 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1997 |
| Founder | Torsten Geller |
| Headquarters | , England |
Number of locations | 6 |
Key people |
|
| Products | Toys |
| Subsidiaries | Cobi (part) |
| Website | best-lock |
Best-Lock Construction Toys is a brand ofplastic building bricks that are compatible withLego. Best-Lock Group Limited, which manufacture the bricks, is based inColne,Lancashire, England.
Best-Lock was founded in 1997 by Torsten Geller after he looked into the legalities ofLego and otherclones.[1][2]
Best-Lock has been involved with multiple legal cases involving Lego. The company moved in 1998 against Lego's exclusivity claims to toy-block design. Best-Lock won the case, thus allowing them to sell sets in Germany.[2] They defeated a patent challenge from Lego in 2004.[3][4] In a further case in 2009, Lego was denied trademark protection for the shape of its bricks.[5]
Best-Lock merged withCobi, a Polish building block manufacturer in 2006. The merger has since yielded co-branded building block toys.[6]
In 2000, Lego filed a three-dimensional trademark for its mini-figures, which Best Lock had duplicated since 1998. In 2012, Best-Lock sued to have the trademark revoked, but theEuropean Court of Justice upheld Lego's figure trademark.[7][8]
Best-Lock offers different sized blocks including standard blocks, Junior Blocks (young children 2–5), and Baby Blocks (For kids 0–2). Themes for standard blocks include town sets (police, fire and construction), military, pirates, farming, and Kimmy (Best-Lock sets made for females). Licensed sets includeThe Terminator andStargate SG-1 themes.
