Special Build LEGO Billboard Celebrates New Store Opening

If you build it they will come…

LEGO has unveiled a crowd sourced special build on the Wexford Street Golden Square to mark the opening of their new flagship store on Grafton Street, Dublin. Ireland’s first LEGO store opened its doors yesterday Thursday, 18th August.

The installation devised by Kev Gascoigne of Fairy Bricks comprises a LEGO mosaic framed on the board, which was built last weekend at Dublin Comic Con, held in the Convention Centre, and coordinated by brick.ie, the Irish Association for Adult Fans of LEGO. It is Ireland’s largest and longest-established LEGO User Group.

The mosaic consists of over ninety thousand bricks and took the 600+ attendees and volunteers approximately twelve hours to complete. It now comprises the major element of the six-metre squared OOH activation planned by Initiative and PML.

The Special Effects study conducted by PML Group highlights the hugely positive impact that special builds have in terms of noticeability, brand perception and activation. Three quarters of people believe specials make a brand seem exciting while 84% agree that specials are more noticeable than standard poster ads.

Visitors to the new store will be treated to the concept of “retailtainment”, which blends physical and digital experiences. This is to allow shoppers to both immerse themselves in the famous LEGO bricks and create personalised products.

Stéphane Knapp, LEGO Retail Regional Marketing Senior Director, said: “We are delighted that the time has finally come to open the doors to the first LEGO store in Ireland on the vibrant Grafton Street. Dublin has been part of our expansion strategy for many years given the huge number of LEGO fans in Ireland. The new store will inspire builders of all ages with endless play possibilities, innovative and immersive experiences, and personalised products.

“We are thrilled that there is such a large and vibrant community of LEGO fans of all ages in Ireland and we’re very keen to get them involved in the lead-up to the first LEGO store opening in Ireland. We were delighted to partner with the team at Bricks.ie who built this wonderful LEGO installation to mark the opening of our Grafton Street store. The installation is a testament to the builder’s creativity and imagination and is a wonderful way to celebrate the LEGO Group’s first Irish store.”

Pat Cassidy, Digital, Innovation & Experiential Manager, PML Group commented; “To promote the opening of their new store on Grafton Street, LEGO have created an exciting, giant brightly colours billboard on Wexford Street. The vibrant handcrafted, mosaic special with bespoke yellow LEGO frame, comprises of 92,777 LEGO bricks. It’s an amazing feat of engineering both in terms of the build itself and the installation. More importantly, it’s a great example of collaboration between the brand, the fans, and the medium of OOH. The special embodies the creativity of LEGO, the LEGO builders, and the OOH medium.”

At the Special Build Golden Square in Dublin’s Wexford Street are Lizzy Beecham, Initiative; Stéphane Knapp, LEGO; Pat Cassidy, PML Group; Breda and David Fennell, brick.ie and Kev Gascoigne, Fairy Bricks.

The Danish company is marking its 90th anniversary currently with worldwide celebrations. The company name came from “leg godt”, meaning “play well” in Danish. The company’s core product, the LEGO brick, was first produced in its current form in 1958. Fairy Bricks is LEGO’s charity partner and will be visiting Ireland in September to deliver over two thousand LEGO sets to children in hospital.