The Evolution of Lego: From Toy to Collector's Item

Lego enthusiasts transform plastic bricks into a thriving community, blending nostalgia and creativity for all ages.

### The Evolution of Lego: From Child's Toy to Adult Collectible
* 🧱  Lego sets have become increasingly expensive, with some sets costing more than an **iPhone 15**, due to factors like **scarcity, licensing, and increased complexity**.
* 🏗️  Lego's history dates back to 1949 when the company transitioned from wooden toys to plastic bricks, culminating in the **iconic stud and tube design** in 1958.
* 🚀  The 1970s marked a turning point for Lego, introducing themed sets like the **Space Cruiser** and the iconic **minifigure**, expanding the **creative possibilities** for builders.
* 💰  By the late 1990s, Lego faced financial challenges due to diversification and declining sales, prompting a shift back to its **core brick-building business**.
* 👩‍👦‍👦  Adult fans of Lego (AFOLs) became an increasingly important demographic, leading to the company's "**Adults Welcome**" marketing strategy and the release of more complex, **18+ sets**.
* 📈  Despite perceptions of increased prices, the price per piece of Lego sets has remained relatively stable over the past two decades, with **more expensive sets reflecting their increased complexity and size**.
* 🌐  The internet and fan conventions played a crucial role in **connecting and growing the AFOL community**, influencing Lego's **product development and marketing strategies**.
* 🌟  The enduring appeal of Lego lies in its **creativity, problem-solving, and ability to connect generations** through shared play experiences.

Narrator: This thief is stealing $1,500 worth of Lego, according to the store's owner. But that's just the tip of the iceberg. In the past decade, there have been a slew of Lego thefts, including one totaling about $300,000. But why are thieves around the world targeting a toy? Well, one reason might be that the most expensive Lego sets cost more than an iPhone 15. That's why this guy was trying really hard to reach the top shelf. Justine: These went from around $120 to overnight selling on eBay for several thousand dollars. My friends and family don't actually know about this room. I think they'd probably be quite shocked if I ever opened the door and they saw all the Lego that was in here. Narrator: But it wasn't always like this. In 2006, Lego's most expensive set was $270. So how did we get here?

How did Lego go from a children's toy to a collector's item? And why is it so expensive? Today, Lego is the world's largest toy company. But its story didn't start with plastic bricks. It started with wood. While Lego found success with wooden toys, the company's first major turning point came in 1949, when its founder took a gamble and started manufacturing plastic bricks. Plastic toys were cutting-edge technology at the time. But Lego wasn't the first to pursue this idea. Here are two patents by a company called Kiddicraft from 1939 and 1945. And, well, you can decide how much inspiration Lego took. Plastic bricks didn't click right away. Lego had to stick with the product and innovate to pull kids away from wooden and metal toys. And to understand the price of Lego today, we have to rewind to its very first set. It was just a box of bricks without instructions.

Some of the earliest gift sets cost 25 Danish krone, about $60 today. But in 1955, Lego released the Town Plan, a simple version of the sets we have today. Kids built buildings and combined them to create little Lego cities. With this release, Lego solidified what it called the System in Play. Its guiding philosophy would be that every brick should fit together and stand the test of time, allowing kids of all ages to build in unlimited ways. And we can't not mention the reasonably priced line. Then, in 1958, Lego perfected its bricks with the stud and tube method, an interlocking design that enabled large yet stable builds. Lego uses that design for its bricks to this day. Dave: Lego is brilliant. Pieces that were built from the beginning of Lego interact with pieces that were built today. Narrator: With just a few exceptions. Do you know about brown?

There were some brown bricks that were made, like, during a certain period of Lego that were more delicate than others, and if you try to build with some of those bricks today, they are a little brittle. But 99.9% of all Lego that has ever been made is designed to stand the test of time and is awesome. Narrator: By the 1960s, plastic bricks were a hit, and Lego made them its full focus. But at the time, Lego's products were still pretty simple. Aside from reinventing the wheel in 1962, its builds were blocky and predominantly used the classic rectangular brick. Lego's second major turning point came in the 1970s when it started to release more creative sets, like the 1978 Space Cruiser. It had 170 pieces and cost $10, or about $48 today. Lego referred to these themed sets as the system within the system.

