大家安安..
昨天在夜線新聞裡看到樂高的專訪..PO上來和大大們分享..
我在此做了一些翻譯方便大家閱讀..如有翻的不好的地方,還請不吝指教!
另外,有空的大大們,可以連結到網站去看新文,影片很短,大約6-7分鐘而已,不過大家可以看到樂高博物館的一角,樂高總部,樂高執行長,樂高的頂尖設計師及很多很酷的創作喔..
希望大家會喜歡..
***************************************
The Land Where Lego Comes to Life
看樂高是如何起死回生重新融入您的生活!
Veteran Toymaker Dreams Up New Products to Hook the Digital Generation
資深玩具創造者如何構思並創造新的產品來應變電子數位時代的潮流
By NICK WATT and HANA KARAR
Nov. 16, 2009
In the small Danish town of Billund, approximately 19 billion Lego pieces are made every year -- that's 2 million pieces each hour.
在丹麥一個名叫Billund的小鎮裡，一年大約有１９億片的樂高積木是在這裡製造的──相當於一小時２百萬片的樂高積木。
Billund is home to Lego's international headquarters. There's an international airport -- one of only two in the whole country -- built only because Lego is here. Legoland castle's ramparts dominate the skyline.
Billund是樂高公司的總部，也是樂高積木的發源地。在這個小鎮裡卻有一個國際機場──全丹麥只有二個國際機場，它是其中之一。會在此小鎮上建造一個國際機場只因為樂高公司在這裡。在此，星空下的一切事物，皆主宰在樂高王國的厚實堡壘中。
There is Lego, Lego everywhere. 樂高在那，樂高無所不在。
"It's part of life, it's part of daily life for the children," said Kirsten Stadelhofer, who works at the Lego museum in town. "They grow up with Lego bricks."
＂樂高己是生命中的一部份了，它已經融入孩子的日常生活中了。＂這是一位在樂高博物館中工作的Kirsten Standelhofer所敍述的。＂孩子們在樂高積木的伴隨下成長。＂
One in four people in Billund works for Lego. Every new employee must visit that Lego museum. Here in Billund the Lego brick is treated like a religious icon.
在Billund小鎮裡，每四個人當中就有一個人在樂高公司工作。每一位樂高的新進員工都必需要到樂高博物館裡來了解樂高公司的成長歷史。在這個Billund小鎮，樂高積木就如同是一個宗教上的聖物一樣，我們用心的呵護它。
There's also something called an "Ideas House," where the Lego brick was invented in 1955. (By the way, they invented the wheel -- the Lego wheel -- in 1962.)
在這裡，我們也要介紹一下＂思考屋＂的觀念，這是樂高積木於１９５５年時創立的。（順便一提，這個＂思考屋＂在１９６２年時研發了──樂高車輪。）
Lego, which means "play well" in Danish, was founded during the Great Depression of the 1930s by Ole Kirk Chrisatiansen, a struggling carpenter who decided to make toys to survive. He began with yo-yos and wooden ducks before moving on to wooden fire trucks and the like. Eventually the company began producing the bricks that we know today. World domination soon followed.
＂樂高＂在丹麥文中，是＂好玩，玩得幸福＂的意思。樂高是在１９３０年間由木匠Ole Kirk Chrisatiansen在遇到金融風暴時，下定決心以製造玩具來渡過危機時創立的。他一開始是製造yo-yo球和木頭鴨起家，然後才是進入一系列的木製消防車等產品，進而開起了樂高的創造之路。最終，帶領公司生產的積木是我們今日所熟悉的樂高積木，進而進軍國際化市場。
There are now 62 Lego bricks for every human being on this planet. There are more Lego men on Earth than there are Americans.
目前一共有６２種款式的樂高積木可以提供大伙兒做不同的人偶創意組合。樂高人偶的總人口數加起來更盛過於美國的總人口數。
But in recent years, Lego, facing competitionfrom Mattel and Hasbro, looked like it might have been left behind in the digital age.
可是近幾年來，樂高公司也遇到了像Mattel和Hasbro等玩具製造公司的強勁競爭壓力，不過，看來這些競爭將在數位時代更趨明顯了。
By 2004 Lego had debts of nearly $1 billion. Christiansen's descendents, who still ran the business, saw sales slump 40 percent in just two years. Lego had lost its way.
