This year marks the 25th anniversary of the colourful, organic, and ethical childrenswear brand Toby Tiger. CWB’s Laura Turner speaks to founder and designer Zoe Mellor to learn more about the company and how it has evolved.

 

Laura Turner: What originally inspired you to launch Toby Tiger?

Zoe Mellor: I studied fashion and textiles and always loved bold, simple graphics. So, I began my career as a knitwear designer, and after the birth of my son Toby Tiger, the brand was also born. I founded Toby Tiger in 1998; it’s named after my son Toby (yes, his real middle name is Tiger), who’s now 25. I wanted to design playful, timeless, colourful and bold designs. My philosophy has always been to dress kids like kids, incorporating clever design details that make wearing our designs practical and comfortable. I have always championed organic cotton, too, using azo-free dyes and planet-friendly sustainable prints and manufacturing. As a result, Toby Tiger was the first colourful organic kidswear brand in the UK market.

LT: How has the business developed over the last 25 years?

ZM: When I started my career, I was designing from a small studio in Clerkenwell, London, called Cockpit Studios, before my move to Brighton. It was a hub for a group of young designers and an exciting place to be. When I moved to Brighton, I opened our first shop, which was tiny and used as a studio for cutting out garments and creating new designs. We used to have a team of knitters, sewers and T-shirt printers who worked locally to produce our first ranges. It was very hands-on, but as demand grew and more stockists wanted our designs, we slowly and organically began making a more comprehensive clothing range in factories in Turkey, India and China. Finally, in 2003, we moved into our Gardner Street flagship store in the centre of Brighton’s bustling north Laine area. We still have this shop today. In 2008 we outgrew our offices and storage space at the shop and moved into our warehouse along the coast, five minutes from the sea. We still have the shop, but we needed more storage. We have always been lucky to have been stocked with great independents, department stores, and online retailers that understand our eco credentials and the need to offer sustainable choices to their customers. Back when I started, being sustainable and organic was fairly new, but with the world climate crisis, consumer demand for our products is always growing. Slowly, this eco-messaging has become more in demand. It’s great that new parents are more aware of what they purchase directly and how it’s made impacts the planet. Buying sustainably is becoming more of a consideration when making purchasing choices. Sadly, Brexit made it impossible to sell competitively in Europe from our UK base. However, we have a loyal European following and wanted to retain our customers there, so we opened a new German company in Berlin in 2020. Luckily, I speak German, which helped a lot. The German company means we can continue to sell to our stockists in Europe – I love spending my time between Berlin and Brighton.

 

 

LT: What are your plans in terms of wholesale in the UK?

ZM: We are lucky to have a loyal customer base of independent stockists in the UK and will always work with them and larger online retailers. In addition, we have a dedicated wholesale website for our stockists to order from, which works well.

LT: Would you ever open more stores?

ZM: We love our Brighton flagship store but have yet to make plans to open more (but never say never). However, we love selling online, and this is something that is here to stay.

LT: How has the collection developed over the years, and what does it offer today?

ZM: I started with hand-knit sweaters and cool slogan T-shirts for babies and kids. As my son Toby grew, our stockists wanted a more extensive offer, so we expanded to make a whole range of garments from T-shirts and babygros to sweatshirts, raincoats and twirl-tastic skater dresses, all in our recognisable happy colour palette. Our collection now goes from birth to age eight years, and we design all our prints and appliqués with our Toby Tiger child-centred sense of fun.

LT: What would you highlight as Toby Tiger’s USP?

ZM: Bold, fun, sustainable, good-quality classic clothing is what has kept us going for so long. Whilst we offer new ranges every season, we love colour and use our own colour palette from one season to the next, so fresh and older designs can be worn together and still look great. This is an anti-the-fast fashion model and a more sustainable approach, meaning our designs can be worn longer and not look outdated. I also design with longevity in mind and love it when I see customers pass on the clothing because our classic designs can be worn from one season to another, with clever details like turn-downable cuffs and extra buttons so garments can fit for longer as kids grow.

 

 

LT: How is Toby Tiger embracing sustainability?

ZM: For 25 years, we have always used organic cotton in our designs. We always work with sustainable manufacturers and are proud that all our products are GOTS-certified; it’s always been how we work. Being GOTS certified ensures the production is organic and sustainable and that all workers are fairly paid, from the cotton pickers to the warehouse workers in our UK and German offices. We also use sustainable packaging materials, from garment bags to mailing bags.

LT: How are you marking Toby Tiger’s anniversary?

ZM: We will obviously celebrate with tea (mine’s an Earl Grey) and cake in our offices in the UK and Berlin. Our customers should look out for celebratory offers online, too. We will also thank our stockists that have supported us – some since we started – so watch this space.

LT: What is the secret to the brand’s ongoing success?

ZM: Our designs have stood the test of time. When we started, bright organic cotton and ethical production were new. We’ve always just stuck to our beliefs and had a solid, defined ethos that has helped the brand maintain its identity. My design background has also meant that we have kept true to our handwriting. As the demand for organic and sustainable brands grows, so does the need for our product. We were the first bright, colourful organic brand in the UK, and it’s great to see that we’re still loved and relevant today, 25 years on. We are pleased to see other brands joining the sustainability movement we have been leading for the last 25 years. We have many exciting things happening in 2023. We are grateful to all our loyal customers and stockists, especially as we know families are feeling the pinch of the cost of living crisis. By supporting us, they know they are also making a sustainable choice, and in the long run, that will help both our children and our planet.

To visit Toby Tiger’s wholesale website, please click here.