Lego builds an empire brick by brick

Generations of children worldwide have grown up loving Lego and the popularity of tablets and video games will not change that, the company's chief executive says.

Joergen Vig Knudstorp said he believed that the plastic, multi-coloured bricks - whose name is an abbreviation of the Danish words "leg godt", meaning "play well" - would be around for "centuries".

The company hit trouble a decade ago but is now the world's biggest maker of toys by sales, more than quadrupling its revenues in 10 years.

Far from threatening Lego's popularity, Knudstorp said the digital era offered great opportunities for the company to build its customer base even further.

"We are one of the most popular video games, we also have reached more and more customers on social media - Lego fans are gathering like never before," he said.

"In the past, children watched TV and then played with Lego. Now they play on tablets and play with Lego.

"The reason why they do it is that many children, and adults as well, want a real, physical experience. Even though we like to watch football or play it on a PlayStation, it's still not the same as running on the field kicking the ball."

He was speaking as Lego, whose headquarters are in Billund, Denmark, opened a fifth "main office" in London on Friday as the company seeks global growth.

One key target is Asia. As well as offices in Shanghai and Singapore, the company started building a new factory in China's Jianxing, south of Shanghai, earlier this year to build Lego products for sale in Asia.