I remember playing with the classic Lego bricks back in the late 70s and 80s. I cannot recall, though, if my sister and I had our own set of Lego or if we just relied on our cousin Pito inviting us to play with him. But I can remember clearly how we sat down on the wooden floor of our shared bedroom in the big house in Corrales. We’d be fixated on what we were doing and sometimes played for hours. The Lego bricks were a major part of our playtime.
Even when I was already in college in Quezon City, I continued buying Lego. This time, to give as Christmas gifts to nephews and nieces. I remember going around Greenhills Shopping Center looking for Lego bricks at Gift Gate. Now that I’m in my late 40s, the urge to buy a set of Lego bricks has never been stronger. I just never really got the chance to find one that I wanted because the options here in Cagayan de Oro were quite few.
So when I heard that the first Lego-certified store in Mindanao will be opening in Centrio, I was overjoyed! And on April 1, I trooped to Centrio Mall to witness the grand opening of the store. It was a day I will never forget for a long time!
Lego’s Beginnings
Lego’s history goes back to 1932 in Billund, Denmark, when a carpenter by the name of Ole Kirk Kristiansen decided to make wooden toys. These toys were eventually sold to different stores and they became an instant hit. In 1934, Ole Kirk’s business expanded and adopted the name Lego (from the Danish word leg well or “play well” in English).
By the year 1947, Lego was already producing plastic toys that easily gained popularity among the young and young-at-heart. This inspired the company to keep innovating, improving, and creating. So in 1949, Lego introduced the Automatic Binding Bricks, which is considered the predecessor of the bricks we now love. In less than 10 years’ time, Lego created and had patented the first batch of modern bricks, the toys that we grew up playing with.
Today, Lego is more than just a household name. It is a legend and a class all its own. As a testament to its creator’s vision of helping develop the builders of tomorrow, Lego has inspired a lot of people – young and old alike – to explore their creativity and imagination. Here in the Philippines, Lego has a solid following. Kids
Here in the Philippines, Lego has a solid following. Kids ask their parents to buy them one for Christmas (or for their birthday), while parents try to find the best Lego for their kids. The toy bricks is even used by some teachers to help challenge their students’ creativity! So it is not surprising that despite the tons of highly advanced games, Lego hundreds ( maybe even thousands) of Filipinos still go to stores to purchase their favorite brick sets.
Ole Kirk’s vision lives on in the Philippines as Lego continues to expand and assert its presence in the country. With the opening of its store in Centrio Mall last April 1, there are now six Lego-certified stores in the country.
The First Certified Lego Store in Mindanao
As the first certified Lego store in Mindanao, the shop in Centrio offers several features and special activities for Kagay-anons (and Mindanaoans). Check out the in-store highlights you’ll get to enjoy everytime you visit:
- Pick-a-Brick wall or PAB – This is a custom-built fixture filled with Lego bricks and elements. You can choose what you need to build something based on your own design and imagination.
- Fully assembled Lego sets.
- An interactive play area where children (or you and your children) can enjoy a “hands-on, minds-on” experience with Lego bricks.
- Exclusive Lego sets for the creative and intuitive collector.
The CDO store is the fifth in a series scheduled to open from Manila to Davao as part of Lego’s “Better With Every Brick” campaign.
Lego’s Better With Every Brick Campaign and UNICEF Partnership
The Better With Every Brick campaign summarizes the kind of partnership that Lego and UNICEF has. The United Nation’s agency dedicated to children’s welfare is working with the toymaker to raise funds for the construction of the first National Centre for Children With Disabilities at the Philippine General Hospital or PGH. Lego’s contribution to the campaign will come from store sales. To ensure the project’s success, UNICEF needs to raise a total of Php10 million; Php500,000 of this amount will be covered by Lego.
Lego’s dedication and commitment to the UNICEF campaign was explained by one of its executives. According to him,“The Lego brand goes beyond being one of the top global toymakers. We are a beloved builder of childhood fantasies. We aim to inspire and engage the world’s builder by injecting fun into play. This partnership with UNICEF Philippines resonates well with this dream to extend the opportunity to help more children by bringing the National Centre for Children With Disabilities to reality. And Lego fans can pitch in this initiative of making the world “Better With Every Brick.”
Special Offers for CDO Fans
Lego has more to offer to its CDO fans aside from the chance to help out in the construction of the centre for children with disabilities. Since April is the opening month of its first certified store in the city and in Mindanao, you can enjoy the following special offers from Lego:
- A minimum single receipt purchase of Php3,999.75 on any Lego item/s from the Lego-Certified store in Centrio from April 1 to 30, 2017 will give you the chance to help raise funds for the centre as Php1000 of the sale proceeds will be handed over to UNICEF Philippines.
- This week, April 1 to 9, 2017, you can avail of several Gift With Purchase promos for a minimum single receipt purchase of Php1,999.75 on any Lego set/s from the store.
- Meanwhile, last April 1 to 3, Lego fans had fun building a minifigure collection through the Build A Minifigure set at the store.
- Lego Easter Chicks will be given away to customers from April 4 to 6, 2017.
- Comic fans will want to visit the store to get the innovative Lego Brickheadz line that features favorite characters like Batman, Robin, Batgirl, Joker, Iron-Man, and Captain America. You’ll see new character releases in the coming weeks for the Brickheadz line.
- You can also purcahse Lego poly bags if you want to help out in the fundraising campaign for the construction of the National Centre for Children With Disabilities. One hundred percent of the proceeds of each bag will be given to UNICEF Philippines. You can choose from four unique designs and bring home your bag for only Php100 (each). Features in the poly bags are favorites like Lego Star Wars, Lego Ninjago, Lego Duplo, and the Lego Friends lines.
These special offers clearly shows Lego and UNICEF’s commitment to helping build a better future for children “with every brick”.
Now that the Lego Store is open here in Cagayan de Oro, I expected Kagay-anons young and old to continue their love affair with the toymaker. The store has a lot of Lego toys, from the classic to the newer ones like the Architect, Creator, and Minecraft lines. I know I will visit the store as often as I can!
The first Lego-certified store in Mindanao is open from Monday to Sunday, from 10am to 9pm. It is located at the ground floor of Centrio Mall, across Payless Shoesource.
See you at the Lego Store and let’s start building bricks!
(Some details taken from the Press Release provided by Lego.)