History Product Life Cycle

2. GROUP MEMEBERS
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3. Introduction
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The history of Lego spans almost 100 years of the
existence of a toy that grew from small wooden
playthings in the early 20th century into the
center of a vast market of plastic building bricks
that dominated the world markets for decades.
It is one of the oldest plastic toys in the world. Its
manufacturing was started in Denmark but was
eventually replaced by factories throughout the
world. Today it is one of the most successful toys
and has remained an iconic brand with a loyal
and continuing following.

4. Introduction
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Successful brand, Lego, which was
conceptualized by Ole Kirk Christiansen, a
carpenter from Denmark, who began making
wooden toys in 1932, has, in the past, had to
pass several litmus tests to prove that it is,
indisputably, one of the finest in the history of
this business.

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6. Tounderstand this, one needs to first get a fair idea
about what the term “product life cycle” means.
The term product life cycle refers to the length of time
a product is introduced to consumers into the market
until it's removed from the shelves.
The life cycle of a product is broken into four stage
introduction, growth, maturity, and decline.
The company had been reinventing itself during the
fifteen-year period of 1990 to 2005, launching new
products in an effort to recover its customer base and
overcome a series of financial crises.
Unfortunately, this strategy was unsuccessful.
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7. • After its introduction with wood
made toys in 1932, which is the
first stage in any product’s life
cycle, the product, the bricks in
this case, entered the second
phase.
• i.e. growth, which witnessed
success and occupation of a large
market share.
• This stage also saw the
introduction of other products in
the product line.
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8. • In 1962, the company added the
wheel to its collection, facilitating
the first Lego train in 1966.
• In the late 60’s, Duplo, a series of
larger bricks for younger children
was introduced.
• In 1968, Lego's first theme park,
Legoland, was set up in the Billund
(Denmark), the city that is home to
the company’s headquarters.
• The 70’s saw the invention of the
Lego Technic Series, which allowed
complex constructions by
introducing beams, gears,
gearboxes and several mini-figures.
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9. So far so good!
However, after nearly five decades of
market domination, trouble struck in
the late 1990s.
• In 1998, the company posted its
first ever loss, which was mainly a
consequence of increasing
competition from video games
and changing buying behavior.
• In marketing terms, these were
signs of the product entering the
maturity phase, where in it was
being challenged and its market
share had stopped increasing.
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10. In 2004, LEGO was in this stage:
demand had declined as more
innovative products absorbed the
attention of kids.
• Price competition had become
more intense, and profits were
harder to come by; in fact, in some
years, they had turned into losses.
• But, unlike most products that
enter the decline stage, LEGO
avoided its likely demise by
reinventing itself.
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