exclusive lester minifigure now available in #LEGOStoreLondon!

Lester [40308]
(Photo by: Poncemel Ardiente)

Finally! Lester!

The rumors are true! As reported almost a year ago (yes, it has been almost a year since the biggest LEGO Store in London has opened), more Lester minifigures have been released!

In case you have forgotten, Lester is the official mascot of the LEGO Store London. He was featured heavily in the grand opening promotions, and also in the store design. The quintessential gentleman was said to spark an unexpectedly huge interest among brick fans that the initial plan of featuring him only in print and as an actual mascot was refined the last minute to convert him into brick form as well. During that time, there were only 275 ultra-exclusive Lester minifigures produced (no thanks to the limited and previously discontinued bowler hat piece). During the opening promotions, Lester can only be randomly obtained via a scratch card after a £55 (or more) purchase. He became super rare that a Lester minifigure was listed in the secondary market for up to £3500!

But now, for only £5.99, the Lester [40308] exclusive minifigure can be bought exclusively in the LEGO Store London in Leicester Square! It may not have the exclusivity of the first 275, but it's exactly the same thing! Actually, the new minifigure now comes with an added umbrella piece! Everything is neatly packaged in a pretty polybag. Purchase is reported to be limited to only three per household.

LEGO Store London Exclusive
(Photo by: Poncemel Ardiente)

It's really great for the LEGO Store London to offer something really exclusive, considering that it is a global flagship store for the brand. I was really expecting an I Heart London kind of theme, but Lester is definitely way better, in the sense that he has encaptured that classic British charm.

P.S. Many thanks to my best mates Kuys Ponce and Ate Joyce for snapping the pics, and for getting me my own Lester minifigure! See you soon!

#LEGOStoreLondon grand opening

LEGO Store London Opening with Lester and Mayor Sadiq Khan

The new London Leicester Square LEGO Store is now open! And here's brickednexus's viewpoint...

Dubbed as the largest LEGO Brand Retail Store in the world, the new flagships store measures 5,420 square feet in over two floors! With a store that big, it only makes sense to go big as well when it comes to promotions. Here are a few pics:

#LEGOStoreLondon Bus

#LEGOStoreLondon Taxi

Lester in Leicester Square Station

Lester, the official mascot of the brand new LEGO Store, is featured heavily in the promotions, and as you will see later, in the store design as well. The quintessential gentleman is a big help from the countdown to the grand opening event itself. Lester was reported to spark an unexpectedly huge interest among brick fans that the initial plan of featuring him only in print and as an actual mascot was refined the last minute to convert him into brick form as well (more on this later).

Lester in the Grand Opening

Besides Lester and The LEGO Group bigwigs, London Mayor Sadiq Khan was also there to open the Leicester Square LEGO Store not only to London but also to the rest of the world.

Lester Shaking Hands with Mayor Sadiq Khan

Press the Button

It was not forgotten that the essence of LEGO is first and foremost for the kids, that is why the honor of pressing the button to unbox the biggest LEGO Store was given to majority of them.

And of course, a LEGO Store in London won't be complete without the famous Big Ben. A huge model was built from more than 200,000 bricks, towering for about 6.53 meters high. It has a working clock face, and it is illuminated at night. This is just in time for the planned renovation of the real Big Ben. At least people will still be able to see a majestic model.

Brick Built Big Ben

The store didn't fail to deliver its promise of new, exciting, and exclusive LEGO experience. In one of the show windows, there is a device that scans your hand and reveals who you are in brick form. I think it's really random but that doesn't make the gimmick less fun (especially if you get some funny or out of character minifigures).

Who Are You?

Prepare for Scanning

Scanning

You're a Penguin an Eskimo!

Another technological feature is the digital catalog that displays all the stocks in-store. If you don't like to browse the shelf, then this is for you. But who does that? Actually, a more practical use for this beauty is to know the available sets that are not in the shelves. My wife wanted Ariel's Undersea Palace [41063] but we can't see a set anywhere. So, we checked the digital catalog and clicked for assistance ('cause that's what it prompted us to do). Fortunately enough, there are still a few available in the stockroom.

