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In lugnet.market.buy-sell-trade, Frank Filz writes:
> Jon Kozan wrote:
> >
> > Much as I was afraid of.
> > (Note, that I _still_ don't have mine yet...)
> >
> > While I'm glad that they are easliy willing to correct their mistake....
> > S@H doesn't have the systems to handle customized ordering (bad MRP system).
> > And, they can't afford to let this continue much longer, they certainly
> > can't afford to re-order parts or ship out so many extra parts on one order.
> >
> > Sooo, it will be interesting to see what happen next. :-)
> > Will they fix their MRP/BOM problems????
> > OR, will they stop shipping out these customized orders/sets....???
> >
> > I believe it might easily be the latter.
> > Time to buy the Mosaic, before they stop selling them altogether.
> > (I wonder what they might fetch on ebay when they've become super-rare...)
>
> I don't see why the mosaic should be hard for them to ship. Ultimately,
> because of how it's packaged, its just a group of sets which are ordered
> in a somewhat bizarre way. Ok, I guess they do package the thing into a
> "set" box, and then into a shipping box, and not just throw a bunch of
> sets into a shipping box, but really, how is this any different than
> ordering any other collection of sets? They do a pretty good job of
> packing those orders (I've never seen a mistake there).
>
> Now I guess they fact that the bags for the mosaic aren't given set
> numbers may cause problems. If I was setting up the system for the
> mosaic, I would have given each bag a set number (including the "set"
> box if you really feel it's necessary). Then the only difficult issue
> would be the instructions. I'd even make it easy for folks who really
> just want the 1x1 plates and don't really care about the mosaic by
> making the individual bags available the same way the bulk packs are.
>
> They clearly mostly implemented it the smart way. They aren't trying to
> package 1323 white plates, 27 grey plates and 611 black plates or
> whatever.
From an individual's perspective, this would certainly appear as simple as you
describe it. But, from an accounting system or MRP systems perspective, this is
a ROYAL NIGHTMARE.
Look at it this way.
(LEGO before Mosaic)
My computer system thinks that I get paid for every set that I sell.
If I sell 20 of set X, I get paid 20*X's price.
I know instantly what I've sold, and what to remove from inventory accounts.
Furthermore, life is predictable, I can forecast my demand at the set level and
capture the inventory useage and production requirements at that same level.
But wait.
(LEGO with MOSAIC)
I now don't know what I've sold when I sell something.
I may have sold 20 of this bag, and 3 of that...(23 bags)
Or maybe I've sold 26 bags.
Which is it?
What did that set cost me to make?
26 bags or 23?
What return do I expect to make on this thing?
Furthermore, How do I predict it?
I now have to forecast at one level, and model a forecast at another level, due
to another level of variation I've just introduced.
More issues arise with customized instructions.
Packaging?
Quality?
And a HUGE issue arises with pricing.
How do I price this thing? especially if I want to sell 90 piece bags at some
point.
(What's up with 90 anyway? We'll also have to make 100 piece bags, since
nothing else is 90ish)
With 26 bags potentially per set, plus border ($3.50), plus brick
remover($2.50), plus baseplate ($10), Plus box, and instructions...
That's about $0.50 per bag.
-Jon
THEN I JUST GOT THIS:
Dear LEGO® Shop at Home Customer,
Due to a technical problem, your LEGO Mosaic set was shipped with an
incomplete assortment of building elements. We have repaired this
problem and identified the bricks you are missing. These are now being
prepared for immediate shipment to you.
We appreciate your patience in this matter and apologize for any
inconvenience it may have caused. The elements you need to complete your
Mosaic should arrive shortly, and we hope you enjoy building and
displaying your LEGO Mosaic image!
Sincerely,
Sharon
LEGO Shop At Home Customer Service
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Message has 1 Reply:
 | | Re: How to maximize 90-piece bags?
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| (...) I bet they've forecast based on 25 bags. True, many of us will optimize our pictures to get 26 bags, but I bet even with that concerted effort, the difference in margin will be minimal. (...) I thought I saw a picture of what someone got, and (...) (23 years ago, 14-Nov-00, to lugnet.market.theory)
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