Prices

[snefroe]

We also have one job, whereas in the USA a lot of people have 2. But still, lego speaking, we cannot afford as many Lego sets as people in the USA. Especially when I see sales on Xwings for 20$... This will never happen in Europe :'(

true... but 15% of americans are also living on the street, even tho many have a job; they just can't afford the rent... never heard of Hamburger jobs?

people in the US very often have two jobs just to make ends meet.

even old people of 65+ have to work in some circumstances. in my country, that's even illegal...

i didn't have to pay one eurocent for all my years of educution, including university

i hardly paid anything for all the times that i've been ill;

Any idea how much the average American has to spend on those every year from his own pocket?

they may have more money in their pocckets, but how much of that can they actually spend on lego?

[snefroe]

I'm in the lucky position that my girlfriend's sister lives in the States. She visits "home" twice a year, my girlfriend and I visit her once a year and the parents go there, too. That's at least 4 opportunities to "collect" LEGO and bring it with me or have it brought to me.

I got my 5 Santa Fe cars for about EUR 23 each on a US S@H sale instead of EUR 39.99 at the "local" S@H. My (extended) 4511 cost me a bit more than half of what it costs here. And straight tracks at regular US-price are even cheaper than on bricklink (let alone eBay "Europe") :o

If I didn't have that connection I don't know if I had that much LEGO |-/

that may be true... but you're also paid in

[Mister Phes]

well... our average wages/salaries are higher than in the US. i think that makes a difference...

Don't ever come to this part of the world to buy LEGO then! The average wage is significantly less and the value of the currency is less than both Euro and American dollars. So image what that does to prices...

[snefroe]

well... our average wages/salaries are higher than in the US. i think that makes a difference...

Don't ever come to this part of the world to buy LEGO then! The average wage is significantly less and the value of the currency is less than both Euro and American dollars. So image what that does to prices...

i've been to that part already, didn't buy lego, (don't think i saw lego products...) but i'd be the first to go back, if given the chance...

[Mister Phes]

Actually it would probably cheaper for you to buy LEGO here since your currency is worth more. So do come here!

I saw 10040 Black Seas Barracudas in the Toys R Us in the Perth mall for A$90 which is approximately

[snefroe]

yeah... that's only possible if i were to go back to Perth, spend the holidays there and return to belgium a week, month,... later... i mean, i have a flight ticket and hotel to pay as well... so i better get the most out of my trip... besides, i've already missed the best part of the year... however, i could save some money if i'd buy my return ticket in australia... there's also customs and, yes these people give you a hard time in Perth... very suspicious people...

[Mister Phes]

They've got to ensure people aren't smuggling LEGO into the country. It might cause the shelve prices to decrease you see!

Last time I went to Perth I stepped off the plane and walk right in... They obviously know royalty when they see it.

[snefroe]

They got to make sure people aren't smuggling LEGO into the country. It might cause the shelve prices to decrease you see!

Last time I went to Perth they let me step off the plane and walk right in... They obviously know royalty when they see it.

no no no... i landed "like a thief in the night", just an hour after midnight or so... coming from Singapure... finding a belgian in a group asian people was obviously not what they expected... :P in fact, they were very strict. they almost told me to call my contact in Perth... asking me for proof that i was in Perth on invitation,... than they asked me if i'd taken food with me,... then filling in all sorts of papers... "what are you doing here", "when will you leave", "how many days will you be in perth?",... things you really don't want go through after many hours of being on a plane, waiting in Singapure airport,...

[Mister Phes]

Yep! Welcome to 21st century security. They gotta make sure you're not going to be a naughty monkey!

How did you not see any LEGO in Perth? What did you do there? And if you recall, what did you think of the prices of anything you might have purchased? Did they seem cheaper or similiar to everywhere else you'd been?

[snefroe]

Yep! Welcome to 21st century security. They gotta make sure you're not going to be a naughty monkey!