Digital Catalog

And now, making its debut in the LEGO Store London is the Mosaic Maker.

Mosaic Maker

The Mosaic Maker booth will take your picture in real time and instantly convert it into a brick mosaic made out of small black, grey, white, and yellow bricks! How cool is that? The only setback is that it costs £99 to make one.

Pick-a-Brick (or Model) Wall

The flagship store also has the staple Pick-a-Brick (or Model) Wall. It's just a bit disappointing to learn that it's almost the same as with other LEGO Stores. Then per floor, there is a Build-a-Minifigure station each. Another letdown is that there are no exclusive parts or prints in the selection, yet. I'd like to believe that sooner or later, there'll be exclusive prints to choose from, just like in the US stores.

Exclusive sets for purchase were also minimal. The previously free gift with purchase Creator London Bus [40220] is available for £9.99. The Architecture London Skyline [21034] is released early exclusively in the flagship store and it retails at £44.99.

Selfie with Lester

Speaking of exclusive, the Lester minifigure is now considered as ultra-exclusive! During the opening weekend, you can obtain one via a scratch card after a £55 (or more) purchase. You can get either Lester or a Creator Parrot [30472] polybag. Why the lottery? The official explanation is that, as stated above, the minifigure is a bit of a last minute addition to the promotions. However, the bowler hat piece has long been discontinued making it difficult to produce enough Lesters to make everyone happy. All in all, only 275 Lesters were produced for the opening, making it super rare. As of writing, a Lester minifigure is out in the secondary market for up to £3500! But rumor has it (and I wish that this will prove to be true), more Lester minifigures will be released soon...

Freebies (Except the Bus)

Other promotions include a free LEGO Brand Retail Store [40145] for any purchase over £125, a free LEGO 24-in-1 Christmas Builds [40222] for any purchase over £60, and a free LEGO Toy Soldier Christmas Ornament [5004420] for any purchase over £25.

There were also a lot of freebies during the grand opening, from random polybags (Olaf's Summertime Fun [30397], C-3PO [5002948], etc.) to 2015's Gingerbread House [40139] set. A lot of postcards and stickers were also given away. But a first in Europe is The LEGO Store Passport. You can travel around the store then take pictures of the iconic brick builts, and have your passport stamped along the way.

Overall, the new LEGO Store London is a great addition to the wonderful points of interest in this great city. It is a must see for brick fans of all ages to have a new, exciting, and exclusive LEGO experience.

Below are more pictures from the opening weekend...

Christmas Tree

Christmas Presents

Commuter: Robin Hood

Commuter: Queen

Commuter: Football Player

Brick Built Detective

Leicester Square

Train Driver

Map

Brick Built Conductor

Interactive Lester

Interactive Detective

Brick Built Post Box

Piccadilly Circus

Westminster

LEGO Logos

Green Dragon Tail

Proper Green Dragon

Brick Built Telephone Booth
(Photo by: Poncemel Ardiente)

Mind the Gap
(Photo by: Poncemel Ardiente)

Big Ben Details
(Photo by: Poncemel Ardiente)

Till

Brick Built Wall Art

#LEGOStoreLondon twitter competition via evening standard

Lester Crossing the Tower Bridge
(Photo grabbed from: https://www.facebook.com/pg/LEGO/photos)

Great news UK brick fans! There's another way to join Lester and get an exclusive look of the world’s largest LEGO flagship store on 16 November, before it’s open to the public! Evening Standard has four family tickets to give away to five lucky readers!

To be entered into the prize draw, simply follow @ESLifeandStyle on Twitter. Then, RT (ReTweet) clearly designated competition tweets on Twitter, like this and this.

Promotion closes at 10:00 on Monday, 14 November 2016. Winners will be selected at random after the closing date and will be contacted by Direct Message on Twitter later that day.

For more details, including the official Terms and Conditions, click here.

Good luck!

#LEGOStoreLondon online competition

Lester in the City
(Photo grabbed from: https://www.facebook.com/pg/LEGO/photos)

The official LEGO Facebook page has just announced an online competition giving UK brick fans an opportunity to join Lester and get an exclusive look of the world’s largest LEGO flagship store on 16 November, before it’s open to the public!

