Review: 40680 Flower Store
Posted by Huw,
The 337-piece 40680 Flower Store is the first of four matching microscale shops that will be gifts with purchase at various times during this year.
It's available to LEGO Insiders only, from today until the 10th of March, but you'll need to spend over £180/$200/€200 at LEGO.com to acquire it.
Summary
40680 Flower Store, 338 pieces.
An appealing GWP but you'll need to spend big
- Matches the Houses of the World buildings
- Nicely detailed
- Lamppost is far too short
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
Here's how much 'stuff' you're getting for 'free', packed into three numbered bags.
A modest sticker sheet provides decorations, most significantly for the sign above the door. For some reason two versions are provided. It might have made more sense if one was in a different language, Fleuriste, perhaps.
The completed model sits on a 10x12 base. It's stylistically similar to last year's Houses of the World sets in that there's a 2-stud tiled pavement at the front and the building itself has two storeys and is 6-studs deep.
Being a florist's shop, plants of all kinds and colours spill out onto the pavement, occupy the window ledges and climb up the walls. Overall, it's very colourful and detailed.
The lamp post in the corner is far too short in relation to the height of shop: it's barely the height of the front door and frankly looks a bit pathetic.
Both floors of the interior are filled with microscale details.
The shop interior occupies the ground floor, of course, filled with more plants, a workbench and a counter with a cheese slope for a till.
A bedsit can be found the first floor, with a bed and wardrobe on the right, and a sofa and sideboard on the left.
Here it is with the alternative shop sign above the door.
While this is not as desirable as I imagine 40712 Micro Rocket Launchpad is to the majority of you reading this, it is nevertheless a very decent GWP which will appeal to a different demographic, those who enjoy the botanical collection, for example.
The spend threshold of €200/$200/£180 is high, but not as much as it was for the Houses of the World sets last year.
So, get it while you can at LEGO.com. I look forward to finding out what wares the others in the series sell later in the year.
71 likes
40 comments on this article
I don't get these. The spending threshold is way too high and you probably could buy all the parts form PAB.
Not enough to make me want to buy. I did grab my mini Ninjago City though.
@StyleCounselor said:
"Not enough to make me want to buy. I did grab my mini Ninjago City though. "
I really like the look of that, but at the moment I have no set in that price range that interests me, plus I have the full size version already :-)
@StyleCounselor said:
"Not enough to make me want to buy. I did grab my mini Ninjago City though. "
Has the mini Ninjago City been released?
It's among the Insiders' Collectables.
I kinda like it, it sure is better than the Houses of the World. The lamp post is indeed a bit weird and it would have made more sense to have that sign in multiple languages, like they have done in the past. But other than that, just a nice little build.
But that threshold.....and I just got basically all the Lego Exclusives I wanted (plus the McLaren MP 4/4 pre-order) to get the much more interesting Classic Space GWP. And I just don't really get these as GWP. While I do like the set and would likely buy it if it were a regularly available €15-20 set, unlike many other recent GWP sets this just doesn't seem desirable enough for anyone to get out of their way to get one.
@ShinyBidoof said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
"Not enough to make me want to buy. I did grab my mini Ninjago City though. "
Has the mini Ninjago City been released?"
https://brickset.com/article/106748/micro-ninjago-city-available-in-rewards-centre
TLG just release these as sets!!! They'd sell. Really well.
@Huw said:
"A bedsit can be found on the first floor ..."
This sentence is going to throw off a lot of Americans (like me).
1) A "bedsit" is a small studio apartment that shares a bathroom with others. Relatively common in some countries, but rare in the USA outside of college dormitories.
2) What Huw calls "the first floor" is what Americans would call the 2nd floor. Other countries don't include the ground floor when they count floors.
If I'm being honest, the front of the shoo looks way too messy with those gazillion plants.
@BJNemeth said:
" @Huw said:
"A bedsit can be found on the first floor ..."
This sentence is going to throw off a lot of Americans (like me).
1) A "bedsit" is a small studio apartment that shares a bathroom with others. Relatively common in some countries, but rare in the USA outside of college dormitories.
2) What Huw calls "the first floor" is what Americans would call the 2nd floor. Other countries don't include the ground floor when they count floors."
