We are all familiar with the LEGO Ideas program where people with good ideas can post and the sets with the most likes are further researched by LEGO for a potential release. This resulted in, among other things, the table football set, the BTS set, the grand piano and -a personal favorite- the typewriter. Did you know that there is also another program, namely the BrickLink Designer Program? It’s the way to crowdfund LEGO sets. Not with likes, but with money.
BrickLink
There’s a lot going on around the BrickLink Designer Program at the moment as a new round goes live tomorrow in which people can submit their models from May 15 to June 2. Then people can vote which they like best, in addition to an internal jury that watches. We look at what fits LEGO, to what extent the building experience is creative and, of course, what the public thinks.
Subsequently, the designs will be revealed (which has just happened for the first round of this year) and the BrickLink people will go and see what is possible with the inventors. Eventually – and that will take a very long time – a crowdfunding section will go live in February 2024 with which you can pre-order 2 sets per household. If a design has more than 3,000 pre-orders, they will actually go into production, with a maximum of 20,000 for each set. The sets will then be sent to the buyers in the summer/autumn of 2024.
LEGO crowdfunding
At the moment there is no crowdfunding available, but you can – if you have a good idea – submit your idea from tomorrow. The level is high: these are the sets of the first round: Mountain Fortress, Parisian Street, The Old Train Engine Shed, The Snack Shack (favorite of our editors) and the Wild West General Store. Extremely creative sets that make your hands itch, but with which you have to wait a while until you can do something with it: it is now up to the Bricklink people to see how they will further shape the sets.
You are probably now thinking: but why should I buy LEGO from such a different company? Well, BrickLink has been a separate company for a long time, but LEGO bought it in 2019. It’s much more than just a place where LEGO fans can see their dreams come true, it’s also a place where you as a fan can sell parts and sets to each other as a kind of Marketplace. However, we find the crowdfunding concept particularly interesting, because something beautiful is developed not so much with money from LEGO, but with money from the fans. It is also a good ‘last resort’ for those who submitted a LEGO Idea, but did not make it.
Designer Program
If you have a good idea for a set: build it, design it, upload it and try to appeal to the people of BrickLink and the public there. Especially sets in certain themes are very popular, where you should let your imagination run wild when it comes to adding all kinds of funny details. Have fun inventing, or just buying, although you have to wait a while.
Laura Jenny
When she’s not tapping, she’s traveling around the wonderful world of entertainment or some cool place in the real world. Mario is the man of her life,…
