Collaborative Consumption Means We Can Share the Legos

Last fall, at the Lego Store in NYC, I stood in brightly lit silence, in awe of the 2 story tall Lego displays. Silent also because I was shocked at the prices of the larger Lego sets. Up to that point, I had only bought small Lego sets on Amazon or when I happened to be in a big box retail store.

The kids were similarly transfixed at the higher priced options on the highest shelves and then nearly tearful when we left without buying any of them. There were plenty of half finished letters to Santa around the apartment for weeks after that Lego Store visit. 

Then, on the heels of recent research about collaborative consumption, I found this wonderful company founded by a mom: Pley. A Lego sharing service.

Oh yes, even though I am a mom who complains about Legos (underfoot), I can grudgingly admit that paying less for the coveted sets could at least lessen the pain in the pocketbook. I can't deny the Lego crazed world we live in today. 

Here's an Interview with Pley Co-Founder Elina Furman.

Pley's website is simple and the idea is straightforward, solving a problem for many families with limited budgets for Legos.

The only potential downside? The kids have to keep sets separate so they can return the set to Pley complete. That might require us to interfere in their Lego play because part of what makes Legos fun for my kids (probably most kids) is the mash up, when the Castle gets taken apart to give it's parts to an Egyptian Temple. Or a Lego laser gun.

I plan to take it on a test run, though, to see if my 7 and 4 year olds will be able to manage Lego segregation and if so... Everything Is Awesome!

Stay tuned for my feedback on Pley!