樂高公司在２００４年時，還有將近１億元的負債。Christiansen的後代子孫也是現任樂高公司的經營管理，看到了銷售量於短短的二年之內銳減了４０％，了解到樂高公司在這多變的時代裡迷失了方向。
Then, Jorgen Vik Knudsdorp, a former management consultant, was handed the reins by the family. The new CEO fired 1,000 people and streamlined production.
隨後，樂高公司的管理顧問Jorgen Vik Knudsdorp接受家族的托付執掌樂高公司新任的執行長一職。這位新任的執行長解僱了１０００名員工並且做了提高生產效率的改善。
The company once made 13,000 different pieces; now they make only 6,000. (Most pieces, by the way, are used in multiple different models.)
樂高公司曾經一度製造了１３０００不同的零件款式，如今，他們現在只製造６０００種不同的零件。（而且絶大部份的零件款式，皆可適用於不同的組合系列）
Unpopular products -- many of them aimed at girls -- were discontinued. Knudsdorp sold the Legoland amusement parks to Merlin Entertainments Group, a company that he says actually knows how to run a theme park.
至於那些並不受到市場需求的產品──很多是針對女孩市場──皆一律停止再生產。Knudsdorp將樂高主題樂園賣給了Merline娛樂集團。因為Knudsdorp執行長認為Merline集團比樂高公司更知道如何來經營主題樂園。
Knudsdorp felt that Lego had diversified too much and had lost sight of the foundation of its success: the basic Lego brick.
Knudsdorp執行長體認到樂高公司已經太過於多元化，並已經迷失了方向，並且忘記了當初創造者創造樂高公司的本質──樂高成功的密訣＂樂高積木＂。
"When we were struggling I was thinking, jeez, I don't know whether the Lego brick is part of the future," said Vik Knudsdorp.
Vik Knudsdorp敍說＂當我們遇到瓶頸時，我所想到的是──我不知道樂高積木的未來在哪裡。＂
But, he figured, even in an age of TV and video games, kids do still want to play with their hands. To appeal to the new generation, Lego has moved away from the purer, simpler designs of yesteryear. Now, there are frequent tie-ins with video games and there are spinoffs from popular culture. There is "Star Wars" Lego, "Harry Potter" Lego and "Spongebob Squarepants" Lego, to captivate the kids.
但是隨後執行長發現，儘管現在是數位時代，所有的小孩都被電視和數位遊戲環繞，小孩子還是脫離不了想要實際用手去觸摸玩具的玩法。為了適應新時代的潮流，樂高已經跳脫了過去簡單和樸實的設計。現今，有更多的設計是搭配數位遊戲，以系列的方式來嚮應目前的潮流。所以我們才有了＂星際大戰＂系列的樂高，＂哈利波特＂系列的樂高和＂海棉寶寶＂系列的樂高。樂高積木──是要打動孩子的心。
"If you're not competitive, children will go somewhere else," says Knudsdorp. "They're quite disloyal in that sense," he added with a wry smile. "What our research tells us is that normally they will spend 15 minutes or less on any toy they get."
執行長Knudsdorp幽默的笑著說＂如果你不具備競爭力，小朋友的目標就會轉移到其它地方。小朋友對玩具的喜好，其實是沒有什麼忠誠度的。我們的研究調查顯示，小朋友花在他們手上的玩具的時間，其實只有十五分鐘或是更少的時間。這個玩具玩的時間長短，將隨著玩具本身是否具有吸引力而決定。＂
AFOLs: Adult Fans of Legos 成年的樂高迷
Knudsdorp realized another key to Lego's success: Lego isn't just for kids. AFOLs, or Adult Fans of Lego, account for nearly 10 percent of the company's sales. On Lego-enthusiast blogs and YouTube, AFOLs gather and share their elaborate Lego sculptures, from life-sized homes to a smaller-scale Taj Mahal.
執行長Knudsdorp還發現了另一項樂高積木成功的因素＂樂高積木不單是給小朋友玩的玩具！成年的樂高迷更是樂高公司成功的關鍵因素之一。成年的樂高迷就佔了樂高公司１０％的營業額。在樂高熱愛者的部落格及YouTube裡，樂高迷聚集在一起分享他們精心製做的樂高積木雕塑品皆有，從大到與實物一樣大小的房子建築，小到依照比例建造的泰姬瑪哈陵創作之多，不計可數。
Each year there is a "BrickCon" Lego convention where lego enthusiasts from around the world come to display thier latest constructions.
