Hobbes & Landes | The Closure

Whenever an establishment or a LEGO® theme is announced for its last run or a store that will finally close its shop the signs point to “End to an Era” as the ever-changing business landscape continues to reel its effects post-pandemic and hurl toward the rise of interest rates things looks dire to start the year. But that is the nature of things as nothing lives forever, and with the impending announcement that Hobbes and Landes will be closing its doors by the end of December 2021, some people will recall how this boutique store used to carry the LEGO® brand as an exclusive that no other retail store has.

For those unaware, Hobbes and Landes established itself in the early 2000s as a specialty store that carries products not sold at local retail. They were above head and water becoming the sole distributor for the LEGO® brand under their LAJ Marketing as well as the company that brought back Germany’s popular Playmobil brand after decades of absence in the Philippine retail scene.

Whenever there’s a LEGO® related event, Hobbes and Landes is the one to bring it with their special exhibit projects for their stores as well as promoting their other products that involve kids and families. It is a specialty store that kept its relevance until LAJ Marketing finally gave up distribution of the LEGO® brand at the end of 2018, where Bankee Trading picked up the rights in 2019.

Taking LEGO® from Giftgate

If you lived long enough through the history of the LEGO® brand in the Philippines it wasn’t LAJ Marketing or Hobbes and Landes that brought the Danish brand to the country. It was originally part of Giftgate, a specialty gift shop that opened in the late 1970s and originally carried original and official Sanrio-branded products namely Hello Kitty and the other characters.

Giftgate closed its last remaining stores in 2017 keeping its identity intact and selling Sanrio-branded merchandise up to the last day it closed its doors. But LAJ Marketing, Hobbes and Landes distribution arm acquired the LEGO® brand from them in late 2004, which explains why several LEGO® exhibits were on display in SM The Block in 2007.

Permanent Closure

There were several news outlets have reported that Hobbes & Landes would start closing its remaining stores by the end of December 2021. Many longtime customers expressed their thoughts about the store’s closure. But for those who have known the company from behind the scenes, it was long overdue.

Hobbes & Landes for what it’s worth is a novelty store to ever carry collectible items and the primary store to carry exclusive LEGO® and Playmobil products event before they expanded to open a LEGO® Certified Store in 2015 that is now owned and being managed by Bankee Trading.

For some, Hobbes & Landes will be remembered for what the store had to offer besides LEGO® and Playmopbil, they were also the store that introduced that now-defunct STIKFAS brand from Singapore. Despite not getting much reception thanks to some True Fans that made the product into the mainstream toy collecting community. In the end, Hobbes & Landes's contribution to the community will be remembered for the store to carry the LEGO® brand and that’s about the way to remember them as they finally closed their last store in Bonifacio High Street.

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