As luck would have it I'll be in Europe during the May 4th event for Lego and have been thinking about stocking up on exclusives(assuming Lego even discounts any exclusives) that I can't get any discounts usually as a US resident. Provided that I can stock up what's the most cost effective way to ship these back home or is it unlikely that I'll be able to and it will cost me more money to ship than I'll be saving?

It`s a great thought, but even economy shipping can become pretty expensive very quickly. I`d say anything you can`t fit in the suitcase, don`t bother, just order it from the NA LEGO Shop at Home and ship to your home address. Really wish it could work out another way so you could take advantage of the offers, but the shipping will very likely take away from that. Also, box condition. If you ship economy, it`s very possible large sets will get dented/banged up on the journey over, not to mention the cost. 

Unless you are going to fill a container, or go via a freight consolidator, in which case you are likely to attract import duties (but you might be able to get your VAT back if you organise it right). Containers fit a huge amount of stuff, and are surprising cheap, relative to the cost of parcel post.

As luck would have it I'll be in Europe during the May 4th event for Lego and have been thinking about stocking up on exclusives(assuming Lego even discounts any exclusives) that I can't get any discounts usually as a US resident. Provided that I can stock up what's the most cost effective way to ship these back home or is it unlikely that I'll be able to and it will cost me more money to ship than I'll be saving?

So, 10% discount, part of VAT back, and favorable exchange rate. It's possible that it's worth it. But I wouldn't bother.

And then there's VIP...I've completely forgotten if it's possible to use US VIP card at out-of-country Lego stores...

Edited April 29, 201510 yr by minicoopers11

I definitely wont be filling a container and the logistics won't give me that much time. Oh well it was worth a thought. Such a bummer that discounts are not evenly distributed by LEGO Shop at Home..