Lego closes in on UK Consumer Superbrands crown, moving into second behind British Airways
Lego has climbed up the ranks of the annual Consumer Superbrands listing for the third year running, second only to British Airways which has retained the number one slot for four consecutive years.
The Lego Batman Movie topped box office weekend sales
The 22nd annual Consumer Superbrands listing has been compiled following a poll of 2,500 UK consumers who voted on over 1,500 leading brands. The public were asked to consider each brand in relation to their perceived quality, reliability and distinction – the three factors inherent in a Superbrand.
Toymaker Lego has moved up one place from third to second in the public’s eye, its third year of progression, after a year of wholesale change at the brand.
In December the toy brand named a new chief executive and restructured its organisation, establishing parent company the Lego Brand Group. The new group’s purpose is to increase brand cohesion and efficiency across all products, and to pursue further partnership opportunities beyond its theme parks, Hollywood movies, television shows, books and video games.
The brand’s latest film, The Lego Batman Movie topped the weekend box office when it was released earlier this month, selling $55.6m of tickets in its debut weekend, so far grossing $184m worldwide. Its piggybacking off the enormous success of the brand's first blockbuster movie, The Lego Movie, which grossed $257m back in 2014.
Last month the company unveiled a social network for children, Lego Life, for kids to upload their Lego designs. The Instagram-style network has all the features of a social app - a newsfeed, profiles and the ability to like and comment - but with strict safety features for children under the age of 13.
British Airways held off the Danish challenger to keep its crown, despite the challenges associated with charging for meals on short haul flights and recent industrial action.
This year only four new entries appeared in the top 20. Cadbury and Boots re-entered the lead group, while British retailers John Lewis and Marks & Spencer moved up the list, as heritage brands rank highly among consumers post-Brexit.
Perhaps surprisingly, no social media networks ranked in list, likely as a result of negative press coverage against the platforms like Facebook and Twitter that have been accused of spreading fake news. Google and Amazon ranked at number 18 and 19 respectively.
Instead the consumers opted for iconic British brands such as Andrex, Kellogg's and Heinz. Cancer Research UK became the first charity brand to enter the top 20.