It may be hard to imagine today, but the entire LEGO company started very small. Ole Kirk Christiansen was a carpenter in Billund, Denmark who opened a woodworking shop in 1916. He and his team of apprentices built furniture for people in the area. In 1924, a fire burned down his woodworking shop, because his two young sons had lit a small fire that ignited some nearby wood shavings. Christiansen, seeing the good side of this, replaced his old woodworking shop with a bigger one and expanded his business.
The Great Depression hit many companies, and Christiansen's was no exception. To lower prices, he made small models of his products as design aids. These would go on to inspire him to make toys later on. His shop made small wooden toys, such as piggy banks and trucks, and he had modest success. However, he still had to make furniture to stay in business. The brief yo-yo fad in the mid 1930s gave him good business until its collapse. Ole Kirk Christiansen turned this to his advantage by using the old yo-yos as wheels for toy trucks.
In 1934, Christansen coined the company name LEGO from the Danish words leg godt, meaning play well. He also said it meant “I assemble" in Latin, though the translation is more similar to “I read" or “I gather". At this time, his son Godtfred started to take an active role in his father’s company.
When plastic came into widespread use, LEGO stayed with the times and made plastic toys. One of the first was a plastic truck that could be taken apart and reassembled, similar to the basis behind modern LEGO bricks. In 1947, the LEGO Company obtained a sample of toy bricks made by the company Kiddicraft. The design was of a brick that had four protrusions on the top and a hollow bottom. In 1949, LEGO Group began manufacturing similar blocks made of cellulose acetate that could be locked together but still pulled apart. IN 1953, these bricks were renamed LEGO Bricks.
In that time, plastic toys were viewed as inferior to wooden ones. As a result, LEGO Bricks had poor sales. Still, Christiansen persevered and continued selling his product. In 1954, his son Godtfred became the junior managing director of LEGO group. His conversations with overseas buyers was where the idea for a toy system first came about. Godtfred saw the potential in LEGO bricks being a source of creative play for children. Godtfred also saw the flaw in his idea, the locking ability in the LEGO bricks was limited. In 1958, the modern LEGO bricks design with the hollow tubes underneath was invented. This added to the stability and better locking. Sadly, Ole Kirk Christiansen died that same year.
The LEGO Group became much larger in the coming years. In 1959, a team was created to design new sets. Another fire struck in 1960, destroying most of the wooden toys. Fortunately, the company decided that the LEGO bricks were successful enough to discontinue the wooden toy line. 1961 and 1962 saw the introduction of the LEGO wheels, so kids could finally mobilize their cars and trucks. LEGO Group expanded their business into Canada. In 1963, LEGO bricks were made of acrylonitrile butadiene styrene. ABS is non-toxic, lasts longer, and is more resistant to salt, heat, acids, and other chemicals. The LEGO Group released the highly successful train line in 1966 with a 4.5 volt motor. The first LEGOLAND Park was opened in Godtfred’s hometown of Billund, Denmark. More than 18 million LEGO sets were sold in 1968 alone. In fact, the 1960s were so successful for LEGO Group that the biggest question was how to manage the expanding market.
Since then, LEGO group has made many leaps forward. The LEGO minifigures with moving arms and legs have be made and perfected. LEGO bricks have been cited as a way to encourage child creativity. The “Technic" series has been made as a variation of LEGO bricks for older children. Manufacturing plants have been opened around the world.
LEGO bricks have a very strick manufacturing process. Tens of thousands of dollars are spent on molds that can sense an imperfection. If a piece is off by .002 millimeters, it is thrown out. Worn out molds are hidden away so competitors will never get access to the technology. The molds are so accurate that only 18 out of 1 million LEGO bricks are thrown out. Only quality like this could make the LEGO bricks such a vital part of childhood memories.
