A Look at the Lego Company History
In 1932 carpenter Ole Kirk Christiansen founded his company in Billund, Denmark with the intention of encouraging creative play and awe-inspiring in children. In the beginning, he produced stepladders however, the effects of the Great Depression forced him to be flexible and adapt his business model. He switched his focus on the production of toys, and created one of the most adored brands.
Christiansen was a nimble thinker and quick to embrace new materials and technologies. In 1947, he was among the first company in the world to purchase a plastic injection molding machine that greatly expanded the range and capabilities of Lego products. The machine also allowed him to test a design that would later become the iconic Lego brick. The bricks were hollow at the bottom and had pegs on the top. They were interlocked to let children create intricate structures that were more complex than those created using wooden blocks from earlier generations.
The 1950s were a time of expansion for the company. Godtfred Kirk Christiansen’s daughter Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen joined the company’s management team and began to modernize the manufacturing processes of the company. This expansion saw the introduction of a line of dollhouses and furniture for girls, as well as the very first minifigures that were sold as individual pieces. In 1979, the company branched out into space with sets presenting astronaut minifigures and rockets, lunar rovers, and spaceships, as well as into medieval areas with a Castle theme.
In 1990 the company released three Model Team sets that were designed for advanced builders. The sets comprised small components such as levers, axles, gears and other components. They were the first Lego sets that offered an element of realism and precision.
