LEGO Group

By 2003, LEGO was hemorrhaging money. The Danish toy company that invented the interlocking brick had spent a decade diversifying into theme parks, clothing, watches, video games, and lifestyle products. Revenue was declining, the company had posted a record loss of $800 million, and the Kristiansen family was considering selling.

LEGO had lost sight of what it was. The product line had exploded into thousands of specialized pieces that were expensive to manufacture. Sets were over-designed, leaving no room for creative play. The company was trying to be everything instead of being the thing it was best at.

New CEO Jørgen Vig Knudstorp stripped it back. He sold the theme parks, killed the clothing line, reduced the number of unique brick elements by half, and refocused on the core product: construction sets that inspire creativity. Licensed themes (Star Wars, Harry Potter) provided commercial fuel. The LEGO Movie (2014) proved the brand's cultural relevance. LEGO went from near-bankruptcy to the world's most profitable toy company, overtaking Mattel and Hasbro.