A little over five years after the official opening of its production facility in Jiaxing, Zhejiang, toy company Lego (Billund / Denmark; www.lego.com) has now announced the expansion of its Chinese production. At the plant, which started operations at the end of 2016 (see Plasteurope.com of 08.12.2016) and now employs 1,200 people, 42,000 m² of built-up area is to be added, providing additional space for injection moulding production, further processing of Lego elements, and a high-bay warehouse. Construction work has already begun, according to Lego. The expansion is expected to finish by 2024.

The toy maker, which increased sales by almost half year-on-year to DKK 23 bn (EUR 3.1 bn) in the first half of 2021 and more than doubled operating profit to DKK 8 bn, has seen growing demand in China. Recently, the company opened its 300th shop in Haining near Jiaxing.

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The project in China is not the only expansion in Asia. In December 2021, Lego announced plans to build another plant in Vietnam. More than USD 1 bn (EUR 885m) are to be invested in the construction of the new production facility on a 44-hectare site in Binh Duong Province – about 50 km from Ho Chi Minh City – over the next 15 years. The plant, which will eventually employ up to 4,000 people, is also scheduled to go into operation in 2024.