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Petition to reissue Cafe Corner

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Comments

  • mr_bennmr_benn United KingdomMember Posts: 935
    A very welcome final thought from Mr Modular himself. I strongly advise that the mods copy this post and then paste it in ANY thread this topic ever comes up again! :)
  • prof1515prof1515 EarthMember Posts: 1,550
    Thanks for putting this discussion to rest and for the awesome building. Hopefully you guys are working on future releases of some of those buildings mentioned earlier in this discussion. I can assure you at least one person would snatch up at least one copy of each of them. :-)
  • evileddie1313evileddie1313 Member Posts: 126
    ^ Not until we all thank Jamie. ;o)
    Gotcha... ;-)

  • The_Brick_BuilderThe_Brick_Builder Member Posts: 658
    Well, I think Jamie has answered our questions and we can call it a day!
  • LegogeekLegogeek Orange County, CaliforniaMember Posts: 714
    Awesome.
    @jamie - thanks for responding to this discussion. It's nice to hear an insiders view.
    For me, the modulars are the ultimate in LEGO sets, and by far my favorites. If I had to limit myself to a set a year, it would be the modulars. Thank you for helping to bring this wonderful line to us! I look forward to future sets, whatever they may be! :o)
  • madforLEGOmadforLEGO Chicagoland USMember Posts: 10,712
    edited March 2012
    Thanks @Jamie, for a great explanation!

    Now can the Admins put Jamie's response in a perm thread for anyone else that brings this up in the future? :-)
  • JP3804JP3804 Member Posts: 332
    @ Jamie, Hi so you're to blame! ;-) The modulars are what brought me out of my darkages. 2 years and 1000 sets later. Thank you John
  • DougoutDougout Member Posts: 888
    Thanks jamie, for the answer and all the great work you've done over the years! I will be looking forward to what is new to come!!
  • tk79tk79 Member Posts: 329
    edited March 2012
    Pretty impressive to get a reply directly from Jamie...and I thought online petitions were usually a silly thing and always ignored...very nice to get feedback for those fans wanting the rerelease.

    @jamie (or anyone who might know) Excuse my ignorance, but what has happened to some of these molds that they no longer exist?
  • bluemoosebluemoose Member Posts: 1,716
    edited March 2012
    @jamie (or anyone who might know) Excuse my ignorance, but what has happened to some of these molds that they no longer exist?
    The main thing that happens to them is that they wear out; they only have a limited life. Some of the moulds can be refurbished & reused a few (1000) more times, but eventually they are completely spent. As moulds are very expensive to manufacture, so they aren't automatically replaced. The moulds are Lego's 'crown jewels', so even the 'dead' ones don't make it out of the factory intact - they are rendered beyond use (they've even been used in the foundation of some of the buildings in Billund).

    Thanks for contributing to the discussion Jamie :-)
  • davee123davee123 USAMember Posts: 842
    what has happened to some of these molds that they no longer exist?
    Different things depending on the mold-- It's my understanding that most are discontinued after the mold wears out from having produced a lot of pieces. So when that happens, LEGO often takes the opportunity to re-evaluate the element and see if there are any tweaks they can make to it to improve the it before creating a new version of the mold.

    Some of them, however, just never get re-used. I think there was an example that someone high-up gave (maybe Jorgen?) where LEGO was at one time producing about 6 different wheels with peg-holes, and at least 6 corresponding tires to go with them. So some of them were discontinued in order to save money-- IE, if you use the most versatile 2 types of wheels with peg-holes, you don't have to use the other 4, and that's 4 fewer part runs you have to make (switching molds and colors takes time, which equals money), and 4 fewer storage bins to keep.

    Others are discontinued if there's a problem with the mold. For instance, LEGO stopped manufacturing elements with exposed magnets, thanks to safety concerns. The old molds may still have worked just fine, but LEGO needed to switch to something new very quickly to ensure product standards.

    And still others are discontinued because they're too expensive (although this generally has to do with more complex parts). Things like chrome parts, or parts with embedded metal or electronics can be pretty pricey. One of the factors contributing to the end of 9v train track was the cost to manufacture the 9v tracks, which had to go through a special process of adhering the metal tracks (especially difficult in point connections).

