Just Toys: #LEGOStoreLondon

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Senin, 02 Oktober 2017

exclusive lester minifigure now available in #LEGOStoreLondon!

Lester [40308]
(Photo by: Poncemel Ardiente)

Finally! Lester!

The rumors are true! As reported almost a year ago (yes, it has been almost a year since the biggest LEGO Store in London has opened), more Lester minifigures have been released!

In case you have forgotten, Lester is the official mascot of the LEGO Store London. He was featured heavily in the grand opening promotions, and also in the store design. The quintessential gentleman was said to spark an unexpectedly huge interest among brick fans that the initial plan of featuring him only in print and as an actual mascot was refined the last minute to convert him into brick form as well. During that time, there were only 275 ultra-exclusive Lester minifigures produced (no thanks to the limited and previously discontinued bowler hat piece). During the opening promotions, Lester can only be randomly obtained via a scratch card after a £55 (or more) purchase. He became super rare that a Lester minifigure was listed in the secondary market for up to £3500!

But now, for only £5.99, the Lester [40308] exclusive minifigure can be bought exclusively in the LEGO Store London in Leicester Square! It may not have the exclusivity of the first 275, but it's exactly the same thing! Actually, the new minifigure now comes with an added umbrella piece! Everything is neatly packaged in a pretty polybag. Purchase is reported to be limited to only three per household.

LEGO Store London Exclusive
(Photo by: Poncemel Ardiente)

It's really great for the LEGO Store London to offer something really exclusive, considering that it is a global flagship store for the brand. I was really expecting an I Heart London kind of theme, but Lester is definitely way better, in the sense that he has encaptured that classic British charm.

P.S. Many thanks to my best mates Kuys Ponce and Ate Joyce for snapping the pics, and for getting me my own Lester minifigure! See you soon!

Sabtu, 24 Desember 2016

christmas 2016 haul

Snowglobe [40223]

Happy holidays everyone! What's a better way to celebrate the festivities than bricktacularly?

For my wife and I, this will be our first time celebrating the holidays in the United Kingdom. To divert our attention from homesickness, we both turned to (as one of my closest friends would describe it) brick therapy. Without realizing it, our Christmas 2016 haul instantly grew (mainly due to the freebies).

LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar [75146]

The first set on this list is the LEGO Star Wars Advent Calendar [75146]. As you can see here, I bought it as early as September when it first came out. My wife had to make a note on the box, wrap it, and hide it in plain sight in order to ensure that I'll be able to delay my gratification. I wasn't able to do a daily blog as planned, but I made a gallery post to compensate.

Come November, on the opening of the new London Leicester Square LEGO Store, we acquired the bulk of our holiday sets. For going there really early, we were rewarded with last year's Gingerbread House [40139].

Gingerbread House [40139] Box

Gingerbread House [40139]

And for our purchases, we were gifted with the Toy Soldier [5004420] ornament, and the 24-In-1 Christmas Builds [40222] box set.

Toy Soldier [5004420]

24-In-1 Christmas Builds [40222]

We weren't really planning to buy any LEGO last Black Friday Sale, but the Snowglobe [40223] set is irresistibly beautiful. In my opinion, this is one of the best seasonal sets ever.

Snowglobe [40223] Box

Then there are always the impulse sets. Seasonal sets from the previous years were popping out everywhere. We found the very cute (and very cheap) Santa's Visit [40125] and Reindeer [30474] sets in our local stores.

Santa's Visit [40125]

Reindeer [30474]

And to cap our Christmas 2016 haul, we claimed the re-released Gingerbread Man [5005156] to complement our Gingerbread House [40139]. I just think he was a little overbaked.

Gingerbread Man [5005156]

I guess that's it for this year. There's always next year. Enjoy the holidays!

Minggu, 20 November 2016

#LEGOStoreLondon grand opening

LEGO Store London Opening with Lester and Mayor Sadiq Khan

The new London Leicester Square LEGO Store is now open! And here's brickednexus's viewpoint...

Dubbed as the largest LEGO Brand Retail Store in the world, the new flagships store measures 5,420 square feet in over two floors! With a store that big, it only makes sense to go big as well when it comes to promotions. Here are a few pics:

#LEGOStoreLondon Bus

#LEGOStoreLondon Taxi

Lester in Leicester Square Station

Lester, the official mascot of the brand new LEGO Store, is featured heavily in the promotions, and as you will see later, in the store design as well. The quintessential gentleman is a big help from the countdown to the grand opening event itself. Lester was reported to spark an unexpectedly huge interest among brick fans that the initial plan of featuring him only in print and as an actual mascot was refined the last minute to convert him into brick form as well (more on this later).

