THE LIFE OF LEGO
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1932 Ole Kirk Christiansen, master carpenter and joiner, establishes his business — making wooden household items and toys — in the village of Billund, Denmark. His son, Godtfred Kirk Christiansen, starts working in the business at the age of 12. 1934 The company adopts the name Lego. 1935 The Lego wooden duck is born. 1939 Lego has 10 employees. 1946 The Lego Group buys a plastic injection-moulding
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machine for toy production. 1949 The Lego Automatic Binding Brick with four and eight studs is made.
1951 The studded building base is introduced. 1953 The bricks are named Lego Bricks. 1954 The Lego trademark is registered in Denmark.
1957 The Lego Brick’s interlocking principle is invented. 1958 The Lego stud-and-tube coupling system is patented. Godtfred becomes head of the company. 1960 Wooden toys are
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discontinued. 1964 Model sets with building instructions are launched.
1966 Lego is now sold in 42 countries. The battery-driven Lego Train is born.
1968 Legoland Billund opens and attracts 625 000 visitors in its first season. 1973 A new Lego logo unifies all the company’s products under one banner. 1974 The Lego family figures are created. 1980 70% of all Western European families with children under 14 have Lego in their home. 1981 First
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Lego World Show in Denmark. 1982 Lego South Africa is established. 1987 Lego employs 6 000 and is sold in 115 markets. The Lego office in SA is closed due to sanctions. Korean mountaineer Young-Hu buries a Lego model on top of Mount Everest. 1988 The first Lego World Cup building championships are held in Billund. “The Art of Lego” exhibition tours the UK. 1989 Current owner Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen is inducted into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame.
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1990 The Legoland Band issues an LP. 1992 A Lego railway breaks the Guinness World Record. The world’s largest Lego castle is built on Swedish television. 1993 Lego South Africa is re-established. 1994 The UN’s refugee agency uses Lego mini-figures on posters around the world. 1995 Godtfred dies. 1996 lego.com is launched. 1997 A CD-ROM containing building instructions is included with a model set. 1998 The brand statement
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“Just Imagine” is introduced with the new Lego logo. 1999 The Lego brick is named as a “Product of the Century” by Fortune Magazine. Star Wars Lego figures are introduced.
2000 The British Association of Toy Retailers names the Lego brick “Toy of the Century”. 2001 Harry Potter Lego figures are launched. 2002 The brand statement becomes “Play On”.
2003 Lego mini-figures are given more authentic skin colour, facial
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expressions and hairstyles. 2004 Lego Ferrari sets are launched. 2005 It becomes possible to design your own model and buy the Lego elements you need to build it online.
2007 The Lego Group celebrates its 75th anniversary. The Lego Star Wars Millennium Falcon is the largest Lego model so far, with 5 195 pieces.
2008 The Taj Mahal becomes the biggest Lego set, with 5 922 bricks. Lego Indiana Jones is launched.
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2009 The Lego Group obtains rights to build toys based on all Disney properties. 2010 The world’s largest Lego mosaic, with 384 000 bricks and 1 500 building plates, is assembled in London. 2011 The world’s largest Legoland Park opens in Florida, US. The Lego Group is now the world’s third-largest toy manufacturer in terms of sales. — Source: Tine Froberg Mortensen, Lego.com