LEGODalekbuster523 Posted December 4, 2015 I mean, I have no reason to complain now seeing as I know I'm getting the LEGO Doctor Who set for Birthday/Christmas but it still bugs me a little that buying LEGO sets has become like purchasing tickets for a concert. What I mean by this is: with concerts, you literally have to buy tickets straight away in order to stand a chance of getting a seat. With LEGO sets now, it seems like you have to buy them straight away in order to stand a chance of getting a set. It may just be me but it feels like LEGO sets on the day of their release have become very hard to get hold of. What does everyone else think? Is it comparable to purchasing concert tickets? Or is it a daft comparison? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
6ix Posted December 4, 2015 I have no experience with exclusive sets being sold out (in a very short period) but I do know that when I want to buy an exclusive set (GBHQ for example) I will be ordering it day one, to avoid missing out. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ProducePrincess Posted December 5, 2015 Much like tickets, once the sets are sold out "scalpers" will post on Kijiji or craigslist asking ridiculous marked up prices. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vorkosigan Posted December 5, 2015 The difference is that in almost all circumstances the LEGO sets will come back in stock and you'll have more time. The main exceptions being some seasonal sets and older ideas sets. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HawkLord Posted December 5, 2015 In six years of modern Lego collecting, I've had no problem in eventually acquiring any Lego set I've wanted with the exception of the Ideas Research Institute. And that was because I wasn't fast enough. Otherwise, everything eventually comes back in stock for core and licensed themes. Ideas are the only sets I'm really aggressive with now. With that said, expect Lego to get a lot of mileage with the new Doctor Who set - they've really done well at producing good quantities of licensed Idea sets. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Heppeng Posted December 5, 2015 I did not take any chances on the Doctor Who set. My daughter is a huge Doctor Who fan as well as a lego fan, so getting her this for Christmas was an absolute must. I therefore ordered as soon as it became available. A day later it was showing out of stock, expected ship date 5th December IIRC. It is now showing expected ship date 11th December which tends to imply it is selling faster than Lego can restock. It got delivered today but there might be some unable to get it in time for Christmas at this rate. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Aanchir Posted December 5, 2015 LEGO Ideas sets are generally produced in limited batches, so it's not surprising when those sell out quickly (especially ones that are released right in the thick of the holiday shopping season). How fast they sell out helps give LEGO an idea of how many more batches they need to produce. I believe this might have also been an issue with some of the Star Wars sets released on "Force Friday" (as heavily hyped as that was), but those were back on store shelves before very long, at least in my area. The 1500-piece Classic box that WalMart sold on Black Friday also sold out very quickly, but Black Friday tends to do that. In general I haven't experienced this with the specific themes that I collect, like LEGO Ninjago, LEGO Bionicle, and LEGO Elves. Bionicle and Elves probably don't signify much, but Ninjago is one of the LEGO Group's biggest themes, so with that theme I think they must be doing a good job managing supply. Either that or the people buying Ninjago simply don't obsess over getting them the day they launch like the people buying licensed themes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BlueberryWaffles Posted December 5, 2015 I've rarely had problems with this in the 7 years I've been buying Lego. Only sets that stand out as being hard to find were the original Minecraft set, the Delorean, the Exo Suit, and some sets that I forget to pick up until they're retired. (I still need the 2013 Daily Bugle set...) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deraven Posted December 5, 2015 I'll also say that I've not really had any issue, other than Research Institute (but I still ended up with 2) and the Curiosity Rover (still zero). Every other Cuusoo/Ideas set has been easy enough to get, and I've definitely never had an issue with a set that had a reasonable production run or was one of the "regular" Lego themes. I'm quite sure the Doctor Who still won't be a problem to purchase. It might be popular enough to sell out an initial production run, but as other have said I'm sure they'll continue producing it in reasonably sized batches for a good while. At least, I hope so! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dr_spock Posted December 5, 2015 Like concert tickets, I think it is dependent on the popularity of the sets in the themes you buy or collect. I haven't had problems with Technics and trains. Showing up early at the LEGO store ticket booth can help too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AFOLguy1970 Posted December 5, 2015 If you want to have a new release right when it comes out, then yes, your best bet would be to get online at midnight or be at the Lego store when it first opens the next day. With regular release sets, you do run the risk of not being able to buy it right away if you wait too long, but they will come back. On Jan 1, I am sure the Ghostbusters headquarters and the Brick Bank will be on backorder status before too long. Then, you have the issues of site problems. The S@H site has a nasty habit of going down when there are double VIP points or new release sets. In that case, it is more luck than anything else that enables you to place the order before they go into backorder. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy D Posted December 5, 2015 If you want to have a new release right when it comes out, then yes, your best bet would be to get online at midnight or be at the Lego store when it first opens the next day. With regular release sets, you do run the risk of not being able to buy it right away if you wait too long, but they will come back. On Jan 1, I am sure the Ghostbusters headquarters and the Brick Bank will be on backorder status before too long. Then, you have the issues of site problems. The S@H site has a nasty habit of going down when there are double VIP points or new release sets. In that case, it is more luck than anything else that enables you to place the order before they go into backorder. Maybe they need to put more servers online during these times. It seems that LEGO has become so popular and the VIP double points has become so popular that S@H just can't keep up. It seems that particularly, some of the Ideas sets are so popular and anticipated that they might sell out quickly, at least temporarily. Like others have said, I haven't had trouble with normal or exclusive sets in Modular or Technic, only once in Monster Fighters, for the Zombie's set (which may have had unexpected popularity). But I am lucky to have a LEGO brand store close. Just MHO, YMMV Andy D Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Robianco Posted December 6, 2015 I've never had an issue getting hold of any Lego sets I've wanted but I don't try and pick up everything from a certain theme. Maybe it's because I have a Lego store near me but I was in the other day and there were two shelves full of around 20 or so of the Doctor Who Ideas set and that was just what was on show so I think any panic on getting hold of it is unnecessary. I could have bought as many as needed while they were still selling on eBay for £69.99. I think it's the panic of the fan that fuels itself. It was only a few years ago I remember if people saw a queue at a petrol station they assumed there was going to be a shortage and would join the queue... eBay can be a bit like that with Lego. Advent calendars were in much more plentiful supply this year but if you wait until Dec 1st to pick one up then it's your own fault if they're gone. