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Any LEGO fan who has browsed the official LEGO website is no stranger to the VIP program they offer. "Collect 4.5 points per $1 you spend!" In this article, we're going to break down the LEGO VIP program and whether we think it's worth it, or if you're better off buying from a different retailer.
First of all, we need to work out the pros of the program so that we can compare them to the cons. The main one is that for every 675 points you earn, you can redeem them for $7.50 off your next purchase. In Australia, you earn 4.5 points for every $1 you spend, which means for every $150 you spend, you're getting $7.50 off... yeah, not exactly the best discount when retailers such as Kmart, Big W and Amazon often have sales on LEGO ranging from 10% all the way up to 80% off. In the rare instance where you are saving for a set that is usually out of stock though, having some points banked up to get a guaranteed discount could be nice.
Now that we've established that, it's time to look at the other pros. LEGO claims that they offer "early access to the newest, most desirable sets." While it is true that VIPs get early access to sets listed on the LEGO website before they become available to all users, signing up for the VIP program is free and takes less than 5 minutes, making this a somewhat worthless perk.
Benefits offered in LEGO's VIP program as advertised on their website. Source: LEGO.com.au.
They also claim that VIPs will receive "the latest news in our VIP newsletter". We find that this perk is certainly debatable, with many news websites, content creators and social media influencers often leaking sets sometimes months in advance of any official announcement from LEGO. Even just recently, the entire LEGO Star Wars wave had images leaked weeks ahead of the official announcement from LEGO. As of the 30th of December, the LEGO VIP program still has not announced any of the new LEGO Star Wars sets coming out, and the only way to know about them was to either check external websites and leaks, or to go to LEGO.com.au and navigate to the theme you wanted to check, and select the "Coming Soon" filter. This is apparent for other popular themes such as Avatar, Marvel, City, Ninjago and more!
Now, let's talk about the exclusive content...
Some of the LEGO VIP program's exclusive content. Source: LEGO.com.au.
The exclusive content just simply is not exciting, and many of the items are not worth the points required. A sheet of wrapping paper for 1200 points... to get 1200 points requires a minimum spend of $300 AUD to accrue those points unless there is a double VIP points event active. If anyone from LEGO is reading this, I challenge them to tell us with a straight face that spending $300 on LEGO sets for a sheet of minifigure head wrapping paper is worth the money.
In recent times, it seems there have been very few worthwhile items to spend VIP points on, if at all, and they have had their drawbacks.
The LEGO Dragon Adventure Ride was part of a promotional period on LEGO.com.au where VIPs could spend points to get a free set with their next purchase. Source: LEGO.com.au.
The LEGO ride sets that were available about 2 months ago were somewhat decent, costing 2400 points each but only one could be redeemed per person, and you were required to make a purchase for each of the ride sets you wanted to redeem.
Now that we've established the pros in detail, let's take a quick look at the cons:
Other retailers often have large sales on LEGO sets, offering savings usually at around 30% off, which is immediately a better deal than a $7.50 discount per $150 spent
LEGO's exclusive content often consists of colouring-in pages, overpriced merch that doesn't include LEGO bricks, and the one recent event where LEGO sets were available through the VIP program, additional purchases were required
LEGO's VIP program isn't compatible with the physical LEGO stores in Australia, which are run by Bricks Megastore and have their own separate VIP program
The LEGO VIP program's latest news only covers the latest news after leaks have appeared all over the internet
Early access on sets isn't much of a perk when anyone can sign up to the free VIP Program within a few minutes
Upon looking at the above cons, it quickly becomes apparent that LEGO's VIP program isn't worthwhile when other stores can sell you the same sets with substantially better discounts and offers. If you still want to collect VIP points on LEGO.com.au for the rare instances where a good VIP promotion does drop, we would suggest waiting for a double or the very rare triple VIP points offers are available rather than spending your money on these sets with no promotion active.
Ultimately, we would find LEGO's VIP program is not worthwhile and would need an improvement in what it has to offer. Currently, the exclusive content consists of colouring in pages, desktop wallpapers, wrapping paper and keychains, none of which appeals to AFOLS or even older kids wanting to redeem their VIP points. We would suggest LEGO does an overhaul and urge them to consider making some VIP-exclusive sets to make the points worth earning.
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