[US] Sales at Amazon

MugenPower

Since Amazon started charging tax in my state a few years back, I just go with whichever store gives the best perks.  Generally speaking, Amazon seems to match competitors' pricing now instead of having their own great deals so for me, Amazon loses out almost every time.  Most of the standard B&M stores are relatively close to me and I have to pay tax either way, so I almost exclusively go to a store now to PM or take advantage of sales.  This lets me either earn points (TRU, BB, Target Cartwheel), get additional discounts (Target Red Card), or get a bonus item (TRU).  Otherwise, I prefer to take advantage of S@H's 2x points or get in on a freebie at MSRP.  And this is just for Lego.  Amazon's been pretty low on the shopping totem pole for me once they started charging tax and only having lame sales/copied everyone else's sales.

teal93mr2

Having the Amazon Chase card provides 5% cash back, so VIP/Cartwheel/etc is pretty much a wash for me. TRU is actually less than 5% off since you have to spend $125 for a $5 gift card. Typically I've been waiting until a set is later in its life and been able to find decent deals on Amazon rather than scrounge around for clearance deals (i.e. #75137 for $14.00), #76059 for $21.59). Patience is really the key. 

MugenPower

Yeah, I rarely ever pay RRP for any set and it's almost always through S@H for exclusives that don't go on sale AND there's 2x points with or a freebie I want.  Everything else, I wait for sales.

madforLEGO

#76077 Iron Man Detroit Steel strikes set is 23.99 ( 20% off)

Ronyar

Amazon appears to be price matching the ToysRus BOGO 40% off on City sets.  Have to add two sets to your cart and go to checkout to see the discount. 

Ronyar

I believe the sale also covers Duplo, Superhero Girls and Ninjago.  Haven't tested enough to be sure. 

exciter1

Ronyar said:

Amazon appears to be price matching the ToysRus BOGO 40% off on City sets.  Have to add two sets to your cart and go to checkout to see the discount. 

Many sets 40% - 50% off when you buy 2.

Yodalicious

madforLEGO said:

#76077 Iron Man Detroit Steel strikes set is 23.99 ( 20% off)

Looks like they're matching Target's 20% of Superheroes deal on most available sets.

madforLEGO

#21307 Caterham is 57.94 (28% off)

madforLEGO

exciter1 said:

Ronyar said:

Amazon appears to be price matching the ToysRus BOGO 40% off on City sets.  Have to add two sets to your cart and go to checkout to see the discount. 

Many sets 40% - 50% off when you buy 2.

must... resist.... need to save money for upcoming City sets...

prevere

I broke down for the airport set at $66 apiece. Service Station is $56 I believe with 2, and still overpriced at that!

madforLEGO

prevere said:

I broke down for the airport set at $66 apiece. Service Station is $56 I believe with 2, and still overpriced at that!

I think the Airports are great deals (broke down and got two) but I think the Gas stations have some room to go.
Another good deal is the City Fun in the park set which is on sale for 28 before the promo.

Ronyar

I picked up the #60134 Fun in the Park and #60150 Pizza Van sets for $40.99.  Not the best match for 40% off the cheaper set, but they were the only two city sets I wanted right now. 

lentil

Thanks for posting that hidden BOGO deal! I picked up #60147 Catamaran and #60149 Fishing Boat for about $13 each. They were both 20% off to begin with (RRP $20), the BOGO sale bumps it down to about 1/3 off. i'd like to get #60132 Service Station too, but it's way overpriced, and there's nothing I want that I could pair with it in a similar price range. Just have to hope it goes on more of a sale in the future...

madforLEGO

Yeah, the newer sets are on sale, got a couple of the Pizza van and a couple of the Sweep and excavator sets at the 40% off. Also, two of the new Guardians sets are on sale:
#76079 Ravager attack $15.99
#76080 Ayesha's revenge $23.99
Both 20% off

SithLord196

Cashed in about $35 of Cashback from my credit card and got #71016 for about $136.39 with free shipping and no tax (it was from a marketplace seller). 