How did you not see any LEGO in Perth? What did you do there? And if you recall, what did you think of the prices of anything you might have purchased? Did they seem cheaper or similiar to everywhere else you'd been?

i remember every part of Perth!! what a paradise!! i remember the shopping mall and the zoo very well, but i can't remember having seen a TRU there. i wasn't really focused on lego at that point. it was a business trip, so my mind was on other things. i went to Broome, Freemantle and Argyle diamond mine as well, saw the dutch shipwrecks in the museum there... :oo

from Perth straight to Canberra, Melbourne and Sidney. visited lots of musuems, gardens, parliaments,... had a great time...

i was mostly intruiged by the aussie wildlife. we all know these weird animals from photos, but it's great to see kangaroes, coala's, lizards,... for real, not just in a zoo, but in the wild...

i also remember the belgian pub, in Perth... :P :P

i did buy other stuff there, but mostly in Sidney and everything was on sale there, except for the shoes. they were very expensive, for some reason... bought some dvd's there for no money at all... iother stuff was a bit cheaper because of the lower Aussie dollar, but money wasn't a problem whatsoever, cos i didn't have to pick up hotel bills and plane tickets... :P

[Mister Phes]

I was attempting to prove the point that it would be cheaper to buy LEGO for people outside Australia. That are from countries with higher value currencies. Obviously the poorer ones would find it more expensive.

[jngunsw]

just to throw support to mister_phes claim consider the following example...

the new city Dump Truck 7344 is offically sold in Australia for AUS$100, now it's 50% off so AUS $50 is roughly about US$37 or EUR 31 or GBP 21

in US this set is offically sold for US$ 30

in Germany for EUR 19.9

in UK for GBP 12.50

(prices are quoted on lego.com)

so lego fans in the land of Down Under sometimes do hv to dig into their pocket deeper....

[Mister Phes]

I've posted this in a couple of other threads, but it seems appropriate to be posted here too:

On S@H:

The Red Beard Runner for Americans is US$39.99 (or A$50.00) but for Australians its A$99.95 (or US$76). Almost twice the price and that's NOT including postage (which is an extra A$30-A$70)! Completely ridiculous! The exchange rate doesn't fluctuate that much!!!

Are these creatures at LEGO crazy? I could pick this up off eBay for under A$65 including postage!

[jngunsw]

not to mention they charge prohibitively high delivery charges.... i call it "double dipping".... cos it's almost certain that they mk more profit (better margin) by selling lego directly to the consumers.... i bet you lego direct is not v successful in Australia (and this is mainly their fault)... only lego fanatics (who can't be bother to go to shops or who can't wait) would buy from them directly....

[Mister Phes]

For a minimum of $30 postage I can wait... On ANY set. Even a Pirate set!

But sadly for the ship I just mentioned I'm not willing to pay anything over half price (if that) for it. So LEGO misses out on my business this time.

[christopher110]

I live in Malaysia but I buy LEGO (mostly) in Singapore. Though it takes me 2 hr to reach there, the LEGO toys are at least 15% more cheaper there compared to my country (after adjusting the currency exchange rate).

I usually buy at Bricksworld, which is a LEGO exclusive toy store. Being a member, I enjoy 10% discount for any LEGO items there (excluding those are on sales).

Sometimes, there are some great sales or special offer in Bricksworld.

Eg:

In year 2004 (around September....I forgot already)

10129 Snowspeeder ~USD80 (S@H USD 130)

April 2005

10134 Y-WING Attack Starfighter ~USD80 (S@H USD 130)

10131 TIE-collections ~USD50 (S@H USD 70)

10159 City Airport (re-released) ~USD50 (S@H USD 90)

July 2005

G678 Knights' Kingdom Chess Set ~USD25 (S@H USD 50)

[Akkhraziel]

On more thing that might be affecting:

In the US, the retailers have a *lot* of influence on how things go. From things quoted from one manufacturer, this convers things from price point, to packaging design, to gimicks included in some items. While TLG is probably immune from being told how to market their product, its very possible that there is some arguing/haggling when it comes to price points and the US.

This, of course, has a whole lot more wrapped up in it, but it is something that might explain in part why its cheaper in the US.

...and remember, in the US they are still considered 'smart toys' and are still often considered to be toys for middle-class and upper middle class children,. due to the price.

Akkh

[Hobbes]

Last Saturday at a local TRU:

I roamed the LEGO aisles and overheard a mom and her son (about 10 years old):

Boy: *pointing at the Ferrari Scuderia Truck* Look! I want that!

Mom: Hmm... *looks at price tag, EUR 59.99* WHAT?! For 60 Euro? No, no way.

Boy: Are you sure? *I had to smile at that answer*

Mom: Yes, not for 60 Euro. That's way to expensive. No chance. Lets look for something else.

One might think with "something else" the mom meant other LEGO sets - but they went for other toys :(

I hear this kind of conversations all the time...

[The Middleman]

Scuderia Ferrari Truck is really a collector's model. Around 800 pieces, not very impressive, but sleek. I wouldn't expect a kid to get it.

