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Cary Clark / FAQ / Market / all | |
Is there somewhere online where I can order sets directly from LEGO? From Robert Munafo: ! There are two online order sites affiliated with the LEGO® group, but neither allows you to order what you would call “ordinary” LEGO model sets. The PITSCO Dacta Online Store allows you to order anything in the Dacta catalog, most of which is directed primarily at classroom applications. However, experienced builders will find the “spare parts” section particularly interesting; here you can order a set of assorted yellow plates, or a package of 100 8-tooth gears. Unfortunately, some colors and many types of parts (most notably tiles) are not offered. From Brad Justus: ! September 11, 2000 was the scheduled launch date for the introduction of LEGO Shop At Home online. We have decided not to introduce online shopping at http://www.lego.com until early October. Ed. note: As of mid-October 2000, Shop At Home online is now available in a number of countries.
Does LEGO® have any retail outlets or attractions? Lego has company-owned Legoland theme parks in Billund, Denmark; Windsor, England; and Carlsbad, California USA. Lego also sells directly through these outlets: LEGO Shop-At-Home Service (CT, USA) 800-835-4386 800-4LEGOLA(ND) LEGO Outlet Potomac Mills (VA, USA) 703-490-1335 LEGO Outlet Georgia (GA, USA) 706-216-2800 LEGO Imagination Center (Mall of America, Bloomington, MN, USA) 612-858-8949 LEGO Imagination Center (Orlando, FL, USA) V:407-828-0065 F:407-828-0059
Will LEGO® ever market towards adults? From Thomas Main: ! Quoted from Marketing, Sept. 10, 1998 issue: The aim is to broaden the brand’s message to include adults as well as children. “The idea is to take Lego back to what adults believe it is about, which is creativity and the art of construction, rather than playing with readymade toys,” said a source close to Lego.
What is DACTA®? From Ben Gatrelle: ! Dacta is the Education division of TLG (The Lego® Group). Go to http://www.lego.com/DACTA/ for direct info. They sell through a partnership with Pitsco (http://www.pitsco-legodacta.com/html/products.html) and other education supply companies. (http://www.lego.com/dacta/addresses/wheretobuy.asp)
Do LEGO® catalogues differ from one country to the next? From Simon Robinson: ! I’ve just received my first US catalogue as a result of swapping with my UK ones - and I can’t believe how different they are. Sure, the sets are mostly the same, and a lot of the pictures are pretty similar, but apart from that, the designs completely different. The US/Canada catalog is a lot smaller and has hardly any text, whereas in the UK we get set names and write-ups about each set. Plus, we often get descriptions of who the various minifigs are (lots of them have names) and what they are doing (though not as much this year as last year) - there doesn’t seem to be any of that in the US/Canada catalog.
What is a jambalaya box? From Todd Lehman: A jambalaya box is a diverse mixture of new or used LEGO® elements, sent around for exchange, under the theory that one person’s trash is another person’s treasure. You can join the fun at http://news.lugnet.com/market/jambalaya/. You can read the jamalaya FAQ here. Buy-Sell-Trade
Where’s the best place to buy LEGO®? From Kevin Wilson: ! I wrote a FAQ about buying LEGO®. Here it is:
Can I sell LEGO® for ‘Best Offer’ in market.buy-sell-trade? From Todd Lehman: ! Sealed Bid Auctions belong in /market/auction. Or Best Offer belong in /market/buy-sell-trade. Considering the best offer among multiple offers is a completely natural part of putting something up for sale or possible sale. OBOs and SBAs are similar in underlying algorithm but very different in human perception. Some have felt that it was inappropriate to post an OBO into .buy-sell-trade, because OBO sales were a kind of auction. An OBO sale is about as much an auction as a scarf is a glove.
Should I keep the box a LEGO® set came in? From Bram Lambrecht: ! If the box has reasonably strong walls (eg, a big set like 8880 or 6982) I often cut off the flip-top and use the box for sorting/storage. The smaller trays from medium size boxes are also good for storage. From Nick Taylor: ! I save the back panel from most boxes since they show alternative building ideas. From Frank Filz: ! Having the box will generally make it easier to sell a set later, and you will generally get more for it. I keep all the boxes for sets which I don’t break down for parts to be sold. I flatten all the boxes except the largest ones which don’t flatten (I store the smaller set boxes and inserts etc. in those). Currently I even save the little plastic “neat parts” display trays (and the plastic sheet which covers them). I’m inclined to ditch those however. From Jason Catena: ! I take care of inventorying the sets I’ve bought by cutting the UPC bar code (which contains the set number) from the box before I flatten and throw the box away.
