Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by brickity » Wed Nov 28, 2012 1:42 am

mah4546 wrote:
cookiemonstr69 wrote:
nami wrote:When I also asked them why Canadians are paying 20-30% more for Lego when the dollar is at par, again, no reasonable answer.
I think that's the true rip off.
No, it's not.

1) Taxes are higher in Canada. That factors into the cost.
2) Competition is less free and less numerous in Canada. The factors into the cost.
3) The population is significantly smaller,meaning fixed costs (like hiring HQ employees, running a distribution warehouse) are spread over a much thinner population base. That factors into the cost.
4) Speaking of which, labor and utilities are much more expensive in Canada. That factors into the cost.
5) Oh, and transportation costs are significantly higher in Canada. There's more costs.
6) Did I mention Canada has high import tariffs while they are virtually zero for the United States. Is LEGO magically supposed to make pretend that doesn't exist?

Canada is a highly regulated country extremely high operating costs, like most of Western Europe, while the United States is the complete opposite. It enjoys significantly more consumer freedom, less taxes, less regulation, cheap energy and more competition. That makes consumer goods cheap. If you think the extra $20 a Canadian pays for a Hobbit set is a rip off, what do you think of the extra $10,000 a Canadian pays for a basic import luxury sedan like a G35?

People have it all mixed up - consumer goods are priced normally in Canada. It's that the United States offers a market that allows them to be dirt cheap.
That's exactly the excuse that Lego gives, but the reality is that Lego was priced in terms of currency differences with little regard to any of the above. So why should be it an issue now? For instance, when the Canadian dollar was worth 70 cents US, the Lego price difference was 30% (which made sense). There was no talk about gouging Canadians even further due to smaller market, taxes, etc... the difference was the currency value. Now that the Canadian dollar is at par (and has been for a long time now), Lego has slowly adjusted their prices (difference is closer to 20% as opposed to 30% from a few years ago), but Canadians are still being gouged.

The main issue is that most Canadians simply don't care and continue to pay full retail without batting an eye. Lego and other retailers know this, so why adjust pricing? It's not like Lego has any real competition... they simply set their prices and we pay. Luckily, we have sites like this that provide us with options. Out of the thousands of dollars I spend annually on Lego, I'd say less than 10% of that goes to a Canadian retailer... even with regular 20% off sales, it's simply not worth it. Sadly, I'm in the minority as can be witnessed on Black Friday as throngs of people lined up and swarmed the Lego store to pay full retail. It's hilarious how the Lego store had enough scratch cards to last an hour... after that, people continued to buy bags and bags of stuff at full price. I was scratching my head at the absurdity...

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by legohunter » Wed Nov 28, 2012 3:01 am

brickity wrote: Sadly, I'm in the minority as can be witnessed on Black Friday as throngs of people lined up and swarmed the Lego store to pay full retail. It's hilarious how the Lego store had enough scratch cards to last an hour... after that, people continued to buy bags and bags of stuff at full price. I was scratching my head at the absurdity...
We need them to keep Lego/Lego store business running. In fact, they were the core shoppers that Lego store has been targeting at. And remember that retailers need room to make money, it is not making sense for a business not gaining any profit. Thus, I rarely shopped from Lego store in Canada, except special event like MayTheFour for promo product.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by autobrick » Wed Nov 28, 2012 8:57 am

mah4546 wrote:Canada is a highly regulated country extremely high operating costs, like most of Western Europe, while the United States is the complete opposite. It enjoys significantly more consumer freedom, less taxes, less regulation, cheap energy and more competition. That makes consumer goods cheap. If you think the extra $20 a Canadian pays for a Hobbit set is a rip off, what do you think of the extra $10,000 a Canadian pays for a basic import luxury sedan like a G35?
You may want to check your sources; a quick look on the Infiniti site says that G35 sedan starts at $36,490 in Canada while it starts at $36,900 in America (possibly due to different levels of standard equipment and I'll admit that taxes and delivery fees aren't factored in).

