IKEA partnered with LEGO to create a collection of boxes that function as both storage and a play surface for Legos

Swedish furniture megabrand IKEA partnered with Denmark-based LEGO to create the Bygglek range: a collection of boxes that function as both storage and a play surface for Legos. The front and top of the boxes hold studs on which children can build their Lego creations. Described as “storage and play intertwined,” the Bygglek boxes were designed to address children’s need for creative play – which often creates a mess – while addressing parents’ conflicting desires to encourage this play yet somehow remain organized. The Bygglek line will include a specially-made set of Legos, meant to turn the boxes into a piece of home decor (with no loose parts!), and will be sold at IKEA in October.

One cause of burnout? Consumers’ ceaseless efforts to meet multiple needs at once, particularly when those needs interfere with each other. In this case, the desire for kids’ boundless play (crucial for self-development) bumps up against parents’ need to maintain a semblance of order – something increasingly difficult to achieve at this moment in time.

And boy, are parents burnt out. COVID has turned their lives into true double acts (or triple, quadruple, quintuple, you get the point!). Globally, 60% of parents have had zero (!!) outside help in caring for their children. They’re spending an average of 27 more hours per week on chores, education and childcare...which 50% believe is negatively affecting their performance at work. The Bygglek boxes, simple as they are, shave off at least a tiny rock from that 27-hour boulder. These platforms for creation keep kids exploring and occupied (and parents sane!) while saving adults from that one more thing they need to pick up off the floor.

Our challenge to you? Reconcile two, often competing human needs – within a single innovation. Also, consider that IKEA is an authority in organization while LEGO is an authority in play. If you’re an expert in meeting one need but not necessarily the other, is there another brand you could partner with during the ideation process?

Stay healthy,

The TrendWatching content team