Exploring the Secrets, Surprises, and History of Polly Pocket with Maude Campbell
Do you remember the original tiny world of Polly Pocket? In this week’s episode, we dive deep into the history, secrets, and surprises behind this iconic toy with Maude Campbell, author of the upcoming book The Legacy of Polly Pocket: Mattel's Micro Moneymaker. Join us as we explore how a simple button inspired inventor Chris Wiggs to fashion an iconic toy out of a makeup compact. Learn about the transition from Bluebird to Mattel, the ups and downs of Polly's size changes, and the enduring love fans have for this miniature wonder.
It all began with a simple idea – the concept of a miniature world that could fit in the palm of your hand. This idea, however, was far from simple in its execution. Polly Pocket owes its creation to the ingenious mind of Chris Wiggs, an inventor who found inspiration in an unlikely place – a makeup compact.
Join us in this episode of Making It In The Toy Industry as we meet a fellow Polly Fan who felt inspired by her collection to research and write a story of Polly Pocket. In this episode we celebrate the enduring charm of Polly Pocket and all of her secrets and surprises.
Episode Cliff Notes
Learn the heartwarming story behind Polly Pocket's creation and the special father-daughter relationship that inspired it.
Discover why Polly's transition from Bluebird to Mattel had fans divided and how she managed to maintain her charm.
Hear the most surprising and moving fan stories that Maude encountered in her research for the upcoming book.
Learn the importance of the phrase “secrets and surprises” to the Mattel team.
Get an exclusive peek into Maude Campbell's upcoming book, and hear a clip you won’t find anywhere else!
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This episode is brought to you by www.thetoycoach.com
Connect with Maude on Instagram.
Buy The Legacy of Polly Pocket: Mattel's Micro Moneymaker on Amazon.
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[00:00:00] You are listening to Making It in the Toy Industry, episode number 204.
[00:00:05] Azhelle Wade: What do you think someone is gonna walk away from this book thinking or feeling?
[00:00:09] Maude Campbell: I hope that it's a heartwarming story. I love Polly, but the reason I wanted to tell the story was because of this father and daughter relationship. It's about the joy of a toy and bringing that to somebody you love.
[00:00:22]
[00:00:59] Azhelle Wade: Hey there, toy [00:01:00] people, azhelle here, and welcome back to another episode of making it in the toy industry. This is a weekly podcast brought to you by thetoycoach. com. Our guest today, maud Campbell is a copy editor at the New York Post. But today on the podcast, we are interviewing her all about a book that she wrote called The Legacy of Polly Pocket, Mattel's Micro Moneymaker. It's coming in 2024, and I cannot believe I have the chance to interview the author behind this book. We're going to dive in and find out how she was inspired to write the book, how she gathered her research, so without further ado, let's dive into this interview.
[00:01:41] Maude I'm ready to talk about how you made this book happen I love Polly pocket. So, I want to know how this book came to be.
[00:01:50] Maude Campbell: Through the pandemic. Obviously was home a lot, decided to start collecting Polly again. And I just started going down a rabbit hole of [00:02:00] researching her story because there was the TV show, The Toys That Made Us.
[00:02:03] So we learned a lot about Barbie, a lot about all these other really iconic brands. To me, Polly is an iconic brand. And I was thinking, you know, where, where, where's her info at?
[00:02:14] I just decided to start researching it, whether I was going to self publish, whether it was just going to be a magazine story, a newspaper story, whatever it was going to be. The community loves her so deeply and they just feel connected to her. I find in a different way than Barbie because they really do see themselves as Polly. Barbie was more to me that you, you know, you acted things out with her, you know, you were the teacher or whatever.
[00:02:38] But Polly, like I, you are Polly in that little micro compact moving around. And that was, that's something that they envisioned when they invented the toy.
[00:02:46] So I decided to start researching it just throughout some some messages on LinkedIn.
[00:02:53] And. Lo and behold I was able to talk to the inventor and talk to pretty much everybody who worked on the [00:03:00] toy who's of good health because they are getting up there in years and I decided it was so big, it needed to be a book.
[00:03:08] Azhelle Wade: Wow. Mm
[00:03:09] Maude Campbell: and that was October, 2021. And so fortuitously in January of 2022 Nacelle who did the show, the toys that made us movies that made us, I had reached out to them cause I wanted to speak to some of the people who were in the TV show. And then, you know, they opened the publishing arm and I'm, I'm going to be a part of that. That Nacelle world.
[00:03:34] Azhelle Wade: When you were researching, what were you planning to do?
[00:03:37] Maude Campbell: Since I work in the you know publishing industry I thought maybe I would pitch it to a magazine or something, you know, it's maybe like a long form feature You know, she had her she's had some, you know, some anniversaries. I think at that point it would have been
[00:03:51] been.