I wasn't sure it would ever get cheaper than $172, so I decided to just pull the trigger.

exciter1

Goonies pre-order - $14.99

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MSER0YJ/ref=ox_sc_mini_detail?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&tag=bptag-20

Chase McCain pre-order - $5.99

https://www.amazon.com/LEGO-Dimensions-City-Fun-Pack/dp/B01N3BAKTX/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1491587797&sr=8-1&keywords=lego+dimensions+chase

teal93mr2

Interesting how the Hermione is not also included in the sale, but kudos to Amazon for matching.

ColoradoBricks

^ It was earlier, I pre-ordered it for $5.99 along with the Goonies and Chase McMcain after reading the TRU thread.

teal93mr2

ColoradoBricks said:

^ It was earlier, I pre-ordered it for $5.99 along with the Goonies and Chase McMcain after reading the TRU thread.

Ahh okay. I figured out of the 3, Goonies would have to be the most popular but you never know. Glad I was able to get my pre-order for all from TRU before the "brickset effect" (plus slick deals, ha) happened. 

madforLEGO

teal93mr2 said:

ColoradoBricks said:

^ It was earlier, I pre-ordered it for $5.99 along with the Goonies and Chase McMcain after reading the TRU thread.

Ahh okay. I figured out of the 3, Goonies would have to be the most popular but you never know. Glad I was able to get my pre-order for all from TRU before the "brickset effect" (plus slick deals, ha) happened. 

It sucks I missed out, but I'm guessing this will not be the only time for such deals to occur with these sets.

KingAlanI

I calculate total cost when making purchase decisions, including sales tax. All my LEGO purchases are from retail stores, or websites of major chains, so it's a moot point for relative cost. Target redcard discount is often a tiebreaker, sometimes VIP and promos on S@H.

Lakeside Lodge is now $19.19 instead of $18.99, but now Target has the same price

@pharmjod
I got interested in the MB Trek sets because of the previous discussion, thanks for the reminder
It's back at $149.99 right now, but the smaller MB Trek sets are on sale - transporter room 66%, Klingon D7 46%, Day of the Dove 32%, Enterprise bridge 30%, Guardian of Forever 25%. What kind of deals do you usually see on those? I already considered getting some both for their own sake and as a test before getting the Enterprise.
MB Kubros, similar to BrickHeadz, includes Picard, Worf and Spock, but I'm not interested in that aesthetic anyway.
Licenses that TLG doesn't have are a prime reason for buying other brands.

BillyBricks84

@KingAlanI The MB Enterprise set is $80 on Best Buy's eBay page: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mega-Bloks-Star-Trek-U-S-S-ENTERPRISE-NCC-1701-Grey-/192137455222?hash=item2cbc48e676

josekalel

MugenPower said:

Since Amazon started charging tax in my state a few years back, I just go with whichever store gives the best perks.  Generally speaking, Amazon seems to match competitors' pricing now instead of having their own great deals so for me, Amazon loses out almost every time.  Most of the standard B&M stores are relatively close to me and I have to pay tax either way, so I almost exclusively go to a store now to PM or take advantage of sales.  This lets me either earn points (TRU, BB, Target Cartwheel), get additional discounts (Target Red Card), or get a bonus item (TRU).  Otherwise, I prefer to take advantage of S@H's 2x points or get in on a freebie at MSRP.  And this is just for Lego.  Amazon's been pretty low on the shopping totem pole for me once they started charging tax and only having lame sales/copied everyone else's sales.

I used to buy a lot of DVDs/Blu-rays in Amazon because they used to have good sales, and even the Disney coupons that are now long gone and used to be great deals, but I feel the same way you do. If Walmart or Target have a good sale on something that Amazon does, I'll get it at the B&M store. Amazon also tends to have less 'exclusives', so that also does not help when making the decision of where to buy. 

pharmjod

@KingAlanI I don't pay attention to MB pricing at all. Just remembered the interest in the enterprise and wanted to let others know of the price. 