They added new pieces that expanded the Lego palette, like colored transparent parts and thrusters. For builders like Dave, these pieces expanded the possibilities of Lego. Dave: It's really fun to have other options because it's not like drawing, where you have unlimited possibilities. Like, your limitations are the brick that exists. So every time a new piece or a new color gets added, it's exciting. So builds that I built like 10 years ago, I would build totally different now because there's an expanded palette of what's available to build with. Narrator: Throughout the '70s, Lego transformed from a toy into a creative medium, releasing dozens of new parts, sets, and even debuting the iconic minifigure. The company experienced huge success and worldwide growth in the 1980s. Commercial: Hour after hour, day after day, year after year, Lego changes. There's no end to Lego.

Narrator: But much like those brown bricks, cracks were starting to show. By the late 1990s, sales slumped, and the company was losing money for the first time ever. Lego had grown rapidly and spread itself too thin, investing heavily in theme parks, media properties, and merchandise. Meanwhile, sales for its original focus, the brick, were slipping. Lego released sets that required less building, ignoring what fans loved about the toy. Take the Galidor theme, which barely resembles a Lego product. Commercial: Every dimension needs a hero. Every hero needs a special power. In Galidor, it's glinching. Narrator: Glinching was not going to save Lego. Sets like those had one-off pieces that didn't fit into the Lego system. They cost more to manufacture and were less profitable. An executive would later say, We had actually seen a decline in profitability, yet we continued to invest

as if the company were growing very strongly. We failed to realize that we were on a slippery path. The company's annual report described 2003 as a very disappointing year for Lego Company. Executives were also concerned that physical toys might not keep up with the exploding video game industry. One of the few things that kept Lego afloat was Bionicle, the company's best seller for four years straight. Another bright spot was its licensed Star Wars sets, first released in 1999. These ranged in price from $6 to $90, and they flew off the shelves. Licensed sets would become hugely important for Lego. But more on that later. Outside the company, something unexpected was growing all on its own. It turned out that kids weren't the only ones who thought Lego was fun. Dave: Even in college, I was like, my friends were going out to the bars, and I was like,

well, but I could buy some more Lego with that money. Narrator: Dave is what some people refer to as an AFOL. Dave: Adult Fan of Lego, which, I don't know. I mean, it's a term that we use somewhat endearingly, but you know, it's also a little cheeky. Narrator: His skill and passion for Lego earned him a spot on the TV series Lego Masters, which millions of viewers watch weekly for its competitions between adults. Dave: I'm like a superfan. I watch like the international versions too. I love it. Narrator: But the hobby looked a lot different when Dave first started building. Before the 2000s, even Lego's most complex sets had young age recommendations, like 9 and up or 11 to 16. But that didn't deter creative people like Dave from getting into the hobby. Dave: This is like, 40 years of collecting Lego.

It's almost embarrassing to think about how much the dollar value is of this Lego. If I buy a set, I'm taking that apart. I'm building it once to like learn the techniques, but then I'm taking that set apart and integrating that into this collection so that I can use the pieces for my own ideas. Narrator: By the 1990s, there was a growing group of passionate fans like Dave who had either played with Lego as a kid or discovered it in adulthood as a creative outlet. And they were spending a lot on Lego. For enthusiasts, having a room or an entire basement dedicated to Lego is a common practice. Dave: Everybody has a different system that works for them. It's in here somewhere. You just have to find it. The system's always changing. One of my favorite containers right here, so I sold those three goats recently, got croissants and bottles and eggs, chicken legs.

So this is a whole container that just has minifigure hair. Maybe this is a little morbid, but you could have a whole container of just minifigure heads. It's definitely more than 100,000 bricks in this room. It's probably somewhere between 100,000 and 500,000 just individual Lego elements in this room. But like, some of them are really small. I mean, there's probably 10,000 pieces right here. Narrator: Dave estimates his collection is worth about $50,000. Dave: There's lots of ways to have a collection to build up, you know, it might be a collection of vacations that you've taken over time, and this is a collection of memories and builds, and pieces from many, many, many years of doing this. I love it because it's a way to tell stories. I can talk about or think about, like, things that have been happening in my life.

or things that are happening in the world or tell imaginary stories. I was like, you know, younger building by myself in my apartment. It's a very solitary thing, building Lego. You're usually by yourself, or maybe with a sibling or a family member. It really can be for anybody because there's so many different ways to be with Lego. Narrator: In the 1990s, the passion of builders like Dave was quietly growing, waiting for a spark that would forever change the hobby. I'm at the center of the web. High-tech illusion. Fantasy. As someone can hardly turn the computer on, it's all a bit worrying. Dave: When the internet started to catch on, people like me who had been building discovered that there were other people like me. And it was great to be able to connect, to see that other people were building. It wasn't just, like, building in solitude.