If doing business in Canada was that expensive, you would think that other goods would also cost 30+% more, but they really don't. For example, the CPU for the computer I'm building (i5-3570K) costs $226.99 at Newegg.ca and $219.99 at Newegg.com (3.1% difference). Another example would be electronics like the iPad and videogames/consoles, which are consistently the same price on both sides of the border.
brickity wrote:That's exactly the excuse that Lego gives, but the reality is that Lego was priced in terms of currency differences with little regard to any of the above. So why should be it an issue now? For instance, when the Canadian dollar was worth 70 cents US, the Lego price difference was 30% (which made sense). There was no talk about gouging Canadians even further due to smaller market, taxes, etc... the difference was the currency value. Now that the Canadian dollar is at par (and has been for a long time now), Lego has slowly adjusted their prices (difference is closer to 20% as opposed to 30% from a few years ago), but Canadians are still being gouged.
I can confirm this. I was flipping through some old Lego catalogues (from the late 90s), and I noticed that there was only one price for both America and Canada. The order form indicated that customers paying with Canadian funds should add an extra percentage to to the total to make up for the weak Canadian dollar. There was no separate 'doing business in Canada' surcharge.

Like Legohunter, I've only bought at the Lego store once for the Hulk promo; otherwise it's definitely not worth buying there.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by cookiemonstr69 » Wed Nov 28, 2012 11:23 am

mah4546 wrote:3) The population is significantly smaller,meaning fixed costs (like hiring HQ employees, running a distribution warehouse) are spread over a much thinner population base. That factors into the cost.
In my many purchases from Lego Shop@Home, each one has shipped direct from the United States, not Canada. Where are the distribution warehouse costs?

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by mah4546 » Wed Nov 28, 2012 5:18 pm

LEGO Canada operates within it's own sphere. It is absolutely irrelevant to LEGO Canada how the U.S. dollar is doing. It's only relevant how the Canadian dollar is performing versus the Danish kroner.

And I am certainly not denying that LEGO "takes advantage" of less competition in Canada to mark up prices. I said that in my post that less competition and a less free marketplace - which is what Canada is compared to the U.S. - drives up prices. A business would be stupid to operate otherwise. LEGO is not a charity.

If LEGO was manufactured and imported from the United States - and indeed in the 1990's when pricing was more on par it was manufactured in the U.S. - than the U.S. dollar would play a role in pricing!
autobrick wrote: You may want to check your sources; a quick look on the Infiniti site says that G35 sedan starts at $36,490 in Canada while it starts at $36,900 in America (possibly due to different levels of standard equipment and I'll admit that taxes and delivery fees aren't factored in).
.
That is the price for a G25, which is not sold in the United States. Infiniti has to offer a very decontented, and very underpowered, G sedan to get under the magic $40,000 price point in Canada. BMW and Mercedes have to do this too - Canadians pay more money for less standard equipment and a smaller engine. America does not have the Mercedes E280 or BMW 320i, for example.

And, back to the U.S. dollar example, where the price difference isn't as exageratted is on the American-imported Infiniti JX. U.S.-built product, U.S. dollar is relevant in pricing equation, and no import duties.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by brickity » Wed Nov 28, 2012 9:05 pm

mah4546 wrote:LEGO Canada operates within it's own sphere. It is absolutely irrelevant to LEGO Canada how the U.S. dollar is doing. It's only relevant how the Canadian dollar is performing versus the Danish kroner.
Ok, I'll bite.
In January 1995, $1 CDN could buy $0.70 USD and 4.27 DKK. $1 USD could buy 6.03 DKK.
Today, $1 CDN can buy $1 USD and 5.80 DKK. $1 USD can now buy 5.76 DKK.

In essence, the USD compared to the DKK hasn't changed much, so if we use that as a baseline... this is where the problem starts. Against the DKK, our Canadian dollar went from 4.27 to 5.8 since 1995. The US dollar barely changed and in fact has gotten worse. So why is it that Canadians still get gouged... ah yes, the taxes, smaller markets, gasoline, etc... In 1995, none of that mattered, but now it does?
mah4546 wrote:And I am certainly not denying that LEGO "takes advantage" of less competition in Canada to mark up prices. I said that in my post that less competition and a less free marketplace - which is what Canada is compared to the U.S. - drives up prices. A business would be stupid to operate otherwise. LEGO is not a charity.
At least we can agree here... we just choose to use different words. I use "price gouge" and you use "takes advantage". You're absolutely right though... they are not a charity and will try and maximize their profits. It's just sad that we're forced to cross border shop, online shop overseas, and dig for every possible deal outside of Canada... because of some archaic pricing scheme that hasn't kept up with the times. There's no logical sense why I can purchase a set overseas, have it shipped to my door, pay customs on it and still save 30-40% off local retail prices.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by mah4546 » Thu Nov 29, 2012 1:45 am

brickity wrote:
mah4546 wrote:LEGO Canada operates within it's own sphere. It is absolutely irrelevant to LEGO Canada how the U.S. dollar is doing. It's only relevant how the Canadian dollar is performing versus the Danish kroner.
Ok, I'll bite.
In January 1995, $1 CDN could buy $0.70 USD and 4.27 DKK. $1 USD could buy 6.03 DKK.
Today, $1 CDN can buy $1 USD and 5.80 DKK. $1 USD can now buy 5.76 DKK.