每年都有一個＂樂高迷的討論會＂。不管你在世界的哪一個角落，樂高迷都會來參與這項盛會，並且帶來了他們的最新創作與同好分享。
"One if the first things I did as CEO was to go to one of these conventions where literally thousands of fans get together and share thier ideas," said Knudsdorp. "I spoke to these guys for three hours and what they told me was what Lego was all about, which I didnt understand ...We had lost our own way, they helped me on this journey of coming back to who we are."
＂當我接掌執行長的第一件事，就是去參與這些樂高迷的盛會。在那裡，聚集了成千位的樂高迷一同分享他們的想法。＂Knudsdorp這麼說＂我花了三個小時就只和這些樂高迷聊天。至於他們告訴我的，才是樂高積木真正的精神所在，可是當時我剛接掌執行長一職時，並不能完全了解。。。身為一個玩具製造者，我們迷失了方向！是這些樂高迷幫助我找回了樂高積木的真正精髓。＂
The company recruits many enthusiasts to serve as ambassadors for the company and consult on new product lines.
樂高公司聘請了許多的樂高的愛好者來擔任樂高大使及商議新的產品。
"As therapy, Lego is brilliant," said Lego animation competition winner David Boddy.
樂高卡通造型比賽的得主David Boddy說＂樂高積木是最能創造腦力激盪的產品。＂
Are Legos Recession-Proof? 樂高積木是否走過了經濟衰退？
After hitting rock bottom in 2004, Lego gradually began to turn a profit again. Then in 2008, as the recession deepened and toy sales in the U.S. fell on average by 5 percent, Lego sales in America actually climbed 38 percent.
樂高公司經歷了２００４年跌至了有史以來的谷底之後，非常高興的，樂高公司轉而開始有了利潤的成長。然後是２００８年的經濟衰退，美國的玩具市場銷售量平均減少了５％，可是樂高公司在美國的銷售量卻成長了３８％。
"The families that buy Lego in the U.S. spend about $60 per year on Lego," Knudsdorp said. "If you could afford $60 on your child last year, even before the financial crisis, you'll still be able to afford $60 this year."
執行長說＂美國一般家庭平均一年銷費在樂高積木上的費用是６０美元。＂如果在去年的金融風暴前你可以給付６０美元給你的小孩，今年你也應該可以給付相同的６０美元。＂
During the recession, sales are actually climbing. Laid end-to-end, the number of LEGO bricks sold in a year would reach more than five times round the world.
在這經濟衰退的時期，樂高積木的業績卻不斷的成長。總而言之，樂高積木一年的銷售數量，已經達到可以繞著世界跑５圈了。
"One of the reasons is that parents see this as a good investment. It's not seen as the so-called wasteful society of buying something and throwing it away," Knudsdorp said.
執行長Knudsdorp還說＂其中有一個很關鍵的因素在於父母覺得買樂高積木就像是一個投資。樂高積木並不是一項買了，用過之後即可丟棄的商品。＂
But value for money isn't necessarily at the top of a child's list of attributes they look for in a toy. So top Lego designers like Will Thorogood are charged with dreaming up new, appealing product lines. The latest is Atlantis, which will hit stores in January.
相對的，對於購買一項玩具是否物超所值，並不包含在孩子選擇玩具的想法裡。所以在樂高公司，我們有一群頂尖的產品設計師們專門設計新產品，像Will Thorogood主要是針對開發新的產品系列。我們最近要推出的新作品，即是＂亞特蘭提斯＂，其有關的產品將於２０１０年的１月份全面上市。
"I was a huge Lego fan as a child, I loved Lego," Thorogood said. "When you walk into the shop for the first time and see that box that you made on the shelf in 'Toys 'R Us' of wherever you may be, you just think, 'Wow! That's amazing I did that.' And there are kids going, 'Look at that! Can I have that, Mom?'"
新產品開發設計師Thorogood說＂我從小就是樂高迷，我愛樂高積木。當我第一次走進玩具反斗城裡，看到我自己設計的作品放在架上販售時，心裡的激動，是無法用言語形容的。我只能說。。。哇！我做到了！那是我設計的！＂想像一下那些小朋友都會說＂媽媽，看那個，我想要那個玩具。＂
http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/lego-bricks-make-comeback/story?id=9008477 |
發表於 2009-11-18 05:07:47
收藏
提升卡
沉默卡
變色卡
樓主
發表於 2009-11-18 07:54:20
發表於 2009-11-18 09:28:43
發表於 2009-11-18 17:43:39
