dotmike

I can't guarantee this but I think the extra 10% is manually applied at the cashier. (The reason I think it's manual is that sometimes the staff member has to refer to the catalogue to check whether to apply it or not.) So if the first item you buy is entitled to the extra 10%, then subsequent may go through as well. It would probably rely on finding a less than on-the-ball staff member... Even if not, 25% is better than 20%. Eat your heart out, TRU! And 25% is almost as good as the MyerOne (20%+10%) discount which translates to 28%. Of course, MyerOne on a 25% discount would translate to 32.5%, which would be seriously dangerous for budgets! So much maths on a Saturday morning. Time to head off on a LEGO hunt!

Just to clarify, did you see each of those sets for the same price at more than one of the three stores you visited? (Instead of, say, Portal on clearance at one store but not another, City of Atlantis only at a different store, etc.) It's strange how the Big W clearances work. Here in Sydney I checked just one Big W this afternoon and found: Portal was indeed on clearance - there were 4 very mangled boxes in the clearance rack (see photo for the condition of the one I picked up) - but they were ticketed on the shelf at and scanned at $124. City of Atlantis wasn't on the clearance shelves, still in the toy aisle. But the funny thing was, it had actually gone UP in price! When I last saw it at Big W, months ago, it was $96. Now it's $112. They didn't have any of the others in stock. So the same product can go for very different "clearance" prices depending on the Big W you're in. And in this store, the higher priced Portal wasn't even guaranteed to be complete, since a few were opened I'd bet pieces had been removed, though didn't want to check for fear store security would assume I'd done it! Kmart seems more universal when running clearances, don't they? When we heard, say, The Battle of Alamut had hit $70, it generally doesn't matter where in the country you are, that's the price it was (assuming it was still in stock).

One word should suffice: There's also something not on the list: the Brickmaster City and Brickmaster Ninjago books at $31.95 (minus a further 10% = $28.76) down from $39.95, on page 17 of the catalogue. That is one thing TRU is good for: ample stock of almost all current sets. So when a 20% sale comes on, you can be pretty sure of getting what you were waiting for (though I suppose it probably still helps to go at the beginning). Don't suppose they'd dug up more caches of the older Collectable Minifigs? (Series 2 was floating around during their last sale.)

No problem! Will keep you posted on if/when it drops further. Even though Atlantis rates only slightly higher on my personal interest level than Mars Mission, and below even Ninjago, I've got my eye on that set for its pieces. It'll have to get to $60 (half RRP) to fork over any cash for it though.

Kmart's (yellow sticker) clearance price on that set is actually $89 and it's been like that for a month. So that store was overcharging relative to other Kmarts. Anyway, Big W has always sold that set for $96. The prices aren't being adjusted downwards to meet the US RRP. Sets are discounted when they aren't selling at their normal price to help clear them more quickly. If Kmart doesn't clear that set at $89 (my local Kmart has had 4 or 5 of them sitting unmoved for a month), it'll probably drop further. Kmart dropped the Battle of Alamut in stages from $140 RRP to $70 before they finished clearing it from all stores. I bought one at the lower price!

Toy sale at Myer starting Thursday, 15 September. LEGO is on the last page of the above catalogue. Doesn't appear to be a % sale, just specific prices on certain sets. 3677 Red Cargo Train is $235 down from $295, which is basically the same 20% off it was last Saturday. Others: Technic Flat Bed Truck $127 down from $159. Alien Mothership $79 down from $99. Alien Conquest $39.95 down from $49.95. Ninjago Fire Temple $159 down from $199. (DON'T buy this if you have access to a Big W - it's $144 there every day.) Star Wars Ewok Attack $39.95 down from $49.95. Star Wars Podracers $119 down from $149. City Marina $63.95 down from $79.95. City Train Station $63.95 down from $79.95. City Power Boat & Police Boat both $39.95 down from $49.95. No mention of an extra 10% for MyerOne cardholders... yet.

Toys R Us 20% off LEGO starting 14 September.

I think you're right, Tiger, as it is a Myer exclusive whereas the yellow cargo train is everywhere. Also, for what it's worth, I was Myer Sydney City today and they only had two of the red 3677, but this is a store that normally has many multiples of everything out on display, especially new stuff. They have the space - it's one of the largest LEGO caches in the state (home of the gigantic LEGO harbour bridge) - and still had six Queen Anne Revenges although that's commonly sold out in other places (except TRU who haven't had it on sale for yonks). Still, I'll hold out until a 25% or 20%+10% MyerOne, or else hope it turns up at one of the usual suspects for importing economically.

If they do have a higher discount sale, you'll be able to get it at the cheaper price, right? Not sure how long this train will last. The yellow one seemed to linger forever (always taunting me to buy another one to build a Tangara!). I'm not a fan of the look of this one though I think the play value would be higher. May have missed an opportunity today.

Thanks for the info! Seems to be part of a larger storewide sale with varying % discounts on stuff. Pity there's no extra 10% for MyerOne cardholders this time. With 1 day only (rather than Target's full week) and at 20% only (compared to a previous Myer 25% or the MyerOne 20%+10%) it's pretty uninspiring. Unless anyone wants the new red cargo train? Hope there's higher than 20% sales to come.

