2000

In 2000 LEGO proved once again to be a fantastic year for collectors with the release of 325 sets, many highly sought after. This included 27 promotional and special released sets in addition to the 298 retail sets released through LEGO.com, the LEGO store and various other retail channels.

Based on the 325 sets released for that year, the retail value was $5,850.88 with a current value of $31,959.75 for the combined new/factory sealed sets. As of present, the best performing theme for 2000 is currently Advanced Models which has seen an average annual growth of upwards of 12% to date. All together 2000 saw the release of sets covering 15 themes and 37 subthemes with Bulk Bricks having the highest release count of 71 sets.

The turn of the millennium was an important year for LEGO. Not only did LEGO produce some investible sets for 2000, we saw some transition in the company. First, set designer and the inventor of the minifigure, Jens Nygaard Knudsen, retired from The LEGO Group. Second, The British Association of Toy Retailers name the LEGO brick "Toy of the Century". With 2000 LEGO released just a couple of new themes including TECHNIC Roboriders and Race. The Rock Raiders, Nijna and the Slizer/Throwbots themes were discontinued.

2000 standout sets include the Statue of Liberty sculpture (3450-1) and the two Ultimate Collector Series Star Wars sets X-wing Fighter (7191-1) and TIE Interceptor (7181-1). Another notable set was the 2000 Millennium Falcon (7190-1) which was the first release of Han Solo's ship, the Millennium Falcon.