Can I get money for my old LEGO®? From Todd Lehman: ! Yes, absolutely -- anything that says LEGO® on it. Many people have sold off their LEGO® Space collections so they could focus their building talents in the LEGO® Castle arena, and vice-versa. Many people have discovered vintage theme sets at obscure toy stores and have been kind enough to buy them and make them available to other people on the net. Many people have become addicted to bidding in LEGO® auctions and some have even become addicted to holding LEGO® auctions. There is a huge barely-tapped market for old LEGO® sets. In the small world of news:rec.toys.lego alone, hundreds upon hundreds of dollars of LEGO® sets are auctioned each month. Sell your old LEGO® and you will be rewarded. But don’t sell it to the first bloke who offers you $10 for it -- seek out the people who seek what you have, and both of you are winners. From Cary Clark: Thousands of auctions of Lego are active all of the time on http://www.ebay.com. eBay is also useful to gauge the value of your collection, by searching for similar items among the completed auctions. Items may be posted for direct sale on the LUGNET newsgroup /market/buy-sell-trade/. Also, http://www.brickbay.com allows you to set up a shop to sell Lego parts and sets.
Which sets are sellable? From Todd Lehman: ! All sets can be auctioned or sold for a set price. For every LEGO® set ever made, there is someone who seeks it. Some sets are in demand more than others -- for example, Forestmen and original Blacktron sets -- but all sets are sellable. Even sets in the current product line -- still on the shelves of every store in the world -- can be resold by individuals. Some people have sold brand-new sets at less than the going retail price. If that sounds silly, consider the opportunities presented when a large department store goes out of business and has a 60%-75% off sale.
How complete does a set have to be? From Todd Lehman: ! Anything goes. You can sell LEGO® pieces, LEGO® boxes, original LEGO® building instructions, LEGO® Idea Books, LEGO® comic books, LEGO® catalogs, anything. It’s all been done. Just be sure to let people know how complete the set is and generally what condition it is in. You don’t necessarily have to list all the missing pieces, or every scratch or blemish, but your efforts will be appreciated if you do so. If you’re selling a LEGO® set, you’ll get the most for it if you have all the pieces, the original instructions, and the original box (in particular the front and back panels of the box), but you generally won’t get much more for it if it’s mint-in-box than if it’s been opened and played with -- as long as it’s still in good condition. Some people already have the pieces to a set and are only seeking the box or the instructions -- for example, they found the pieces at a garage sale, or their dog chewed up the instructions, or their dad threw out the box. Some auctions or parts sales consist purely of LEGO® pieces, where the seller buys dozens (sometimes hundreds) of brand-new LEGO® sets and divides them up into specialized parts packs. This is a time-consuming but lucrative business.
How can I determine whether my LEGO® is in demand? From Todd Lehman: ! You can get a sense for demand by posting a “What is this worth?” message in /market/appraisal, but that won’t tell you what people are willing to pay -- it will only tell at a minimum how many people are interested. If you happen to get three people who say, “I’ll pay up to $75 for it,” there’s a good chance you’ll get $85 or $90 or more for it. You can get a sense for what people are willing to pay by looking at the history of other auctions and sales (assuming you watch the group regularly), but that won’t tell you what people are willing to pay for your particular item -- it’s only a rough guide. The only way to be sure about demand is to actually go through with the sale.