In essence, the USD compared to the DKK hasn't changed much, so if we use that as a baseline... this is where the problem starts. Against the DKK, our Canadian dollar went from 4.27 to 5.8 since 1995. The US dollar barely changed and in fact has gotten worse. So why is it that Canadians still get gouged... ah yes, the taxes, smaller markets, gasoline, etc... In 1995, none of that mattered, but now it does?
In 1995, LEGO was imported to Canada tariff free from the United States. Again, as I said, LEGO used to be manufactured in the U.S., and there is no import tariffs for U.S. goods to Canada.

Today, LEGO is imported primairly from Europe (although there is a facility in Mexico). Canada continues to charge high import tariffs from Europe - as high as 20% on certain consumer goods. The U.S. has virtually zero import tariffs on consumer goods. Canadians have to pay that high cost for imported goods. Americans don't.

Compare LEGO's Canada prices to Denmark - I bet they are pretty in line with each other. Denmark might even be more expensive. Both are high-tax, highly regulated markets with socialist economies and limited freedom of enterprise.

The cheapest consumer good markets in the world are probably the U.S. and South Korea. Not surprisingly they are arguably the two lowest tax, most open market and least regulated first world nations.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by brickity » Thu Nov 29, 2012 6:49 am

mah4546 wrote:
brickity wrote:
mah4546 wrote:LEGO Canada operates within it's own sphere. It is absolutely irrelevant to LEGO Canada how the U.S. dollar is doing. It's only relevant how the Canadian dollar is performing versus the Danish kroner.
Ok, I'll bite.
In January 1995, $1 CDN could buy $0.70 USD and 4.27 DKK. $1 USD could buy 6.03 DKK.
Today, $1 CDN can buy $1 USD and 5.80 DKK. $1 USD can now buy 5.76 DKK.

In essence, the USD compared to the DKK hasn't changed much, so if we use that as a baseline... this is where the problem starts. Against the DKK, our Canadian dollar went from 4.27 to 5.8 since 1995. The US dollar barely changed and in fact has gotten worse. So why is it that Canadians still get gouged... ah yes, the taxes, smaller markets, gasoline, etc... In 1995, none of that mattered, but now it does?
In 1995, LEGO was imported to Canada tariff free from the United States. Again, as I said, LEGO used to be manufactured in the U.S., and there is no import tariffs for U.S. goods to Canada.

Today, LEGO is imported primairly from Europe (although there is a facility in Mexico). Canada continues to charge high import tariffs from Europe - as high as 20% on certain consumer goods. The U.S. has virtually zero import tariffs on consumer goods. Canadians have to pay that high cost for imported goods. Americans don't.

Compare LEGO's Canada prices to Denmark - I bet they are pretty in line with each other. Denmark might even be more expensive. Both are high-tax, highly regulated markets with socialist economies and limited freedom of enterprise.

The cheapest consumer good markets in the world are probably the U.S. and South Korea. Not surprisingly they are arguably the two lowest tax, most open market and least regulated first world nations.
I guess it's just time to disagree. When the US Lego plant was closed in 2006, all US production was moved to Mexico, so import tariffs should have a net effect of zero for Canada.

Don't get me wrong, Lego has every right to price their product however they feel is appropriate. In 2006, they restructured everything and moved their production plants to Mexico, Eastern Europe, and China. Arguably, quality went down, costs went down and prices/profit went up. We, as consumers (especially in Canada) can make choices. My choice is to purchase outside of Canada... one day, Canadian retailers will eventually wake up and put pressure on these companies to align their pricing in an increasingly globalized economy. For now, they'll lose a small amount of business (although it's growing) to consumers that choose to shop elsewhere.

