Lego Group Declares New Year's Resolution For 2012: Deliver Meaningful Play Experiences To Girls Worldwide With New Lego® Friends

The LEGO Group, the world’s leading construction toy brand, today announced LEGO® Friends, a new play theme that tailors the iconic LEGO construction experience especially to girls aged five and up. LEGO Friends delivers on a girl’s desire for realistic role-­‐play, creativity, and a highly-­‐detailed, character-­‐based world with the core values of LEGO building.

The LEGO Friends collection of 22 products ranges in price from $9.99 to $199.99 and the first 14 will be available from New Zealand toy retailers and select specialty stores from March 2012, with the remaining eight sets released later in 2012.

“We felt it was time to test assumptions that girls aren’t interested in building and to breathe fresh air into a toy category filled mostly with pre-­‐fabricated play experiences for girls,” said Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, CEO, LEGO Group. “We focused on creating a play experience centered on the joy of creation, while heeding the way girls naturally build and play. We are incredibly proud of the solution we deliver with LEGO Friends, and are resolved to build this platform for years to come.”

New Zealand Country Manager, Hugh Campbell, is equally thrilled with the innovation. “Entering the girls toy category is a progressive step for the LEGO brand and it will be exciting to see how the market responds. When Friends hits New Zealand shelves in March, the new range will be a welcome addition to a strong line of construction play options. We look forward to offering customers more choice and girls their own building experience in a way we have never done before.”

Expectations are high for New Zealand retailers who already predict “it will be the must-­‐have toy for girls in 2012”, says Lisa Coe, The Warehouse Category Manager for Toys. “It’s definitely the most exciting girls toy to come out in years”, she continues.

“It fills a gap for construction toys for girls whose choices until now have been boys themes. LEGO Friends does this, providing construction play but with theming and a storyline for girls”, says Franco Godinich, Toyworld General Manager.

LEGO Friends is the first 100 percent LEGO building experience fully optimised to girls’ tastes and interests. Thousands of girls and their mothers participated in intensive international research in the development of Friends. Building was shown to make girls feel smart, challenged and proud of their achievements, and that 43% of girls already build alongside their brothers. It also validated a desire for more beauty, realistic details, accessories and interior building and role play opportunities in a LEGO offering.

Introducing the LEGO mini-­‐doll figure

Anchored by the introduction of a new mini-­‐doll figure, LEGO Friends introduces a new LEGO minifigure platform tailored to girls’ requests for a more realistic, relatable and stylised figure. Designed to the same scale of the classic LEGO minifigure, the mini-­‐doll figure stands roughly 5 millimeters taller than its minifigure sibling, yet features similar constructability, shares the iconic “claw” hand to hold the same accessories, can wear the same hair and headpieces, and is compatible with all LEGO building sets. A total of 29 different mini-­‐doll figures will be introduced in 2012.

“LEGO Friends is one of the most researched LEGO projects ever and is a culmination of years of anthropological research with girls around the world to understand what they expect from a construction toy,” said Nanna Ulrich Gudum, senior creative director, LEGO Group. “In talking with girls and their mums, we understand that girls really want a LEGO offering that mirrors what the boys experience, but in a way that fulfills their unique desire for remodelling and redesign, combined with realistic themes in community and friendship.”

“Unlike previous LEGO toys for girls, LEGO Friends, at its core, does not apologise for being a construction toy and delivers, for the first time, a building experience in the same scale as our classic offerings,” Nanna Ulrich Gudum continued. “What LEGO Friends does differently is deliver the beauty, details, accessories, real world themes and need for strong interior play that the research revealed would make all the difference for girls aged 5 and up.”

Welcome to Heartlake City

The LEGO Friends story centers on the everyday lives and personalities of five girls in a fictional hometown called Heartlake City. Each of the friends—Olivia, Mia, Andrea, Stephanie and Emma—has a distinct personality and interests, such as animals, performing arts, invention and design, that are reflected in the models. Building sets reflect different parts of town where the girls’ adventures take place—downtown, suburbs, beach, camping grounds and mountains. The product collection Half of the launch collection includes construction sets themed to introduce girls to each of the “Friend’s” personalities, including: Stephanie’s Outdoor Bakery, Emma’s Splash Pool, Andrea’s Stage, Olivia’s Inventor’s Workshop, Stephanie’s Pet Patrol, Mia’s Puppy House and Emma’s Design Studio. Girls are also invited to construct the Friends’ favourite locations in Heartlake City with larger building sets, including: Stephanie’s Cool Convertible, Olivia’s Tree House, Heartlake Dog Show, Butterfly Beauty Shop, City Park Café, Heartlake Vet, and Olivia’s House. The remaining eight sets launching later in the year deliver the same range in price and theme.

Immersive brand experience

Children will be immersed in the new world they can create with LEGO Friends through a variety of brand experiences planned for 2012. In addition to providing product information, the International LEGO Friends website will allow children to explore the personalities of each of the five Friends and the different spots in Heartlake City. The site will also feature an avatar creator, mini-­‐movies, games, video building tips, story extensions, contests and news. Also planned are promotions, mini magazines, digital content, a mini movie, books and more. Check www.LEGOFriends.com for more information.