Lego Romania

Iconic toy manufacturer Lego has set up its own subsidiary in Romania and plans to increase its market share to 15-20 percent over the coming years from the present 13.8 percent by making “consistent” investments in marketing, company representatives announced last week.

The Danish company has been present in Romania with its toys since 1993 and until setting up its own subsidiary the main local Lego distributor was Varuna-S. Lego plans to continue its collaboration with the Timisoara-based company but says it will directly handle sales to large key accounts.

The Lego Group decided to directly come to Romania in 2010 as the country is a growth engine in Eastern Europe, which Lego considers a strategic regional market, said John Ungermand, senior director for emerging Europe. Also, the Romanian toy market is seen as having considerable growth potential in the years to come.

The Danish company estimates that the local toy market has increased by up to 5 percent annually over the past few years and now has a value of around EUR 90-100 million. “We are convinced the market will accelerate and so the timing is right for us,” said Ungermand.

In addition to the market potential, Lego is a popular and well received brand by local children and parents, he added. “In many aspects Romanian consumers are asking for the same products as elsewhere. However, my feeling is that they look for and value Lego toys that have an educational aspect,” Mads Thuesen, country manager for Lego Romania, told BR.

Lego representatives say the company has managed to grow sales over the past couple of years and this year alone it has more than doubled its business, said Thuesen. Presently the firm has a 13.8 percent market share and is the leader on the Romanian toy market, according to data from Nielsen. After setting up the local subsidiary the toy manufacturer plans to claim 15-20 percent of the market by increasing sales by 30 percent annually. In order to achieve this, it will make “consistent” investments in marketing, said company representatives, without disclosing the actual figure.

LegoRomania has been operational since the beginning of the year and has 10 employees.

Danish construction toy company Lego was set up 80 years ago and continues to be a family business with a single owner. The Lego Group began in the workshop of Ole Kirk Christiansen, a carpenter from Billund, Denmark, who began making wooden toys in 1932.

Nowadays the company posts global sales of EUR 3 billion and over the past eight years it has constantly been posting growth. Lego has increased its business by more than 20 percent annually over the past five years, according to the company.