During that tumultuous time the company learned an important lesson, depending too much on other companies would only lead to disaster. The time had come for them to build a new legacy brick by brick. 

By 2016, Lego had turned things around and was ready for the next phase in its evolution: its digital transformation. Though Lego did not, at that time, consider itself a “digital” company, it had already invested in a number of digital technologies. For example, over the previous 10 years, Lego successfully implemented a new multi-functional enterprise platform and launched a number of popular digital products. 

In addition, Lego’s leadership team had already begun envisioning its digitally-enabled omnichannel retail ecosystem, a network of brick & mortar stores, e-commerce sites and numerous partner entities. Instead of viewing its brick & mortar assets as traditionals, whereby it would be judged by sales, Lego considers its retail properties as the experiential component of its brand. As such, its retail outlets, online stores and other digital offerings are fully integrated to create one, immersive omnichannel experience. 

“The entire Lego ecosystem is actually, I think, only at the beginning. So, it’s less about just creating an e-commerce store or an online store. It is really about this entire digital ecosystem and creating that future. And that’s a long-term journey, that’s a 10-year journey … And we’re just a couple of years into this,” Lego CEO Niels B. Christiansen explained to reporters in September 2021. 

Lego’s Digital Transformation 2.0 

However, it wasn’t until the COVID-19 lockdown that Lego’s digital strategy really started to take flight. As the pandemic pushed children towards indoor, independent play activities, Lego’s sales soured despite retail closures. According to reports, compared to the previous year, the company’s revenue grew 7% to 15.7 billion Danish krone ($2.46 billion) from January to June 2020. 

And the growth didn’t stop there. The following year, from January to June 2021, revenues increased by 46% to DKK23bn (£2.7bn) as consumer sales grew by 36%

In late 2021, Lego announced they would be capitalizing on the growth and entering the next phase of their digital transformation by investing in digital platforms, products and ways of working. This includes opening “digital talent hubs” in Shanghai, Copenhagen, Billund and London.

As Julia Goldin, Chief Product & Marketing Officer was quotes as saying in a recent Lego article, “The investments in the Innovation Campus will create a truly inspiring workspace for those working in product development and technology innovation and it represents a terrific opportunity for us as a company and an investment in our people and brand.”

Lego’s trajectory serves as a powerful reminder that it’s never too late for reinvention, you can back away from the brink of disaster. However, before an organization can truly reap the rewards of a digital-first business model, it must first turn inwards and transform itself from the inside out.