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Legendary toy company prospers

Danish toy manufacturer Lego recorded double-digit growth across all markets when the company reported its first-half results on 8 September.

Boosted by unexpectedly high sales figures of the new Atlantis brand, revenues at the family-owned company increased 34% to DKK 5.88 billion (€789 million) compared to the same period last year. Net profits for the first half of 2010 were DKK 1.12 billion compared with DKK 684 million for the same period in 2009.

In a statement Lego, which is owned by the founding Kristiansen family, said that aside from strong sales in the new Atlantis brand, classic product lines such as Lego City, Lego Duplo and Lego Star Wars kept their "vigorous" growth rate over the period. 

All Lego markets reported double-digit growth rates, but the US and Eastern Europe recorded the strongest sales.

Despite the solid performance, non-family CEO Jorgen Vig Knudstorp cautioned that it is still to early to make any full-year predictions, but that the company is positive about the second half. "We are moving into our peak season – the bulk of toy sales take place during the second half of the year," said Knudstorp.

The global market for traditional toys has been stagnant in recent years but grew by around 2% during the first half of 2010. Lego's share increased to about 5% of the global market.

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