Danish toymaker Lego Group saw consumer sales in all market groups grow in double digits last year, with especially strong growth in China, according to its annual financial report released Wednesday.

Lego's revenue grew 13 percent in 2020 year on year, and consumer sales grew 21 percent over the same period. The brand's global market share also grew globally, according to the report.

China also accounted for a lion's share in Lego's global store expansion plan. In 2020, it opened 134 new retail stores, including 91 stores in China. It plans to open a further 120 stores in 2021, with 80 of those in China.

In an exclusive interview with CGTN Global Business, CEO of Lego Group Niels B. Christiansen said it managed to achieve its growth goals in China by giving a local spin to products and through e-commerce. 

Lego opened a Tmall flagship store in China last year, which attracted more than a million members and followers shortly after its debut. 

Lego is setting its sights on digital transformation. The toymaker has vowed to accelerate its investment in digitalization across the entire business, with an ambition to develop world-class digital experiences, from consumers and retail partners to suppliers and employees. 

CGTN: Lego achieved a fantastic scorecard for 2020. Could you give us a recap on how Lego performed in China last year, as you were seeing especially strong growth in this country in 2020

Christiansen: We invested behind our portfolio of products. We launched a Lego Monkie Kid series which has been very successful for us. As you may know, we created a Lego story based on the Chinese legend of the Monkey King, and there was more to come on that story in 2021. So we're quite excited about that.

And we're also investing behind the brand. We did actually open all the stores we set out to do despite COVID-19 pandemic earlier the year and the complications of that. We opened more stores in tier-three and tier-four cities around China, more than 80 cities around China.

There's been a huge way for us to get more kids to really get immersed into the Lego university and experiencing the Lego play in getting into the brand, and thereby building the brand. So that's been quite successful.

And then we've also invested behind e-commerce. We opened the Tmall flagship store on August 8, 2020, and it's very popular. More than a million members and followers registered in the short period of 2020. So I would say the momentum is really strong. It actually made us grow at strong double-digits pace again in China, just as we have done over the last few years.

CGTN: You've mentioned e-commerce as a very strong digital strategy, which Lego has been investing in for years and is certainly paying dividends. Can you give us more details in terms of where this strategy is headed, especially here in China?

Christiansen: China is super advanced on the digital front already, and we actually see China leading in terms of what can be done. Therefore, China is kind of our spearhead investment area. I talked to the flagship store on Tmall, we're really putting in the entire digital foundation in our company and being able to play on different platforms, hence really connecting with consumers and linking the entire Lego ecosystem.

We use China to model how we want the entire Lego globally to develop over the next decade, to really take the lead through a fundamental digital transformation of the group research. It's quite exciting times on that and we have put in quite a few investments behind that.

CGTN: What state of the Chinese consumer is right now, especially with all the policy initiatives in the country to boost consumption?

Christiansen: The potential in China is great for Lego. There is so much. There are so many kids who have yet to be brought into the brand in many different parts of China. So I think it is in a good place and maybe less dependent on some of those initiatives. We would be actually more dependent on getting stores opened and allowing the brand to really stay and grow in China.

Alongside, China government's ambition of growing the Chinese market is also on the long horizon. I think it fits very well with the Lego group. So I'm quite happy to see that.

I've also seen some improvements in China in improving its business environment, like the progress achieved in intellectual property rights. I think we've seen some positive things which make it even more interesting for brand like Lego to continue investing heavily in China.

(Michael Wang also contributed to the story.)