LEGO Australia launches space range with a crop circle in regional NSW

LEGO Australia and New Zealand has launched an integrated, earned-first campaign for its new space range that embraces the potential that lies beyond Earth.

The toy bricks brand tasked Thrive PR & Communications with creating an idea for the brand’s latest space range that also empowers the next generation to reach for the stars

The agency created a mysterious crop circle in regional NSW that spanned 50 metres in diameter and a secret exploration with space-loving talent. It created speculation in media and online, further amplified by talent and an above-the-line campaign that sparked a nation of conspiracy theorists.

The small regional town of Narromine, 40 minutes outside of Dubbo and close to the famous ‘Dish’ at the CSIRO’s Parkes Observatory, was chosen as the location for the crop circle for its low light pollution and the region’s strong space legacy.

Thrive executive director Clare Basire, said: “Those with a keen eye could discern that the crop circle design drew inspiration from the iconic LEGO Minifigure, with scaled dimensions of a LEGO Minifigure hand and head forming part of the geometric design which was perfectly accurate to meet global brand guidelines.”

“We were told by many that the idea was logistically impossible yet we called upon our event partner, SoldOut Events, who have a long history in Olympic and other epic activations. After a month-long location scout, SoldOut found a viable crop in far Western New South Wales.

“We had severe weather conditions against us and needed to time the crop harvest to get colour variations visible from the sky, whilst lining up timings with creative and content teams, talent and media who were all secretly flown in. With guide posts and pickets in hand, we set up an ‘investigation area’. It then took teams three full days to flatten the crops and create the crop circle,” she added.

Australian and international talent including trained astrophysicist Kobi Brown, Steph Luck, Karstan & Maxine, and Vaughan Smith, visited the site and captured the experience while content partners, Brightworks, shot dramatic video and drone footage that was shared with media and creators to drive talkability of LEGO’s space range.

News was shared in stages, with a two week ‘teaser’ phase leaning into internet conspiracy theories with supporting nano creators. Meanwhile paid creative and radio placements by media agency Initiative, also heightened discussions around the earned narrative in the lead up to a mass, general distribution.

LEGO Australia and New Zealand then declassified the mission, revealing that it was responsible for the stunt tapping into the curiosity of space explorers of tomorrow.

For the campaign’s launch and reveal, LEGO teamed up with the Australian Space Agency and the Australian astronaut Katherine Bennell-Pegg. The alignment was a seamless integration, as both LEGO Australia and the Australian Space Agency are unified in their mission to support the next generation’s aspiring and curious attitudes towards space.

For the campaign’s launch and reveal, LEGO teamed up with the Australian Space Agency and the Australian astronaut Bennell-Pegg. The alignment was a seamless integration, as both LEGO Australia and the Australian Space Agency are unified in their mission to support the next generation’s aspiring and curious attitudes towards space.

“This is a campaign that lights up kids’ imagination,” Justine McKenny, LEGO Australia and New Zealand marketing director said. “We wanted to evoke feelings of exploration and wonder to bring kids to space in new and exciting ways. We have a unique opportunity to educate and entertain kids so have crafted this campaign to do just that.

“Our challenge to Thrive was to bend the rules and deliver an integrated campaign that was a 10/10 on the coolness scale to excite kids aged 6-12. When they proposed the idea of collaborating with the Australian Space Agency, we knew this would become a stellar partnership that would go above and beyond the original brief.

“Since the campaign’s launch in late June, this component helped to generate ‘out of this world’ talkability across earned, owned, paid and social channels. We wanted to see space through children’s eyes, and create a launch pad for their wildest imagination. By all accounts, we’ve achieved that!”

“Imagine the opportunity to ‘Rebuild the World’ with LEGO,” Leilani Abels, Thrive PR founder and CEO, said. “It’s a very special partnership with the LEGO Australia & New Zealand team. This brief allowed us to insert the LEGO brand into the cultural zeitgeist of space thanks to creative thinking and a collaborative communications strategy.”

Matt Okine with Katherine Bennell-Pegg

Katherine Bennell-Pegg

The partnership with Bennell-Pegg and the Australian Space Agency also landed in the heart of Sydney on July 16th. She was joined by comedian and event host Matt Okine at the LEGO Store on Pitt Street Mall, met with kids and encouraged them to explore space their way.

Bennell-Pegg also revealed one of 15 LEGO Space Bricks which were created by the European Space Agency (ESA), where she did her Astronaut training. The ESA used dust from a 4.5 billion year old meteorite to 3D print bricks to help design astronaut shelters in space. The ESA LEGO Space Bricks will aim to inspire the builders of tomorrow and show how LEGO brick building can help solve universal problems.

McKenny said: “As the first ever homegrown IP, cross-category solution, LEGO space is a unifying portfolio that embraces multiple genders, ages and skill levels, meaning that no matter who you are, there is something for you in the LEGO Space range.”

“The LEGO Group’s brand mission ‘Rebuild the World’ challenges us to think differently and create inclusive play opportunities for all the world’s kids. Taking this approach in the launch of LEGO Space in ANZ allowed us to embrace bold storylines, creative and narratives that Thrive helped us bring to life with stellar results,” she added.