sigikid is turning 50 this year! How did it all start?

My parents founded sigikid in 1968, feeling that there was a need for soft and cuddly toys in the German market. My mother’s nickname is Sigi (pronounced with a hard g, as in “garden”), short for Sigrid. And my brother is the first kid, thus sigikid! Until today, sigikid is a true family business, with my brother Axel Gottstein at the helm in Germany and my husband Lucian and myself as his North American business partners, based in California.

Where do you take your inspiration from?

sigikid's main inspiration is good design. And with good design we mean, the best design possible. Good design doesn’t have to be complex or complicated. Simple forms and shapes drive our products. There is just something about sigikid toys that feels intuitively right for children of all ages. Our toys are oldfashioned in the sense that they are not battery-operated and don’t make any beeping sounds. Our toys’ faces have gentle, kind features that are not air-brushed on for special effect. sigikid toys simply encourage imaginative play.

What have you found most challenging or rewarding throughout your business journey?

There is an abundance of toys out there at very low price points and with low quality standards, in terms of design, look and feel. Modern parents have become much more quality-conscious of big items like strollers, cribs or high chairs, and now we can see the same trend in the toy industry. With sigikid, we offer our customers quality, design and sustainability at attractive price points. It is a pleasure to see how our retailers and online customers have embraced our vision of good design.

sigikid USA