Subject:
|
Re: AFOLs as cheapskates
|
Newsgroups:
|
lugnet.market.shopping
|
Date:
|
Wed, 17 Jan 2001 13:38:16 GMT
|
Viewed:
|
802 times
|
| |
|
|
In lugnet.market.shopping, David Eaton writes:
> That's not really the point, I don't think. It's not that you OWE them
> anything-- BUT, does Lego OWE *US* anything? If we take the stance that we
> won't buy junky sets, that's fine. But Lego might go out of business
> entirely.
We've no guarantee that the company will last forever. Our emotional
investment
in the product is a chance that we take in our hobby. But, it would be
foolishness if I squandered my budget by making purchases, in part, to buck up
the company. I do vote with my dollars...I usually buy (in good conscience)
Star Wars sets at full price because I believe that I'm not being unwise
with my money when I purchase them.
And if we want GOOD sets, will we be willing to pay for them?
Free market. If TLC can entice me, or Joe AFOL, or parents or anybody to part
with our income by offering a desirable product at a reasonable price, then
TLC is indeed fortunate, but the onus is on them as the seller, and not the
responsibility of the buyer (which is a point which I realize we are in
agreement on.)
> The
> point was that it seems (to some-- not really to me) that lots of people
> won't even buy GOOD sets for regular prices-- they'll just wait for sales.
Lego's fault. The toy market is a tough business. Lego needs to earn its
revenue. Why shouldn't we all wait for sales? I value my freedom to *not*
purchase. I'm glad that I don't have to go to the proverbial company store to
get my goods. The consumer really does have the power when it comes to the
marketplace of luxury goods such as Lego; we've got the market niche over a
barrel, and not the other way around. I don't *need* Lego, Coca-Cola, compact
disks, $7.50 movie tickets, or any other non-essential in my life. If owners
and employees of Lego chose to make their living in a luxury-goods market,
then
bully to them, but it's their free-market risk to make it profitable.
> And as such, should Lego cater to our desires? I.E. Do they owe US anything
> if we cop out and ONLY buy cheap sets? Interesting debate certainly, but I
> don't think that the question is what do WE owe to Lego... it's what does
> Lego owe to US?
I don't think that either side owes the other anything; it's a reciprocal
relationship of market competition. If I don't want to pay the price, I
won't; but, then If I don't buy, then I take the risk of losing the product from
the marketplace. It's push-and-pull, but nothing is truly owed.
> And the question
> is, what type are you, and what type do you think MOST AFOLs are? And as a
> result, whom do you think Lego should cater to?
That's a question that Lego needs to answer, not me. I've already decided
what
type of consumer that I am. Lego can cater to a troop of dancing bears if the
company is so inclined. If the company wants business from my particular
demographic group, then, again, the onus is on them to research my group's
tastes, our buying patterns and then offer an enticing product. If I like the
product, then I'll buy it. I'd *prefer* that the company caters to my tastes,
and when they do so (such as the SW line), then I make the purchases with a
conscious decision to send a message to the company by voting with my wallet.
I'd like my dollars to have a voice, but I don't expect them to have a say;
Lego can hear it or ignore it; that's part of the un-guaranteed system that we
operate in.
AFOLs who pay for sale
> prices or parents who pay full price? Or do you think most AFOLs DO pay full
> price, hence deserving market representation?
I've never believed that I *deserve* any kind of market representation in
anything. Again, it's free-market competition. A company takes a financial
chance by targeting my particular demographics for sales, and I take the
chance
of losing a desired product if I don't support said company.
james
|
|
Message is in Reply To:
 | | Re: AFOLs as cheapskates
|
| (...) That's not really the point, I don't think. It's not that you OWE them anything-- BUT, does Lego OWE *US* anything? If we take the stance that we won't buy junky sets, that's fine. But Lego might go out of business entirely. And if we want (...) (24 years ago, 16-Jan-01, to lugnet.market.shopping)
|
51 Messages in This Thread:
 
- Entire Thread on One Page:
- Nested:
All | Brief | Compact | Dots
Linear:
All | Brief | Compact
|
|
|
|
