Lego to open first certified store in Thailand
Lego Group, a Danish manufacturer of plastic building toys, announced yesterday that it was opening its first certified shop in Thailand as part of a strategy to speed up growth in Asia.
Scheduled to open tomorrow, the Lego shop at Siam Paragon will follow a “co-sharing” partnership between Lego Group and DKSH (Thailand) Ltd.
Occupying 170 square metres of retail space, the outlet will carry some 300 Lego toys, 32 of which are exclusive products available only at certified Lego outlets. Retail prices will range from Bt180 per piece to over Bt30,000.
Atsushi Hasegawa, general manager for emerging Asia, Lego Singapore, said the toymaker has 240 certified stores all over the world, 50 of which are in Asia, including China, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines and now in Thailand.
“Thailand is a very attractive market for Lego. The country has an established economy, a large population and an established retail industry,” Hasegawa said, adding that Lego will boost its investment in Thailand over the years.
He said that since more than half of the world’s children are in Asia, it is the future growth area for Lego.
“We expect to see faster growth in Asia, including Thailand, and sustainable growth in Europe and America,” he said.
The first certified Lego shop in Thailand also reaffirms the Kingdom’s positioning in the ranks of top Lego countries in the Asian region.
“Asia still has a low base for Lego toys compared to many established markets in the West, but the company is also seeing an opportunity to boost its sales by five or six times in the region,” he said.
Hasegawa said that for Thailand, the company’s initial priority is not to increase the number of Lego stores, but to deliver the right brand experience to children at the right locations.
“Our marketing strategies will aim to achieve a set target, with the expectation of Bt100 million sales volume in the first year. There is also a plan to continuously expand Lego certified stores in Thailand later,” Arden Feschuk, director of commercial development of DKSH (Thailand) Ltd, said.
Feschuk added that the sales value at the Lego shop is estimated to hit more than Bt300 million in the next five years from now, which is in addition to other sales and distribution channels, such as department stores, specialist and general toy stores, hypermarts and e-commerce.
He said that about 60 per cent of Lego sales in Thailand come from department stores, over 15 per cent from specialist toy stores and the rest from other channels.
“During the first year of opening, more than 400,000 people are expected to visit the store, with Thais accounting for 60 per cent and foreigners 40 per cent. Due to the company’s one-price strategy, exclusive Lego sets will cost the same here as they do in neighbouring countries. Due to this, Lego fans will no longer have to go overseas to buy Lego products. Also, new collections will be launched at the same time as in the States and Europe,” Feschuk said.