    DaveE
  • OdinduskOdindusk Member Posts: 763
    Loved reading that insider insight. Thanks a ton.

  • oldtodd33oldtodd33 Denver 4800 miles to BillundMember Posts: 2,653
    Yes, thank you jamie for commenting. It killed this argument real fast!
  • LegoboyLegoboy 100km furtherMember Posts: 8,825
    ^ Yes, but can you imagine what the prices of those OOP elements he referred to will be like in the morning?! Lol. Thanks Jamie. :-)
  • FatMattFatMatt USMember Posts: 502
    Thanks Jamie for putting a stop to this nonsense. :)
  • parkerwilsonparkerwilson Member Posts: 142
    edited March 2012
    Are we serious here, I myself did not own Cafe Corner until a month ago when I Bricklinked it for less that $300 (not very hard to do). But for this thread to already be 170 post long is crazy. For those that think it should be reissued, this is a fantasy thought and its just not going to happen. Yes I understand reissuing iconic star wars sets every 5 years but this is a modular line where the skies are the limit on designs. There is no possible way there would ever be a reissue with this line as there could be something made instead that is far superior to a previous set. Cafe Corner is nice but it is not that special and a new immaculate corner building could be made that is far superior of Grand Emporium with is far superior of Cafe Corner. I feel like the after market value of the CC is whats driving the interest of the set, not the actual build or finished product itself.
  • starfire2starfire2 Phoenix AZMember Posts: 1,329
    ^ Maybe it was "easy" for you to part out the Cafe Corner, but I nearly had an aneurysm trying to do the want list on Bricklink. I would rather pay more for a used one, then continue with this mind numbing "parting out".
  • legirllegirl Member Posts: 105
    I knew it was worth persevering through all the banter! Thanks Jamie!
  • Si_UKNZSi_UKNZ NZMember Posts: 4,179
    Great insight from @Jamie.

    Can I bring up monorail? I think this is still on-topic enough as we're talking about general rereleases and discontinuations in most of the latter part of this thread.

    They're still very popular, but I understand they're 'off limits' for rereleases because the technology can't be recreated cost-effectively. Surely though, this is not rocket science, it's just a simple motor with a metal cog and battery attached, it can't be hard to source these cost-effectively, or adapt it to a technology which can. Or is the technology reason (which people often give) incorrect- is the purely down to low projected sales?

    (for what it's worth, I'd be in favour of new monorail designs as well as improvements to the technology, rather than a re-release)
  • drdavewatforddrdavewatford Hertfordshire, UKAdministrator Posts: 6,733
    ^ Suggest you open a new topic if you want to move on to something else....
  • Si_UKNZSi_UKNZ NZMember Posts: 4,179
    edited March 2012
    ^ OK, sorry, I thought the topic had shifted.
    http://www.bricksetforum.com/discussion/3869/why-no-more-monorail#Item_1
  • GrogallGrogall Munich, GermanyMember Posts: 159
    edited March 2012
    First @Jamie thanks for your comment!

    I also could not see this happening, I can see both the for and nee for both, but the nee makes more sense! When I first saw pics of CC in february 2007, I knew Lego had just created one of the best series ever conceived and that it would be very popular with the AFOL community, I remember buying this set on March 11th in 2007 and it was the only set I ever bought the day it came out! I also remember that there was a young boy age 11 at the Lego store asking his mother to buy the set for him, She was worried that the set would be to difficult for him to build, but since her husband also liked lego that the hard parts would not be to difficult for him with his fathers help, I learned later that the family has bought every modular ever since, and still has them build. so obviously a lot of young people have bought the set as well. Sure it is sad that CC and GG are not available any more but what would happen in 2 to 3 years for the people then who want FB, GE, PS, TH and what ever comes there after, would you want a rerelease of the other Modulars as well? No! So its good to know that TLG will not give this a second thought, and for the people who want to make there collection complete you will probably get those rare pieces eventually just keep looking! Good Luck!