KingAlanI

BillyBricks84 said:

@KingAlanI The MB Enterprise set is $80 on Best Buy's eBay page: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mega-Bloks-Star-Trek-U-S-S-ENTERPRISE-NCC-1701-Grey-/192137455222?hash=item2cbc48e676

Sweet! Especially since $99.99 is the best Amazon price mentioned in this thread. Made sure to get one. Also ordered all of the other sets from Amazon. Didn't see the other sets any cheaper on eBay, but even with those, thanks for the idea of another place to look.

madforLEGO

#60052 Cargo Train is $139.99 (30% off).

richl

Not a deal,but has anyone else noticed a change in how Amazon displays prices today? Instead of showing the new price against the RRP and the percentage off that, its now showing the previous price and the discount against that - makes it a little more difficult to track discounts. 

For example, #76055 currently shows as $53.99 down 16% against the previous price of $64.02 instead of being 23% off the RRP of $69.99.

rd1899

^Regarding the change in list prices, that is something Amazon has been doing for at least the past year, partially in response to complaints from consumer groups (New York Times, July 2016), including, as recently as last month in California (SeattlePI.com).

California law regarding false price advertising essentially requires the list price to not be the RRP, but "the prevailing market price" during the three months prior.

The lawsuits cite claims of false advertising and unfair competition
based on alleged violation of a California state law that prohibits
advertising a former price unless it was “the prevailing market price”
within three months before the ad runs, unless the ad “exactly and
conspicuously” states the date when that price was in effect. California
law also prohibits retailers from “making false or misleading
statements of fact concerning reasons for, existence of, or amounts of
price reductions.”

(Source:  TheFashionLaw.com - post is not specifically about Amazon)

As to how the list price is displayed for a specific product, that can vary (as mentioned in the NYT article above):  Sometimes the actual list price is displayed, sometimes just the current price is displayed, and other times (such as your #76055 example), a non-RRP previous price is shown instead.

~ ~ ~

Regarding how to keep track of discounts on Amazon, I use their (wish) lists.  For each item in a list, one can add personal notes in the "Comment" field, such as the RRP, as well as a personal trigger price for the item. I also usually note the current price when I add the item, and later on, I try to add any significant price reductions, especially a flash sale that I may have missed.

datsunrobbie

After reading the FashionLaw article linked in your post, this looks like the typical result of the government trying to help but actually making things more difficult for the public.
There was confusion over discounts based off of RRP, which is not the same as MSRP. Rather than requiring the advertised discounts to be based off of MSRP, which would have forced all the retailers to use the same baseline, they went with the "prevailing market price", which could be any price that particular retailer was selling at in the last 90 days. The problem with that is a retailer like Amazon or Toys R US can bump the price to MSRP +20% for 3 months on a slow moving item, then advertise it at a higher percentage discount than competitors who were selling at or below MSRP. Then customers who are searching for 50% off deals will find their manipulated discounts, rather than a 20% off (with the same or lower final price) from a more honest retailer.

josekalel

They should just leave it like it is, MSRP from the manufacturer, and then the store's price, whether it's Amazon, Walmart, Target, etc. 

On the other hand, I try to use CamelCamelCamel.com as much as I can, it's extremely helpful, especially it's Chrome extension. 

pharmjod

Ah, nothing like California doing California like things. 

exciter1

KingAlanI said:

BillyBricks84 said:

@KingAlanI The MB Enterprise set is $80 on Best Buy's eBay page: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mega-Bloks-Star-Trek-U-S-S-ENTERPRISE-NCC-1701-Grey-/192137455222?hash=item2cbc48e676

Sweet! Especially since $99.99 is the best Amazon price mentioned in this thread. Made sure to get one. Also ordered all of the other sets from Amazon. Didn't see the other sets any cheaper on eBay, but even with those, thanks for the idea of another place to look.

It was $79.99 on Amazon a couple times.  Great deal with no tax and 5% back.

Mynatt

The marvel superheros airport battle is on sale to prime members for $54. 

josekalel

^I never found it 50% off in Walmart, and didn't get it when it was $52.99 a few months back, so I'll bite...Brickseek still says that the store nearby has two at $30 but that's not true...

madforLEGO

I have two already, that is as many as I think I want to get at this point.

dspigel

Amazon currently has #76081 The Milano for $39.99

madforLEGO

Probably what Id pay for it. 20% of is Ok. I wonder if it has further to go, then again I wonder if these will take an Ant man route and be done in 6 months?

