LEGO reports strong first half sales and profit
LEGO Group saw its first half revenue climb by 46% year-on-year to DKK 23 billion as the company benefited from strong demand across all of its markets.
In the six months to 30 June, consumer sales rose by 36% as all market groups delivered double-digit consumer sales growth. Top-performing themes included LEGO City, LEGO Star Wars, LEGO Harry Potter, LEGO Creator Expert and LEGO Technic.
Meanwhile, operating profit surged by 104% to DKK 8 billion despite significant investments in initiatives such as a new retail store format, ecommerce, digital transformation and work to make products and operations more sustainable. Net profit climbed by 140% to DKK 6.3 billion.
LEGO Group chief executive Niels Christiansen said: “We are very pleased with the progress we made across all areas of the business during the first half. Our performance was driven by strong demand for our portfolio, which has attracted new builders to the LEGO brand. Our year-on-year growth benefited from fewer Covid-related restrictions compared with 2020 as our factories operated uninterrupted and the majority of retail stores re-opened.”
During the period, the company launched a new store in New York featuring a concept that will be introduced to around 60 stores during the second half of 2021. LEGO will also be accelerating investments in a multi-year enterprise-wide digital transformation.
Christiansen added: “As we look ahead to the second half of 2021, we continue to see strong demand for our products. Longer-term, we expect top-line growth to stabilise to more sustainable levels as people return to pre-pandemic spending patterns. This trend, combined with our plans to accelerate re-investments into the future of the business, is expected to result in more normalised profit levels moving forward.”
