For many consumers, world-renowned toy company Lego evokes childhood memories of red and yellow brick houses, off-road cars or futuristic spaceships. Even it’s fun bubble-font logo is designed to appeal to kids. But in reality, there’s no age limit on building blocks. Lego’s broad portfolio of products has proved popular across generations for many years, with collections starting from ages 1.5+ to 18+, but the pandemic has really highlighted the brand’s popularity among adul
g adults.
The toy company reported a surge in demand for Lego products during lockdowns as family members of all ages sought out creative ways to keep their minds active.
Genevieve Capa Cruz, an audience marketing strategist for the adult category at Lego, told Inside Retail that many people began building with Lego for the first time and more families were building together than ever before.
“In our research, we found that 91 per cent of adults said they experienced signs of stress in the past year, and they also told us they enjoy building as a way to relax, get creative, and destress. In fact, more adults turn to non-digital games like Lego building to destress than practice yoga (61 per cent vs. 49 per cent),” she said.
Cruz’s role is about representing the consumers’ needs and wants throughout the marketing value chain, from the creation of products to ensuring their visibility and accessibility in the marketplace. Of course, each demographic brings an entirely different set of interests.
“What’s important to our adult fans, and what guides our designers, is that the product reflects their interests and provides a sophisticated and immersive building experience,” Cruz said.
“We also know that Lego building gives adults a real sense of achievement, with many adult builders proudly displaying their creations once finished. So whether an adult is passionate about films, music, sport, art and design or cars, we have Lego models that they’ll be excited to build – and we will continue to design new models that tap into similar adult passions and interests.”
Naturally, the marketing of Lego products to adults is a whole other ballgame. In the past, Lego’s adult products have spanned a number of different themes which, Cruz said, may have been difficult for an adult to spot in stores and online, but last year the brand unveiled a new design across packaging, store displays and Lego.com experiences targeting adults.
“With our 18+ sets, everything from the model design and the building instructions to the packaging and marketing of these sets is designed to appeal to adults – making it clear they are for adults, not for children,” she said.
“The sleek, modern design makes it easier for older builders to find new, immersive builds or models that link to their interests and passions. We’re also working to ensure 18+ Lego products are present where adults are rather than in the toy aisles or website sections dedicated to kids.”
Lego’s Marvel-inspired take on pop-art. Image: Lego.
Allure of the AFOLs
But Lego realised the power in its adult consumer base long before the pandemic. And like many brands have looked to key opinion leaders (KOLs) to drive conversation about their products, Lego has embraced its community of adult fans, or AFOLs (Adult Fan of Lego) as they call them, and is actively supporting and learning from them.
In 2019, Lego acquired BrickLink Ltd, the world’s largest online community of adult Lego fans from NXMH to strengthen its connection with its adult fan base.
The BrickLink platform is an online community of more than one million members and includes an online marketplace of more than 10,000 stores globally. It also features digital building software which allows builders to design and showcase their creations.
Signe Lønholdt, head of community growth in AFOL engagement, told Inside Retail that through Lego’s Ambassador Network (LAN) the brand can provide “valuable dialogue and initiate activities” that support fans’ interests.
“We believe you’re never too old to love Lego bricks,” she said.
“Through LAN we support Fan Media channels that share Lego news and creative content with the fan community as well as Lego User Groups, which are local communities where fans get together for building meetings and other fan hobby activities.”
At Lego’s global headquarters in Billund, Denmark, they offer two different tours, the Lego Fan Tour and the Lego Inside Tour, both of which offer a chance to get behind-the-scenes access to the Lego Group.
“We plan to resume these tours once Covid-19 precautions allow,” Lønholdt said.
Power of play
Cruz said Covid-19 validated the role that Lego can play as a mindfulness activity in adult’s lives – “an activity that can help them unplug from the anxieties and stresses of the day and plug in to a moment of hands-on, minds-on creation.”
As a result, Cruz said the brand will continue to produce products that tap into adults’ passions, such as entertainment, property, music, art & deco and sports.
Despite the obvious allure of the adult category, Cruz said Lego’s primary focus will always be on kids.
“While we want to support creative and relaxing building experiences for adults, children will always be our priority, and making products that help them to learn through play is what inspires us,” she said.