Risk management is something I think every LEGO reseller should be doing, because the stuff that can wreck your year usually isn’t the “sexy” part of the hobby. In this video I break down the top three things that keep me up at night, and how I’m thinking about them so my business stays stable year after year. If you’re building a buy list, planning Q4, or loading up on retiring sets, these are the landmines you need to be aware of. First, I talk about LEGO pushing retirement dates back—sometimes not until October, November, or even December—which can really mess with your planning if you’re counting on a set exiting in a certain year. Second, I’m watching for LEGO shortages. A shortage sounds “good” for resellers until you realize it usually means fewer discounts, and discounts are how we build margin. Third (and this is the big one), I’m seeing more “vanishing inventory,” where sets disappear unexpectedly—like the Coliseum, Cantina starting to vanish in summer, and the Batcave shadow box going poof—so I’m buying certain targets earlier than I normally would. At the end, I share an extra risk for FBA sellers: inventory being held hostage at Amazon warehouses. If that’s you, you need to be thinking about how you manage that risk and consider other platforms instead of sending more in.