Steiff flees China
By Staff -- Playthings, 7/2/2008 9:13:00 AM
GIENGEN AN DER BRENZ, Germany—Steiff is moving its production efforts back to Germany, according to published reports, four years after sending them to China.
Production in China “simply wasn't calculable enough for a premium product,” Steiff CEO Martin Frechen told the German daily Stuttgarter Nachrichten.
According to the report, the results of Steiff’s Chinese producers didn’t meeting the company’s quality expectations while transportation issues resulted in delivery times that were too long when the company needed to respond to unforeseen surges in demand for hot products. Reports of other toymakers’ lead-laced toys from China also contributed to the decision.
"We're in the fortunate position that our customers will pay a few euros more for a Steiff teddy bear over a stuffed animal from the competition," Frechen told the newspaper of the pricing impact of the move.
