Lego shows how to dominate in multiple forms of media

Published February 24, 2014 at 6:52 am

With the Lego Movie currently netting generally positive reviews in theaters, the long-standing building block toy brand seems to be doing better than ever. That seems to be as much for the way the company has let fans run wild with its products as the officially licensed sets and figures it still designs.

As Wired reports, some homemade Lego sets have retooled existing pieces so that they recreate beloved properties from the world of TV, movies and video games not already covered by the actual company, including popular adult shows Breaking Bad and Mad Men.

Lego’s reach already includes beloved famous superheroes and classic movie franchises like Star Wars, and some of their products have spun off entire universes of their own.

This is perhaps the best single definition of a brand name that has managed to be versatile and yet still recognizable across generations and platforms. As Dominic Basulto of the Washington Post notes, Lego’s recent successes aren’t limited to its traditional toy lines: the company has even designed kits for mini-robots that can be used to teach programming to children.

“It’s hard to think of a single other company that has so successfully bridged the gap between physical play and virtual play,” “No wonder educators have also embraced LEGO, creating new competitions for students, while parents have also remained loyal to the LEGO brand,” says Basulto.

This mix of deliberate and accidental developments have cemented Lego’s place as a business still going strong in the modern age. Not every company ages well, but this could be one model to follow as you look forward to the future.