What are the unique features of Hong Kong-designed toys?

introduction

At the recent Hong Kong Gifts & Premium Fair, the winners of the Hong Kong Smart Design Awards 2024 organised by the Hong Kong Exporters' Association were on public display for the first time. The competition aims to showcase Hong Kong's original design power to the world, and encourage local manufacturers and exporters to transform from "Original Manufacturing" (OEM) to "Original Design" (ODM) and "Original Brand" (OBM), with a view to establishing Hong Kong as a sourcing hub for design products in Asia.

Among them, the category of toys and games was established in 2020. One of the outstanding features of this year's award-winning products is that they have a strong local traditional cultural atmosphere, and integrate contemporary environmental protection, heavy metals, quality training and other trends. Let's take a look at the award-winning products!

01Integrate into local traditional culture

Among the 12 award-winning products in this award, a total of 5 products incorporate elements of Hong Kong's local traditional culture such as mahjong, Yue opera, food stalls, traditional transportation and urban landscape patterns, and there are gold, silver and bronze awards, which can be seen to account for a large proportion.

▌Hong Kong Heavy Aircraft Blind Box Passenger Edition [Gold Award]

公司:Dreamexe Limited

Design: Felix IP Yip Wai Ching

Everyday objects such as buses, taxis, post boxes, ferries and other items with Hong Kong symbols have been integrated into trendy mechanical design elements, giving traditional things a new look.

▌Bird Road [Gold Award & Green Award]

公司:Beluga Limited

设计：Nicholas YUM 任加恒、Cyclone LAI 黎汛山

This product is infused with the quintessence of Chinese mahjong (Cantonese: "sparrow") and combined with the current environmental trend. Mahjong consists of 144 cards and 3 dice, and the decks of various schools around the world are ever-changing, which is a kind of entertainment that reflects wisdom, ingenuity and luck. The designer specially uses innovative technology and environmental protection concept to design a new generation of "Bird Road" to create a collectible environmental protection sparrow.

▌Three-dimensional Cantonese Opera Wooden Puppet Series [Silver Award]

公司：Starlite Visual Communication Limited

设计:Chi-Ho CHAN, Hou-tung Chong

This series of Cantonese opera wooden puppets showcases the representative characters of six classic Cantonese operas: "The Imperial Flower", "The Lotus Lantern", "The Biography of Liu Yi", "The Great Seal of the Six Kingdoms", "The Dream of the Peony Pavilion" and "The Thundering Golden Drum and the Sound of the Battle". The costumes and poses are a true representation of the historical background, showing the producer's intentions and respect for culture. In addition, the designers also used mortise and tenon building technology to improve the interactivity of the product.

▌Food stall playing cards [Silver Award]

公司：Gabangel Limited

Tag: Angelo LEE, Angela LEE, Sam CHAN, Charlotte CHUNG

It's a combination of the most popular party game and playing cards. The rules of the game are very simple, players only need to take turns drawing cards, play according to the content of the cards and accept the corresponding punishment. When the cards are drawn, the game ends. The content on the board reflects elements of the entertainment culture of food stalls in the Cantonese area, as well as some Cantonese humor.

▌Character Card [Bronze Award]

公司：O&O Studio Limited

设计:Eric CHAN 陈思安, Suzanne LI 李雪雯, Cecilia Wai-Sze CHENG 郑慧丝

The design is based on red, blue and yellow, and converts English letters and Arabic numerals into corresponding Chinese characters in a concise graphic form, giving the design a three-dimensional sense of space. The combination of cards resembles Hong Kong's high-density urban interface, which is quite ingenious.

02 Environmental protection trend

Together with the above-mentioned Sparrow, there are a total of 4 products in the awards that pay special attention to environmental elements. In addition to the use of environmentally friendly materials, it also promotes the concept of environmental protection and encourages environmental protection practices, which is in line with the current social trend.

▌My first set of circuit building blocks [Gold Award]

公司：EDU-SCIENCE (H.K.) LTD.

设计:Dan Kai-Yin YEONG 杨启贤, Siu-Kay WONG 黄少褀, Pak-Kei LAU 刘柏基

Designed for children aged three to six, the product inspires creativity through music, flashing LED lights and various modular extensions. The product is simple and portable to assemble, and uses environmentally friendly FSC-certified wood to create a sustainable and environmentally friendly future.

▌Intervener [Silver Award]

公司：Blackbody Lab

设计：Cyril LEE 李翊呈, Edward Kwong-Hei LI 李广晞

Many species are threatened with extinction due to human activities and the consequent environmental impacts. In this game, players take on the role of one of 4 animal heroes who have been resurrected by aliens on a mission to save endangered critters from the hands of an evil zookeeper! The game comes with an origin story of the "hero" character, describing the story of how various human activities led to the extinction of animals.

▌Booker Brothers 205th Anniversary Perpetual Commemorative Lamb Series [Bronze Award]

公司：Dress Green Limited

设计：Emma YU, Esther TSANG

Brooks Brothers, a well-known menswear brand in the United States, has partnered with Dress Green to develop a limited-edition collection of small fleece in a sustainable way to commemorate the brand's 205th anniversary. The product reuses old clothes and fabrics to create clothes in the style of the Booker brothers for each plush toy. The products are made by local elderly garment workers and local immigrants, and each piece has a different collectible value.

03Promote quality training

This third feature includes qualities such as encouraging players to think open-mindedly, cultivating a desire to explore, and avoiding "labeling", which embodies the concept that "play is also a form of learning".

▌冚家奇【Gold Award】

公司：Blackbody Lab

设计:Cyril LEE 李翊呈, Kola NG 伍隽乐

Nowadays, there are many "labeling" phenomena in society, such as a child being labeled as a "poor student", and other good qualities of TA are easy to be ignored under the influence of this label. The original intention of the designers to design this game is to remind people to look at social labels rationally and objectively, and not to be swayed by labels.

▌SNAPX [Silver Award]

公司：Sapiens Design Ltd.

设计：Ball CHEUNG

With its unique patented core structure and fun magnetic construction system, this collection transcends age boundaries and is suitable for all ages, making it a creative toy that can spark the imagination.

▌Sound Seal [Silver Award]

公司：EAMUS COMPANY LIMITED

设计：Eagen Chen-Cheng KAO 高振程

The stamps have a sound and light effect that matches the pattern, encouraging children to explore the world around them. Each set of stamps is interchangeable, sparking creativity and cognitive development with different themes, from animals to vehicles. Made from high-quality, safe materials, they are ideal for nurturing young imagination and learning through play. Suitable for children aged 3-8 years.

▌The Tummy Time Kit【铜奖】

公司：Learning Time Limited

设计:Darien SURIA, Frances Suria, TEAM DESIGN

Pediatricians recommend that babies should start doing prone exercises at an early age, but for infants, this exercise can cause discomfort. "The Tummy Time Kit" is a set designed for babies to learn from their stomach training, bringing them a whole new level of fun. The set provides parents with a range of toys, from visual toys to tactile toys, to help their baby enjoy their prone time better. In addition, there are height-adjustable ergonomic pillows that make it easier for your baby to perform movements such as lifting the head and waist, while also helping to practice other key motor skills.

▍Source: Chinese and Foreign Toy Network (ctoy-gdta) Text/Editor: Jane/Salas