Was the POTC lower than 20% off RRP? Has anyone else seen POTC hit the "bargain bins" yet? I noticed that UK retailer The Hut had at least one set at over 50% off: 4194 Whitecap Bay was briefly on sale for £35 ($53 AUD) which I think included VAT, so the export price would have been even cheaper (a lot cheaper than $119.99 Australian RRP, or $96 at 20% discount). I wonder if this is a sign that POTC will soon be priced to clear? (Also, NSW department stores, especially Target, must have been rubbing their hands with glee at today's teachers' strike. I saw no end of disgruntled parents and grandparents escorting school age children around the toy aisles, many clutching LEGO boxes. Much pleading was heard. "Teachers" may be accompanied by four letter words for parents today, but not to stores!)

I agree, although Big W is still good for a decent discount on a select few sets. Currently, the 2507 Fire Temple has a RRP of 199.99, and that's what it is at Target, Myer, TRU, etc. When those stores inevitably have their 20% sales, it'll become $160. Big W has it now (no sale required) for $144. A pretty decent discount, and I believe at all stores. The last few posts about the 7946 King's Castle sound even better, especially if that pricing is gradually rolling out to all stores. Kmart, as you say, is usually pretty pathetic, and only really has decent prices when an item gets a yellow or red clearance sticker. Two such current items are the 7985 City of Atlantis for $89 (down from RRP 119.99, although Big W has always had it for $96), and the 7947 Prison Tower Rescue (I don't recall what the yellow clearance sticker has on it). The problem is that these finds are few and far between, which is why this Aussie sales! thread is invaluable for tracking them down. Short of paying international freight fees, it's the main weapon against the local LEGO operation's greedy price gouging of Australians. Please, everyone, keep on posting the bargains!

Harry Potter Hogwarts is 49.95, the most expensive of the games. Three of them would normally total 149.85, but until the end of today will total 99.80. Apply the discount card and you'll be up for 79.90. So, in effect, the HP game sets will cost $26.63 each. There are 332 pieces in each set. This is what they are:

Good stuff! Thank you. I made use of the sale, not to buy Heroica, which I'm not particularly keen on, probably because I have no one to play it with, but to buy three identical Harry Potter Hogwarts games. The HP set is actually very good for parts. With a 33% discount, plus a $20 digital gift card I'd scored somehow making it an effective 47% discount, the extravagance of never again having to go hunting for 6x6 plates, brown tiles and 1x16 tan bricks seemed worthwhile.

I saw them at Myer Miranda (Sydney) today. Is the 3 for 2 minus 10% MyerOne discount still on? I thought that was only for the weekend before last? Edit: I guess the 30% off board games 11th August - 11th September is what you're referring to. Isn't that online only, or do board games scan 30% off at the register of a Myer store?

There's plenty of Series 5 minifigs around on eBay Australia if you're keen to get them early, and at the prices they're going for relative to the RRP, they're virtually on sale. I've just finished disposing of the remainder from my box (I imported a full box, built a collection for myself and sold the rest). The demand is low enough that some of the figs were going in the $3.xx range. (A bit disappointing actually, but I wasn't looking to make a profit.) Either Australians have become saturated and lost interest in the minfigs (the massive amounts of the green Series 3 packets Big W still have on their shelves could hint at this), or simply want the fun of squinting at the dot codes and fondling the packets at the department store counters! The RRP will be $4.99, but Myer and Target are bound to have 20% off sales starting about a week after they appear on the shelves.

Hmm. Based on your argument, the price of gold should be $1500 an ounce in the UK and $3000 an ounce in Australia. It isn't and it shouldn't. Sorry for the tone, but these apologist arguments for companies price gouging their international markets based on capacity to pay make me angry. If Australia is fortunate enough at its current prosperous point in history (and it is by no means perpetual prosperity - just two years ago the Aussie dollar was buying barely half a US dollar and things here were very expensive) to afford more of a product, it should be able to buy more of it. Not be forced to pay more for the same amount. In LEGO terms, being able to afford two modular sets this year instead of one. Artificial price manipulation based on distribution market is a valid area for cracking down on (preferably by consumer education rather than heavy handed government policy). Defending companies that do it is not helpful.

On the wholesale price, but it was indeed a messy situation. That's something the GST did simplify greatly, despite the sky-is-falling FUD that was floating around at the time of introduction. I remember the media giving the impression that supermarket bills were going to go up by at least 10% across the board. (Shades of the current carbon tax.) I've no complaint against people agitating against local price parity for products, but in the Apple example at least, when the exchange rate tumbled a bit during the US debt ceiling crisis a few weeks ago, Australia actually became the cheapest place in the world to buy an iPad for a few days. I didn't see anyone clamouring to have the price raised to bring it into parity with the US! It cuts both ways and companies do have to insulate themselves against currency fluctuation to some extent. In the case of The LEGO Group's rather more obscene local price gouging (Apple's products may be 10% more expensive, but LEGO's are often 80-100% more), it's like that mainly because the US economy is tanking so bad: the market there needs lower prices to encourage purchases of a "luxury" toy item. In effect, the more prosperous markets such as ours are set at the premium price and the US is given discounted prices to spur buying. It would be nice if Australia could be closer to it, but realistically the main way that would happen is if US prices were raised. As everyone says, learn to import, and there is a silver lining to the lack of price parity.