How do I determine value? From Todd Lehman: ! Generally, the older the set, the higher its value. Theme sets with mini-figures are especially valuable. A set starts becoming valuable when it is no longer part of the current product line, simply because it is difficult to find in mainstream stores. LEGO® Shop-At-Home Service carries most sets for an additional 12 months and some up to 36 months. A set becomes more valuable when it is no longer available through Shop-At-Home (S@H), now because it is nearly impossible to find in local stores. Smaller sets increase in value much more rapidly than larger sets. Here is a graph to give you an idea:
You can see the graph here. There seems to be a glass ceiling for most sets around 10 years old -- these seem to go for around US $80 to $100, regardless of their original price. There have even been $2 U.S. and European-only sets that have sold in this range. But basically, you auction a set if you think you can get more for it than you just paid for it, or if you have it lying around from childhood and it’s just not that interesting anymore. The only way to be sure about value is to actually go through with the auction.
Should I trade, sell or hold an auction? From Todd Lehman: ! An auction is a lot of work. It is rewarding, but sometimes there are better ways to get rid of something, for example if you are lucky you may be able to do a simple LEGO®-LEGO® trade with someone. But finding a good equal LEGO®-LEGO® trade is not always an easy thing -- most of the time you will end up doing an unbalanced LEGO®-LEGO® trade padded out with cash (either direction) and this is a great way to test the waters. Think carefully about what you’re considering selling. If it’s something you still play with or is nostalgic, you should probably hang on to it. Otherwise, what good is it to you? Put it up for adoption to the highest bidder and reinvest that money into something more to your liking. If the reason you’re hanging on to it is for the neat pieces, look around at sets currently in stores -- maybe newer sets have those pieces too. Think opportunistically. Also think how wonderful it will make a collector feel to acquire a missing set. Watch out for other enterprising folks. If you price your opening bids too low and there is little demand, someone with better marketeering skills may snatch it up and sell it a month later at a better price -- a frustrating experience, but one to grow from. The selling price of an item is a function of its potential value and the promotional skills you use in selling it. The potential value of an item is a function of its condition, its completeness, and its demand at a given time of the year. Shipping
What are the advantages of UPS? From Todd Lehman: This discussion assumes you are visiting a real UPS branch office. If you go to a third-party UPS client such as Mailboxes Etc, all bets are off. UPS has good rates for large, heavy packages. Using UPS Ground service, you can expect to spend between $3 and $5, in extreme cases $6, to send an average LEGO® package inside the U.S. The rates vary depending on the location -- UPS divides the U.S. into several zones. Shipping time is 3 to 5 business days -- very reasonable. UPS has good rates for insurance. The first $100.00 is free; it’s $0.35 per $100.00 thereafter. UPS barcodes and tracks all packages. You can call a toll-free 1-800 number to check the status. When someone signs for the package, UPS keeps a computerized image of the signature and can supply this to you if you need it for a claim. There are at least two versions of tracking service:
UPS is now on the Web! Here are some relevant links:
What are the advantages of USPS (the US post service)? From Todd Lehman: The USPS has good rates for small, light packages. You can expect to spend from $0.50 to $4.00 to mail a typical LEGO® package inside the U.S. The rates vary depending on the location and the speed of service required. Up to and including 11 ounces, Third Class serivce is the same rate as First Class service. As a rule of thumb figure $0.30 per ounce for small packages. Parcels sent First Class generally arrive in 2 to 3 days. Parcels sent Third Class generally arrive in 5 to 7 days. Shipping parcels overseas (out of the U.S.) via USPS is expensive. The rates of course depend on the destination, but you can generally figure airmail to Europe is roughly 4 to 8 times as expensive as normal First Class mail inside the U.S. Airmail delivery times are typically one week. Mail to Canada is neither prohibitively expensive nor slow. Always ask your options at the counter. Surface mail to overseas countries is much less expensive, but can take 8 to 12 weeks, for example to or from Australia. USPS offers insurance, but you pay extra. UPS is now on the Web! Here are some relevant links:
How should I pack LEGO® for shipment?
From Todd Lehman: ! Count on package damage in the mail -- take measures to avoid it. Learn from the mistakes of others. Pack your LEGO® shipment as you would pack a crystal vase or fine china.
From Todd Lehman: ! For best results use a cardboard box. Boxes are cheaper than mailing envelopes -- free if you ask around at the right places -- and can’t be folded or crammed into a mailbox. Use padded mailing envelopes for floppy paper items or things of little value:
Some have had success sending mini-figures in bubble-padded mailing envelopes. Cassette tape mailing boxes (around $0.50 at the U.S. Post Office) also work well for mini-figures and small LEGO® parts.
