You're probably familiar with Lego bricks.
If you're like most people, you played
with them as a child. If you have children of your own, there's a good
chance you have a house full of bricks and mini-figures and a
few thousand other pieces. You've probably even stepped on a few,
which--admittedly--isn't the most fun you can have with Lego.
The Lego brick is 65 years old this year.
On January 28, 1958, the company patented its iconic design. Few toys have had
the same kind of lasting
impact on both children and adults.
There is something about the ability to
build whatever you can imagine that makes Lego different from other toys. This
ad, from 1968, is a great example of exactly that.
"Lego ... the thoughtful toy,"
the headline reads. I first saw this ad when I came across a post the company shared on LinkedIn. Those three words "the thoughtful
toy" are what makes Lego so beloved
as a toy--and as a brand.
The rest of the ad explains why:
- Give Lego. It's not just another empty-minded amusement. Children can turn these colorful, safe, plastic bricks into factories, skyscrapers, locomotives, merry-go rounds, almost anything imaginable.
- There's a good reason for Lego. Children don't have much chance to think these days, what with all the war equipment, "shooting irons," and monsters they get. Why not give them a Christmas gift that lets them create something? A gift that stretches the imagination, that widens the world they live in.
- A gift that lasts. The perfect gift.
- Give Lego. And let your children explore their dreams.
There is a lot about that ad that I love. While the distractions might look a little
different, the reality is that the case for Lego bricks is mostly the same. You
can replace "war equipment, shooting irons, and monsters" with
iPhones and Nintendo Switch and whatever else kids obsess over today, but although
"toys" look very different, not much has actually changed.
Lego's brand, even then, was a toy that
facilitates "learning through play." It's something that lets you
take an idea in your head and make it real. That hasn't changed.
Lego bricks are a toy, of course, but they
are a toy you imagine and build with. And, that imagination doesn't stop just
because you reach some arbitrary age.
The company is always creating new sets,
and adding new pieces and technology, but a Lego brick today will always fit
with one from 1958.
The brand has been so beloved for so long because
every time a parent passes along a set of bricks to their child, they pass
along all of the imagination and memories.
Lego bricks are still something that
engages children and adults alike as they explore their dreams and their
imagination. It's why--even today--a Lego brick is the same
thoughtful toy it was 65 years ago.
Adapted from Inc.
