How LEGO Revived Its Brand

Paal Smith-Meyer is waving a article in front of me about LEGO's resurgence. "The Brick is Back," reads the headline, and Smith-Meyer, who runs LEGO's New Business Group, is reveling in the positive press, particularly happy to share the story from the magazine for which I wrote for nearly a decade. LEGO, which struggled mightily in the early to mid-2000s, leaned heavily on design to turn its financial fortunes around. In the article, LEGO's executive vice-president for markets and products, Mads Nipper, says: "With our arrogance, we thought being LEGO allowed us to do anything." Great quote, I think.

But here's the odd thing: In all my days working for I can't for the life of me recall an article in the magazine about the revival of the Danish toy company. I'm a pretty avid reader, and I'm certain I'd remember a piece, particularly one with juicy, self-effacing quotes from senior executives like this one.