[00:03:52] You know, shortly after her 30th anniversary, she'll be 35 next year.
[00:03:56] I was thinking of my head originally, you know, long form [00:04:00] article. And then once I got into it, I realized. There's just way, way too much information. If it would be an article, it'd have to be like a series, because she's been around since 1989.
[00:04:12] And you know, she's had micro, she's had tall, she's Mattel, she's UK, she's everywhere. So her story was just, it was long enough for a book.
[00:04:22] Azhelle Wade: What was the first surprising thing you discovered when you were doing your research?
[00:04:27] Maude Campbell: You know, a dad invented it for his daughter. But what was really exciting to me was the, once I first heard the real story from somebody who worked at the company, he was in New York at what used to be the toy building. I think he was here for some meetings.
[00:04:44] He was handed a, a badge that said cute as a button. And then he thought that he could put a world inside this shape and I live in New York and it just really felt. So special to me. I [00:05:00] just can't believe that it started kind of here. I mean, he lives in the UK. The toy was created there, but to me, it's so like, I have this other connection to it that I never, ever could have dreamt of.
[00:05:11] Azhelle Wade: You keep mentioning the inventor. Let's talk a little bit about Chris Wiggs. So he invented this 1983.
[00:05:17] Maude Campbell: Yeah. So he invented it in 1983. So basically he saw this. button. He went home and he found a woman's makeup compact that was kind of similar in shape. He hollowed it out and made it as a toy to give his daughter, Kate, who was young at the time. And then he thought it was a pretty good idea. He thought there might be something there.
[00:05:36] So he filed patents in Europe and the U S and then after she kind of aged out, she gave it back to him and he's like, okay, maybe it really is time. I should present this to, you know, some of my clients and bluebird toys was one of those. Chris Wiggs had a company called origin.
[00:05:52] And that was his like independent inventing company. And so they had sold, you know, toys to multiple companies, but he had a great [00:06:00] relationship with Torful Norman at Bluebird Toys in the UK, and he really thought it would fit in with what they were doing. He was the brand architect, they maintained rights and still designed everything, which is very special to me. Cause in this day and age, you think. You invent it, you sell it, you're done. But they had so much control. They were the brand, to me.
[00:06:21] Azhelle Wade: You had this idea for an article. It evolved to a book and everything just kind of flowed. But for somebody listening that maybe isn't having such an easy road, were there moments of struggle for you?
[00:06:32] Maude Campbell: Oh, tremendous. So yes, it may sound rainbows and butterflies, but I was working on it also working at my full time job. So that was just one struggle, but I also had a lot of challenges in. Maintaining that writing schedule and getting it done. And also, securing some interviews, unfortunately, some of them didn't work out like I wanted to.
[00:06:54] Some people, you know, said, no, some people weren't available. Some people's health was in a state that I didn't [00:07:00] know, you know, and I wasn't able to speak with them. And that left some kind of not plot holes, but places where I had to, you know, reinvent the wheel and think, how am I going to bridge this gap?
[00:07:09] So the story still makes sense. Still, at the end of the day, I'm not sure how I have a book that is finished. It's very surreal because it just was so much research and hours and hours and hours of research and it, it really takes a toll.
[00:07:25] Azhelle Wade: Yeah, talk to us about the research. How in depth is this book?
[00:07:30] Maude Campbell: Like really, really in depth. So I've interviewed about at least 50 people who worked on the toy in different capacities and different eras because she's, been around almost 35 years. There's a lot of iterations. Talk to people in different countries. And with that, I also was provided all the Toy Fair catalogs for Bluebird.
[00:07:49] I purchased all the Mattel Toy Fair catalogs myself on eBay. And so I really went through anything that I could find that was available to buy or to learn. [00:08:00] I was in it. I really needed to figure out a way to give such, to give a complete picture for myself. And I hope, I mean, that readers would appreciate it too. I wanted to know all those little nooks and crannies, you know, things about the different designs or why they engineered it a certain way. So I spent as much time as I could trying to find the resources and then find the story behind it.
[00:08:27] Azhelle Wade: What do you think someone is gonna walk away from this book thinking or feeling?
[00:08:31] Maude Campbell: I hope that it's a heartwarming story. That's the reason why I started it. My dad used to make toys for me when I was growing up, you know, just small wooden toys, but That's what initially attracted me to it. I love Polly, but the reason I wanted to tell the story was because of this father and daughter relationship and just the love that he shares for her and she shares for him.