Thank you for the translation. You should have explained what a pavement is as well :)
@Huw said:
" @BJNemeth said:
" @Huw said:
"A bedsit can be found on the first floor ..."
This sentence is going to throw off a lot of Americans (like me).
1) A "bedsit" is a small studio apartment that shares a bathroom with others. Relatively common in some countries, but rare in the USA outside of college dormitories.
2) What Huw calls "the first floor" is what Americans would call the 2nd floor. Other countries don't include the ground floor when they count floors."
Thank you for the translation. You should have explained what a pavement is as well :)"
We know what that is. It's where you lie down for a quiet nap after leaving the pub.
@lost_scotsman said:
"TLG just release these as sets!!! They'd sell. Really well."
But why get $20 when you can force those that want it to spend $200?
@AverageChimaEnjoyer said:
"If I'm being honest, the front of the shoo looks way too messy with those gazillion plants. "
*Shop
Probably going to be added to my saved searches, ironically can't afford to get stuff on my birthday for this threshold unless I use my VIP points and I'm waiting for an insiders X2 for everything - not just mario.
@SINTAX said:
" @lost_scotsman said:
"TLG just release these as sets!!! They'd sell. Really well."
But why get $20 when you can force those that want it to spend $200? "
I wonder how many people would be enticed to spend that 200 bucks just to get this set, and wouldn't have without it. I can't imagine it being that many. Meanwhile, I could see a set like this sell pretty well.
Could be different if this was part of an existing, regularly available series. But now it's kinda a standalone thing, or at best part of a GWP series that requires pretty extreme investments to get into in the first place.
I actually have a bunch of quite similar sets...just not from Lego but from Loz. Not compatible (75% of Lego size), but also much more detailed and with at least double the parts count. And generally around €10 or even less.....
I want space gwp!!!
Did this already sell out in the US or are we getting it later than other markets? All I see is a friends/animal crossing nightmare
It was in my cart but now it isn't — is it sold out already? D:
@rylieaitch said:
"It was in my cart but now it isn't — is it sold out already? D:"
Same issue for me! It's disappeared from the Lego site...not showing on offers now either. I'm hoping it comes back and is just a glitch.
I'd sure love to see a full blown Modular Flower Shop in the same design. Given the variety of parts available nowadays, it could be a nice cross-over with the Botanicals Collection.
This is not showing up in my US store. Instead, I've got Maple's Pumpkin Garden & Beach Cleanup for $50 purchase of selected themes (which didn't show up in my cart, by the way - I've contacted LEGO Customer Service).
For those wondering, yes it's sold out in the US.
Ooh, sand green!
@illennium said:
"For those wondering, yes it's sold out in the US."
ROFL
A) It's not even halfway through Day 1
B) It's an incredibly high spend
C) It's (IMHO) a very weak GWP
D) I think this has more to do with the excitement over March 1 sets than this GWP.
@StyleCounselor said:
"Not enough to make me want to buy. I did grab my mini Ninjago City though. "
My Wish Lists (Yes, Lists, because LEGO stupidly limits how many sets you can want in a single list) are at like an aggregate $5500. My LEGO appetite is at an all time high but my appetite for sets at RRP and/or with MRP (Meh with Purchase) is at an all time low.
I had plenty of sets in my wishlist to meet the spend threshold for this but couldn't decide what to choose last night so I figured I'd sleep on it. Since it already sold out in the US I guess I'll be waiting for future offers. Don't have time to travel to the nearest LEGO store over the next few days just to get this GWP.
There is a bit of a paradox in the Lego Community, where fans want good GWPs, but if they are *too* good, they complain that they aren't available as regular sets.
I think Lego has been killing it with GWPs the past couple of years, and the throwback sets are perfect, because they primarily appeal to only a subset of the fan base.
I wasn't interested in this one, so I'm not upset that I missed it. I was saving a big purchase for the Micro Ninjago City, only to see that pop in the VIP/Insider Reward Center. Now I wish I had made another large purpose for the Baby-Scale Classic Space set.
@BJNemeth said:
"There is a bit of a paradox in the Lego Community, where fans want good GWPs, but if they are *too* good, they complain that they aren't available as regular sets.
