Lego...Wal-mart...

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ottoatm
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Post by ottoatm »

Hmm... perhaps the new (and I think improved) lines of LEGO has given Wal-Mart reason to believe they will sell better and are worth the shelf/money investment?

This is my hope... sounds like good times could be coming though - as Wal-Mart would be much more convenient to me and many I know (no TRU near my home).
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doc069
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Post by doc069 »

Asterios wrote:well before you go blaming WalMart and LEGO about the price increase you better start blaming your own government first,the reason prices in the USA are cheaper then Canada is simple,We don't charge import fees,Canada and most of the world do,and these fees avg. about 30% of the products cost,this is also inherenat of why the US $ value is cheaper then the Euro and such.
An interesting thought, but not one that Lego themselves gives as an excuse. Nor would it seem to one that the government themselves applies to importing Lego. I have never been hit with a 30% import fee on anything I have brought into the country. When I asked both Lego directly and the Lego rep I met here in little ol' Red Deer the responses were as follows:
Lego summarized: Canadians are willing to pay more, so we charge more.
Lego Rep: Canadians are willing to pay more, so we charge more. (hmmmm, a theme). In addition he stated that per capita Canadians buy more Lego than in the US, which to his company implies a higher demand = higher prices.

Are these the end-all-be-all facts - I doubt anything is so simple.

Is there a blanket 30% surcharge that the Canadian government charges - I doubt it. If so, then everything that is imported into Canada would be at least 30% more, which is not the case. Many things are the same price, and some are cheaper.

But I digress,

Lee
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Post by bkwrm79 »

Asterios wrote: well before you go blaming WalMart and LEGO about the price increase you better start blaming your own government first,the reason prices in the USA are cheaper then Canada is simple,We don't charge import fees,Canada and most of the world do,and these fees avg. about 30% of the products cost,this is also inherenat of why the US $ value is cheaper then the Euro and such.
When the exchange rate was 30%, Lego and other products cost 30% more. This just hasn't been corrected for the equal value of the two dollars.

I don't know how things are in Europe, but the difference in Canada is the sales tax - which is not factored into that 30% markup. Canada has both federal and provincial sales taxes. Fortunately the federal sales tax is being reduced to 5% (it was reduced to 6% not long ago).

Anyway, I will buy in the US, deal with potential hassle at the border. Even if I'm pulled over and have to pay Canadian taxes, I still save money.
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