Small Toymakers Find Niche
Saws clatter on the workshop floor, where craftsmen stamp out the rounded sides of what will become a red toy pushcar and slice dozens of dragon figures out of a 2-foot-long dowel.
One building over, large drums rumble, shaking hundreds of wooden grasping rings beneath a steady drip of water-based lacquer. The process, which takes 10 hours – and eight more if the wood is colored – renders the rings smooth, shiny and safe for curious young mouths.
With about 80 percent of all toys sold in the U.S. made in China, German toymaker Haba knows it supplies a tiny market from its base in Bavaria. But the recall of millions of Chinese-made toys tainted with lead-laced paint has brought more attention to smaller European toymakers that stress natural, safe materials – if parents are willing to pay the price.
Toy experts say European makers adhere to higher safety standards than in the U.S., and many of the companies – ranging from Lego in Denmark, Brio AB in Sweden and Haba or Selecta in Germany – stress their in-house safety standards exceed the industry norms.
The company – best known for its brightly colored wood infant rings and grasping toys, as well as colorful board games that have become increasingly popular in the United States – reported sales of $321 million in 2006. That compares with $5.65 billion for Mattel.
Photo by Haba.
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