    Looking forward to the next Modular, Dang another year to wait :(
  • tk79tk79 Member Posts: 329
    @bluemoose and @davee123 thanks for the replies, interesting stuff :)
  • romdamromdam Member Posts: 136
    Isn't that the real problem, though. True collectors would not want to sell their set, so it doesn't impact on them.
    Not true. You might not ever want to sell a set, but it's a nice feeling to have rare pieces in your collection. To start reissuing sets would completely undermine the collectability of the hobby.
    Could care less about having "rare" pieces. I build sets I like, not because something is "rare". If people are stupid to pay $400 for a ugly looking toy, so be it. If people want to pay $600 for it, wow. I would laugh so hard at those people if they did release the set for like $130. So, yes Lego, PLEASE rerelease it, I need a good laugh.

  • Steve_J_OMSteve_J_OM IrelandMember Posts: 993
    Could care less about having "rare" pieces. I build sets I like, not because something is "rare".
    That's wonderful for you. However it doesn't reflect a fairly large portion of the LEGO collecting population, all of whom TLG would piss off by undermining the value of their collection (which they have worked hard to build) by churning out re-releases of ostensibly 'collectable' sets.
  • LegoFanTexasLegoFanTexas TexasMember Posts: 8,404
    ^ And to carry that further, while it is "wonderful for that poster" that they couldn't care less, they would be very sad if Lego went back to the dark times of the late 90s because they destroyed their own collector base.
  • cheshirecatcheshirecat Member Posts: 5,331
    ^ Although that assumes that it was solely the collector base that took TLG out of its dark times.
  • CCCCCC UKMember Posts: 20,523
    I don't understand why collectors want their collection to be worth a lot. To me, those people are investors / sellers, not collectors. Collectors rarely want to part with their sets / parts, so price is not really an issue. It may be good if the sets hold their value in case the collector gets bored of a particular set, but that does not mean they have to go above RRP for that to still hold. But I would prefer for my collection to be worth little, since that would mean I could buy significantly more for the same price, rather than be worth a lot.

    I guess there are very different attitudes towards Lego. Mainly depending on whether you enjoy playing with it or are in it to make money. I have a reasonable, but by no means large, collection. Their value to me is not really what sets I have, it is what models I can build with them. I rarely build the official models any more. I normally build them once, then break them up and build something of my own. I find it much more satisfying to look at something I have designed and built, rather than looking at someone else's creation. Which I guess is why I buy more through bricklink than I do through Lego. In that sense, thank Lego Group for common parts that people sell off cheap after breaking up sets with a single rare piece in.

  • y2joshy2josh Member Posts: 1,996
    I don't understand why collectors want their collection to be worth a lot.
    They don't (usually). What collector's want, at least in my experience, is to have those 'rare' pieces. The monetary value is just a byproduct of this.
  • CCCCCC UKMember Posts: 20,523
    I don't understand why collectors want their collection to be worth a lot.
    They don't (usually). What collector's want, at least in my experience, is to have those 'rare' pieces. The monetary value is just a byproduct of this.
    My point is why do they need to be rare to be appreciated? If it's useful and beautiful what does it matter if it is common or rare?

  • dougtsdougts Oregon, USAMember Posts: 4,110
    I guess there are very different attitudes towards Lego. Mainly depending on whether you enjoy playing with it or are in it to make money.
    These two things are not mutually exclusive.
    My point is why do they need to be rare to be appreciated? If it's useful and beautiful what does it matter if it is common or rare?
    Human nature? People tend to put more internal value on things that are also externally valued. I agree with your point - it shouldn't matter - but it generally does. Plus, even for those that have no intention of ever selling, there's always that "well, if I really had to, I could sell this stuff off" thought, which can provide extra justification to buying LEGO in the first place, as well as some peace of mind (real or imagined) after the purchase.
  • prof1515prof1515 EarthMember Posts: 1,550
    edited March 2012
    I don't understand why collectors want their collection to be worth a lot. To me, those people are investors / sellers, not collectors. Collectors rarely want to part with their sets / parts, so price is not really an issue. It may be good if the sets hold their value in case the collector gets bored of a particular set, but that does not mean they have to go above RRP for that to still hold. But I would prefer for my collection to be worth little, since that would mean I could buy significantly more for the same price, rather than be worth a lot.

