By Gary Symons
TLL Editor in Chief
Not everyone knows that the plush producer Teddy Mountain was the first to put a smile on a teddy bear. Before that time, teddy bears traditionally had the V-shaped frown, until Teddy Mountain decided that everyone deserves a smile.
This year the company also hopes to put a lot of smiles on the faces of attendees at the 2025 Licensing Expo, as it expands further into licensed plush lines.
It’s a major initiative for the plush giant, which was founded in 2003 with a mission to become the largest DIY (Do It Yourself) wholesale plush provider in the world.
Originating as a niche retail franchise, Teddy Mountain has grown to become a global wholesale supplier juggernaut that provides partners with a complete solution.
“Teddy Mountain is actually the largest global wholesale supplier of DIY plush, providing all of the products and components needed to create a ‘stuff your own plush’ experience at our client’s venues,” says Sales Director Michele Escobar. “From the machinery to the hand-stuffing options, Teddy Mountain has it all, and our extensive selection features hundreds of plush designs, accessories, outfits, add-ons, and much more.”
Escobar says the company’s philosophies haven’t changed much, but the focus of its business has grown remarkably.
“Our business model now is broken into three segments,” Escobar says. “Of course, we are the largest global supplier of DIY plush, warehousing hundreds of designs including all of the components—like fiber, accessories, outfits, sound modules and so on—that are needed to provide a hands-on, build your own experience.
Those products are typically sold globally to retailers, resorts, zoos and aquariums, event planners, high-end theme parks, and various niche specialty markets.
“Secondly, we also create fully finished custom plush products, so we can bring other people’s designs to life,” Escobar adds. “This is where it gets fun! We love creating custom plush and we are real perfectionists at it. Bringing unique designs to life gets us very excited.”
Finally, Teddy Mountain has seen considerable success as it expands in the area of licensed products.
Jen Ruh, who works in business development as a Key Account Manager, says Teddy Mountain is already making rapid inroads into the licensing sector, as its skills and technology fit very well with the goals of many licensors across multiple categories.
“Teddy Mountain is making headway as the #1 source for licensed plush products in the children’s media industry,” Ruh says. “We feel that when you’re entering into a partnership, it’s a good idea to have a partner that shares your values and ideals, and we think that’s been a major reason behind our success.”
Some recent examples include partnerships with the popular children’s series Zoonicorn, and with the #1 bilingual preschool brand Canticos.
The hit show Zoonicorn, produced by Toonz Entertainment and Zoonicorn, LLC, is now aired in more than 100 countries worldwide, and has entered into a Global Merchandising Agreement with Teddy Mountain.
The agreement will see Teddy Mountain showcasing the Zoonicorn plush characters through its distribution network in North America, the UK, EU, and The Emirates. Teddy Mountain’s interactive kit concepts will enable customers to craft and accessorize their own Zoonicorn stuffie.
The agreement with Encantos Media Studios will see Teddy Mountain launching plush toys inspired by Canticos, a bilingual preschool series celebrating Latino culture through Spanish-language nursery rhymes like Los Pollitos and Sol Solecito.
Featuring adorable characters like the Chickies Ricky, Kiki, and Nicky—the Emmy-nominated series combines music, storytelling, and animation to promote language learning, cultural pride, and joyful connections for young audiences worldwide.
This collaboration will initially introduce fully stuffed versions of Ricky, Kiki, and Nicky, and other popular characters from the Canticos universe.
Teddy Mountain UK has also entered into yet another recent agreement, this one with Cloudco Entertainment to launch a licensed Make-A-Care Bear experience in the UK and UAE.
Through the licensing partnership, Teddy Mountain UK will offer an exclusive, co-branded experience that allows fans to hand-stuff and personalize their own Care Bears plush toy.
“We are incredibly excited to work with such an iconic brand as Care Bears,” said Teddy Mountain UK owner, Ryan Davies. “This partnership allows us to bring a beloved classic to our clients, enhancing our product offerings and providing an extraordinary experience that aligns perfectly with our commitment to quality and fun.”
Ruh says those partnerships should align with the type of work Teddy Mountain wants to do in the licensing industry, creating products around well-developed stories with an ethical and positive message”
“We are looking for brands that have strong characters or storylines, a large active fan base and those who want work with us to further develop their characters and take their brand image to the next level,” Ruh explained. “We make a point of choosing business partners, organizations and licensing partners that align with our mission and philanthropic mindset. Generally we focus on areas such as Education, Environment, Mental Health, Wildlife / Animal Rights and more.”
As part of its ethical approach, Teddy Mountain has recently launched its Eco-Origins line of plush made from 100% recycled materials. The Eco-Origins line includes Interactive, educational hang tags about wildlife for children, so the sustainably made products also help teach a lesson about the importance of preserving the natural environment.
Escobar says the initiative is not a sideline; it’s core to the company’s goals.
“Our ‘Plush With a Purpose Initiative’ includes the launch of our Eco-Origins line, but we have also teamed up with other people and companies of like mind through our Partners of Preservation program, which is dedicated to saving animals and protecting their homes,” Escobar says. “We’re very serious about always trying to do the right thing, to create products and programs that have a positive impact, and that is what we look for in our partners as well.
“We find that having shared goals makes for better and more successful partnerships that last.”
In fact, Ruh says that will be Teddy Mountain’s focus at Licensing Expo.
“We want to connect with those people and companies who want to elevate their brands by adding a plush to their current product mix in either the DIY or fully custom realm,” she says. “It’s also really important to note that we can help our partners with distribution, because we have a powerful global presence that would be very hard to replicate.
“Our goal is to work for our partners’ success, and so all those tools are available to them.”
Escobar says being able to educate potential partners on the importance of DIY is important. She says the DIY aspect is quite new to many brands, but that it’s actually a key ingredient to the success of many programs Teddy Mountain has worked on with partners.
“People connect with plush because of the comfort, nostalgia and emotional safety they offer, often becoming soft companions in both childhood and adulthood,” Escobar says. “We’re here to help bring those connections to life with the added value of the DIY experience.
“When you see people enjoying the creative experience, you realize that plush becomes even more meaningful when people are involved in the actual creation of that new friend, when they help stuff their new friend and bring it to life, when they add those personal design touches, and at the end they have the pride of saying, ‘I made this’. It’s just a more meaningful experience.”
Anyone wanting to explore a partnership with Teddy Mountain can contact the company through the Licensing Expo portal, or send an email to SALES@teddymountain.com