It seems that the LEGO success story shows no sign of slowing down, with LEGO City, Icons and Technic contributing to more double-digit growth for the Danish company.
The LEGO Group outperformed the wider toy industry again in 2022, with revenue up by 17%, sales up by 12% and profit up by 5%. It continues a success story that has been going on for years, aside from disappointing figures in 2019. This was all in spite of unfavourable conditions, including inflationary pressures on the company’s costs and the ceasing of all operations in Russia.
‘2022 was a milestone year for the LEGO Group as we celebrated our 90th anniversary. Our strong results show that the LEGO System in Play is more relevant and appealing than ever,’ sad LEGO CEO Niels B Christiansen. ‘I am very satisfied with our performance. We achieved double digit top line growth and landed the year beyond expectations on the back of exceptional growth last year and despite challenging market conditions. This was due to our relevant brand, a fantastic, diverse portfolio, inspiring shopping experiences and outstanding execution from our teams.’
The best-selling themes were named as City, Technic, Icons, Star Wars and Harry Potter. To continue to meet demand as it grows in the years ahead, the LEGO Group is building new factories in the USA and Vietnam while significantly expanding the facilities in Billund, Denmark.
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To continue the success story, the LEGO Group is investing significantly in digitisation, having increased the size of the digital team by 43% in 2022. This will support the increased consumer interest in digital LEGO offerings, such as the LEGO Builder App, which was downloaded 13.6 million times in 2022, a 42% increase on 2021.
With 25% of profits going to the LEGO Foundation, 9.8 million children and families were supported by Learning through Play programmes that are delivered with partners like Save the Children and UNICEF. ‘We are grateful that our financial momentum makes it possible to continue to support children in need and bring more Learning through Play opportunities to children everywhere,’ the CEO said.
All of this means that since 2018, the LEGO Group’s revenue and profit has almost doubled. Niels B Christiansen seems to be aware that this rate of growth can’t last forever: ‘The momentum we have seen during the past years continued in 2022. It was driven by the investments made during this time which are both paying off now and establishing a foundation for long-term, sustainable growth. We plan to accelerate investments in strategic initiatives in the coming years to build long-term relevance and growth of our brand.’
If the company does return to the high single digit growth that the CEO anticipates, the rosy picture will continue in the years ahead, with the LEGO Group’s popularity seemingly knowing no limits.