    I guess there are very different attitudes towards Lego. Mainly depending on whether you enjoy playing with it or are in it to make money. I have a reasonable, but by no means large, collection. Their value to me is not really what sets I have, it is what models I can build with them. I rarely build the official models any more. I normally build them once, then break them up and build something of my own. I find it much more satisfying to look at something I have designed and built, rather than looking at someone else's creation. Which I guess is why I buy more through bricklink than I do through Lego. In that sense, thank Lego Group for common parts that people sell off cheap after breaking up sets with a single rare piece in.
    There are those, perhaps not the majority in the Lego community but the vast majority outside of the Lego community, who would say that a person who opens the set is not a collector but rather a consumer. Preserving the best possible condition is one of the primary goals of most collectors and rarity is almost always valued higher in any form of collecting.

    Your argument that you'd prefer your collection to be "worth little" doesn't make sense since value accrues on almost anything over time. People who bought the Cafe Corner when it came out paid less than people who bought any other modular since (I don't count the Market Street). The value rose higher than the other modulars over time. That's the case with most anything, Lego or not. Something with a value which doesn't rise over time is referred to as junk.
  • CCCCCC UKMember Posts: 20,523
    ....
    There are those, perhaps not the majority in the Lego community but the vast majority outside of the Lego community, who would say that a person who opens the set is not a collector but rather a consumer. Preserving the best possible condition is one of the primary goals of most collectors and rarity is almost always valued higher in any form of collecting.
    That is true. I will have to remember to refer to myself as a consumer rather than a collector, since the whole point of buying the stuff for me is to play with it. One look at the how big is your collection thread shows me that the true collectors are the people that buy in bulk and store it out of sight, never to be touched.



  • LegoFanTexasLegoFanTexas TexasMember Posts: 8,404
    Some of the retired Lego Racers sets are still selling at or below RRP...

    They are not "valued", but I personally think they are pretty cool, my son is having a blast with them.

    Cafe Corner is "valued", based on the amount of time people spend talking about it, but I wonder if it was only worth $100 today as a retired set, would anyone care or talk about it?

    Human nature is a funny thing, it doesn't always follow logic or a straight line.

    Just food for thought...
  • CCCCCC UKMember Posts: 20,523

    Cafe Corner is "valued", based on the amount of time people spend talking about it, but I wonder if it was only worth $100 today as a retired set, would anyone care or talk about it?
    Probably not. And no doubt those that want it to be reissued want it reissued in limited quantities to rise quickly in value. So if they don't reissue the Cafe Corner set, how about we start another debate ... petition Lego to sell the rare parts through PAB.
  • LegoFanTexasLegoFanTexas TexasMember Posts: 8,404
    Probably not. And no doubt those that want it to be reissued want it reissued in limited quantities to rise quickly in value. So if they don't reissue the Cafe Corner set, how about we start another debate ... petition Lego to sell the rare parts through PAB.
    Keep in mind that as Jamie pointed out, Lego no longer has the molds for some of those parts, some of the colors are retired, and some of the molds have been changed (the arches).

    So Lego would have to return to old colors, plus make new molds, just for PAB.

    I highly doubt that is going to happen. :)
  • CCCCCC UKMember Posts: 20,523
    Yeah, it was a joke.

    Although more seriously, I wonder why they don't keep molds. No doubt they break on usage, but even so.
  • starfire2starfire2 Phoenix AZMember Posts: 1,329
    Does Anyone know on the Cafe Corner door frames, what is the difference between a 1x4x6 type 1 and a 1x4x6 type 2? I can't find 5 of the type 1 door frames on Bricklink.
  • forumreaderforumreader Member Posts: 97
    edited March 2012
    Does Anyone know on the Cafe Corner door frames, what is the difference between a 1x4x6 type 1 and a 1x4x6 type 2? I can't find 5 of the type 1 door frames on Bricklink.
    I'm 95% sure they are compatible. I used the newer door frames on my cafe corner and didn't have any trouble putting the trans-clear glass in.

