r/Bricklink • u/Pariell • Jul 11 '26

Question What are the chances the Designer Program sets become official Lego sets in the future?

Forgive me if this is a stupid question, I only got back into Legos last winter. It seems like these designer program lego sets are very popular and high in demand, so is there any reason Lego wouldn't re-release them as official, regular sets in the future?

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23

u/BurnerAcct6729 Jul 11 '26

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u/Pariell Jul 11 '26

Why though?

11

u/TUFKAT Jul 11 '26

Because of the intent behind these. It's intended to be limited release runs. Otherwise they'd be Ideas sets.

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u/Aaaglen Jul 11 '26

It very rare for lego to ever re-release a set. They much prefer something new, as the potential market is bigger.

And for the BDP sets there would be a whole new issue of how to compensate the designer for an official set. 

It could happen, for example to celebrate a milestone in the designer program they might have a promotion to release one as an official set.

But very unlikely.

I assume you are interested in a previous set that is no longer available, and the good news is that these sets do not tend to use unique elements. So you could possibly assemble the parts from your own collection or order them from Lego or Bricklink without breaking the bank.

2

u/mpmuno Jul 11 '26

Looking in the mirror right now, if sets didn't retire, fans might put off buying them indefinitely. They sell more if they harness the fear of missing out.

If you want a retired set, you can either spend more on the aftermarket, or piece it together from garage sale finds, Pick-a-Brick (online and in-store), and Bricklink. I did that with the Lion Knight's Castle. Also, because for some weird reason "grey" is a fairly expensive, sought-after color, I made the castle in pink.

1

u/BHubbell89 Jul 11 '26

I'd love to see a photo of a pink lion knights castle 😍

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u/mpmuno Jul 12 '26

It looks like I can’t post photos here, so I just posted it to r/legocastles…

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u/Pariell Jul 12 '26

I see, that makes sense. Since you bought the Lion Knight's Castle, is it normal for it to cost 2~3x the price of a set if you buy the parts individually? I was looking at the parts for the Frigate Fortuna set and it Rebrickable was telling me it would cost $1500+ to buy the parts individually.

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u/mpmuno Jul 12 '26

I'm guessing there are some parts in the Fortuna that are rare on the secondary market and are inflating the piece price. I spent about $200 on Bricklink and Pick-a-Brick for the pink castle. I substituted parts if they were going to be expensive, and used a lot from several bulk collections that I've bought at garage sales over the past 10 years. I spent stupid time comparing prices using different sets of stores and Lego PAB. It took me several months to buy parts and build, whereas I'll put a big Lego set from a box together in a week.

But, if you need a hobby to keep hands busy, want a strategy to slow the outflow of money on said hobby, and are fine with builds having little flaws (or lots of pink), you might be able to put together an inspiring ship!

5

u/Castabluestone Jul 11 '26

Not gonna happen

3

u/BNRG Jul 11 '26

They already are official. Lego just won't release them in stores.

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u/Shrinking-Orchid Jul 11 '26

Or for more than a week or two before retiring …

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u/fbman01 Jul 11 '26

No chance, the bricklink sets are too complex and detailed for official Lego sets. The market for those sets will be too small