1) What are LEGOs “points of difference”?

• History and leadership: Lego is the oldest company in the world that patented a similar play system. They have been in the toys industry for more than 80 years and they one of the largest toys manufactures in the world. This gives Lego visibility and positioning in the industry.
• Play system: They have an open play system that is not limited to the toy that the customer buys. Their system has endless possibilities and depends on the imagination of the children.
• Brand awareness: Lego has built a reputable brand that leverages their marketing and commercial efforts. The brand LEGO, although is associated with the toys industry, can be recognized beyond that industry and can be associated to other leisure and entertainment products.
• Loyal customers: Lego has been able to build a loyal base of customers that keep loyal to the brand when their aging.
• Strong corporate culture and core values that have been invariable for decades.

2) What has led the Lego Group to the edge of bankruptcy?

Several reasons and factors led the Lego group to the edge of bankruptcy. They majority of them were during the “The growth period that wasn’t” and others during the “Fixing period that wasn’t”:

• Birth rates in their markets declined. Lego products were primarily targeted to children and the demographic explosion in the previous decades had fueled the pipeline of sales of the organization.
• Kids spent more and more time in extra curricula activities and allocated less time to play with toys. Moreover, the economic environment in their markets turned out in less money spent in toys bought per house.
• Big competitors outsourced their production to China and other Asian countries, decreasing their costs and being more competitive in final prices.
• Lego experimented new products and markets without previous research.