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Subject: 
Re: 10123 Cloud City
Newsgroups: 
lugnet.starwars
Date: 
Mon, 11 Aug 2003 05:14:55 GMT
Viewed: 
1510 times
  
In lugnet.starwars, Rick Clark wrote:
My understanding is that this is not so much a tradition, as it is a
necessity. LD does not have the budget or the authority to commission new
molds.

     Yeah, well, even with rapid-prototyping (which we know they're using), new
mold designs aren't cheap.  S@H exclusives have a much more limited consumer
base than retail releases, and anything that sells well enough through S@H to
justify making new molds is probably going to sell well enough to justify at
least being shipped as a retail exclusive, if not a general release.

Not nearly as annoying as not releasing it at all, which is what probably
would've happened if LD hadn't created the set. And I don't know that they've
ever released two $100 Star Wars sets at retail at the same time.

     Millennium Falcon, UCS TIE Interceptor, and UCS X-Wing in 2000, all within
the same month, IIRC.  Okay, yeah, the X-Wing wasn't $100.  It was $150.  They
also released the DSDK ($100) in the same year, but I can't remember what month
it came out (I know it came out after the UCS sets though).  1999 also saw both
the Mos Espa Podrace ($90) and the DDK ($100).  2001 had Darth Maul ($150) and
the RBR ($200).  2002 had Yoda ($100) and the ISD ($300).  Granted, the 2001 and
2002 sets were all released exclusively to S@H when they first came out, so the
AT-AT is the first $100+ set to go straight to retail since the DSDK...which
ironically was designed to build an AT-AT as well.

I'm pretty sure the retailers would be unwilling to stock both.

     Given how bad they've been at stocking new $5 SW action figures, I'm
surprised that they're even stocking the AT-AT.  Especially when you look at the
sheer number of new sets this year.

On the other hand, if LD sells 10,000 units the first month, and takes
backorders for another 10,000, you might well see it show up on some retail
shelves (like the Santa Fe).

     That's basically what happened to the RBR.  Notice Darth Maul hasn't made
it to retail yet...



Message has 1 Reply:
  Re: 10123 Cloud City
 
i don't think you guys are differentiating the releases from both LEGO Direct and TLC properly. LEGO direct items are S@H and LEGO Retail exclusive items, and i guess it goes into a trial period before retailers opt to carry them, like the RBR, (...) (21 years ago, 11-Aug-03, to lugnet.starwars)

Message is in Reply To:
  Re: 10123 Cloud City
 
(...) My understanding is that this is not so much a tradition, as it is a necessity. LD does not have the budget or the authority to commission new molds. <snip> (...) Not nearly as annoying as not releasing it at all, which is what probably (...) (21 years ago, 10-Aug-03, to lugnet.starwars)

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