“Everything is awesome,” goes the theme song to The LEGO Movie, and believe it or not, should you choose to invest in some LEGO sets, your bank account may one day too, be very awesome. Come again? Well, according to Shane O’Farrell from New Jersey, US, his side hustle of buying and reselling LEGO sets has been an extremely lucrative business, one that has amassed AED 1.8 million. O’Farrell’s surprisingly ingenious investing has resulted in him starting his own YouTube channel, Bricks Bucks, where he advises other brick fanatics on how they, too, can make a pretty penny selling LEGO sets.
But how and when did this seemingly arbitrary trend arise?
We spoke to Kristian Imhof, General Manager Middle East & Africa at the LEGO Group, for some answers.
Who knew that investing in LEGO would yield such financial success?
Kristian Imhof: Given the love for the brand and specific sets, there has been a big community of collectors and they’ve seen the demand on some older or discontinued sets. That desire to own special sets and expand their collections has driven the idea of investing in LEGO sets.
We’ve seen the LEGO brand gravitate towards adult audiences with many sets catered to grownups – what’s the thinking behind this direction?
Kristian Imhof: With the added stress in people’s lives, many adults are looking for ways to de-stress by taking up activities that allow them to relax and unwind, like painting, crafting, DIY, music lessons, etc. One such outlet is building LEGO sets. According to a LEGO Play Well report from 2022, 8 in 10 adults in the UAE say that playing helps them relax and fell calm, while providing relief from everyday life, chores and worries. Therefor the LEGO group has become more and more accommodating to grownups.
What is the most popular line of LEGO products for adults?
Kristian Imhof: Among the Adult lines, our most popular two lines are LEGO Technic, which is all about the advanced car builds that capture the real cars with their details features like suspensions, steering, engine design, etc. The other is LEGO Botanicals, which is a range of beautiful flowers and plants.
We’ve seen your recent campaign and in-mall events that were focused on LEGO cars, how much of this is related to the passion here in the Middle East?
I’ve lived in different parts of the world and seen the passion people have for cars, but what I see in the Middle East in terms of passion is so much more elevated than anywhere else in the world. This is why our office here in Dubai has initiated the vehicles campaign and has been running it for several years now. It has even inspired other LEGO markets around the world.
What is your favourite LEGO set?
Set 10220 stands out for me. It is the replica of the 1962 Volkswagen T1 Camper Van, and unfortunately no longer in the portfolio. The set includes so many iconic features, is such an enjoyable build, and is a great display model as well. It was the very first LEGO set I bought for myself after I joined the company in 2012.
Note to readers, if you happen to have 10220 Volkswagen set on hand, keep it in mint-in-box condition, you never know what type of payday that might get you.