To get a chance to win four tickets to Leicester Square, London special guest event on 16 November from 18:00 to 20:00, all you have to do is upload pictures of your LEGO Minifigures within a fun and entertaining London theme or setting to the LEGO social media channels at www.instagram.com/LEGO or www.facebook.com/LEGO, or Twitter using the hashtag #LEGOStoreLondon. There is no limitation of the amount of images you can enter. The criteria used for judging will be 50% for overall coolness and originality, and 50% for understanding of the competition theme (the need to do something London-like). Deadline for the submission of entries is on 8 November (24:00 GMT+2). A total of five winners will be announced on 9 November on the official LEGO Facebook page.

For the official competition terms and conditions, click here.

Good luck!

meet lester

Lester
(Photo grabbed from: https://www.facebook.com/pg/LEGO/photos)

The official LEGO Facebook page has finally revealed Lester, in all his brick glory.

Meet Lester, the official mascot of the brand new London Leicester Square LEGO Store, which opens on 17 November. The press release stated that the quintessential gentleman minifigure will be helping in the countdown of the eagerly awaited monumental event.

Dubbed as the largest LEGO Brand Retail Store in the world, the new flagships store measures 5,420 square feet in over two floors! And of course, it won't be complete without the famous Big Ben. A huge model made from more than 200,000 bricks, and towering for about 6.53 meters high, is currently being built. The clock face is said to be working and is illuminated at night. The store also promises exciting new and exclusive LEGO experience.

For more details, head on to the official LEGO Facebook page or to LEGO.com.

LEGO store leicester square opening on 17 november

Lester (Photo grabbed from http://stores.lego.com/en-gb/stores/uk/london-leicester-square)

Mark your calendars! The new London Leicester Square LEGO Store will open on 17 November!

Dubbed in their official press release as the largest (5,420 square feet in over two floors) LEGO Brand Retail Store in the world, the new Leicester Square Store is scheduled to open on 17 November. A tea-loving mascot, unique to the store, is also set to debut, and he is aptly named Lester (exclusive minifigure?!). If the quintessential gentleman looks a bit familiar, you might have seen him on the announcement teasers on the store's construction barriers.

Big Ben (Photo grabbed from http://stores.lego.com/en-gb/stores/uk/london-leicester-square)

For the iconic model, the new store won't be complete without the famous Big Ben. A huge model (largest ever at 6.53 meters high!) is currently being built, and it's made from more than 200,000 bricks. Not only that, it works as well! And the clock face is said to be illuminated at night. The store also promises exciting new and exclusive LEGO experience.

For more details, head on to stores.lego.com/en-gb/stores/uk/london-leicester-square.

new LEGO store leicester square arriving soon!

Royal Guard Announcement

A new LEGO Store is coming soon to the heart of London’s theatreland, Leicester Square!

Back in May 2016, it was announced that the construction of a new store in the United Kingdom (37th in Europe) has started. Specifically, it is located at 3 Swiss Court, London, with the postcode W1D 6AP (just in front of M&M's World!), covering 5,420 square feet in over two floors. The official press release said that the flagship store follows the recent unveiling of the LEGO Store in the Les Halles district of Paris, France, and the Asian flagship store in Shanghai, China (translation: the store will be massive!).

A recruitment drive has also commenced along with the construction, and is currently still ongoing. Head on to https://www.lego.com/en-gb/careers/search-jobs for more details.

Almost Done?!

It has been over a month since I last visited Leicester Square, so imagine my surprise when I saw that the store looks almost done! Don't get me started on the minifigures teasers! The Royal Guard minifigure looks so seriously cute! I don't have one from the Minifigures Series 5 [8805], so a re-release would just be perfect. And I really, really, really hope that LEGO will release the British gentleman minifigure (complete with a bowler hat, a Union Jack vest, and a cup of tea!) as one of the flagship store's exclusive.

Exclusive Minifigure?!

The official announcement said that the new store will open late 2016, but up to this point, a specific date is yet to be given. Can't wait!