Is this a genuine advert - it's 2024

Lego has always had an image problem in that it has appealed more to boys than girls. Their pink and green gymkhana set was a godsend when my daughter was little because it meant she could have Lego of her own that her brothers wouldn’t share/claim as their own. If it bothers you that it says for girls on the box cover it up with a bright sticker but I think they are on a winner marketing these prettily coloured sets to girls.

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I've just looked on the Lego site on Amazon UK. No one thing named as just for boys or girls to make. Which let's face it anyone with commonsense would realise

I fully agree with you 100%!

They look like absolutely lovely sets, I'm 58 and would happily buy them for myself!

But it seems rather sexist to me. Like saying Yorkie bars are only for boys!

I don't care what children play with or are drawn to. This was simply a comment on advertising.

I put it on the education thread - not for any sinister reason but because it felt like the right place. It's broadly about how children grow and develop. In my head I thought what a pity it was that it had a gender label on the advert when it didn't need one. Small things can influence children.

I'm sorry if some of you feel that my thoughts are from the field of gender fluid nonsense.

By the way, all my girls enjoyed Lego. I don't believe it's just a "boys toy" either.

In the spirit of enquiry I googled "Lego" and the first sponsored offering has this as the strapline:

LEGO® Shop
It's time for girls to Play Unstoppable.
Shop LEGO® | Disney, Animal Crossing™, and more!

Absolutely nothing wrong with promoting something for girls. This gender fluid nonsense is out of control. Women, girls, females are all being erased from vocabulary. People will choose what they want regardless. of advertising. This one size fits all does not work. Girls will be girls and Boys will be boys whether they vere towards pink or blue, it really doesn't matter!

Mollygo
That was the situation in my teaching days too, and I’ve been retired for ten years. White, working class boys are the most underperforming group in this country, and have been for years. No one seems too bothered about it though. If the underperforming group was girls, or an ethnic minority group, there would be much talk about it, and things would be done to improve the situation. I don’t think it’s made much difference to this group whether toys are marketed for boys or girls. Frankly I think however toys are marketed doesn’t make a jot of difference in the long run to anything.

I was a bit surprised by this, I can’t find it labelled as such on Google,
The one in the picture is called LEGO Friends 41748 Heartlake City Community Centre but many of the kits do look ‘girl friendly^. Maybe it is as someone posted, an effort to get more girls into using construction toys. I don’t remember complaints about the Lego Millenium Falcon.
I am interested that this post is on the Education Thread.
If you work in a primary class or are Governor at a primary school, you will often see that many boys still underperform against girls in reading and writing.
Cohort Assessments results are analysed by boys/girls/FSM etc by the school and nationally
There is emphasis on finding boy friendly topics e.g. Castles, Dinosaurs, etc to motivate boys to write, or boy friendly readers like Planet X Alien Adventures or non-fiction books.
Girls will happily read those books too, or write about whatever the topic is, but in my teaching career I’ve never come across a demand for specifically girl friendly books.

As for the parent dragging her son away -isn’t that as much to do with the parent stereotyping her child’s choice as with the shop arranging the toys.

My ten year old twin grandchildren, one boy and one girl, have decidedly ‘gender’ based interests, despite, as twins, being brought up together from day one, and having a wide range of toys for both to play with. Our grandson loves football, cricket, and all things sporty. He enjoys his table game set which includes table football and snooker and other games. His twin loves playing with her Barbie dolls and Sylvannian Families. Both children will play with the table football and board games with their mum, and both love playing on the iPads when they are allowed (not often.) Our granddaughter loves to read, her twin, not so much. It goes to show that whatever is offered to children, they will find their own way so it doesn’t matter much which toys adults choose for them, when they’re old enough they will make their own choices.
Incidentally their six year old brother loves football, cricket, Barbie dolls, and his sister’s Sylvannian Family sets.

What’s wrong with encouraging girls to build Lego? They tend to think of it as a boys activity, Lego friends has helped that. My grandchildren (one of each) have had the opportunity to choose whatever they want to play with and they have both gravitated towards traditional girls and boys toys. Let kids be and choose what they prefer, they will only play with what interests them. Our little boy plays with Lego, guns, footballs but likes to push his sister’s dolls pram, so what?

Werent Mumsnet involved in the let toys be toys campaign? I vaguely remember they were.

When my 3rd son was 2, a toy library opened in our town. All he wanted was a dolls' buggy.
He is now in his 40s, has 2 DDs, one of whom plays football in a national league.

Freya is moaning about people expressing a view. That's quite 'first world moaning' in my book.

Who is that aimed at Galaxy?

And people are moaning about people expressing a view, how first world is that.

Maybe things have gone full circle- back to the nineteenth century?

I wonder how many grans on here are still knitting pink for girls etc?

What is the reason for finding out the gender of a baby in advance if not to give plenty of time to prepare the nursery.
I am shocked by lego.

The problem with the advertising is that it's an outdated idea to market by gender.
It's not the 1950s!
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Who’s moaning?

As I said, I did see a boy being firmly led away from the “girls’ aisle” and told that those toys weren’t for him. I personally think it’s sad that businesses reinforce these views.

Oh dear, first world moaning. Advertised for girls, and made by
boys too. As if this would really stop anyone from buying , for their child of whatever sex, and them making this.

Well it doesn’t actually say ONLY for girls, does it?

When I’m looking for presents for my grandchildren, I’m quite pleased that toy shops have boys sections and girls sections.

It’s left up to parents and grandparents to use their own judgement about which type of toy would be suitable for their child, according to their interests.

Personally, I think there’s too much fuss made these days about alleged ‘gender stereotyping’

We are all well aware that some little girls prefer playing with cars etc rather than dolls, and that’s absolutely fine.

This Lego packaging is nothing to get hot under the collar about in my opinion!

If this has come via GN then I would be asking HQ where it has come from because there is nowhere else (that I can find on the web) showing these products flagged as Sets for Girls.

You can go to the Lego site and search on say "Toys for Girls but it returns a whole range of products that aren't gendered including a lot of Harry Potter sets.

It suspect this is a composite image produced on Photoshop or similar by some third party supplier of Lego products. Only HQ can tell you who the advertiser is.

The problem with the advertising is that it's an outdated idea to market by gender.
It's not the 1950s!

I am disappointed in LEGO.

I think the Lego Friends set is aimed towards girls, if it gets them interested in construction I cannot see the problem.

Out GD loves the Lego Friends play sets and has lots of them and role plays with the characters. Her brother leans towards the cars and dinosaurs ranges, but will play along with his sister and her Lego Friends as she does with his dinosaur sets.

Our teenage GS is Lego obsessed and some of the kits are upwards of £300.00.

A couple of our DiL’s have the Lego flowers and bonsai sets, they find them relaxing to construct.

I really cannot see the problem with the advertising, all children differ, some girls gravitate towards pink girly things some do not. Some boys are into cars and guns some have their own doll (two of our GS’s have a dolly and pram)

I think the regression is rife amongst many brands and stores. I can’t remember seeing aisles labelled as toys for girls and toys for boys in the 80s, but I saw one recently and saw a boy being hustled away by his mother from the “girls’ toys” he was obviously interested in.