All I'm saying is that Canada is being gouged and it's not only Lego that does it. You can continue to argue markets, taxes, etc... but honestly, none of that makes sense in light of our currency. The simple fact is that the Canadian currency has increased dramatically over the last decade and even more so if you go back 20 years. This simple fact results in increased profits for Lego in the Canadian market place. It would be nice if Lego acknowledged that and corrected their pricing to reflect this change, but instead we get smoke up our butts with every excuse in the book. If our currency went the other way and devalued 20%-30%, I'm pretty certain we would see Lego change their pricing immediately.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by pdaaat » Wed Dec 05, 2012 8:35 am

I called Lego Shop At Home and they have blocked ALL forwarding services.

I expressed my frustration telling them that I understand the 20% price gouge mark up, but now they are hitting people who are able and willing to cross the border and save some money. Of course, no answers other than sorry.

And this is a year when we have seen other toys such as action figures become more closely priced in Canada to American prices.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by pdaaat » Wed Dec 05, 2012 9:29 am

Maybe though this is really to target smaller retail shops in Canada who buy in the US and resell in Canada???

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by Hodgeman » Wed Dec 05, 2012 9:49 am

pdaaat wrote:I called Lego Shop At Home and they have blocked ALL forwarding services.

I expressed my frustration telling them that I understand the 20% price gouge mark up, but now they are hitting people who are able and willing to cross the border and save some money. Of course, no answers other than sorry.

And this is a year when we have seen other toys such as action figures become more closely priced in Canada to American prices.
Geeze, maybe they'll start asking for proof of American citizenship if you shop in a LEGO store over the border..."sorry, Canadians can't buy here!"
LEGO, it's not just a toy, it's an addiction... ;)

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by Luciant » Thu Dec 06, 2012 8:26 pm

mah4546 wrote:
cookiemonstr69 wrote:
nami wrote:When I also asked them why Canadians are paying 20-30% more for Lego when the dollar is at par, again, no reasonable answer.
I think that's the true rip off.
No, it's not.

1) Taxes are higher in Canada. That factors into the cost.
2) Competition is less free and less numerous in Canada. The factors into the cost.
3) The population is significantly smaller,meaning fixed costs (like hiring HQ employees, running a distribution warehouse) are spread over a much thinner population base. That factors into the cost.
4) Speaking of which, labor and utilities are much more expensive in Canada. That factors into the cost.
5) Oh, and transportation costs are significantly higher in Canada. There's more costs.
6) Did I mention Canada has high import tariffs while they are virtually zero for the United States. Is LEGO magically supposed to make pretend that doesn't exist?

Canada is a highly regulated country extremely high operating costs, like most of Western Europe, while the United States is the complete opposite. It enjoys significantly more consumer freedom, less taxes, less regulation, cheap energy and more competition. That makes consumer goods cheap. If you think the extra $20 a Canadian pays for a Hobbit set is a rip off, what do you think of the extra $10,000 a Canadian pays for a basic import luxury sedan like a G35?

People have it all mixed up - consumer goods are priced normally in Canada. It's that the United States offers a market that allows them to be dirt cheap.

As an Economist and student of Business, I really appreciate someone else understanding the issues behind the differences in prices between countries. Lego gives these reasons because they are true. Comparing price ratios today vs price ratios 20 years ago makes no sense. MANY changes have occurred, politically and economically since.

Think about it people: What is the biggest issue when you personally sell LEGO to someone online? Attempting to keep shipping costs to a minimum because it easily get's expensive and can even negate a good discount/deal. Think of LEGO.. It has a few distribution centers in the US, not nearly as many in Canada. Weight and distance are big factors in cost of shipping. Businesses don't eat that... it's put back on consumers.

Also, what about the issue with "customs?" The crossing the border to purchase in the US assumes you take back the set w/out paying any fees/dues on them correct? You are dodging the Import Taxes your country has in place to keep your jobs/economy competitive... unfortunately Lego is lumped in although it isn't protecting many Canadian Lego jobs. Isn't this essentially "tax evasion" in order to avoid paying the additional fees the retailers in Canada are obligated to pay because they have to be "legal" in purchasing their wares?
I have mixed feelings about new releases: I can't wait to see and get the new sets... but I can't figure out where I'm gonna put them or store them.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by cornbread » Thu Dec 06, 2012 9:17 pm

Luciant wrote: Also, what about the issue with "customs?" The crossing the border to purchase in the US assumes you take back the set w/out paying any fees/dues on them correct? You are dodging the Import Taxes your country has in place to keep your jobs/economy competitive... unfortunately Lego is lumped in although it isn't protecting many Canadian Lego jobs. Isn't this essentially "tax evasion" in order to avoid paying the additional fees the retailers in Canada are obligated to pay because they have to be "legal" in purchasing their wares?
Even if customs makes you pay tax on the way back through the border, the American prices are enough to still make it worth the trip. Additionally, if you are gone 24 hours or more you get an exemption of a certain amount of dollars worth of goods.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by brickity » Thu Dec 06, 2012 10:55 pm

Luciant wrote: As an Economist and student of Business, I really appreciate someone else understanding the issues behind the differences in prices between countries. Lego gives these reasons because they are true. Comparing price ratios today vs price ratios 20 years ago makes no sense. MANY changes have occurred, politically and economically since.