From Todd Lehman: ! If you choose to use an envelope, use the smallest envelope that holds the item securely. Don’t fold the item just to fit it in a smaller envelope and save twenty cents. Use either padded envelopes or manilla envelopes with a piece of firm, flat cardboard backing so the items won’t bend easily as they journey from mailbag to mailbag.
From Todd Lehman: ! If you choose to use a box, use the smallest box that holds all the items securely, but that leaves enough space for padding. Don’t use a box that just barely fits all the items unless you are sure the box is strong enough; the goal of packing is not to be clever or frugal but to do the job right -- to get the items there unharmed. Don’t use shipping insurance as a crutch.
From Todd Lehman: ! Good padding avoids problems in shipping. Most cardboard boxes need 1 to 2 inches of padding:
If your box is exceptionally sturdy, you won’t need as much padding. If your box is old, tired, and seeing its last days, use a bit extra -- especially near the top corners, where other boxes are likely to smoosh it.
From Todd Lehman: ! UPS (United Parcel Service) recommends including a copy of both the sender’s address and the recipient’s address on a 3x5 card inside the package in case of emergency. Ask your bidders to supply an extra card with their address. Before sealing the box, shake it. If it doesn’t make noise, shake it vigorously. If it’s reasonably quiet, you’re ready to seal the box. LEGO® sets in a mailing box should sound like a muffled cereal box being shaken. If you hear a rattling, you’d better figure out what you did wrong. Remember, the goal of the padding step is to avoid problems. The goal of this step is to find any problems you may have missed. Use a good, strong tape. Test it on your arm -- if it pulls the hair off, you’ve got a good tape. If you can pull it away from the cardboard on the box and re-stick it, you’ve got problem tape. Start with the bottom of the box. Make sure the flaps line up well and nothing is loose from the last time the box was used. Re-tape the bottom edges and the centerline if necessary. On the top of the box, apply mailing stickers, 3x5 cards, or write directly on the box in clear, legible letters. Make sure your digits are unambiguous, espeically between 1’s and 7’s, 6’s and 0’s, 4’s and 9’s, 9’s and 7’s. Don’t get fancy. Someone once made a beautiful calligraphic 9 that looked like a 7; the $400 package he sent was delivered to the wrong house two blocks away. Cover both your address and the recipient’s address with clear packing tape. Press it down firmly -- run your fingernail or a pen across it, especially around the edges of the seal. Finally, seal the top of the box. Try peeling off the tape -- make sure it doesn’t come loose easily. If the box is small, you might want to go all the way around the box with the tape.
From Todd Lehman: ! Drop the box from shoulder-height onto the floor. Throw it a few feet. Kick it. If you don’t feel comfortable doing this, then it’s probably not packed well. If the tape moves or comes loose anywhere, you should consider buying better tape. Ask yourself, How are packages typically handled? Gently? How many times do they change hands? Will your box be at the bottom of a pile or at the top? Can someone put a pair of speakers on top of your box? Can your box roll 50 feet down a sorting treadmill and slam into another box? Is your box of precious cargo any more special to a mail handler than other box of equal shape and size? What if when the package is delivered, it is left in a window well outside someone’s house?
Is there anything special I should look out for? From Todd Lehman: Some countries charge a import tax, so you may not want to insure your packages, or you may want to give a very low declaration of value. For example the Netherlands charges the recipient 25% of the cost of the package when it is claimed. When sending something to another country, always find out your options, and ask at the counter if there is anything you should be aware of. Some countries are even considered an insurance risk, and you can’t insure a package sent there even if you want to. This section could grow as more data is collected. Send horror stories to the FAQ maintainer.
What if a package is lost or stolen? From Todd Lehman: Both UPS and the USPS are extremely reliable. If a package does not arrive at its destination, it was probably either delivered to the wrong address by mistake (usually an addressing error) or delivered to the correct address and stolen -- in either case the recipient should ask around in his/her apartment building, neighborhood, post office, or UPS branch office. If you have insured the package, check with the carrier and begin the claims process. Keep in close contact with the recipient so neither of you panic and start mistrusting each other. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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