LEGO French Café designer had a very specific customer in mind
LEGO Icons 10362 French Café is a new kind of LEGO set, for a new kind of LEGO builder, according to its designer.
When LEGO designer Hoang Huy Dang pitched the original idea of 10362 French Café, it was born out of a desire that many LEGO fans have had: wanting to introduce loved ones to building LEGO.
“I kept thinking about my family,” remembered Hoang. “I work for LEGO but my family’s not into LEGO at all. So, I thought, how do I get them into buying LEGO?
“My parents like the minifigures but they see that as something for the grandkids to play with. They want something a little bit more upscale. With the success of the Botanical lines, which is quite significant and completely different from what was done before, I hope something like this would be able to bridge that gap between my parents’ generation in their 60s and the fan communities that are around my age.”
Sharing the things you love with people you love is certainly something most people can get on board with – but how does this fit into the wider market? Hoang might have had some very specific people in mind while designing 10362 French Café but, of course, he intended it to resonate with people outside of his family tree as well.
First-time builders and small-time collectors
LEGO sets intended for display are typically trickier to build than some of the more basic play models geared towards younger builders, so ease of building was a definite priority for Hoang and the team.
“We wanted to make sure that the build itself was nothing too crazy,” he explained. “It has interesting techniques, but it’s doable for somebody that’s new to building LEGO. As long as you follow the instructions, it’s quite straightforward.
“There are some angles here and there but it’s not like, you have to flip it around or anything too scary. Hopefully, this can be an entry point to LEGO for them.”
Even the colour scheme was carefully selected to appeal to this demographic, with Hoang wanting to make an aesthetically pleasing build that people, especially women, want to display.
“We were looking into a colour scheme that speaks to our demographic,” Hoang said. “That includes first-time builders, mostly women. We wanted that warm tone, a summery vibe, like a picturesque postcard picture.”
This isn’t playtime
From the start, 10362 French Café was always intended for display, which led to a lot of key details, including the eight-stud-wide base.
“We always wanted to have something that could be easily put on the shelf flat against the wall,” Hoang stated. “We realised that many folks at home are not into collecting LEGO and have very limited shelf space. That’s why we want to have some products that can speak to people who aren’t collectors but rather casual builders who might only have two of our products.”
The demographic helped the design team make a wealth of other decisions for 10361 French Café, including the lack of a formal interior or any minifigures.
“Through our research with the demographic that we want to target, we don’t expect them to play with 10362 French Café in the same way as some fans or children play with LEGO,” Hoang explained. “We could have had open back, which would save a lot of money, but people don’t really turn sets around once you put them on the shelf.
We also wanted more depth in the interior and, because it’s dark inside, it gives some depth. You can see some patterns on the wall and other details that we wanted to capture.”
This distinction also helps 10362 French Café and any future Restaurants of the World sets stand out from their closest LEGO relatives in the Modular Buildings Collection, known for their detailed interiors.
Read more from Hoang about what design rules are established in the upcoming LEGO Icons set ahead of 10362 French Café’s launch on March 1, when it will retail for £69.99 in the UK, $79.99 in the US and €79.99 in Europe.
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