By Plasteurope.com staff

During the first half of 2024, sales at Danish toy manufacturer Lego (Billund, Denmark; www.lego.com) increased by 13% to DKK 31 bn (EUR 4.2 bn), while operating profit went up by 26% to DKK 8.1 bn. This means that the figures for the world’s largest manufacturer of building blocks bucked the general downward trend in the toy industry. Competitors such as Hasbro and Playmobil recently recorded declining sales due to high production costs and stock levels. According to Lego, the Billund-based company is free from these problems, as demand is growing, particularly in Europe and the US. One reason for this could be the accelerating change in the brick manufacturer’s target group, whose best-selling product groups, Icons and Star Wars, are primarily aimed at adults.

Thanks to the sustained increase in sales for over four years in a row, Lego intends to further expand its production and logistics capacities. The toy company opened a new distribution centre in Belgium, and further plants are being built in Vietnam and the US. The two sites are scheduled to be operational in 2025 and 2027. The production facility in Vietnam was originally scheduled to go into operation in 2024. Lego did not disclose why the opening has been postponed. In addition, existing plants in Mexico, Hungary, and China are to be expanded further.

What’s more, the proportion of recyclates in Lego bricks has also increased in the first half of 2024. The building blocks manufacturer stated that almost 22% of all processed products were made from renewable and recycled materials. Last year, the share was still at 12%. The company did not elaborate on the exact composition of this figure or whether it also includes packaging materials such as film. Lego also declined to comment on whether the company relies on chemical recycling to produce the recyclates used.

— Translated by Christopher Köbel