The small upstate New York village of East Aurora is a picture of small-town tranquillity. Main Street is as quaint as a painting, complete with a five-and-dime store; farmland towards Lake Erie is dotted with dairy cows, and the museum celebrates a community of arts and craft artists known as Roycrofters who set up here in 1895.
In 1930, mayor Irving Price decided he wanted to establish financial security for the town as the Great Depression began to take hold. He called on his wife, children’s book illustrator Margaret Evans Price, and a business associate, Herman Fisher. They asked Helen Schelle, owner and manager of the Penny Walker Toy Shop, to join them. Fisher thought the world needed better toys – toys that “appeal to the imagination, that do something new and surprising and funny”.
In the coming days, Fisher-Price celebrates its 90th anniversary. With it comes a rare opportunity for uncomplicated nostalgia for a company that over the decades has produced around 5,000 types of toys under the logo: “Our Work is Child’s Play”.
“The original Fisher-Price factory had produced copper for Roycrofters so the community already had a history of simple, creative manufacturing,” town historian Robert Goller told the Observer. “The times were right for a simple pull-toy. Indeed, a 95-year old lady who works at the museum recalls going to pick up toy pieces to assemble at home and bring back for a little extra money.”
After Price teamed up with Fisher and Schelle, they began inviting neighbours’ children to play with their designs. One was a pull-along toy dog called Snoopy Sniffer; others included a range of 16 toys called the Hopefuls, which included Dr Doodle and Granny Doodle.
“I don’t think much has changed in the past 90 years. People call it a Norman Rockwell-type village,” said mayor Peter Mercurio. The company, he says, remains a key employer and supportive of the community, sponsoring local events and the Christmas parade. “They have focus groups to which they invite local children to come in for toy testing and marketing.”
According to former executives, the company’s community-minded approach goes both ways. “There’s lots of inspiration for what we do around, from the hardware store and parks, art galleries and museums,” said principal designer Patrick Murphy.
In the 1950s Fisher-Price’s artisanal approach produced Little People, updating the looks of the characters as the look of children in the village changed. That was followed by a subset, Chunky Little People.
“The founders focused on creating toys that appeal to the imagination because play is how kids grow, learn and develop. Ninety years later, this philosophy lives on,” said Chuck Scothon, senior vice president of Fisher-Price and global head of infant and preschool at Mattel, Fisher-Price’s parent company.
The company’s success coincided with the postwar baby boom and pioneering work by child psychologists such as Jerome Singer, author of the 1973 book the Child’s World of Make Believe.
Over the years, Fisher-Price kept up with technology, producing classics such as the Record Player and Chatter Telephone, and in the 80s introducing the PXL-2000, a $100 video camera adopted by artists and film-makers.
Fisher-Price has not been without controversy. The company raised eyebrows when it introduced a charcuterie set for infants promoted by a little boy in a bow tie and a girl wearing a beret, as well as an On-The-Go Wallet with play credit cards that could be used for “buying brunch”, and a plastic smartwatchfor “tracking their steps”.
Far more damaging was the recall last year of the Rock ’n Play sleeper, a lightweight, collapsible bassinet (4.7m sold) after an investigation linked it to at least 32 infant deaths. While some Mattel brands like Barbie and Hot Wheels have seen sales increases of up to 25%, Fisher-Price sales fell 3% last year. Overall, the company’s infant and pre-school products dropped 9%.
Investment advisers note that the recall of Rock ’n Play has contributed to a weakness in the company’s performance.
Responding to the Covid-19 pandemic, Fisher-Price recently released a special edition line of Little People called Thank You Heroes, with net proceeds going to First Responders First.
Mattel has also responded to criticism of the heavy use of plastics by the toy industry, saying it aims to use only recycled or recyclable plastics by 2030.
By the end of the year, Mattel says, all Fisher-Price Rock-a-Stack toys worldwide will be made from sugarcane-based plastics and packaged in 100% recycled or sustainably sourced materials.
The firm, which employs around 750 at its East Aurora headquarters, looks set to endure. “It’s one of the legendary American brands, and it really helped define toys for kids and preschool children,” said Steve Pasierb, president at the Toy Association.
“The toy industry is like the fashion industry – things come and things go. But Fisher-Price has longevity, and a lot of the early, classic toys – the Slinky, Monopoly sets – are still being made. So long as we keep having kids, Fisher-Price is going to continue to have a role in the world.”
