Company Profile
Golden Bear
Play today,
protect tomorrow
The last time Toy World and Golden Bear met up, so to speak, it was to take a virtual stroll around the company’s digital garden showroom for its Q1 preview. A few months later, Rachael Simpson-Jones spoke to MD Barry Hughes and commercial manager Gareth Lloyd about the company’s upcoming product launches, and why sustainability and employee well-being are currently taking centre stage. Barry Hughes
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I’ve never known a time filled with so many challenges outside our control,” says Barry at the start of our meeting, when asked how the company is faring. “We’ve seen Covid breaking out in Guangdong, shortages of computer chips and rocketing container prices, but we’re in a really good position from which to navigate those choppy waters. We have great brands that are performing very well, and our efforts in recent years stand us in good stead for what we believe will be a very strong year.” With no shows on, Golden Bear supported its retail partners in the first quarter by extending its 2021 show offers until stores reopened and ran a Toymaster window campaign in July highlighting Bing, Hey Duggee and In the Night Garden, some of its most popular pre-school properties. Golden Bear’s portfolio of toys mainly comprises licensed brands, but the company is investing heavily in own-IP offerings too. Zipstas, a range of reversible animal-themed backpacks, and Windy Bums, cuddly plush characters that wiggle across the floor while giggling and making fun farting sounds, are both due to launch this year, joining existing brands such as Funlockets, Smart Ball and Trapped,
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the company’s at-home escape room games range. The Hey Duggee line-up, meanwhile, will welcome Hey Duggee Spin and Groove, a hugely on-brand mixing desk that allows kids to create their own music, while Toothbrush & Handwashing Time with Duggee taps into burgeoning consumer demand for products that encourage kids to practise good oral and hand hygiene in a fun way. As one of the most searched-for Hey Duggee videos is the Toothbrushing Song, in which Duggee and co learn how to brush their teeth correctly, this product is poised to fill a definite gap in the market. Bing, Golden Bear’s top performing pre-school property globally, welcomes the Dancing Bing feature plush, which gets kids up and moving, as well as Bing’s House Playset, a hero line for autumn/winter. Golden Bear’s Something Special range is also helping to cater to a gap in the toy marketplace – Special Educational Needs (SEN) and sensory toys. Crazes like fidget toys, originally developed to aid SEN or neurodivergent kids, have accelerated interest in (and demand for) products that provide additional benefits above and beyond play value, and Golden Bear is this year introducing several
