conservative and pietistic Church Association for the Inner Mission in Denmark. Beginnings of Lego During the early 1930s, Kristiansen's business suffered due to the onset of the Great Depression in Denmark. The drop in farming prices resulted in many of his customers being unable to afford his products. This decline in business forced Kristiansen to lay off staff in early 1932 until only seven employees remained. The primary income, which was from sales of ladders and ironing boards, was shrinking in demand. Eventually, Kristiansen had to dismiss his last worker. In order to sell more products, Kristiansen made the decision to produce cheap wooden products, including wooden toys. His business slipped into bankruptcy, but he refused to stop producing toys even when his siblings requested this as part of a bailout loan. He decided to officially found an unnamed company (later to become Lego) in 1932. Kristiansen's company moved primarily to the production of wooden toys, such as yo-yos, pull-along animals and trucks. In doing so, Kristiansen made the decision to focus his products on the development of children. With this turning point, Kristiansen effectively defined the core philosophy of the company, which would eventually be expressed in its name in 1934. Lego is a shortened form of the Danish word Leg godt, meaning "play well", and the company eventually became known as The Lego Group. Many years later, he said, "Not until the day when I said to myself, 'You must make a choice between carpentry and toys' did I find the real answer." Kristiansen made his toy products from birch wood that had been cut from the forest, dried out for two years and then dried in a kiln for three weeks. The toys were put together, sealed, sanded and primed before being painted with three coats of varnish. He struggled to sell both his household products and wooden toys due to the poverty levels of people living in the local community. However, he continued to produce the toys, sometimes exchanging them for food. By 1935, the toy range included a variety of animals, including a pull-along wooden duck which has since seen numerous variations. 1940s and 1950s Despite hardship, Kristiansen managed to maintain his business through the Great Depression and also Nazi Germany's occupation of Denmark in World War II. In 1942, the company experienced another setback. A short circuit created an electrical fire, which resulted in