No More Toobs...

We just found out that our current supplier of "Toobs" will not be continuing the line. These little animals have been one of our favorites - and one of my children's favorites - almost since we opened our doors three years ago. They make a great present for a birthday, and are perfect for gift bags. We always throw one in our carry-ons to take on holiday - small, light, and easy for the airplane.

When we took them on, we committed to having the full range so that everyone could find something fun. And they have been great! Going on vacation to Egypt or Australia - why not a toob from there? School project on bugs? Check out the insects. Like horses? Why not ponies or a horse competition?

We'll miss them - get them now while we still have them!

The Frames are Back!

And in the right size!

A watched pot never boils? A waited-for boat never comes? Well, finally, it did. The boat containing our new Li'l Davinci frames arrived in Göteborg on Monday, and we got our long-awaited shipment today. And here they are!

The first response to our American frames (in American sizes) was so great that we worked with the mom-of-three-designer to design in a real A4 size for Sweden. And now we have the first ones ready to go! We couldn't resist opening up a box - just to make sure - and it is perfect. Now all we need is an artist...

Something New Every Day

One of the reasons ABC Leksaker is so fun is that I get the chance to learn something new every day. Today, I attended a "webinar" (web-based seminar) on Search Engine Optimization, supposedly marketed at advanced SEO-folks. I'm nowhere near advanced... but it was free... so why not?

The registration was interesting. After the standard name and address stuff, they asked us our monthly search engine marketing budget. The options were:

• above $1,000,000
• $500,000 to $1,000,000
• $100,000 to $500,000
• $50,000 to $100,000
• less than $50,000

Any guesses to which category I fell into? Yep, that answer almost scared me away, and it did make me refrain from asking any online questions. But the seminar was still interesting, and between the "multivariate parabolic regression analysis" I did learn something new today. Cool.

Back to Bacladi/Dushi

I love the Bacladi/Dushi products. I guess I should "go with the flo" as they say on their home page and really move away from their original name, Bacladi, to their new choice, Dushi... but old habits die hard. Anyway, they have had a wonderful series of products in their range which are finally available.

The "mom and baby necklace" is a real treat. I can remember that when my three were small, I don't think I wore a necklace for about 8 years for fear of it getting broken by small hands. This necklace is fun and colorful - it won't get you on the fashion pages at the latest formal event - but it should be great for everyday play and wear. Just pick your favorite character (Dunk, Rabbit, Chick or Flo) and you and your child are ready to play.

Their new activity toys are also great - colorful and charming, with lots of textures and colors to attract the eye. The "Edu Chick" gets my vote for most original!

And finally, who could resist their toy boxes - again, just choose your favorite character and you are ready to solve clutter in a charming way. The details are wonderful - legs, tails, wings or feet adorn the edges, giving them an original look that can't be beat.

Kalas tips

Mina barn, liksom många andra barn går ofta på kalas. Mina killar är 5 och 7 år gamla. Det här är en jättebra kalas present. Dig a dino, barnet får gräva ut sin egna dinosaurie ur en " stenhög".
Barnen som har fått denna har blivit överlyckliga. Självklart har mina killar provat att gräva ut sina egna dinosaurier och det sysselsätter dom länge... Priset ligger på 99kr, ett bra kalspris.

A Full Work Week

I really like my work, and enjoy being able to put time into the company. But it seems as though it has been AGES since I have worked a full (part-time) week. Of course there was the summer holiday, but even before that it seemed like someone was always sick or had a planning day.
This season started off three weeks ago - I thought the kids would be back at school, but little did I know... Benjamin started on a Monday with a planning day, and then was sick on the Wednesday. Christopher had a planning day that Friday, and was then sick the following Monday. I managed to catch what the kids had and was home on the sofa (with my laptop) on Tuesday and Wednesday. Then Annika was home this week for four days. Thank goodness for Karin!

At some level, we always get the basics done. We send out the orders and we manage to pay the bills. Accounting is also up there on the list, not for fun, but because it has to be done.
And there are always a few things manage to slip through the cracks. I think our phone message still wishes everyone a happy summer, but we haven't had a chance to change it. Our "Veckans Vara" sometimes is more like a "Månadens vara" if we don't get time to change it.

And of course, there are all our new "osmosis" products - the ones that we have in the warehouse, but haven't put online yet. You would have to be a mind-reader to even know that it exists!

And then there's all the extra stuff that we really want to do - send out newsletters, write press releases, blog a bit more, change the home page...

Maybe next week will be better.

PlayTray for Stokke Tripp Trapp - Great Idea!

I love that so many of our products are designed by parents. Parents are - of course - the most experienced in raising children, and have great ideas about what kids love, and what would be truly useful. Our newest product is a tray for our Stokke Tripp Trapp chairs - something that our family really could have used a couple of years ago. A mom in Denmark saw the need, designed the product, and is now producing it. Check it out!

By the way - some of our other parent-designed products include George Luck puzzles, Li'l Davinci Frames, Suretrack, Oskar & Ellen - and more!

A New Friend?

We are trying to stock up after the long summer, and this morning, within 15 minutes, we received deliveries from five different companies, including 3 pallets. At one point, we couldn't come or go - there were so many boxes in the way! We're in the process of expanding the space we have, and will soon have a much bigger warehouse, a nicer place to sit, and a showroom that isn't just a stack of more boxes. Karin and I spend a bit of each day dreaming of how it will be to get just a little more space. We're falling over things at the moment.

But back to the deliveries - we got some great new things, which will be making their way onto the website slowly as we assemble photos and write descriptions - we'll keep you posted. But in the meantime, we have a new giant friend, Rabbit the Frog, from our Bacladi/Dushi collection.