#lpscon

(Trigger Warning: Brief references to suicide/self-harm and gaslighting) Welp, I read about it, and knew it was something that needed to be talked about.

If you're an active member of the LPS Community, you might be familar with LPSCon. Maybe you've attended it before. Or at the very least heard the name. But for those who don't, put simply, LPSCon is a convention around Littlest Pet Shop (LPS) toys, and the community that surrounds it (Think LPSTube!). LPSCon has had issues, as all conventions do. However, this year was *especially* a disaster. Now, I have never attended LPSCon, and after the events and stories I've heard about this year's, I most likely will not ever attend. This is based on the experiences I have heard from multiple individuals, and sources will be linked at the end. What Went Wrong

For starters, the event took place during an incredibly hot day in Vegas. Vegas. In summer.

Of course, that went about as well as you'd expect. There was little to no shade, no water (And when there *was* water, people had to pay for it, which wouldn't be an issue IF NOT FOR THE FACT PEOPLE WERE DEHYDRATED AND EXHAUSTED FROM HEAT), and poor air conditioning, meaning that even indoors it was still very warm. People were fainting, some had to leave early due to the heat, and one attendee stated that a friend "basically got heat stroke" as a result.

As for food, there were only two food trucks. *Two*. And little variety. No outside food or drink was allowed, and the trucks eventually had to close due to overwhelming orders. I can only imagine how exhausted the staff at those food trucks were. Next, the venue. I'm just gonna cut to the chase on this one: The venue was an awful *awful* choice. It got overcrowded way too quickly, tables ran out of room. And the upper floors were reserved for VIP only, which didn't do anyone favors. It was also incredibly inaccessible, with the mics and hosts being extremely loud, which was overstimulating to some, and no way for wheelchair users to get around. On top of that, security was no help. At some point, they just gave up and let *anybody* in and barely did bag checks (Something that is INCREDIBLY fucking dangerous). On top of that, staff was rude and snarky to others, with one attendee being refused a slice of confetti cake very rudely during the cake-cutting event! As well as allegations of a diabetic attendee not being allowed food (or allowed to bring their own food?) On top of that, the event itself was a total disaster. During the event, there were goodie bags (Known as "swag bags") given out. Those bags were supposed to contain LPS toys, candy and other items. What most fans got were some G4 LPS that had missing heads, unwrapped candy that was most likely expired, a ton of random garbage, LPS that were *incredibly* dirty or broken, and some attendees got no LPS in their goodie bags at all!

Additionally, many people's items (Including LPS) were stolen or lost. And any attempts at getting them back were unsuccessful, with LPSCon not cooperating whatsoever. The prices on items were also *horrible*, with some LPS being unreasonably overpriced, and other items being unreasonably cheap, including raffle tickets.

And don't even get me started on the stupid foam party.

LPSCon's "Apology"

After the event, LPSCon "apologized" on their Instagram page. And I put "apologized" in quotes due to them failing to acknowledge the actual issues at hand.

They made a second post later on, that was arguably worse than the other. Instead of apologizing, not only did they double down, they also straight up made guilt-trippy comments.

Now, harassment is bad. I've made that clear many times before. But once you resort to gaslighting tactics, including a threat of SH or suicide, you lose all credibility.

In summary

LPSCon 2024 was a pathetic excuse of an event. Poor staff, awful prices, terrible prizes and management, and oh yeah did I mention that the organizers behind LPSCon may or may not be money-grabbing con artists?

We've seen many awful cons before. From Dashcon to whatever the fuck that Willy Wonka event was, this might be worse. This is a poorly planned event, and one that was all but doomed from the start. The organizers of LPSCon should be ashamed of themselves. And until there's changes made, I suggest you guys don't waste your money on this "convention".

Sources/accounts from others: LPSCon Experience Megathread on Reddit.

LPSCon 2024 was a Mess By ZombieXCorn.

What Really Happened at LPSCon by Sugar Diamond

Instagram post by felicitylps

Instagram posts by hudson_lps

I'm happy I went, but the best parts of my experience were the sweet, memorable interactions I had with vendors and other guests.

A few of my grievances:

1. I didn't have a CC pass but still went upstairs multiple times and attended workshops because they just let my dad sign us up without checking out tickets??? We didn't know the higher floors were closed off for general admission until 4:00pm (well into the con)

Communicating that did not happen. I'm so sorry for the people who spent extra without getting the perks ://

2. We knew beforehand that you needed to sign up for the fashion show and kahoot AT ADMISSION. They advertised it as first come first serve and knowing that, wanting to partake in both we tried to sign up AT ADMISSION and were told (paraphrasing here) "Yes it's definitely first come first serve. Come back in 15 minutes because we want to get everyone inside first. We will sign you up after admission" 15 minutes later it's sold out. This seriously put me off and was extremely frustrating. We kept up with their socials, planned ahead, came with the notion sign up would work the way they said it would, did everything right and missed out anyway. This was on them. Awful, awful experience. The whole first room was seemingly set up to maximize cramping and confusion.

3. The looping video/announcements made the first floor unbearably loud.

4. The raffle was an HOUR LATE and stretched out far, far too long. Vendors were packing up and they still hadn't finished!! It seriously killed the vibe and probably left a lot of people on a sour note.

5. I might not know much about convention planning but there HAD to be a better layout than this ://

This was my first con ever and despite the constant malarkey I made some really special moments and came away with a ton of rad goodies, customs, pets and friends. I got to meet Prescott hill in person and show him my work, see so many breathtaking customs and exist in a room with thousands of Ips (heaven)

Ik I talk a lot about Bratz here but actually I played with LPS a lot more I used to play with them with my old friend did any of you guys ever trade them??? I definitely want to talk more about LPS and webkinz at some point it's just that there is so many and my phone is already filled up with Bratz pics I wanted to add the Bratz stuff in groups but i think I am just gonna yeet them on here with no texts.

Also if anyone knows any good LPS YouTube series or videos link them below! I remember one where they were at this camp and there were two kittens but I forgot who made it lol I loved these videos I never realized how dark some of the series were and I was just a kid lol!

Every time this kind of thing happens I have to wonder if the organizers for these things are even native to that part of Nevada in general. They always seem to underestimate, or just not care, how absolutely brutal the heat will get out there especially in the summer. The least they could do is move the convention to a bigger and more suitable venue because they've clearly outgrown it based on what I've looked up about the place. Also bring on some people who have more experience with holding bigger scale fan conventions, and not have to basically rely on volunteering family members to help you run it.