On the other hand, the Viking Fortress has 1019 pieces for $90, so I think prices are taking a turn for the better.

[The Middleman]

Double-post because Jake just made a new blog post that's very explanatory:

http://bricksonthebrain.com/blog/index.cfm

[WesternOutlaw]

Last Saturday at a local TRU:

I roamed the LEGO aisles and overheard a mom and her son (about 10 years old):

Boy: *pointing at the Ferrari Scuderia Truck* Look! I want that!

Mom: Hmm... *looks at price tag, EUR 59.99* WHAT?! For 60 Euro? No, no way.

Boy: Are you sure? *I had to smile at that answer*

Mom: Yes, not for 60 Euro. That's way to expensive. No chance. Lets look for something else.

One might think with "something else" the mom meant other LEGO sets - but they went for other toys :(

I hear this kind of conversations all the time...

This is how I feel when I see sets in the U.S. stores priced over $100 - and I'm an adult. Then I get frustrated when I hear that Lego is looking for ways that they can jack of the price of a set (with add-ons). They should be thinking about how thay can make sets more affordable with the same quality so that every little boy will have a Lego Ferrari Scuderia Truck in his home/garage. I call this "pricing themselves out of business" and this is why cheaper brands like Megablocks and others are doing so well. Moms and dads don't want to pay this price for a single toy when there are other more affordable options (and a smaller Lego set is not the answer).

PS. I like your avatar CT.

[Zenithfleet]

A quick infobite on the Lego scene in Japan (where I'm currently living):

Sets are expensive, but slightly cheaper here than in Australia (my home country) according to currency converters like xe.com. Of course I have to pay to send them home but since I have spare space in my boxes and Lego's not too heavy that's no problem (books, on the other hand... ouch). Actual prices vary wildly, with Toys R Us offering the best deals I've seen so far, especially on the buckets o' bricks. I can't remember the figures off the top of my head though.

A couple of stories from the other day at the Toys R Us aisle (a whole aisle, both sides, just for Lego! Like the old days! And most of it was Designer and City stuff. Plus the Star Wars stuff over at the big Ep III toy display section.)

One: a couple of boys stopped at the Millennium Falcon, looked at the price and one said, "geez, for 20,000 yen who the heck is gonna buy that?" (I translate liberally :) ) 20,000 yen is roughly two hundred US dollars or less... about $240AUD.

Two: a mum and her little daughter saw the Designer Building Bonanza set on the shelf and decided it would be great for the kid's older sister, but were a bit ambivalent about the price. I did my helpful stranger routine and suggested the Blue Bucket (cheaper, and comes with two minifigs, plus I at first thought the little daughter was the one receiving the set rather than the absent older sister). The mum shrugged and said the older sister didn't have any figs and didn't care about them anyway. They decided on the Building Bonanza :-D

Anyway, for me, with a history of plastic-kit model collecting, Lego seems blessedly cheap :P After all, I can get a 3000yen model kit that I build and then paint (extra cost for the brush and paints of course) and then sit on a shelf somewhere, or maybe use in a wargame if it's suitable... or I can get a 2000yen Lego set I can rebuild a hundred times and then add it to my brick collection, or give to my li'l cousins to play with, who might then pass it on to their kids one day. Plus minifigs are inherently humorous :D

[Hobbes]

PS.  I like your avatar CT.

Thx! Took me a few seconds to figure who you meant by "CT" ;)

Today I visited a local TRU (again[1]) and witnessed a father and his son. I didn't understand them cos they were foreigners, somewhere from either Slovakia, Czech Republic or Poland (sorry, I can't distinguish between those languages). They were looking at the new Vikings sets, the big long-boat and the fortress, to be precise. Both not really cheap sets (the boat costs EUR 59.99, the fortress EUR 74.99). After a long debate and looking at other sets the dad - BOUGHT THE LONG-BOAT!

YAY! FINALLY A PARENT BUYING LEGO FOR THEIR KIDS! WOOHOO!

Sorry if I get carried away, but lately I've seen the opposite too often. OK, they weren't locals, but what the heck, a LEGO-set got sold *satis*

[1] TRU had a "20 % off any LEGO-set if you buy at least EUR 40 worth"-sale. Unfortunately it seems they don't carry 4886 anymore. At 49.99 minus 20 % that would've been quite a nice deal, especially when S@H charges 51.99 :'(

[prateek]

i agree, but megabloks is a canadian company so they dont apply much tax , not like lego

[snefroe]

actually, i think 60