And that's really, I think, when Lego started to become something else and not just a kid's toy. Narrator: But Lego didn't always accept or understand its adult fans. One former executive said that decades ago, Lego saw fans like Dave as a source of irritation. Another said Lego didn't think their adult fans had value. One of Lego's former CEOs said, We kept thinking that much more should be done for the adult. Most people on the management team thought we should concentrate on children instead. For a long time, up until the 1990s, being a fan of something was not seen in a positive light. Like, why are you wasting your time playing with Legos? And so I can totally see why a company in the 1990s would really want to project that. Narrator: But the AFOL community's momentum was not easily stopped. It was growing not just online, but in person. Dave: People from all over the world would come together

to be part of a convention. Narrator: In the early 2000s, conventions helped fans connect and build a strong community. It was also great marketing for Lego because enthusiasts would display giant creations, like this 8-foot-wide Lord of the Rings build that took 11 years to construct. John: I don't know how much it cost. It was definitely in the thousands. Like, for me now, I'm done buying Lego. I feel like I have enough here. Julian: I've been playing with it since I was a kid. And I got my first set when I was 4 or 5. A good portion of the apartment is filled with Lego. When we buy a house, we'll very quickly have a Lego basement. Paul: We often find the most powerful fandoms and the longest-lasting fandoms come from the community. They tend to be grassroots or ground-up kind of fandoms. That sort of creative transformation

coheres a fan community, I think, stronger than if a media corporation or a toy company says, Here's the way I want you to be a fan. Narrator: But remember this set? I bought two, I sold one, and I think I'll hold this one for a while and see where I get to. Narrator: One huge aspect of the hobby driven by the community is the resale market. Lego retires its sets every few years. After that, if you want to buy it or need a specific piece, your only option is to buy secondhand. Because of this artificial scarcity, some sets skyrocket in value. And savvy buyers view Lego as an investment. Justine: So this is my Lego storage room. I'd say there'd be over 600 to 700 of them stored inside this room. My kids aren't allowed in here. Probably could be stored better, but I have an air vent for ventilation and store a lot of 'em in cardboard boxes.

to keep the boxes in good condition. I know the retail value of the sets I've purchased is over $50,000. Secondary market value, I would suspect it's a lot more than that. Some of the sets alone are worth three to four times what the retail price was. I keep this nicely locked away. That is not a set to play with. Narrator: Justine says she collects Lego not with the intention of reselling, but because she wants to build each one. Justine: Just lift to get it out. That's a big one. Narrator: However, knowing many sets increase in value gives her some pause in cracking open the box. Justine: So I don't really have a strategy or approach to buying Lego. I buy what I like. Unfortunately, I like a lot. On occasion, I have bought a set twice because I've forgotten that I purchased it. There is one minifigure alone within that set, Harley Quinn,

that is worth $400, and the set itself is worth $1,200. So I'd love to build it, but at the same time, it's really hard to say I'll go, you know, spend $400 overnight while building that set and reducing its value. My ratio of built Lego to Lego inbox is probably a little out of whack. Narrator: Prices on the secondhand market can be eye-watering. Dave: A minifigure like this could go for like $200, because it's a very rare minifigure that only appeared in one set ever. Narrator: But not everything multiplies in value. And this massive network of spare parts is what empowers builders like Dave. Dave: I probably ordered like 2,000 light saber rods just to make this floor. It doesn't even look like Lego anymore. I'm putting them on their ends and putting them all so close together that they make that hexagonal tile.

Narrator: In the early 2000s, Lego's fans were innovating more than the company was, and in order to survive, it needed to embrace AFOLs. Lego recognized it was pursuing a losing strategy while ignoring a key customer base. To turn the tide, it cut costs, sold the theme parks, and refocused on its core business of building with bricks. And it was time to finally consider adults. In 2004, Lego, now under a new CEO, planned to fundamentally change the way it did business. Over the next few years, it sought to improve its products by developing what it referred to as grassroots collaboration with its adult fans. In addition to making sets more profitable, Lego needed to recapture customer excitement. And who better to ask for help than its most passionate fans. In its 2006 annual report, Lego said it obtains inspiration from the many independent homepages

and clubs for Lego enthusiasts all over the world. In 2007, Lego released a $500 Millennium Falcon with over 5,000 pieces recommended for ages 16 and up. This marked a jump in set complexity, price, and target demographic. To put this change into perspective, the 1999 Star Wars Podrace set cost $90, had 896 pieces, and listed an age range of 8 to 12. Dave: They've also hired people like me, who were Lego builders, to work for them. The things that we kind of pioneered are now being pioneered by the people who work at Lego, so it's much more exciting, because the techniques in Lego sets have become more advanced, and you learn more when building a Lego set than when you did when you were a kid and the sets were simpler. Paul: When fans are running the thing that they're a fan of, they can expand it in ways that they know other people will enjoy.