Lester in the Grand Opening

Besides Lester and The LEGO Group bigwigs, London Mayor Sadiq Khan was also there to open the Leicester Square LEGO Store not only to London but also to the rest of the world.

Lester Shaking Hands with Mayor Sadiq Khan

Press the Button

It was not forgotten that the essence of LEGO is first and foremost for the kids, that is why the honor of pressing the button to unbox the biggest LEGO Store was given to majority of them.

And of course, a LEGO Store in London won't be complete without the famous Big Ben. A huge model was built from more than 200,000 bricks, towering for about 6.53 meters high. It has a working clock face, and it is illuminated at night. This is just in time for the planned renovation of the real Big Ben. At least people will still be able to see a majestic model.

Brick Built Big Ben

The store didn't fail to deliver its promise of new, exciting, and exclusive LEGO experience. In one of the show windows, there is a device that scans your hand and reveals who you are in brick form. I think it's really random but that doesn't make the gimmick less fun (especially if you get some funny or out of character minifigures).

Who Are You?

Prepare for Scanning

Scanning

You're ~~a Penguin~~ an Eskimo!

Another technological feature is the digital catalog that displays all the stocks in-store. If you don't like to browse the shelf, then this is for you. But who does that? Actually, a more practical use for this beauty is to know the available sets that are not in the shelves. My wife wanted Ariel's Undersea Palace [41063] but we can't see a set anywhere. So, we checked the digital catalog and clicked for assistance ('cause that's what it prompted us to do). Fortunately enough, there are still a few available in the stockroom.

Digital Catalog

And now, making its debut in the LEGO Store London is the Mosaic Maker.

Mosaic Maker

The Mosaic Maker booth will take your picture in real time and instantly convert it into a brick mosaic made out of small black, grey, white, and yellow bricks! How cool is that? The only setback is that it costs £99 to make one.

Pick-a-Brick (or Model) Wall

The flagship store also has the staple Pick-a-Brick (or Model) Wall. It's just a bit disappointing to learn that it's almost the same as with other LEGO Stores. Then per floor, there is a Build-a-Minifigure station each. Another letdown is that there are no exclusive parts or prints in the selection, yet. I'd like to believe that sooner or later, there'll be exclusive prints to choose from, just like in the US stores.

Exclusive sets for purchase were also minimal. The previously free gift with purchase Creator London Bus [40220] is available for £9.99. The Architecture London Skyline [21034] is released early exclusively in the flagship store and it retails at £44.99.

Selfie with Lester

Speaking of exclusive, the Lester minifigure is now considered as ultra-exclusive! During the opening weekend, you can obtain one via a scratch card after a £55 (or more) purchase. You can get either Lester or a Creator Parrot [30472] polybag. Why the lottery? The official explanation is that, as stated above, the minifigure is a bit of a last minute addition to the promotions. However, the bowler hat piece has long been discontinued making it difficult to produce enough Lesters to make everyone happy. All in all, only 275 Lesters were produced for the opening, making it super rare. As of writing, a Lester minifigure is out in the secondary market for up to £3500! But rumor has it (and I wish that this will prove to be true), more Lester minifigures will be released soon...

Freebies (Except the Bus)

Other promotions include a free LEGO Brand Retail Store [40145] for any purchase over £125, a free LEGO 24-in-1 Christmas Builds [40222] for any purchase over £60, and a free LEGO Toy Soldier Christmas Ornament [5004420] for any purchase over £25.

There were also a lot of freebies during the grand opening, from random polybags (Olaf's Summertime Fun [30397], C-3PO [5002948], etc.) to 2015's Gingerbread House [40139] set. A lot of postcards and stickers were also given away. But a first in Europe is The LEGO Store Passport. You can travel around the store then take pictures of the iconic brick builts, and have your passport stamped along the way.

Overall, the new LEGO Store London is a great addition to the wonderful points of interest in this great city. It is a must see for brick fans of all ages to have a new, exciting, and exclusive LEGO experience.

Below are more pictures from the opening weekend...