[00:08:51] And I've actually met both of them in person. I've met them together, separate. And it's just, it's so beautiful and I really hope people can see [00:09:00] that, you know, yes, it's a once in a lifetime thing, having such a hit toy, you know, being so big, but at the heart of it, it's really about. You know, the joy of a toy and bringing that to somebody you love
[00:09:11] Azhelle Wade: Were you inspired at all while you were writing this book to come up with your own toy? Okay.
[00:09:19] Maude Campbell: I would love to be in the toy world in some capacity. Inventing would be so amazing. I'd probably be better at writing. If I ever invented something, it would definitely have to be a joint effort.
[00:09:31] Azhelle Wade: I was curious if while you were doing your research, you were like, Oh, that's an idea. You know, the way that the button inspired Chris,
[00:09:37] Maude Campbell: It's more inspired creative projects in me. Like I do want to write another book and it's made me think about other. You know, potential story ideas. So it has given me something, just not something as concrete as an invention.
[00:09:51] Azhelle Wade: can you tell us, I want to get little sneak peeks into the history of Polly. So why did Polly leave from Bluebird?
[00:09:57] Maude Campbell: So Polly always maintained Bluebird [00:10:00] in the UK up until 1998.
[00:10:02] Then Mattel saw the success and then they wanted to start distributing it in the U. S. So they were solely a distributor. Up until 98 when they purchased the company. And in 98, when they purchased the company, they didn't get the rights to Polly. So Chris Wiggs brilliantly maintains the rights. He sold them in 2007.
[00:10:21] They, they were able to be so involved with the brand and I'm sure maximize, you know, the funds. Mattel did have a lot to do with the success though. The U S is a huge market and, you know, she was doing really well in the UK and abroad, but the U S I think is really where to me, where she flourished .
[00:10:38] Azhelle Wade: Talk to me about when and why they sized up Polly, why they size her up. I didn't like it.
[00:10:43] Maude Campbell: well, she's my favorite, but
[00:10:46] Azhelle Wade: She is?
[00:10:46] Maude Campbell: Um, Yeah,
[00:10:48] Azhelle Wade: Why? Ha
[00:10:50] Maude Campbell: Chris and Kate wigs. No, they've blessed my choice. It's okay. So what happened was in 98, they Mattel purchased Bluebird in 99. That's [00:11:00] when she was released as fashion Polly. She maintained the fashion Polly name for a few years and then she just became Polly pocket once they stopped making the micro.
[00:11:08] But so the decision behind that was, is now that Mattel owned the property, they wanted to. Make their mark, and they also wanted to bring in the Barbie fashion play idea.
[00:11:20] Azhelle Wade: Ah.
[00:11:21] Maude Campbell: And so I think the bridge between that from a one inch doll to like an 11 inch doll was three and a half inches. And they. They really did change it, and a lot of people did not appreciate it. They still produced Micro Polly for a few years after that, but they really thought it took the essence of who Polly was away from her because instead of being these, you know, self enclosed playscapes and environments, it took it out into more of a real world.
[00:11:49] And there weren't as many secrets and surprises. That was a Mattel phrase. They, that was what Polly was with secrets and surprises. There were still some, but it was just, it was very different. [00:12:00] And I was born in 92. She came out in 99. I was prime age for the fashion
[00:12:05] Azhelle Wade: Ugh.
[00:12:06] Maude Campbell: You can't fault me, but I did have micropoly.
[00:12:09] Don't worry.
[00:12:10] Azhelle Wade: But, so, I was gonna go more into like what fans said about it. Was she supported? How did she do, the fashion Polly?
[00:12:17] Maude Campbell: so I, from sales, it seems that she did quite well, but now the really, the collector community is pretty much only micropoly. We're a very small contingent of Fashion Polly people. So, I think, you know, for kids at the time, it was a hit. You know, they had really good price points.
[00:12:35] They offered a lot of play value in, you know, like a 3. 99 fashion set. And that was one thing that Polly always maintained was really great price points, you know, so I mean, I think she did well, she did well enough that, you know, she was the sole scale for until she disappeared basically from the market in 2012.
[00:12:56] And so well too that when they relaunched her in 2018, they had micro and [00:13:00] like macro scale Polly. So I think that shows that she did do well and there is a place in people's hearts for it. But the old school fans really, really don't favor her or mention her at all.
[00:13:11] Azhelle Wade: Mm mm. And what about Polly today? So right now, what Polly's do we have?
[00:13:16] Maude Campbell: We have, so they have about the one inch size poly she's a little different, but she still has like the single hinge at the waist as like the original poly. And then we have this like three and a half inch poly at like a fashion. She's not called fashion poly anymore, but that's what I call her just to differentiate the scales.
[00:13:32] So they have, they have both, they have the compact play sets, they have the larger play sets. Mattel is really, you know, In a good way, really all over the place. Like they finally, I think, figured out what to do with both of them. They have the cartoon which also has the smaller and larger scale. I think they've finally kind of figured out what to do with her.