Narrator: This is the start of the company's third turning point, getting kids and adults excited about Lego. To achieve this, Lego released bigger, more interesting sets and expanded its licensed products. Paul: Brand tie-ins in Lego sets work phenomenally to get people interested in purchasing the set. People that are fans of that particular brand might purchase the Lego set that wouldn't normally buy Legos. Narrator: This strategy coincided with an explosion of pop culture fandoms and a growth of what's referred to as the kidult industry. Paul: Kidult industries are industries that produce products that we would associate with children but aimed at an adult market. And it's become a huge area of business. Narrator: Lego released its first 18+ set in 2020. And since then, the company has released dozens of products each year clearly targeting adults. Some of these sets like the Star Wars AT-AT

are complex, with thousands of pieces and a price tag to match. Others feature themes like dried flowers that try to appeal to older builders. These sets are also perfect to display once you've built them. Paul: I display my Doctor Who Legos because I want people to know that that's an important part about who I am, and I'm proud of that. Previously nerdy things and hobbies and fandoms are absolutely a part of mainstream popular culture today. Narrator: Now, Lego's website even says Adults Welcome. This strategy allows Lego to cater to a customer base and a price point it couldn't reach if it only focused on kids. Justine: I personally don't set myself a budget for Lego because if I did, I'd just blow it. Narrator: Lego also acquired BrickLink, the largest Lego resale marketplace, in 2019. At the time Lego's CEO said, Our adult fans are extremely important to us. ...

We have worked closely with the community for many years and look forward to deepening our collaboration. Paul: We've seen just how much money that sort of thing makes that gives it seriousness. But I think also because we've just kind of normalized weirdness in a way that makes me really happy. Dave: I really never cared what the age was on the Lego set, because I was like, I want the pieces. I just want the pieces to build. But it's good messaging I think from Lego to say like, this isn't just a kid's toy, this is for adults too. And for me, it didn't matter, but I think for a lot of people it is welcoming. Narrator: And Lego's plan to save the company worked. Two decades later, the company boasts nearly 10 times the revenue. But amid this success, profits weren't the only number going up. Walking down the toy aisle and seeing Lego sets

priced at hundreds of dollars can be alarming. But is Lego actually more expensive than 10 or 20 years ago? To answer this question, let's look at price per piece. That's the price of a set divided by how many pieces are included. It's not a perfect measurement, and it doesn't include minifigures, but think of it as a broad look at the value of a set. Remember that 2007 Millennium Falcon? That had a price per piece of 10 cents. A decade later, Lego released a new Millennium Falcon with over 7,500 pieces for $850 and a price per piece of 11 cents. That's just 1 cent higher, and adjusted for inflation, it's actually 1 cent lower. Some set themes are more expensive than others, but the price per piece has remained surprisingly stable over the past 20 years. Ironically, some of the worst-value sets are ones designed

for young children, like Duplo. This set has a price per piece of $1.30. So why are sets more expensive? They're much more complex. This chart shows an increase in average set prices since 2014. But it aligns with an increase in average pieces per set since the same year. Paul: They could do a Millennium Falcon for 30 bucks, and it wouldn't look as good, and it wouldn't be as big. But they know that they can do this big one because there is a market for it. Narrator: So if you're walking through Target seeing high prices and thinking that Lego is expensive, you're not entirely wrong. Since 2020, Lego has released significantly more sets that cost over $300. But it's also releasing more sets overall, about twice as many annually as it did in 2008 and about four times the amount it released in the 1990s.

