Feb
15
2012

posted by

Gisela Voss

It is a happy talent to know how to play. —Ralph Waldo Emerson

Boy oh boy. Girl oh girl. We KNOW how to play!

Yup that's me hopping on one foot. :) We just got back from the 2012 International Toy Fair in New York. We loooove showing off our new creations. And we have a B.ig one to unveil in about 4 weeks. Quite likely the coolest musical toy you've ever seen. If you've not yet signed up for our B.mails or joined us on Facebook, you will want to be among the first to know when "Symphony in B." hits the shelves. Because the first small test shipment will sell out very quickly. We just know it!

We stood on our soap boxes for 3 days and told everyone who came by about our mission to make toys that are a sea change in the industry: beautiful enough to leave out when company comes over, respectful of our planet, generous to children less fortunate than ours.

How do we do it? We love it. We care. We play.

Beyond the visible signature patterns and colors…we labor over the ‘feel’ in a child’s hand, the thickness of the plastic, the smoothness of a strap, the curve of a corner, the recyclability of our packaging, the size of the box, the meaning of each word, the kerning of the font. We really sweat these details. Wake up with them in the middle of the night! Tweak and finesse them until we have everything juuuuust right.

Where possible the toys come with self-storage (the drum holds the instruments, the clinic roof houses the tools). We hate toys that leave a pile of trash as big as the toy itself when unpackaged. And yet, when clear trash plastic is inevitable, we’ve paid extra for the most recyclable #1 PET plastic. And we've designed even the recycling symbol to be B.eautiful.

But most of all, in our heart of hearts, in that spot where we are parents first, we make open-ended toys that encourage a child’s own stories to lead the fun. That engage that most powerful engine of creativity—a child's imagination. That support and celebrate our mission: JUST B. JUST YOU. B. YOU. That trust children to know how to play.

B. happy!

—Gisela

Feb
21
2011

posted by

Gisela Voss

Toymaker is really a job?

We spent last week at Toy Fair. 5 full days among 1100 exhibitors and 10,000 buyers from around the globe. In 345,000 square feet filled with toys!

Just 100 years ago (and still in many places on the planet) a child contented himself with a ragdoll or a top or a stickhorse. It’s hard to comprehend that toys now represent a $21 billion industry. My living room alone contributes a nice chunk to that. My professional life’s work has too.

“Chief Toymaker” is hard work. But since I love what I do and am able to do good with it, it often does not feel like work at all. Every day I collaborate with people I care about, on a mission we all care about: the creation of beautiful playthings for kids we love—our kids, ALL kids.

Do you know the movie “Lemonade”? Perfect telling of our story: “It’s not a pink slip. It’s a blank page.” We turned what was a job we loved into a passion-driven juggernaut of everything I ever wanted to pour into toys. It’s all I’ve ever done…make toys…for the world’s largest toy companies (Hasbro, Playskool, Milton Bradley) to the world’s finest (Museum of Fine Arts- Boston, Learningsmith).

There we stood at New York Toy Fair, barely a year old. Pinching ourselves that the loooong days and laaaate nights we’ve worked on B. magically paid off in a wonderful and wonder-filled brand.

We won many awards in one short year. We made it onto Ellen and onto the Zappos Delivering Happiness Bus. Lots of press was kind to us. We made many fabulous friends in the blogging community (just wrote a guest blog at Small for Big about ugly toys). But most of all we took a moment to raise our glasses and have a family dinner (we really think of our B. team as family) and remember it is our JOB to bring you beautiful, thoughtful, fashion-forward and eco-friendly toys.

It’s a responsibility we take very seriously since we know we are putting things into the hands (and mouths) of your most precious little ones. We think of it as an opportunity of a lifetime—literally. To offer your kids wondrous playthings is our privilege.

I went back to find my original Missions for B. and I herewith lovingly share them with you. With the promise that we will continue to strive—every day, with every toy—to B. good to kids, their parents, and our planet.

Yes, toymaker is a job.
A really important job.

—Gisela

Apr
02
2010

posted by

Gisela Voss

Reversible jackets, reversible hats, reversible comforters...sure. But reversible toy boxes?

Really! Just flip the toy packaging inside out, put it back on and you’re wrapped and ready for the party. We think long and hard about how to B. helpful, useful, reusable – and beautiful – all at the same time.

We wanted to make it easy for mom to give a B. gift AND memorable for the recipient to receive it. So we did not stop at reversible. The ultimate owner also gets something to reuse. Once the toy is removed (and the clear plastic is recycled), the box becomes a sturdy fashionable tray to store treasures in.

For child. Or mom. Or, in my home, teenage daughter.

Have you received one of these boxes? What do you store in yours?

- Gisela

Reversible packages make gifting eco-friendly and fun!

Feb
15
2010

posted by

Gisela Voss

We call him B.ubbles!

Bubbling over with pride over B. toys, we brought a mascot with us to New York Toy Fair. Meet B.ubbles! He loves swimming around in his Pop-Arty coral reef. And we love showing off our creations. We just have to keep him away from Meowsic! Check out that Cheshire grin in the background...Uh oh!

B.ubbles!

Feb
01
2010

posted by

Gisela Voss

Can you say Spielwarenmesse? B. toys go to Germany!

Quick! What are the rules for feline international travel?! I remember sobbing at the LaPaz airport as a child because our cat Muxi had to be quarantined for 30 days. We don’t have that much time—Meowsic is traveling to Germany tomorrow! B. toys have been invited to the Nürnberg International Toy Show at the last minute. All those rhythms and songs will serve Meowsic well in the land of Oom-Pa-Pa. Now…does he have a passport?

- Gisela