CHARLOTTE, NC (January 30, 2020) — Schleich® USA, (pronounced Sh-like) is celebrating the company’s 85th year empowering kids’ creativity through imaginative play with a bold integrated marketing campaign, limited edition figurine and more. The American arm of the world’s leading manufacturer of animal figurines based in Schwäbisch Gmünd, Germany, Schleich enters its 85th year with global sales that have grown by double digits in each of the last six years.
Known throughout the world for the attention-to-detail, quality and realism of its animal figurines, Schleich is a natural-born leader in facilitating open-ended play. This style of unstructured playtime in which kids aren’t given a specific purpose or goal, has been established by experts as one of the most important activities for helping kids develop and maintain creativity, something Schleich has advocated for throughout its rich history.
To celebrate this great legacy of empowering kids’ imaginations, Schleich is bringing the rich and colorful stories of open-ended playtime to life with its unmistakable animal figurines and playsets through a new marketing campaign for 2020. Built on the insight that it is often challenging for grown-ups to perceive the rich, immersive depths of kids open-ended play experience, the POWER OF IMAGINATION campaign seeks to remind grown-ups just how sensational and fantastic a child’s imagination can be.
“While adults might only see kids moving figurines around a play space, we know that the unparalleled detail and realism of our products inspire kids to imagine a world where dinosaurs help with homework and bears do backflips into outer space,” said Annie Laurie Zomeraand, co-managing director of Schleich USA. “This campaign is all about breaking down the barrier between what parents see and what their kids experience. We hope to inspire grown-ups to do even more to help empower kids’ imaginations by reminding them just how magical those imaginations can be.”
To bring the campaign to life, Schleich is collaborating throughout 2020 with renowned toy photographer, Mitchel Wu, to develop a series of photographs that depict the rich, immersive detail narrated by kids during open-ended playtime with Schleich products. The brand will introduce the initial set of images at an experiential exhibit in the lobby of the 2020 New York International Toy Fair at the Jacob Javits Center. Toy Fair attendees and press are invited to an exclusive campaign kickoff breakfast and anniversary celebration at the exhibit on Sunday, February 23 from 7:30 – 9 a.m. The event will feature commentary from child development and open-ended play expert, Dr. Sandra J. Stone, and live photography demonstrations by Mitchel Wu.
Golden Anniversary Lion
A special highlight of Schleich’s 2020 anniversary year will be the release of a limited-edition golden lion figurine. The lion, one of the company’s most popular products, is a symbol of the pride and dignity with which Schleich looks back on the last 85 years. Its golden coloring and glittery mane represent the value of the brand. Six colorful brush strokes, a nod to the way Schleich figurines are lovingly decorated, represent the Farm World, Wild Life, Dinosaurs, Horse Club, bayala®, and Eldrador® Creatures thematic worlds from the Schleich range.while the six colors represent the Farm World, Wild Life, Dinosaurs, Horse Club, bayala®, and Eldrador® Creatures thematic worlds from the Schleich range. The lion will be available in select stores during the August–September promotional period and cost $6.99.
85 Proud Years of Schleich Figurines
For 85 years, Schleich has spread joy to children around the world with its high-quality, realistic figurines. It all began in 1935 when Friedrich Schleich founded the company in the country town of Schwäbisch Gmünd. After early success with a proprietary character Jopo, licenses with Walt DisneyTM and the SmurfsTM, Schleich has been primarily manufacturing its famous animal figurines since the 1980s. Children between the ages of three and twelve, in particular, love the figurines and play sets from six different thematic works: Farm World, Wild Life, Dinosaurs, Horse Club, bayala®, and Eldrador® Creatures.
Head of Marketing, Victoria Sutch, says, “For many children, our products are their best friends and daily companions. In a child’s hands, they are the starting point for extremely creative stories and exciting adventures. It’s all about having fun, and as a side benefit the children also learn a lot about animals and their habitat.” In the meantime Schleich has become one of Germany’s largest toy manufacturers and a leading supplier of toy figurines internationally. The company has over 600 products to choose from and delivers these to more than 60 countries worldwide.
