Lessons from Lego

Monocle magazine is always worth a read, and online there is a series of video podcasts available featuring interviews with business leaders and cultural commentators.

One of the series features Monocle Editor In Chief Tyler Brûlé in conversation with the CEO of Lego, Jørgen Vig Knudstorp. It's a fascinating insight into how a brand with such heritage as Lego has met the challenges of competition and globalisation. I have always been interested in how brands survive by staying innovative and successful. They survive - of course - by changing, and reinventing their offering.

Lego is a fascinating case study. It is re-engineering itself from toy manufacturer to an ideas-led business. The company is going 'open source'; and will be less about production and more about intellectual property, about development of characters, concepts and partnerships with other IPs. Lego is unashamedly niche, not looking for mass-market share but to appeal to a specific market demographic. Its operating principles are founded on originality and on being authentic. Whether big brand or one person business, there are lessons for us all here.

Check out the video here