haven't in the past.
    2 points
  35. Not bad for $100 eBay bucks in my pocket ETA: BUT if you already count your ebay bucks as discount when buying those TRU gc, you should not count the bucks as a discount now
    2 points
  36. Back to selling.... LOTR Fun packs (3) - $30 eBay Iconic Easter CSGs (10) - $130 eBay Iron patriot/silver centurion - $69 eBay
    2 points
  37. Target deals are @ eBay as well.
    2 points
  38. In the Netherlands. Until 14th of April, Wannahave days on Wehkamp.nl.
    2 points
  39. it's really not too bright, it's just not tempered by the weathering that was apparent in the film.
    2 points
  40. Hello... The book editing has been started and the publishers love the pictures. Jeff and I went through all the creative and diorama photos and we are still looking for some unique, real world shots for the introduction of the below chapters. If we could get something within the next week or so, we might be able to get them into the book if well done. Thanks again. Ed... COMIC CON-CONVENTION MINIFIGURES (Can include any of the below minifigures): Iron Man (2012 Toy Fair) Captain America (2012 Toy Fair) Green Arrow (2013 SDCC) Spider-Woman (2013 SDCC) Bizarro (2012 SDCC) Shadow Leonardo (2012 NYCCC) Batman (2011 NYCCC) Green Lantern (2011 NYCCC) Superman (2011 NYCCC) Shazam (2012 SDCC) Yoda (I Love NY-TRU Times Square) Spiderman-Venom (In black Symbiote costume-2012 SDCC) Jean Grey (2012 SDCC) Azog (2013 SDCC) Battle Damaged Kranng (2012 NYCCC) Superman (Black Costume-2013 SDCC) Batman of Zur-En-Arrh (2014 SDCC) Bilbo Baggins (2012 SDCC) LEGENDS OF CHIMA (any minifigures) SPACE (any minifigures) SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS (any minifigures) MONSTER FIGHTERS (any minifigures) TOY STORY (any minifigures) FRIENDS, ELVES, DISNEY PRINCESSES (any minifigures)
    2 points
  41. Went to local Gamestop, asked if they happen to have a LEGO Super Heroes: Silver Centurion Exclusive Minifigure. SCORE! free. I cant believe I got lucky.
    2 points
  42. Where's that big ol' reset button... But to summarize - no belittling of other members please and if you don't want to share some magic trick, then yes it's better left unsaid. >
    2 points
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