The Group was founded in 1932 and today is one of the world’s largest toy manufacturers. In 2008 it celebrates the 50th anniversary of the LEGO® brick and the 30th anniversary of the minifigure. The purpose and vision of is to inspire children to explore and challenge their own creative potential. LEGO products have undergone extensive development over the decades, but the foundation remains the traditional LEGO brick.

themes for 2008 include Coast Promotion In addition to these activities, the LEGO Guard and . Embracing fantasy, One of the priorities of the LEGO Group is Group uses a mix of TV advertising, PR, continues to grow with the Mistika to have close contact with its consumers sponsorship, in-store demonstrators and and Vehicles ranges, and is throughout the world and it engages in many targeted shows and events to support its brought to life with power functions. initiatives to strengthen ties between LEGO® brand image and products. The more advanced software based enthusiasts and the company. NXT enables the user In 2008, the LEGO Group is holding a global Brand Values to design and build real robots which can be building competition to find the world’s biggest The founder’s grandson, Kjeld Kirk programmed to perform different operations, LEGO fan; the competition is open to 6-9 year- Kristiansen, owns the LEGO Group, and reacting to the user’s voice or controlled via olds from 39 countries around the world. has been true to his grandfather’s core a mobile phone. In the UK, the LEGO Group supports the values while pushing the company forward The LEGO Factory website gives children National Autistic Society (NAS). Fundraising to achieve worldwide success. the opportunity to build their own virtual activities include a Guinness World Record The LEGO® brand is a guarantee of Market Achievements Product models on a computer using LEGO attempt to build more than 45,000 quality and originality and it strives to be Today the LEGO Group is the world’s fifth With seven LEGO® sets sold each second, LEGO® toys are developed and marketed to Digital Designer and to have the minifigures in one day, creating the best and most credible company in the largest toy manufacturer. In 2007 LEGO® UK it’s little surprise that the world’s children suit all ages and stages of development from bricks to build the physical LEGO an army of Clone Troopers. toy business. achieved an unprecedented 24 per cent spend five billion hours a year playing toddlers, schoolchildren and teenagers to model sent by post. The LEGO Club for children Children are the basis of the LEGO Group – increase in consumer sales and the largest with LEGO toys. Incredibly, over the past young-at-heart adults. in the 6-12 age group has a inquisitive, creative and imaginative – with an year-on-year sales growth out of all the top 50 years enough LEGO bricks have been The LEGO Group’s core creative team of Recent Developments membership of 2.4 million innate urge to learn. 10 toy manufacturers, despite the economic manufactured to give each of the world’s six 120 designers, representing 15 different In 2008, the LEGO Group worldwide, including the US, It is the LEGO philosophy that ‘good play’ downturn towards the end of the year billion inhabitants 62 LEGO bricks each. nationalities, work constantly to develop celebrates the 50th anniversary Canada, Germany, enriches a child’s life – and its subsequent (Source: NPD EPOS). In recognition of this achievement and its innovative products that promote creativity of the LEGO® brick and the 30th Switzerland and the adulthood. With this in mind, the LEGO Globally, LEGO pre-tax profit reached longevity, in 2000 the LEGO brick was and play. anniversary of the minifigure. Netherlands. Through Group’s wide range of products is founded £139 million against £126 million in 2006 awarded double honours – named Toy of the Pre-school products, including LEGO Key product developments the LEGO Club on the same basic philosophy of learning and (conversion from DKK to GBP at exchange Century by both US Fortune Magazine and DUPLO, cater for the youngest children, for the year include a new website, members can developing – through play. rate at year-end 2007). the British Association of Toy Retailers. encouraging them through creative play to LEGO Indiana JonesTM range, share pictures of their The LEGO Group has achieved its success The LEGO Group has also been awarded use their hands and develop their motor skills. with play sets representing the most favourite building work and www.lego.com by offering a range of quality toys centred the title of the World’s Most Respected Creative Building sets or buckets contain iconic scenes from each of the four draw inspiration for future around its building systems which has stood Company by the Reputation Institute’s annual traditional LEGO bricks and special parts movies. Building on the phenomenal play. In the UK, 250,000 Things you didn’t know about the test of time, growing significantly report, which surveyed more than 60,000 such as windows, wheels, roof tiles and success of LEGO Star WarsTM, new LEGO Club members receive despite the technology boom. LEGO consumers in 29 countries. other items made for builders who like to Clone Wars sets and characters the LEGO® toys inspire fun, creative, engaging and The LEGO Group is headquartered in apply their imagination and think creatively. support the new 3D CGI TV five times per year. challenging play for children which Billund, Denmark but has subsidiaries Play Themes are sets which build up series. Another new product In 2007 the main LEGO The name ‘LEGO’ is an abbreviation of in turn develops inventive and and branches throughout the world around a story, such as a fire station, the bringing a movie to life is LEGO website had an average of 11,662,740 two Danish words, ‘leg godt’, meaning structured problem solving, curiosity and a global workforce of 4,500 police or a castle. Children can experience Speed Racer which is based on individual visitors a month – up 43 per cent ‘play well’ and also means ‘I put and imagination, interpersonal skills people. LEGO products are sold in more enjoyment through the build as well as many the futuristic world of Grand Prix on 2006 – with each spending an average of together’ in Latin. and physical motor skills. than 130 countries. hours of play with the finished models. New jet-powered racing. 14 minutes at the site. More than 400 million children and adults 1932 1958 1977 1978 1986 1989 1998 2001 2006 2008 will play with LEGO bricks this year. The LEGO Group is The LEGO brick in its The LEGO TECHNIC The is The LEGO TECHNIC The facial expressions Software is incorporated The BIONICLE universe LEGO MINDSTORMS The LEGO brick If you built a column of 40 billion LEGO founded in Denmark present form is launched. brand is introduced, born. Originally yellow in Computer Control is on minifigures change, into LEGO products, is introduced, marking NXT is launched – celebrates its 50th bricks, it would reach the moon. by carpenter and The interlocking principle including parts such colour, the figures are launched, later paving so they can either be to produce LEGO the first time the LEGO in just half an hour anniversary and wooden toy maker, with its tubes makes it as gears, beams generic to capture children’s the way for the first ‘good’ or ‘bad’. MINDSTORMS, allowing Group develops a consumers can build the iconic LEGO There are 915,103,765 different ways of Ole Kirk Kristiansen. unique and offers and gearboxes. imagination and each computer-controlled LEGO robots to be complete story from and programme a robot minifigure celebrates unlimited building minifigure is designed with LEGO robots. programmed to perform scratch as the basis for that can see, hear, feel, its 30th birthday. combining six eight-stud bricks of the possibilities. moveable arms and legs. many different operations. a new product range. speak and move. same colour. LEGO, the LEGO logo, DUPLO, BIONICLE, MINDSTORMS and the Brick configuration BIONICLE, MINDSTORMS the LEGO logo, DUPLO, LEGO, Ltd. & are trademarks of the LEGO Group. ©2008 The © 2008 Lucasfilm Bros. Entertainment Inc. MOVIE: © Warner TM. All rights reserved. SPEED RACER Enterprises, Inc. (s08) TM/MC Speed Racer SPEED RACER:

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