Think about it people: What is the biggest issue when you personally sell LEGO to someone online? Attempting to keep shipping costs to a minimum because it easily get's expensive and can even negate a good discount/deal. Think of LEGO.. It has a few distribution centers in the US, not nearly as many in Canada. Weight and distance are big factors in cost of shipping. Businesses don't eat that... it's put back on consumers.

Also, what about the issue with "customs?" The crossing the border to purchase in the US assumes you take back the set w/out paying any fees/dues on them correct? You are dodging the Import Taxes your country has in place to keep your jobs/economy competitive... unfortunately Lego is lumped in although it isn't protecting many Canadian Lego jobs. Isn't this essentially "tax evasion" in order to avoid paying the additional fees the retailers in Canada are obligated to pay because they have to be "legal" in purchasing their wares?
Yes, many changes have occured in the last 20 years. Most notably the value of our Canadian dollar. I just don't understand how anyone can ignore that.

As for distribution centers in the US... I think you have 1 (maybe 2 now?). It's hard to find information on this, but I'd love to know.

As for customs, you're incorrect in your assumptions. When people cross border shop, they include the cost of gasoline and taxes. Typically you end up paying just federal sales tax (GST) and provincial sales tax (PST), but the tax is irrelevant, since you'd pay that here anyways. When comparing prices, it's usually done pre-tax... the tax on top applies to both Canadian and US sales alike (paid when you cross back into Canada). Anyhow, even factoring in gas and taxes, if you hit a good US sale, then it's worth it.

As a student of business, I imagine this case study would be fairly fascinating. If you examine the Canadian market place and understand that our purchasing power has increased by nearly 50% (i.e. 70 cents to the USD with an increase of 30 cents), this should be a game changer. But companies like Lego are working so hard to maintain their archaic pricing model, while trying to fight off globalization (instead of embracing it). They attempt to restrict Lego exports, but in the end, they can't restrict everything and end up shooting themselves in the foot (Lego Canada). Strictly using conjecture, if they re-aligned their pricing, they could regain some market share from consumers that are purchasing outside of Canada. They could also compete with other toymakers who have already adjusted their pricing (bear in mind that other toymakers do price their toys higher in Canada, but the difference is significantly less than Lego).

It's only been 6 years since Lego was in serious financial trouble. Will they end up in the same place again? I certainly hope not, but every year, the prices go up, quality goes down (arguably), and AFOLs grumble. Lego entices us with new sets, new themes, new pieces, and even new build techniques. As AFOLs, we'll probably continue to purchase (I know I will) even if prices continue to rise, but will the average parent continue to purchase Lego?

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by Luciant » Sat Dec 08, 2012 11:28 am

I appreciate the information about the way the tariffs / taxse work when crossing the border. If I may ask another question regarding them? From what it sounds like to me... Lego essentially adds a tarriff for Lego coming "directly" to Canadian stores (due to consumer protection laws in Canada not due to increased costs, etc.), thereby forcing your retailers to pass that tariff on to you consumers. By crossing the border to take advantage of US sales / companies who will ship to Canada... your avoiding those tariffs your government put in place to "protect jobs." In essence, you not purchasing in Canadian stores, thereyby avoiding giving YOUR government the tax/tariff revenue designed to protect Canadian jobs, and are promoting the Jobs in the U.S instead... it kind of supports the reason the Canadian government put the hike in place, except for those who live close enough to cross the border, doesn't it? You could potentially lose Canadian jobs because people are buying in American stores rather than Canadian ones...granted because of lower prices... but that is the reason the US lost our manufacturing and other jobs here...

