Business Lessons from Lego

This one of a kind privately owned and family controlled company made it’s comeback after their darkest times in 2003. Sales were down 30% year-on-year and it was $800m in debt. Under Vig Knudstorp leadership, Lego turnaround into something up to date yet still holds its core values. What’s made them successful over the past 10 years is their ability to create new entities, movies, TV shows, by partnering with brilliant people.

What was Lego’s business lessons we all can adopt to our company ?

1. Collaborate with companies.

This made Lego able to achieve greatness together. Lego able to create new entities, movies, TV shows, by partnering with brilliant companies.

2. Outsource non core roles to the experts.

‘We might not make as much money if we outsource it, but the product will be better” said Vig.

3. Listen to Lego fans

Under Vig’s leadership Lego actively interact with Lego’s fans, something previously considered verboten. Expanding their direct collaboration with its market, Lego launched its own crowdsourcing competition: originators of winning ideas get 1% of their product’s net sales.

Vig Knudstorp rescued Lego by methodically rebuilding it, brick by brick. He dumped things it had no expertise in – the Legoland parks are now owned by the British company Merlin Entertainments, for example. Aside from that the internet also played a vital role in allowing fans to share their creations and promote events like Brickworld, adult Lego fan conventions.