Dave: You can have unlimited pieces, but it's also fun to, like, just build with what you have. And sometimes the limit of what you have is more challenging than building with unlimited pieces. Once in a while, I'll be working on something, I'll be like, well, is it worth it for me to go buy more of this, or can I find another solution for it with what I have so that I don't have to buy more of something? That's really what Lego is about. Creative problem-solving is like, can I solve it this way? Is there another way to solve it? Or is there a third way that I haven't even thought about yet? Narrator: Going all in on the brick helped Lego beat the one-hit wonder problem many toy companies have. But it also created an ecosystem and a creative medium that has endured nearly 70 years of competition and shifting pop culture. Dave: My mom tells me

that she got me my first Lego set when I was 4 years old. I don't think I could have predicted where Lego would go. I love Lego because I feel the nostalgia from when I was a kid. You know, it brings me back to those moments of sitting on the rug, building that set, being young and enjoying that. And I like the way that it connects generations, that adults can play with the same toy with their kids that they played with when they were a kid. Paul: It's continually new, and it's continually refreshing, and that's in its DNA. I don't think we're ever going to see a fandom for Lego die in the way that we might for a media text which waxes and wanes over time. Dave: My hope for the future is that it will continue to be more accessible to people, whether that's through having representation of different people in their sets or price.

I think price is a block for a lot of people. How can we make it an entry point that is accessible to everyone? I would hope that people who watch this think when they look at Lego and they look at this, they're like, oh, you have to have that much Lego to be an amazing Lego builder. It's not really about that. The coolest techniques I've come up with, or that I've seen other people use, are when they have constraints. It's not really about like how much you have. It's about ingenuity. It's about trying to find different ways to solve problems. So I wouldn't ever be intimidated by seeing something huge. It's OK to just put a couple pieces together and have it be something amazing.

Why Lego Is So Expensive | So Expensive | Business Insider

What you want to know about business. 

Visit our homepage for the top stories of the day: https://www.businessinsider.com 
Business Insider on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/businessinsider
Business Insider on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/insiderbusiness
Business Insider on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/businessinsider
Business Insider on Snapchat: https://www.snapchat.com/discover/Business_Insider/5319643143
Business Insider on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@businessinsider

If you have a permissions or licensing request, please connect with our partners at PARS International who will be able to provide you with an accurate quote for the overall usage rights that you’re interested in. A representative from PARS will contact you shortly after filling out this request form: https://www.parsintl.com/publications/insider/


Business Insider

Lego thefts have surged, with one incident totaling $300,000, as the most expensive sets now sell for thousands.

The company's success began with wooden toys, but the real turning point came in 1949 with the manufacturing of plastic bricks.

Lego's innovative interlocking design and themed sets in the 1970s transformed it from a simple toy to a creative medium, leading to its status as the world's largest toy company.

Lego's Struggles and the Rise of Adult Fans

Lego faced a decline in sales and profitability in the late 1990s and early 2000s, struggling with its expansion into theme parks and media.

The company's shift away from traditional building sets and the release of the Galidor theme did not resonate with fans.

Despite the challenges, Bionicle and licensed Star Wars sets became key contributors to Lego's success, while a growing community of adult fans, like Dave, found joy and creativity in collecting and building with Lego.

The 1990s saw a growing passion for Lego building, with the internet helping enthusiasts connect and form a community.

Lego's management initially dismissed adult fans, but the AFOL community's momentum led to in-person conventions and strong community building.

The resale market for retired sets created artificial scarcity, driving up their value and making Lego a savvy investment for buyers.

The Impact of Adult Fans on Lego's Evolution

Justine collects Lego sets, not for resale, but to build them, though the increasing value of some sets makes her hesitant to open the boxes.

The secondhand market for Lego can be extremely lucrative, with rare minifigures selling for up to $200.

Lego's shift in strategy in the 2000s, embracing adult fans and collaborating with them, led to more complex and expensive sets, ultimately recapturing customer excitement and transforming the company's business model.

Lego's third turning point involved releasing bigger sets and expanding licensed products to attract both kids and adults.

The company targeted the growing "kidult" market, launching its first 18+ set in 2020 and releasing numerous adult-focused products each year.

Despite the higher price tags, the price per piece has remained stable over the past 20 years, challenging the perception that Lego is significantly more expensive now.

The Complexity and Impact of Lego Pricing

Lego sets have become more expensive over the years due to their increasing complexity and the company's strategy to release more high-priced sets.

Despite the high prices, Lego's approach of offering unlimited pieces and promoting creative problem-solving has created a lasting ecosystem and generational connection.

The company's future goal is to become more accessible to everyone, emphasizing that great building techniques can come from working with constraints rather than having an abundance of pieces.