Lego wants to build its first factory in the United States, specifically in Virginia in the east. The toy manufacturer intends to increase its market share in this way. It concerns an investment of 1 billion dollars.
“If we look at the potential in the US, we still have a long way to go,” US chief operating officer Carsten Rasmussen told Bloomberg news agency. The popularity of colourful building blocks across the ocean is much lower than in Europe. “We are already strong on the east coast and the north, but there is still much potential elsewhere. We think we can succeed in the coming years.”
The Danish company competes globally for first place with American toy giants Mattel and Hasbro. Over the past four years, Lego has doubled its turnover in the US, but there is still much room to grow, especially in the South. “We want to have extra capacity ready when demand picks up,” said the operational director. In addition, there would also be more regionally tinted marketing campaigns.
The new factory will be located in Richmond and employ nearly 1,800 people. It should be ready by 2025.
The US is still supplied from Mexico, where Lego already has a factory. The Danish toy manufacturer already has factories in Denmark, the Czech Republic, Hungary and China and is also building a new production facility in Vietnam.