Lemax

A Hong Kong-headquartered manufacturer of collectible lighted Christmas and Halloween villages, founded in 1990 by Jack Lee, that has become the accessible-price-point counterpoint to Department 56 in the holiday display category.

Founded: 1990
Founder: Jack Lee
Head office: Hong Kong
Other offices: United States, Europe
Categories: Lighted villages, animated pieces, accessories, figurines
2026 collection: 178+ new pieces
Manufacturing: Mass-produced (cost-accessible)
Notable partnership: Norman Rockwell Museum (since 2023)

The story

Lemax was founded in 1990 by Jack Lee, just as the lighted Christmas village category was emerging as a serious collector pursuit. Department 56 had already established the premium end of the market with its handmade ceramic buildings; Lemax took a different path, building scale and detail into a more accessible price point through mass-production at quality levels that have proved competitive over three and a half decades.

The company is global. The head office is in Hong Kong; additional offices serve Europe and the Americas. While the brand maintains a substantial direct-to-consumer presence (lemaxcollection.com), Lemax also has notable retail relationships including an exclusive Spooky Town collection line for Michaels.

What they make

The catalog is built around themed village collections. Caddington Village evokes Victorian England. Santa's Wonderland is the brand's most fanciful Christmas line, vivid and child-friendly. Plymouth Corners recreates a New England seaside village complete with lighthouses. Vail Village takes a rustic mountain-town approach. Harvest Crossing handles Americana. Spookytown is the Halloween counterpart and one of the brand's most popular lines — collectors who don't decorate at Christmas often start with Spookytown.

Beyond the village buildings, Lemax produces an extensive accessory program: hand-painted figurines, animated pieces (skating ponds, dancing snowmen, flowing fountains), landscaping (trees, snow, pebble roads), and Sights & Sounds buildings with audio. The 2026 collection includes more than 178 new pieces. Since 2023, Lemax has partnered with the Norman Rockwell Museum on a licensed Home For Christmas line.

How they sell

Distribution is more retail-direct than is typical of wholesale gift brands, but specialty retailers participate. Lemax buildings and accessories are widely carried at Christmas-focused independent shops (often alongside Department 56), and the Spooky Town line specifically has helped many seasonal stores extend revenue into the Halloween category. The brand publishes annual catalogs and runs an active retired-piece secondary market through dedicated specialty retailers.

For specialty retailers, Lemax buildings and Department 56 buildings are technically different scales but visually compatible — many collectors mix the two brands in a single display. That mix opens interesting merchandising approaches that aren't available with single-brand collections.

Why they're worth knowing

For Christmas-shop and seasonal-gift retailers, Lemax fills a specific commercial position that Department 56 cannot. The price point ($25-150 retail typical for buildings) opens up the lighted-village category to customers who would not commit to a $100+ Department 56 piece. The Spooky Town line gives a category extension into Halloween that doubles a retailer's seasonal village revenue without doubling shelf space.

The trade-off is that the manufacturing approach is mass-produced rather than the more handcrafted Department 56 model. Both have legitimate places in a Christmas department; for many retailers the right answer is to carry both, positioning Lemax as the entry-level and gateway brand and Department 56 as the upgrade path.

Where to find them

Consumer site: lemaxcollection.com
Authorized retailers: lemaxcollection.com/where-to-buy
Headquarters: Hong Kong (with U.S. and European offices)
Notable retail partner: Michaels (exclusive Spooky Town items)
Trade show presence: Atlanta Market, Las Vegas Market, plus seasonal-specific shows

Profile based on public information from the official Lemax Collection site, third-party Christmas-shop product information, and trade press coverage of the Norman Rockwell Museum partnership. Updated November 2024. Return to all profiles →