Why Is There So Much Hype Around Big Brands?

This is a guest post by Olga Luciani, founder of PoppyBabyCo. Read more about her here.

When it comes down to selecting beautiful and natural wooden toys, most people turn to giants in the industry for their purchase. Big brands such as Grimms, Grapat, Ostheimer, and many others make wooden toys that are non-toxic, environmentally conscious, and good for Montessori and Waldorf style learning.

These brands have dominated the industry for many years, but that domination has come at a price. Some big brands, lock out customers dependent on their geographical location. This is called geofencing, and it can push the prices of these toys to an unaffordable level.

On top of this, companies often watch buy/sell/trade groups and demand that even large 50-piece sets are sold together, forcing price conscious consumers to decide between their child’s enjoyment and their finances. Without the ability to split the costs of these larger sets, they may not be able to afford them at all.

Wooden toys are an investment, and of course, the artists who spend the time handcrafting each beautiful toy that will be in your family for generations deserve a fair price. The issue isn’t whether wooden toys are investment pieces, but rather that some larger brands force you into making bigger investments that you may want, only offering large sets and not allowing you to purchase smaller sets or even individual pieces. This all or nothing strategy can hurt customers and the brands alike by deterring them from making the investment in the first place.

Montessori tool or toxic toy?

Another concern is that some large-scale producers make their wooden toys in China and other countries known for mass production where they may be contaminated with lead, phthalates, or BPA. These common contaminants are a big concern for small children who tend to put everything in their mouths.

With quality European toys that are commonly geofenced off, and hard to obtain, many consumers are forced to turn to these more accessible and potentially contaminated brands for wooden toys.

Even if you do have access to quality larger brands, you may also miss out in a different way. Small shops tend to have unique toys you can’t find anywhere else. One example of these smaller shops is PoppyBabyCo, which sourced handmade wooden toys from vendors all around Europe before making its very own unique toys.

More than just another toy company

With the birth of her son and the inspiration of her Grandfather, Uncle, and brother, who all made toys like these for her during her childhood in Russia, Olga, the founder of PoppyBabyCo, started her company to share her passion with others. She continues to spread the joy of unique wooden toys from her childhood by offering toys that are made with the same love and care that her toys were once made for her.

If you are focused entirely on the big brands, you may miss cute and charming toys made by smaller companies. If you’re interested in seeing products from companies like these, you’re welcome to view the collection, or even make a request for your child’s very own dream toy. You never know, it may come true.

Visit the shop and enjoy a 15% discount on your next purchase of handmade unique wooden toys with the promo code “WOODENTOYS”.