How are toys made? Two stories of magic made in Portugal
In Alfena, the oldest toy factory in the country, they are resisting so that the past becomes more and more future. Since Loures, there is a scientific formula that has conquered the world. In common, an ability to build happy memories. To children and adults
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“One toy never comes out the same as another. You can make 20 cars, the 20 are not the same, because the hand is not right”. Júlio Penela’s hands are well aware of the contours of each Pe-pe Jato toy. He was born among them, as a younger brother. The first toy, like the first love, is not forgotten: a red car, which he still keeps in the factory office in Alfena, Valongo. “My father used to say to me: ‘Attention, it’s not to spoil!’ It was necessary to conserve to play with them. In my house, that happened. And we had a toy factory”.
This is the oldest toy factory in the country. One hundred years ago, Júlio Penela’s great-grandfather started the mill. From that time, remarked as memories of a “fantastic world”. And a black-and-white photograph of the grandfather, flanked by his children. With each generation, the brand gained more scale. And, in the 1980s, it would be rare for a family in Portugal that did not have (or knew of) a Pe-Pe Jato toy. A loaf of bread, a beetle, a stove or a sewing machine.
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“Now it is considered a handcrafted toy. It is not consumed by children, it is more by the fur, adults by collecting and revivalism. There are still some “vintage” stores that are selling”, says the revel. In the pavilion, where the silence is only interrupted by the movement of machines, more than 100 people worked. Today there are only four.
the unexpected mission
In the calmer period, Science4you employs around 150 workers. For production peaks, like preparing for Christmas, there are always reinforcements. The production lines don’t stop. The siren signals shift changes. And like boxes follow one another, one after the other, almost without asking permission. The warehouse horizon in Loures is the smile of a child, waiting, piled up in crates measuring several meters high.
“I confess that having a toy factory was not one of my priorities”, says Miguel Pina Martins, the founder. The opportunity arose at the end of the Management course, with the challenge of creating Physics kits for children. From there to scientific toys it was “a lot of head banging”.
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The temptation to produce Oriente – as happens with the main toy brands – existed. “With all the difficulties in China, the prices of containers and transport soaring, it was impossible to have this factory as a warehouse in China”, reveals the process. Today, more than 90% of production is done indoors.
Step by step, slowly
There are rules that time has internalized in Alfena: the dolls’ eyes are always green, the flowers on the sewing machines are painted in two different ways, the roof of the loaf van is glued to the rest of the structure. “It’s a very thorough job. To make a car, we have 14 tools, 14 molds, for example”, says Júlio Penela. Each toy has its rhythm, its tricks, according to its stories.
The molds, which cut the sheet or are filled with plastic, are the same as in the time of the grandfather of this chorus. He didn’t create any new toys, no matter how much he knows the men who make them. “If I launched a new toy now, it wouldn’t have that impact, like this one does”, he justifies. But the truth is, a new mold could cost a year’s worth of work. And sales are no longer as certain as they used to be.
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On the contrary, at Science4you, there is new every year. With the brand’s stamp there are more than two thousand references. “This year, for example, we launched the first toy in the world that allows children to be ‘tiktokers’ or ‘youtubers’, as the professions they most want to have”, reveals Miguel Pina Martins. To be successful, you need to be where your customers want to be. In this case, children.
Toys with ecological concern
If children are the future, it is necessary to think about what world they will live in. Hence, a concern that has gained scale throughout the toy sector – and to which these two Portuguese factories are not alien: sustainability.
At Pe-pe Jato, saving has been the watchword for decades. To gin the paint, the pieces are painted on overlapping boards. The small pieces of plastic, which are used when producing a piece, are reused to make new ones. “The tin plate and sheet are being arranged in canning and printing companies that make tins for canning makers. These are leftovers I’m going to get. If that weren’t the case, you wouldn’t let yourself get there, with the price of raw materials”, explains Júlio Penela.
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Science4you is also looking to “reduce so-called single-use plastic a lot”. This year, a company launched an ecological line, without any plastic. “In other toys, we have made a great path in this direction”, pertinent Miguel Pina Martins.
From the “catastrophe” of the pandemic to the hope of Christmas
Suitable workers. Each one places the respective pieces inside the box. At a hurried pace, because Christmas is just around the corner. This festive season represents half of the sales of the company created in 2008. And it is now an oxygen balloon after a pandemic that forced it to be (even more) creative. “With the pandemic, birthday parties decrease and increase. There was a part of the consumption of toys that ended up decreasing”, explains Miguel Pina Martins.
“The pandemic was a catastrophe. Nothing was sold, zero. And no backups. It’s the resilience that we’re having [que nos permitiu aguentar]”, Tests Julio Penela. At Pe-pe Jato, Christmas does not have the direct impact one would expect in a toy factory. They are partnerships with stores and companies, to create festive baskets, which end up opening the way and business. Around here, it is only produced by order. Otherwise the risk would always be too great.
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heritage generations
The doors of Pe-pe Jato even closed in 2011. The crisis and the lack of customers spoke louder. But Julio Penela always believed that the work of previous generations would not have an end. The son was then the missing argument: “He told me not to abandon the toy, to reconcile with the technical parts [de plástico]”.
Toys now account for 20% of the sales of this historic company. There are around 100,000 euros generated by the three to five thousand toys that come out of here every year. Despite the curious in Spain and France, Portugal and the so-called “saudade market” are what drives the business.
“[Produzimos] not to let a fantastic story end and the nostalgia of those who still have this memory of old toys. If God willing and give me strength, I’ll keep going. I hope that my son will continue one day”, confesses Júlio Penela.
In any scenario, the heritage built (and gathered) by this family over the last century will be part of the Toy Workshop: a four million euro project, supported by specialized funds, which is being carried out by the Junta de Parish of Alfena. The expectation is that it will be ready in 2022.
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As “compensation” for toys
When moving from a traditional business to a company inspired by the most current principles of entrepreneurship, what is most impressive is the scale. With annual sales of 10 million euros, Science4you is one of the decisive contributions to a toy market that, combining production and sale, represents more than 200 million euros in Portugal, according to data from GfK.
From the warehouse in Loures, two to three million toys come out every year. Most with boxes written in languages other than Portuguese, since exports weigh 75% of the total. Around here, as encouraging as the numbers are, the next festive season is already being considered.
“We usually say it’s like the perks. Christmas starts to be prepared the day after the stages, in this case, the day after Christmas. But we are talking about Christmas 2023, because for Christmas 2022 the news is already thought out”, says Miguel Pina Martins.
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Magic and dreams are a lot of work. But they, in their own way, always find ways to renew themselves.