Company Profile - One for Fun

Introducing One for Fun

Nearly four years after acquiring H. Grossman, Tobar has unveiled a major rebrand, complete with a name change and new logo, that will bring all its best-selling brands under one roof. Rachael Simpson-Jones spoke to David Mordecai, CEO of what is now One for Fun, about what the move means for the business, its past challenges and future opportunities.

“It’s fair to say there’s been some trials and tribulations over the past four years, but now, with this name change, we feel we’ve taken a massive step in what we’ve wanted to achieve for a long time now,” says David.

The change stems right back to the acquisition of H. Grossman in April 2018, a move bolstered by the purchase of educational company Kit for Kids in March the following year. The three companies had spent the past few years continuing to trade as individual entities, but with Martin Grossman, founder of H. Grossman, leaving the company in 2019, Tobar began to look in earnest at bringing them all under one roof for the first time. The first big step towards achieving this was taken at the start of 2020, when the companies moved under the H. Grossman Ltd. trading name. But while the name is well known within the trade, David felt that it didn’t reflect what the company stood for or where it was going.

“Ultimately, we had a name that didn’t represent us the way we want to be seen, brands that didn’t quite sell themselves the way they should, team members with completely different endings to their email addresses, two offices, one in Norwich, one in Glasgow – and added up, that created a lot of confusion for our customers,” David explains. “So, we sat down and came up with a new name that we believe completely mirrors who we are and what we do as a company. We’ve also shut the Norwich office; Glasgow is our HQ now, that’s where our showroom is and all our products. All along, I’ve been saying we’re one company, and I’m pleased our name now reinforces that too.”

That name, One for Fun, also tells customers what they can expect from its brands and products. It was no mean feat coming up with a name the company felt ticked all the right boxes: David tells me with a laugh that the rebrand would have been announced much (much) sooner had the team been able to narrow down its many ideas earlier in 2021. But all’s well that ends well, and One for Fun was chosen for its encapsulation of what the company offers. Having decided on a name, the strapline ‘The fun starts at one’ soon followed, as did a colour scheme and a corporate logo that would further enmesh all its brands - owned brands HGL, Ozbozz, Tobar and Kit for Kids, and distribution brands Maisto, Bburago and Zuru - under the new One for Fun banner. Keen to avoid the bold primary colours often used by the brands it sells or distributes, One for Fun has opted for teal, giving it a point of difference. The logo will appear on product packaging but won’t replace the logos of the brands being sold.

“We’re now a company that sells brands,” says David, drilling down into why the name change and company overhaul has been so highly anticipated. “Everything is properly registered, and we have the domain name and website too. The landing page features all our brands, so again, it’s very clear what’s what and who’s who. We hope that going forward there will be much less head-scratching. I can’t tell you how nice it is for everyone to have the same ending to their email addresses.”

The amount of time it took for the name change and rebrand to be finalised has ultimat ely proved to be fortuitous for One for Fun, bringing the big reveal right to the doorstep of London Toy Fair. The company will be exhibiting under its new name on stand E39, meaning existing and prospective customers alike will be able to drop by, say hello, and find out about the toys it offers. The plan had originally been to finalise the rebrand in time for Autumn Fair, but, as David notes, Toy Fair is a superior show at which to make such an announcement, both in terms of scale and timing.

In terms of timing, Covid-19, in hindsight, though challenging from a business perspective, gave One for Fun the breathing room it needed to implement internal changes ahead of the rebrand. Arriving as it did shortly after Martin’s exit from the business, the team needed to sit down and examine how things would look and work going forward; the necessary slowdown enforced by the pandemic allowed it to do just that. As a result, 2021 turned out to be the company’s best year yet.

Many readers will be aware that the HGL brand very much led from the front on the Pushpoppers trend, as one of the first to import the tactile popping mats in volume to the UK. This, says David, was always one of Martin and H. Grossman’s great strengths – tapping into emerging trends early, and riding the wave that followed. In fact, H. Grossman has won more Craze of the Year awards than any other toy company, which is a testament to its ability to seek out the latest thing and corner the market with its products. Following the 2021 fidget frenzy and its incredibly strong performance, it’s fair to say One of Fun has shown it will continue this legacy. The team that oversees the trend side of the business is highly experienced in spotting trend and crazes, sometimes before they’ve technically even become one. David recounts how, at the very beginning of the poppers craze, things seemed ‘a little slow’. The team told him simply to give it time, wait and see. And boy, did we see.

I was keen to find out if the events of the past 18 months have shaped the way David wants to run his business going forward. When working with Chinese partners, he says, you’re always aware that you may need to deal with price increases, currency issues and supply disruption; there’s always going to be something that comes along and throws a spanner in the works. “We have begun looking into moving some or all of our manufacturing to other countries, examining whether it reduces the risk of having all our eggs in one basket,” he adds. “As a country, China could be considered quite volatile. No one knows where the political landscape will lie in 12 months, especially given the tensions between China and the USA, so as a company we’re quietly looking into manufacturing options in India, Turkey and some other locations in Eastern Europe. We’ve not moved anything yet though. All those countries have their own challenges that we must bear in mind, and some of the pricing isn’t where we would want or need it to be. But they’re certainly on the table.”

He continues: “Unfortunately, onshoring our manufacturing here in the UK is not something we’re in a position to do at the moment. We have quoted for several things to be manufactured here, but it would be cheaper to manufacture in China and then pay the inflated shipping rates we’re seeing.”

Looking ahead to new product coming through for 2022, fidgets will remain in focus for One for Fun, with new items in both Tobar and HGL including small and squishy, pastelcoloured collectible animals that come in handy tubs. Three themes will be available, with each tub holding 18 animals. These will be heavily promoted at Toy Fair, and a big reveal on the stand will also unveil the latest innovative offering from Zuru. The perennially popular dinosaur range will also be bolstered with the addition of tubs shaped like either a T-Rex or Triceratops head, each containing six dinosaur figures.

Over the coming year (and beyond) One of Fun’s aspiration is to grow its UK business and expand the ranges that fall under each brand. At the same time, the company is keen to develop its export business, with which it is already seeing success. The USA is firmly on the map as a territory waiting to be tapped, as it’s one where One for Fun currently doesn’t have a large presence. As David neatly summarises, the rebrand will stop customers feeling lost, making now the perfect time to get out there and explore what comes next.

Please note our new address details: Head Office: One For Fun Limited 3-5 Cambuslang Way Gateway Office Park Cambuslang Glasgow G32 8ND

Warehouse: One For Fun Limited Building 7 Eye Airfield Industrial Estate Ipswich Road Brome, Suffolk IP23 8AW