LEGO has recently opened a new store in New York City. The 7,175 sq. ft, two-story store on Fifth Avenue is the first LEGO® flagship store to feature an innovative new retail format, elements of which will be introduced to more than 100 stores worldwide in the coming year.
The format is designed to create an immersive world of LEGO bricks by blending unique digital and physical experiences. New features in the New York City store, which are set to appear as the new format is introduced to stores around the world, include:
Brick Lab, a world-first retail experience that immerses people and their LEGO builds in a virtual world. Technology brings walls, floors, and ceilings to life with light, sound, and music for an interactive build and play experience.
A bookable experience that immerses you in the world of LEGO building, bringing physical LEGO builds to life in the digital world! Join Professor Fizziwigg and the Metaloids in their search to find the missing control device hidden somewhere in the digital worlds beyond the portal! The Brick Lab offers a uniquely interactive and immersive creative experience – one that takes the joy of LEGO play to an amazing new level. Designed exclusively for LEGO flagship stores, the 20-minute themed experience uses innovative technology to bring walls, floors, and ceilings to life with interactive animated content, lighting, sound, and music to invite kids (and grown-ups) to play in a virtual world that plays right along with them. Each visitor will have the opportunity to meet the characters on screen and let their imaginations run wild as they build their own creation, scan their build and then watch it become a living part of the Brick Lab in seconds so they can play both physically and virtually – helping in the mission to save the day!
The Tree of Discovery is made from 880,000 LEGO elements. At the heart of the new store is The Tree of Discovery, an intricate model that showcases LEGO story-telling on a huge scale. The tree, which took 1,900 hours to construct and is made of over 880,000 LEGO bricks, symbolizes the LEGO Group’s commitment to having a positive impact on society and the planet.
A key feature is its bright rainbow trunk which houses a whole host of wonderful hidden details and secrets for shoppers to discover such as mini-scenes, kaleidoscopes and picture viewers from DUPLO, Technic and the LEGO System in Play bricks.
An interactive Storytelling Table designed for adult fans brings to life the stories behind sets available in store. It shows early product designs and prototypes, lifts the lid on the development process and allow fans to virtually ‘meet’ the LEGO designers.
Go behind-the-scenes of the LEGO design process and learn about our LEGO sets via interactive areas that allow you to “meet the designers” through interviews and videos displayed on screens, while playing with the set in-front of you.
The Personalization Studio invites visitors to make a memento of their visit. In it, they can reimagine themselves in LEGO form, either as a portrait from the Mosaic Maker or an iconic Minifigure from the LEGO Minifigure Factory.
An all-new area of the LEGO store which allows children, parents and grown-up fans to demonstrate their creativity via fun, innovative hands-on experiences and immersive builds with LEGO bricks. Visitors also have the opportunity to buy some creations to take home as a lasting memento, including the Mosaic Maker and the LEGO Minifigure Factory.
Mosaic Maker – Which captures your image and creates your own personalized LEGO mosaic portrait in just a few minutes.
With LEGO Expression visitors can have fun with LEGO Minifigures who mimic their facial expressions.
Larger-than-life builds celebrating local culture and landmarks. The new 5th Ave store includes NYC icons such a taxicab you can sit in, a giant Empire State Building and One World Trade skyscraper, the lights and billboards of Broadway and Time Square, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes Thor, Spiderman, Iron Man, Hulk and Captain America and the Ghostbusters Firehouse and crew.
LEGO Wave – Waiting to pay has been upgraded thanks to a new and interactive feature. When standing in a certain spot in the line, customers can interact with the Lady Liberty minifigure on the screen. Give her a wave and see how she responds.
Exclusive NYC inspired LEGO models
Look out for larger than life, eye-catching 3D LEGO models throughout the store inspired by famous New York scenes and characters. Highlights include a talking Statue of Liberty Minifigure, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes such as Thor, Spiderman, Iron Man, Hulk and Captain America who’s standing on top of an iconic yellow NYC taxi cab, a New York cityscape, a wall featuring LEGO recreations of famous Broadway show and Movie LEGO posters, the Ghostbusters Firehouse featuring the full Ghostbusters crew, Stay-Puft Marshmellow Man and Slimer.
The new LEGO Store is located on 636 Fifth Avenue, New York City, New York 10020.
The Brick Lab is for children aged 5+ and tickets cost $15.00 (for one child and an accompanying adult) and can be booked in advance at www.lego.com/stores/store/5th-Avenue or in store (subject to availability).
The Mosaic Maker is suitable for all and costs $129.99.
