Like every rose, the LEGO brand has its thorn. It's adored worldwide for inspiring generations of children. However, therein lies the challenge, LEGO sets are seen as toys for kids, but the vast majority of adults aren’t aware we have brilliant sets for them too.

Our task was twofold, we need to grow credibility with adults, shifting perceptions of the brand. While also driving commercial success, with sales of the LEGO Botanicals collection. The brief was to branch out of the toy aisle and plant our role in the world of gifting to adults. As a brand that plays big, we aimed high with our sights on Valentine’s Day.

This would be no easy task. We needed to shake up perceptions of the brand to win over adults. While also planting the LEGO brand’s role in a cluttered occasion, proving the best flowers for Valentine’s aren’t just picked, but built.

The creative idea: We invited everyone to Keep It Fresh this Valentine’s Day,

blooming against traditional conventions.

For a limited time only, our London store was given a fresh floral makeover and rebuilt into a LEGO florist, or as we named it ‘Le Florist’. Surprising passers-by with wall-to-wall brick-built blooms. Our store staff even became florists, arranging and showcasing the freshest bunches.

But love knows no boundaries, Le Florist was designed to bloom across the globe. We partnered with social influencers and leveraged earned media to spread the love, and challenge the public to Keep It Fresh.

LEGO Florists also sprouted up in other key markets, reimagining local Valentine’s traditions with a fresh LEGO twist. And for those who couldn't visit a Le Florist, we brought it to them, with a limited-edition gift with purchase florist set, building fresh excitement into Valentine's.

Audience: We needed to woo the hearts of adults, who are looking for a unique gift to celebrate their loved ones this Valentine’s Day.

The Tension: Gifts are a love language, a way to surprise our loved ones and make them feel special, yet so many gifts feel common and predictable, especially when it comes to Valentine’s.

Key Message: This gave the LEGO brand an ownable message. We’ve always provided a playful and unexpected twist to reimagine iconic passions and occasions.

The Strategy: The Bouquet of Roses can bloom new life into a wilting occasion, and deliver a fresh take on Valentine’s gifting.

Transforming a store in one market into Le Florist whilst providing the playbook for other markets around the world to do the same. A venue that celebrities/ influencers could spread the message and members of the public could capture and pick their perfect unexpected gift.

It took us circa 600 building hours to make The LEGO Battersea Power Station store blossom through a special build that required more than 125K LEGO bricks and 1900 LEGO flowers.

Le Florist opened at this flagship LEGO store in London during the weekend of February 3rd-4th, 2024. Meanwhile, we had a Flower Cart nearby, which drove traffic to the store and stayed up to drive more visits and content until February 19th. Throughout the same period, other LEGO Florists opened up across the globe, making this a global Valentine’s refresh.

Barcelona Airport had its own pop-up Florist open from February 12th-14th. More mobile Florists opened across France, and others sprouted in The Netherlands, Italy, Romania, and Bulgaria. In the Americas, we activated with market-relevant events and drops.

At these physical activations, content was captured to drive awareness and sales of Botanicals for Valentine’s and keep feeding the Keep It Fresh multi-channel campaign.

The activation bloomed beyond our goals, and successfully grew relevance with adults:

·Activation video garnered 4.2M views on our TikTok alone, and reached 4.6M Impressions on talent paid social (vs 2.2M benchmark)

·Content sprouted across social platforms, with an astounding 1.1 Billion in earned global reach!

·Media sentiment was 100% positive, reflecting the widespread love

By playing with the flower category, we earned our place at the top of it, dominating flower searches, without paid search.

·LEGO Roses searches increased +592%

·LEGO flowers was the top searched for Valentines flower in the US, reported by Google Trends

The impact translated into sales, as LEGO Botanicals were proudly chosen to keep Valentine’s fresh:

·Achieved 94% YoY global sales growth during the campaign period

·LEGO roses were the top selling item in the London store, the week following the activation

·Sold out of roses in key markets due to high demand