    Here's a comparison:

    image
  • starfire2starfire2 Phoenix AZMember Posts: 1,329
    ok thank you, I just didn't want to get the type 2 and have issues.
  • evileddie1313evileddie1313 Member Posts: 126
    edited March 2012

    There are those, perhaps not the majority in the Lego community but the vast majority outside of the Lego community, who would say that a person who opens the set is not a collector but rather a consumer. Preserving the best possible condition is one of the primary goals of most collectors and rarity is almost always valued higher in any form of collecting.
    That is true. I will have to remember to refer to myself as a consumer rather than a collector, since the whole point of buying the stuff for me is to play with it. One look at the how big is your collection thread shows me that the true collectors are the people that buy in bulk and store it out of sight, never to be touched.
    Just from my short time on these forums, I get the feeling that most people who post here are Lego consumers, collectors, investors, builders and just overall huge fans of the little plastic bricks...all wrapped into one. As for me, I want to own and build every Lego set and have a collection that appreciates over time. I try to convince myself that I would actually sell my numerous Lego sets one day to make a profit, but until I actually do, I have my doubts that I could use my PayPal account for anything else but buying Lego bricks...

  • romdamromdam Member Posts: 136
    ^ And to carry that further, while it is "wonderful for that poster" that they couldn't care less, they would be very sad if Lego went back to the dark times of the late 90s because they destroyed their own collector base.
    Buying sets ended for me a long time ago. I build sets for my layout the good way, the only good way Lego made sets, with 4 wide cars and nice looking buildings. Not the monstroscities that they call a police station or airport today. I could care less if they stopped making vehicles that are way too big. Give them some credit, at least some of the vehicles now at least have doors. Yes, I buy a current train now and then if it looks nice but to me, the late 90's and nw are one and the same.

    So, no, I could care less.

  • OdinduskOdindusk Member Posts: 763
    edited March 2012
    The expression is "I could not care less". I'm not pointing this out to be an ass. I personally like having it pointed out when I misuse an expression that I've probably been incorrectly using my entire life.

    Although, you probably couldn't care less about me pointing this out to you. =)
  • romdamromdam Member Posts: 136
    The expression is "I could not care less". I'm not pointing this out to be an ass. I personally like having it pointed out when I misuse an expression that I've probably been incorrectly using my entire life.

    Although, you probably couldn't care less about me pointing this out to you. =)
    I culdn't, but hey, you made me laugh!
  • TownTown Member Posts: 68
    Preferred the Green Grocer and Market Street, personally. They were a bit better-looking and smaller than the Cafe Corner.

    Didn't buy the Grand Emporium, Fire Station, or the Town Hall- didn't like the size and colours used in them. Have yet to put together the Pet Shop.

    I've been a fan all of my life but with the giant-ification of Lego sets that basically don't fit in with my sets from the past, and the sky-rocketting prices, I've been less and less excited than I have been in previous times.
  • Philippe84Philippe84 Member Posts: 8
    Do you know if a re-relase of Café Corner, Market Place and Green Grocer's is possible? I didn't have the money to buy them when they were sold by LEGO. And now, they are very very expensive and I cannot afford them...
  • JosephJoseph Member Posts: 629
    edited May 2013
    The short answer is basically no; for more detail you should find this thread helpful, particularly Jamie's comment here: http://www.bricksetforum.com/discussion/comment/57672/#Comment_57672
  • TyoSoloTyoSolo Member Posts: 539
    Yes. Anything is possible, although it is unlikely.

    It would be both fantastic and a travesty if they did, as I still need Market Place and Green Grocer. But if they did re-release them, my heart would sink when I consider how much I paid for Cafe Corner :-/
  • LegoFanTexasLegoFanTexas TexasMember Posts: 8,404
    ^ Ditto, anything is possible, but the current plans are not to do so.

    They can of course remake the molds, the only reason they don't reissue them is because they'll get more sales making something new. Look at Palace Cinema, would we all prefer a reissue of Cafe Corner if that meant we didn't get PC? Of course not...

    CC only makes sense if they do it in addition to PC and make it a [email protected] exclusive, perhaps limited edition for just 6 months.

    But it isn't likely to happen.
  • Philippe84Philippe84 Member Posts: 8
    Thank you for your answers. I hope, LegoFanTexas, you are right. It would be nice to have both: new models and the old ones for a short period. :-)
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