2020 Earnie Awards Winner – Developmental Toys & Games: Fat Brain Toys

Developmental Toys & Games

Fat Brain Toys

Est. 2002

Mark Carson, President & Co-founder 

First paying job: A newspaper route I inherited from my sister

Pet peeve: Slightly open doors, cabinets and drawers

Dream hire: Jony Ive

Hobbies: Running and woodworking

Best advice you’ve ever received: Stay hungry. Stay foolish.

Favorite quarantine snack: Cutie clementines

Last book you read: The Ultra Mindset by John Hanc and Travis Macy

Last movie you watched: Milk

One fact few people know about you: My business partner is my wife of for 29 years, and we’ve known each other since preschool.

Play Nice Thanks to our focus on building relationships with our customers through direct-to-consumer channels, our toys have found an even larger audience in 2020.  Consumers are recognizing our focus on design and use of quality materials throughout every toy and game we produce. The toy category is so often dominated by the disposable ‘hot toy’ of the year, so Fat Brain Toys is a refreshing and welcome change for consumers seeking toys that reinforce real developmental milestones.

Be Unique Because we approach toy design so differently from other toy manufacturers, there’s always uncertainty whether consumers will appreciate the nuances of what we’re trying to achieve. Will consumers buy toys that don’t have licensed characters slapped on them? Are consumers willing to pay for higher quality materials? Are kids interested in anything other than their screens? While moments of doubt sometimes surface, we have always believed the answer is ‘yes’ and will keep sticking to our core play values. This year is certainly proof we’re on the right track!

More Than Toys We have such a loyal following of consumers who have experienced our toys firsthand, but we are eager to grow that base domestically and abroad. It’s great to see consumers becoming more aware of ‘toys as tools.’ I think this category will continue to envelop even more ages and address more developmental needs.