Brickity, I understand where you are coming from using your "purchasing power" examples. I agree that this is ONE factor in the pricing structure, but it is by no means the end all / be all. There are MANY factors involved, and one of which is being able to make a profit... both Lego as a producer and the stores who resell must make a profit to stay in business. I personally believe that we have no right to tell companies how much money they are "allowed" to make, as the market should take care of itself.... if consumers believe the product is over-priced... they should not buy until they are able to at a more reasonable price. Unfortunately the masses do not believe this to be the case, only savy consumers such as yourself. The options for you are not great: Cross the border to purchase at more reasonable costs but ultimately Lego is still selling their product or refuse to purchase Lego and raise awareness with others who purchase the product to protest your government's protectionist laws which are an even bigger factor in why Canadian MSRP is higher.

I really have to point back to "People have it all mixed up - consumer goods are priced normally in Canada. It's that the United States offers a market that allows them to be dirt cheap." It's the absolute truth. Prices in the UK, Europe, Australia, etc. are on PAR with Canadian prices. Remember that Oil/Gas is EXTREMELY cheap in the US compared to those other same foreign countries too. If the US went on par with the rest of the world, we would freak out beacuse we are so used to having artificially low gas prices. I would even venture to say that oil/gas is one of the PRIMARY cost drivers due to plastic being made from petrollium as well as it being the greatest cost in terms of shipping/transportation.

Ultimately, I just don't think it's "fair" to try to Villify TLG/LEGO here because ultimately because we don't know all the factors in their cost structure.... International companies do not have control of Government policies which can dramatically effect costs from country to country, so it's wrong to think they are just trying to squeeze out more profit because we assume it costs the same to sell/ship to every country.
I have mixed feelings about new releases: I can't wait to see and get the new sets... but I can't figure out where I'm gonna put them or store them.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by meyerc13 » Sat Dec 08, 2012 5:58 pm

Isn't it obvious why LEGO won't ship to these services? To avoid credit card fraud. LEGO has gotten slammed over the past two years with fraud. This isn't some conspiracy to get those of you who figured a way around LEGO's higher prices in Canada, this is anti-fraud pure and simple.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by dr_spock » Sat Dec 08, 2012 9:57 pm

meyerc13 wrote:Isn't it obvious why LEGO won't ship to these services? To avoid credit card fraud. LEGO has gotten slammed over the past two years with fraud. This isn't some conspiracy to get those of you who figured a way around LEGO's higher prices in Canada, this is anti-fraud pure and simple.
Fraud prevention is boring. Conspiracy theory is more exciting and believable for some people.

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Re: Lego Shop@home Ripping off Canadians

Post by brickity » Sun Dec 09, 2012 1:13 am

Lucient, I don't think the prices in Canada for Lego are a reflection of tariffs. Lego simply pads the price to maximize profit. As for avoiding taxes, the customs procedure in Canada ensures that both the federal and provincial governments receive taxes on imported good. You cannot avoid it. As a consumer, I can choose not to purchase from Lego Canada and its associated retailers, which would reduce their sales. This in turn would reduce the profit margins of the company and ultimately the corporate tax that's paid, but it's a silly argument altogether. It would be the same as asking you never to buy anything on sale from a company, because you end up paying less.... paying less results in less profit for the company... and less taxes paid to the government. With this argument, you should always pay full price for everything and avoid any sale altogether, because it hurts retailers, it hurts the economy, it hurts the government, and ultimately hurts you.

Also, I can agree with you that the pricing structure of an item can be complex and that there are many factors, but without any evidence of major economic changes, you're just guessing at why Lego's pricing scheme hasn't adjusted for the increase in purchasing power. And if we apply KISS, the simple answer is because they don't have to and they simply get away with price gouging. We know for a fact that Canadian consumers have increased their purchasing by nearly 50%... how come Lego can't acknowledge this?

And it's not wrong to assume that Lego is price gouging. All the evidence points in that direction. What is so special about Lego as a toy maker that their pricing model differs so greatly from other toy makers? And don't get me wrong, I'm not villifying Lego. I love their products. I spend thousands of dollars every year on their products. My son wears Lego shirts and plays with Lego toys. Over 80% of my Christmas gifts I buy for kids (friends and family) are Lego products. It's almost insane how much I spend on Lego... but because I spend so much on Lego, if I can save 20%, 30%, 40%, or even 50% off Canadian retail prices, it amounts to hundreds of dollars a year.

At the end of the day, there's no transparency with Lego's pricing model (and I don't expect it). Even if Lego Canada just changed their pricing model to be more consistent with other toy makers and had 5% to 10% markups, it would be a little more palatable. But the current markups make no sense when comparing the market place, the change in our dollar, and everything else we know as fact.

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