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LEGODalekbuster523 Posted December 6, 2015 Like concert tickets, I think it is dependent on the popularity of the sets in the themes you buy or collect. I haven't had problems with Technics and trains. Showing up early at the LEGO store ticket booth can help too. Trust me to be interested in the most popular Ideas set and make my parents' Christmas shopping hard. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fuppylodders Posted December 6, 2015 It's nothing like it at all. There was only one set which may have had that problem, which was the technic 4x4 limited run Cuusoo set. Other than that, it is more like: The concert is being shown for 2 years. There is plenty of showings, but do you want to watch it when it first comes out or do you want to wait? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
paul_delahaye Posted December 6, 2015 I agree, I personally could not believe how quickly that limited Technic 4 x 4 crawler set sold out. I ordered mine at midnight, on the day it was released. And it was gone the next day. I really thought that one at that price point would have taken a while to sell out, I did not think there would be 20'000 people queuing up buy that set on day one. It's not like 10'000 of those people were buying it for a bricklink investment, as there is only around 100 for sale on there. The only other set which sold really well, was the Santa Fe Super Chief limted train set from the early 2000's. I think they made 10'000 of them, and they went very quickly, which is odd as not that many people then purchased the additional carriages, as they were sold off cheap. And then of course, there is the impossible Mr Gold…….Where did they all go to? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dr_spock Posted December 6, 2015 And then of course, there is the impossible Mr Gold…….Where did they all go to? Maybe Mr. Gold ended up all over here. A few LUG members found Mr. Gold at various local stores. Trust me to be interested in the most popular Ideas set and make my parents' Christmas shopping hard. Can they adopt me? All mine ever give me for Xmas are clothes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LEGODalekbuster523 Posted December 6, 2015 Can they adopt me? All mine ever give me for Xmas are clothes. Really? I must have a really generous family then. My parents and brother always give me a game/a few games, books, chocolate and either Blurays and/or CDs and my Grandma usually either a DVD, game or something cool like a TARDIS mug. Can't imagine what Christmas would be like to only get a few clothes. Don't think they could adopt you, though - think they have enough on their plate with me and my brother! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fuppylodders Posted December 6, 2015 Really? Can't imagine what Christmas would be like to only get a few clothes. It's all about affordability from different individual's perspectives Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Heppeng Posted December 6, 2015 It's nothing like it at all. There was only one set which may have had that problem, which was the technic 4x4 limited run Cuusoo set. Other than that, it is more like: The concert is being shown for 2 years. There is plenty of showings, but do you want to watch it when it first comes out or do you want to wait? Have to disagree, there are several other sets where if you did not get them within a day or two of getting released they were gone forever, Two other examples were the Mars Rover and the Research Institute. In the case of the Research Institute it got so much bad publicity (and I am talking about the national press not just internet forums etc.) about being sold out and no-one being able to buy it it forced Lego to do another unplanned production run to save face, which again completely sold out within a day or two if not hours... I left it too late to get an advent calender last year, they were all gone long before December the 1st, so I made sure I did not make that mistake this year, although I understand things have been better this time but I did not want to take the risk. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Paul B Technic Posted December 6, 2015 Where I am it has never been a problem... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vindicare Posted December 6, 2015 I can definitely see how you associated the two, in regards to Ideas. I'm a day one purchaser if really just the Modulars, but that's solely because those are my first & foremost favorite theme. I did buy 21302 Big Bang Theory day one, because I love the show & the set. I do own 21103 Delorean & 21108 Ecto-1, buying both well after the release date. In a way, if you want one of the first batches of an Ideas set, then yes, it would be like buying tickets. Biggest difference is once the first batch of sets are gone, there's a very good chance of another batch coming. Whereas tickets, not so much. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MrHerofan Posted December 7, 2015 Well I haven't really been buying as much LEGO when it first comes out, so I can't really say, but the stock at some stores is worse than others. It kind of depends on where you live and how much Lego they sell. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MAB Posted December 7, 2015 (edited) Have to disagree, there are several other sets where if you did not get them within a day or two of getting released they were gone forever, Two other examples were the Mars Rover and the Research Institute. In the case of the Research Institute it got so much bad publicity (and I am talking about the national press not just internet forums etc.) about being sold out and no-one being able to buy it it forced Lego to do another unplanned production run to save face, which again completely sold out within a day or two if not hours... I left it too late to get an advent calender last year, they were all gone long before December the 1st, so I made sure I did not make that mistake this year, although I understand things have been better this time but I did not want to take the risk. Mars Rover was available for three months constantly at S@H in the UK. Research Institute was also available for weeks, not hours. Advent calendars have also been easy to get, with many stores putting them on sale (discount) before December, such as in the Argos 3for2. Edited December 7, 2015 by MAB Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Heppeng Posted December 7, 2015 Doctor Who now sold out until January 11th. If you wanted it as a Christmas present for someone it is now impossible, at least if you want it from lego. That's only six days from release. Sure you can still pre-order, but for how long? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