KingAlanI

exciter1 said:

KingAlanI said:

BillyBricks84 said:

@KingAlanI The MB Enterprise set is $80 on Best Buy's eBay page: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mega-Bloks-Star-Trek-U-S-S-ENTERPRISE-NCC-1701-Grey-/192137455222?hash=item2cbc48e676

Sweet! Especially since $99.99 is the best Amazon price mentioned in this thread. Made sure to get one. Also ordered all of the other sets from Amazon. Didn't see the other sets any cheaper on eBay, but even with those, thanks for the idea of another place to look.

It was $79.99 on Amazon a couple times.  Great deal with no tax and 5% back.

Amazon does charge sales tax to my state. 5% back how? You have an Amazon credit card or something? I was turned down for one awhile ago.

eggshen

#70595 Ultra Stealth Raider is currently $66.95 for Prime members.

I didn't order one from there as I don't have Prime, but my local Target was nice enough to price match, so with a couple of freebie gift cards (Target frequently has free $10/$5 gift card with purchase ads) I was able to pick one up for $22 out of pocket. Love it!

exciter1

KingAlanI said:

exciter1 said:

KingAlanI said:

BillyBricks84 said:

@KingAlanI The MB Enterprise set is $80 on Best Buy's eBay page: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mega-Bloks-Star-Trek-U-S-S-ENTERPRISE-NCC-1701-Grey-/192137455222?hash=item2cbc48e676

Sweet! Especially since $99.99 is the best Amazon price mentioned in this thread. Made sure to get one. Also ordered all of the other sets from Amazon. Didn't see the other sets any cheaper on eBay, but even with those, thanks for the idea of another place to look.

It was $79.99 on Amazon a couple times.  Great deal with no tax and 5% back.

Amazon does charge sales tax to my state. 5% back how? You have an Amazon credit card or something? I was turned down for one awhile ago.

Yes, I have both the Amazon Store Card and Amazon Chase card, both give 5% back.

Dedgecko

exciter1 said:

KingAlanI said:

exciter1 said:

KingAlanI said:

BillyBricks84 said:

@KingAlanI The MB Enterprise set is $80 on Best Buy's eBay page: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mega-Bloks-Star-Trek-U-S-S-ENTERPRISE-NCC-1701-Grey-/192137455222?hash=item2cbc48e676

Sweet! Especially since $99.99 is the best Amazon price mentioned in this thread. Made sure to get one. Also ordered all of the other sets from Amazon. Didn't see the other sets any cheaper on eBay, but even with those, thanks for the idea of another place to look.

It was $79.99 on Amazon a couple times.  Great deal with no tax and 5% back.

Amazon does charge sales tax to my state. 5% back how? You have an Amazon credit card or something? I was turned down for one awhile ago.

Yes, I have both the Amazon Store Card and Amazon Chase card, both give 5% back.

Why have both?

Corwin12

Each offers different promotions at different time.  I have both too.  Right now, the Store Card is offering 10% back on musical instruments and 15% on some Mother's Day gifts.  So, if they offer a discount for something I need/want, it is nice to know it is available.

Dedgecko

Yeesh, I didn't realize that.  Good to know!  Thank you @Corwin12

JooTog

Prime member exclusive - #76057 Web-Warriors Ultimate Bridge Battle @ $61.99

Grabbed my 3rd one.

pharmjod

The technic class tractor is down to $112, 38% off. That is a great price. Thinking about picking up a second. If it goes any lower I may have to do so.

SithLord196

pharmjod said:

The technic class tractor is down to $112, 38% off. That is a great price. Thinking about picking up a second. If it goes any lower I may have to do so.

I saw this. I'm supposed to be saving up for my wedding but that's a set I really want at a really good price. 

I might have to break down and buy it.

SithLord196

Waited too long, it's gone now. 

Chubbles

now you can spring for the Venetian Hour

dspigel

#75095 is currently $162. Not as good as Black Friday but a decent discount.