Did you know that LEGO® products were once manufactured in… Iceland?
Like many other countries after World War II, Iceland placed tight restrictions on the import of toys and other goods. This is why the LEGO Group started examining other options and in 1955 entered into a licensing agreement with S.I.B.S. (the Icelandic Association of Tuberculosis and Chest Patients) to manufacture and sell LEGO products in Iceland.
The agreement gave S.I.B.S. the right to rent moulds and tools from the LEGO factory in Billund, Denmark to set up production in Iceland.
S.I.B.S. was established in 1938 with the primary aim of rehabilitating and training Icelandic tuberculosis patients. As tuberculosis decreased in the 1950s, the institution was converted into a rehabilitation centre for heart, asthma and traffic‑accident patients. In workshops at the centre, patients did work‑based therapy with the aim of helping them back to employment.
In 1960, Iceland removed the ban on toy imports, but the LEGO Group continued its arrangement with S.I.B.S. until 1977, when Icelandic production no longer had the capacity to keep up with developments in the LEGO Group product range.
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