I think Lego has been killing it with GWPs the past couple of years, and the throwback sets are perfect, because they primarily appeal to only a subset of the fan base.
I wasn't interested in this one, so I'm not upset that I missed it. I was saving a big purchase for the Micro Ninjago City, only to see that pop in the VIP/Insider Reward Center. Now I wish I had made another large purpose for the Baby-Scale Classic Space set."
I'm wondering if the baby GWP will make another appearance. It seems unlikely that LEGO would underestimate its popularity so much.
I agree that we've been getting some great GWP opportunities. But this 3 day, 1/2 day timeline makes literally no sense to me.
@Huw said:
" @BJNemeth said:
" @Huw said:
"A bedsit can be found on the first floor ..."
This sentence is going to throw off a lot of Americans (like me).
1) A "bedsit" is a small studio apartment that shares a bathroom with others. Relatively common in some countries, but rare in the USA outside of college dormitories.
2) What Huw calls "the first floor" is what Americans would call the 2nd floor. Other countries don't include the ground floor when they count floors."
Thank you for the translation. You should have explained what a pavement is as well :)"
Anglophile that I am, I knew about the first floor/second floor thing, and "pavement" didn't throw me (I'm not sure I even noticed it), but I'm not at all sure I'd encountered the term "bedsit" before; I was about to look it up before I saw @BJNemeth's post.
@tomenadi said:
"I want space gwp!!!"
That sold out very quickly and isn't coming back... you're best bet is to get it on Bricklink.
@yellowcastle said:
" @StyleCounselor said:
"Not enough to make me want to buy. I did grab my mini Ninjago City though. "
My Wish Lists (Yes, Lists, because LEGO stupidly limits how many sets you can want in a single list) are at like an aggregate $5500. My LEGO appetite is at an all time high but my appetite for sets at RRP and/or with MRP (Meh with Purchase) is at an all time low."
That was one of the more bizarre changes to the Lego website, limiting the number of wishes in favor of multiple lists. Completely wierd and idiotic.
I agree with you and many others. The list(s) is/are high, and there doesn't seem to be a path foward to achieving all of it. (I would like to remain married, and I can't really justify a larger house). I don't even know if I really want it all. (Loved your Meh with Purchase!)
I wonder what will happen as the bigger sets age-out? Titanic was pretty popular. Eiffel was less so. How big will the reductions be towards retirement?
I told myself (when they did the huge Lego Price Gouge of 2022), that I was fine not getting the last stadium set. Yet, I ended up buying it at 1/3 the price.
How will it all end? The only ones I really care about are HP and SW. However, I still haven't bought the Venator or Bank. I have zero desire anymore to get big sets at full price.
Showing as not available now in the US now
Definitely the safest side for the bed. Wouldn't risk sleeping under the unsupported chimney that could fall through the ceiling at any moment!
I don't get hating on the lamppost. Some lampposts aren't that tall. Seems totally reasonable to me that a lamppost could be around as tall as the ground floor of a building.
It's clearly not a city lamppost though. It's a prop for the shoppe itaelf, complete with a flower motif.
I don't understand the ire.
Came here to say the same thing lol. The spend threshold is way too high for what it is.
I went into the West Edmonton Mall Lego store on the 2nd of March as I wanted to get this GWP and had a couple sets I wanted to get. By the time I got there, they had sold out of this one. Now I have to buy it on Bricklink :( I personally believe it should be one per customer/per event so that more people can get these.
I'm over GWP sets. I could care less about the ones I got before, then I saw "40712: Micro Rocket Launchpad" and thought, I like that. Added a set of qualifying value to the cart and 40712 was showing in the checkout, paid for it (only a couple of minutes all up) and was looking forward to it. Get the order confirmation email and it shows a different GWP set :( I emailed them and they just said sorry, they can sell out quick. Then I see them for sale locally for $70 :( Maybe they could have a live counter on each site showing how many left? If it says 1 left, forget it :) I remember the days of buying sets in a shop as a kid, no GWP, no stress! I think buying sets as an adult is much more stressful. Where's the support group for PTSD from buying LEGO? :D
This GWP seems to be back in stock in the USA at Lego.com.