Subject:
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Re: The Bar Does Not Go Down
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.dear-lego
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Date:
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Tue, 11 May 2004 02:59:52 GMT
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Reply-To:
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Timothy D. Freshly <timothy.freshly@verizon!AntiSpam!.net>
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Viewed:
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4765 times
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"Rocco J Carello" <rogue27@mac.com> wrote in message
news:HxIzw6.17uB@lugnet.com...
[snip]
> > I agree, to a point. The point where I diverge is the point where Lego • has
> > to make sets that appeal to [today's] kids. As I said earlier, I'm 35 • and
> > my kids (make me) buy lots of toys I [hate], but the toy companies still
> > get my money.
>
> Well, I must admit that I truly wouldn't have any notion of what things • kids
> think are "cool" today. I don't have any children of my own, so you • probably
> know better than me here.
>
> However, I have to ask - what happened? We had more than a decade where • kids
> were happy with town, castle, and space Lego sets in yellow boxes. Did • these
> sets start to lose popularity so TLC had to adapt to stay trendy, or did • they
> start to lose popularity because TLC was trying to be trendy?
In my mind, this actually raises another important question... should TLC
even TRY to be "trendy"? Let me explain. From what I can tell, "trendy"
toys are the flash in the pan here today, gone tomorrow toys. How many
times each Christmas do we hear of a toy that everyone is trying to get for
their kids but by the next Christmas, it's old news? How long do those toys
last (in a child's eyes)? Not very long as far as I can tell. I only have
one toy from my childhood - Lego. It's was the only toy that stuck.
"Trendy" does not mean old, stale, etc. As with anything, Lego should
always strive to remain current and relevant to our times. While I was
growing up, Lego stayed current by introducing the space line. More
recently, the Star Wars and HP licences has helped keep Lego current.
Current and relevant, however, do NOT equal "trendy". This is where I think
Lego management has missed the boat. They have been so focused on being the
next "trendy" toy, that they got away from being the best toy period. In my
opinion, "trendy" is the last thing Lego should ever try to be.
Now, by refusing to be "trendy", would Lego fail to appeal to "today's
kids"? If we define "today's kids" as kids who are only interested in
getting the next cool must-have toy, then yes. But would that necessarily
be bad? As far as I can tell, Lego has NEVER appealed to that type of kid.
Lego is a toy that takes imagination, creativity and PATIENCE. Although
many kids today ("today's kids") do not have enough of an attention span
where Lego would appeal to them, there are still many who DO. And are
"today's kids" realy so different from "yesterday's kids"? I grew up in the
1970s and 1980s with a lot of kids who thought "Legos" were stupid, uncool
toys for nerds. No matter what Lego might have done to try to market to
these kids, they were not ever going to be Lego customers. Legos were dumb
and they wouldn't be caught dead playing with them. And there's the
lesson - some kids, no matter what, are not going to like Lego, PERIOD.
Stop trying to appeal to those kids (what I have called here"today's kids")
and focus on those kids to whom Lego does appeal.
Does this mean they should not try to attract new audiences or penetrate new
markets? Of course not. Every company needs to be flexible, have new and
innovative ideas, and be able to adapt to changing market conditions.
However, a business that over the last 40+ years has successfully built one
of the most recognizable brands in the world should not abandon that success
in pursuit of the next "trendy toy". But as the old saying goes, you dance
with the girl who got you there.
Tim
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Message has 1 Reply:
 | | Re: The Bar Does Not Go Down
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| (...) Excellent! Somebody picked up on the hook I left in my last post. Growing up, there was GI Joe and Transformers. Then they both went away. Then there was teenage mutant Ninja turtles. Then they went away. Then there were power rangers and (...) (20 years ago, 11-May-04, to lugnet.dear-lego)
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Message is in Reply To:
| | Re: The Bar Does Not Go Down
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| (...) Well, they can patent an infinite number of new sets and instructions with the existing parts. Regarding new parts, they seem to be making as many new molds as possible lately because they don't want to leave any possible shapes available for (...) (20 years ago, 11-May-04, to lugnet.dear-lego, FTX)
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