I was lucky enough to be given a preview tour of Australia’s first LEGO Certified Store at Dreamworld today. The store officially opens at 9am Saturday January 28th (QLD time) but I was able to check it out and get the low down on everything you need to know.
Will the store be offering the same promotions as LEGO online?
Some of them. The manager I spoke to was unable to confirm that all of the LEGO Online promotions would appear in the store, but some should. These promotions will be advertised on the Dreamworld Facebook page. During the tour the store manager discussed the possibility of a dedicated page for the store, so keep an eye out for that.
What is planned in the way of events for kids?
The store will be holding monthly events for kids. These won’t all be Make & Take events but at least some will.
Is anything planned in the way of adult events?
At this stage there isn’t anything planned for AFOL specific events.
What benefits are there for Dreamworld ticket holders?
The shop is purely a retail space. There are no advantage for ticket holders (no discounts etc). We already knew that you’d be able to enter the store from outside the park but it’s nice to know that those with tickets won’t get special treatment.
How often will the pick-a-brick selection be updated
It’s too early to really tell. Elements that are proving popular will be retained while those that are less popular will most likely be the ones swapped out.
Will shopping at the store earn you VIP points? If not will there be an alternative loyalty program of any description?
The official word is “we’re working on it”. The goal is to link in to the official VIP point system in some capacity. When asked about a Dreamworld specific loyalty program the response was that they want to use the proper one and won’t do anything specific to that store.
Will stock be available in-store the same time as online?
Yes stock should be in-store the same day it’s released online, where possible. Shipping delays might happen but the goal is same day.
What is the pricing for PAB? Is this by weight or cup?
Pricing is by cup. Small cups are $14.99 while Large are $29.99. As long as you can get the lid on you can fill the cup with as much as you can.
What is the PAB selection like?
A good mix of bricks, plates and other elements. I attempted to get one of every piece. When I get a chance I’ll set it all out and do a post about the elements on offer.
Brick engraving
You can get a standard 2×4 brick engraved with up to approximately 10 characters. After being engraved the brick is inked with either white or black ink that dries almost instantly.
Engraving costs $19.99 for a 2×4 brick keyring, or $9.99 if you are using your own brick. So if you get a PAB cup and want one of those bricks engraved it will be $9.99. You can’t just go and grab a single brick from the PAB wall and get that engraved.
The engraving and colouring process is extremely quick – less than a minute. Wait times will depend on how busy the store is.
Make a minifigure
The store has two stations for building minifigures. $19.99 will get you three minifigures. Each one with a hat/hair element, head, torso, legs and an accessory such as a weapon. The elements available during my tour were a good mix of male and female minifigure elements. Accessories included items such as a cat as well as swords. There did not appear to be any flesh coloured figure parts.
Exclusives on offer
75159 Death Star was there.
10255 Assembly Square was on its way and should be arriving soon.
71040 Disney Castle in stock.
The Ideas sets are coming.
The LEGO Batman movie sets will be arriving before the opening on Saturday, as will the DC Superhero Girls sets.
There was a huge range of keychains available but no polybags. They did have the London Bus which was recently offered as a giveaway online (it was $19.99)
On offer was also a range of exclusive items you won’t get in other stores; Chess sets, ice cube and cake trays, the upscaled mug for example.
Opening Day Specials
While stocks last you will be able to receive the exclusive LEGO Brand Store set on Saturday when you spend $199 or more. Saturday is likely to be busy so stocks are likely to go quickly.
Walkthrough Video
For those of you who missed it on Facebook you can re-watch my live video from the preview below. To view it on Facebook click here.
Photo Gallery
In my excitement some of the photos didn’t turn out great. Be sure to check out the video for a better look at the store.
Nice write up. Thanks
Thanks for the review. I am planning on taking my son on Saturday to check it out and maybe pick up a few sets I couldn’t get yesterday with the Myer sale.
Did I imagine it or did your video show the chess set at $109?
Wasn’t the online price around $90?
Are they charging an extra Dreamworld tax on everything?
Thanks for the great review by the way – would love to have been able to make it there!
Every set is full AU retail price. Not competitive at all with other stores for serious Lego fans.
Awesome Michael! By chance I was at Dreamword yesterday and ran into Jay from Jay’s Brick Blog. It was frustrating knowing that the store would be open in a few days. My wallet (& wife) are thankful though.
EEeek!! hope you were seeing things, lego online sells the chess sets for $79.99 AUD.
DId they have https://shop.lego.com/en-AU/The-Phantom-75170
or https://shop.lego.com/en-AU/A-Wing-Starfighter-75175
Pretty disappointing that the build a minifig is $19.99 that such a rip-off, that more money than 3 CMF packs. In Germany it costs only €6.99 = $9.99 that is much more reasonable.
Yep, it is only $10 at places I know of here. $19.99 is when the management ate too much and the excess greed… Food just stuffs up their ability to think. But hey its $19.99 for them; so, would they care? Hang on, $19.99, that shows that they are thinking. More money for them. Well, on the other end, no money them. Doubt they can see that coming till it happens. OMG, real life epiphany. And the wiggles dance starts- Pointing fingers at everything else except themselves.
just preying on the tourist trade…..just like the food prices @ dreamworld…
Dream world are ripping off Lego enthusiasts too???…. NO WAY!!!!
It’s like there whole business ethos hasn’t changed for this one thing for some reason.
I don’t get it.
P.s. Stay off the flume ride
Disgusting
Dreamworld is only the location of the shop.
No discounts for DW pass holders or DW staff.
No price hikes or ‘Dreamworld tax’.
It’s a stand alone Lego store.
its not a stand alone lego store…. its a “lego certified store”…. (which means lego themselves don’t own it or regulate it etc etc…) I am assuming the owners would have to have some ties to dreamworld / Ardent leisure in some form or manner.
Again, this store is honestly only to prey on the tourist trade, anyone can get exclusives buying from lego online (and get a awesome gift with purchase most of the time, or VIP points)
other point is, anyone can get any normal no exclusive set for 20-25% off the standard RRP haf a dozen times a year from Big W, Target, Myers etc, so why do a special pilgramige to dreamworld if your a local.
The store is owned by Ardent Leisure.
The pick a brick is bitterly disappointing. They have the identical bricks up to four times on the wall. Could have several more options to choose from if not for this. They lost my sale.
Can I ask, I don’t understand, can I go to the store without purchasing a ticket to dreamworld?
That is correct. The store has an external entrance and you don’t need a ticket to enter.