Can't help LOL, even though it's a sad situation. At least he could have sent a single LEGO brick. Maybe even a couple of pieces to build a little Death Star, like this:

I thought this might be of interest: Myer has a Christmas Club which is like a savings plan to accumulate money to spend during the November-December Christmas period (or actually up to 24 months after). Each month Myer debits your bank account for a nominated amount (minimum $25) and adds it to your Myer Christmas Club card. After 31 October, they issue you a gift card containing the money you've had debited over the previous months. Now, personally I stay away from things like gift cards and automatic payment plans like the plague. In this case, they are offering an incentive: they'll credit an extra $10 for each $100 you have debited. Which effectively means anything you buy with that money is getting an automatic 10% discount. (Or rather, you can buy 10% more stuff than you otherwise could.) As followers of this thread, we only buy LEGO in Australia when it is on sale, RIGHT?! So during November-December, when Myer has its inevitable 20%, 25% or 20% + 10% (28%) MyerOne specials, being a member of the Myer Christmas Club and using your accumulated gift card would add a further 10% to any of those. Which isn't that bad a deal at all. I'm still suspicious of anything that takes my money away on an automatic basis and locks it up until a certain time, and I probably won't commit to it, but if you just know you will be buying a lot of LEGO around a certain date, this Myer Christmas Club thing could be something worth considering. Perhaps someone could compare experiences between this and the Myer vouchers?

Much thanks for your activity and the update! Yeah, it's a pretty good discount for an "everyday" price (that is, all the time, not just during the overhyped toy sales). Big W do tend to do that on some of the bigger items: the Queen Anne Revenge was also around that and the Harry Potter Hogwarts Castle too, both of which retail for $199.99. Also the Atlantis set with the temple columns is $96 (everyday, not just during sale), much cheaper than the RRP of $119.99. Also good that Big W seem to have got them before every other big retailer (and it's unlikely any NinjaGo is an exclusive). I looked today in the same TRU that got POTC and the Hillside House / Lighthouse Island weeks before the others and nothing. That seller was in my watchlist! Well, you got it before most other people and you're not out of pocket. Hope you enjoyed the build!

Fire Temple? Sale price? I thought TRU would get them first (and not be on sale for frustrating ages) but a discounted Big W price might be tempting.

I knew I wanted this set as soon as I saw the first ever previews of it. This review has increased the desire by a factor of 2! I like Ninjas (have some of the old "Castle" Ninja theme) but never really took to NinjaGo - "LEGO Beyblades" was my initial take - and so far I've only bought the cheapest ambush impulse set. So I'll be going to each end of the spectrum - cheapest and most expensive, with nothing in the middle! I have a Dragon Fortress and was actually planning to display the Fire Temple near it and other Orient Expedition sets. The contrast will be interesting. I suspect the Fire Temple dragon will make the Dragon Fortress one look like a wimp. Now to re-view the review, and then hope Australian Toys R Us open their magic portal to getting early stock (they'll probably have this set the first), timed to coincide with a 20% voucher. If no sign within the next 2 weeks, I won't be able to resist the urge to import.

Cheeky! It would have been very surprising if there was, as the "spend $75 get $20 back" already approximates to a 26.7% discount. Given that most of the toy catalogue already has discounts in the 20% range, a double-decker discount would have made some things sell at a loss. (Woe to staff who let it go through, they will probably get tested for fraud.) The sale is "okay" if you can find things that neatly fit in $75 multiples, or pad them with things you actually want to get there. However, even though 26.7% is similar to the 28% discount that the MyerOne discount (20% + extra 10%) works out as, it's far less flexible if you can't neatly get your purchases in those multiples of $75. I'm disappointed they had this instead of the MyerOne this weekend. Still, it does let you buy things outright like: Millennium Falcon $189 ($249 RRP div 75 = 3 * 20 = $60 discount) Tower Bridge $299 ($399 RRP div 75 = 5 * 20 = $100 discount) City Train $169 ($229 RRP div 75 = 3 * 20 = $60 discount) All of which are cheaper than Target's 20% (aside from the fact that Target doesn't sell Tower Bridges).

The Myer toy sale doesn't end until next weekend, 23/24 July. I give it 50-50 whether they have the extra MyerOne 10%. I'm pretty sure they did last year, but that's no guarantee of a repeat. Still, with the financial gloom reported by the big retailers' profit results, they better do something to bring the buyers in. Whether there's any desirable stock left is another matter, but I did count four Imperial Flagships and eight Tower Bridges at Myer Miranda last Thursday (probably because they were late getting them and didn't have them the first weekend of the sale). The more child friendly range - Star Wars, POTC, etc - was pretty depleted, however. No Millennium Falcons, no Queen Anne Revenges. Anyway, no one's going to have much LEGO money left after buying their Alien Conquests and Diagon Alleys on Thursday at Target.