[00:13:52] Cause at a certain point, I think they weren't sure. You know, at a certain point, she was getting stagnant and
[00:13:57] Azhelle Wade: I always did love my [00:14:00] traditional tiny mini Polly, but as I got older and I joined the toy industry, I wondered, is that why they made her so big? Because they were having issues with probably kids putting it up their nose or swallowing it because she's so tiny.
[00:14:12] So I would love to talk a little bit about. The safety.
[00:14:15] Maude Campbell: Well, as far as I know, the safety for the smaller figures was never, an issue. They, they didn't have trouble really until it was a fashion poly in, like, I think 2004 with magnets. Kids were swallowing the magnets. The smaller doll, as far as I know, they never really had too many issues with. It was more about people losing them or Not necessarily putting them in their body.
[00:14:37] The new Polly, she's designed a little differently. Her legs are separate, you know, her arms are out. I wonder if that could possibly have been, you know, a design change.
[00:14:45] I know to differentiate it, but also to, you know, make it less hazardous.
[00:14:49] Azhelle Wade: It could be cause her arms are out almost like she wouldn't go into a choke tube. I wonder.
[00:14:55] What is the most moving story you heard from a fan about Polly Pocket?
[00:14:59] Maude Campbell: One [00:15:00] woman who actually worked on Polly in Latin America had such a vibrant memory of being a child and having a Polly locket fall out of a pinata at a birthday party.
[00:15:10] And I thought, well, that's the coolest birthday party ever. I wish I had been there. But it was just to hear it in her voice and also to hear how she got to work on the brand that she loved so as a child was just, it felt, it gave me so many, you know, warm fuzzies .
[00:15:25] It was amazing to see these people's collections. I mean, I have nowhere near collection as much as them. Mainly cause it's first of all, fashion policy. So it doesn't count as much, but second, I don't have the space or the funds yet. And just to imagine how many hours they've spent and then trying to search out, there's so many different variations and color variations that.
[00:15:46] And they care about it. They care about every little thing. Like they know every little thing and it's so cool.
[00:15:52] Azhelle Wade: My favorite was the Polly Pocket Pop Up Playhouse and I swear I was riding in the car with my family one day and I saw a house that looked [00:16:00] exactly like it.
[00:16:00] And I was like, Oh my God, that's a Polly Pocket Pop Up Playhouse. I was like, maybe that's the house that they looked at when they designed it. And I was so excited. I was like, that's it. I loved her.
[00:16:10] Maude Campbell: Oh, that is so sweet. And also that was one of like one of the most brilliant playsets. I mean,
[00:16:15] just. In terms of engineering, I keep going back to that, but it's just so cool to see it in such a small item. But also, it's just a really cool looking house.
[00:16:23] Azhelle Wade: So cool. So
[00:16:25] what's
[00:16:25] Maude Campbell: wouldn't want to live in it?
[00:16:27] Azhelle Wade: Like what's your favorite actual set?
[00:16:29] Maude Campbell: Okay so favorite micro set is the I believe it was the babysitter stamping play
[00:16:35] Azhelle Wade: Oh my gosh. That was my second. Yes.
[00:16:37] She
[00:16:38] was.
[00:16:39] Maude Campbell: 92. I loved that one so much. That's the only one I have of my originals from when I was a kid of the micro. And when I met Chris Wigs, I actually, I showed it to him, he touched it. It was a very, it was very awesome.
[00:16:52] And for Fashion Polly, my favorite set is the boutique which is
[00:16:57] is
[00:16:58] just, it's a [00:17:00] chef's kiss to me. I have two brand new in box. And I actually, through the book, met the woman who designed it and I got to see her original sketches, and that was That was my big, well, not my biggest fangirl moment, of course, if I met the inventor, but it was, it was up there as fangirl moments, and I just, that was the one I remember getting on Christmas morning, and that's like one of my most vibrant memories of Polly, is that, and so, I, I love, I love it, I can't, I'm gonna be buried with them, I'm sure, I can't get rid of them,
[00:17:31] Azhelle Wade: Wow. So secrets and surprises is, is what people see, say for Polly is kind of like the slogan .
[00:17:38] Maude Campbell: Exactly. That's exactly what Mattel kind of said. Everything needed to have, what are the secrets and surprises factors like, and how, you know, how are we going to convey that to kids in the commercial and, you know, all these different ways. And they were able to transition it to Fashion Poly, I think, in the beginning.
[00:17:56] You know, as the line continued, I think it was just, you know, more about [00:18:00] having the doll and pumping out the figures and the toys, but in the beginning, like the boutique, even they have this really cool, like changing station, you know, where you turn the curtain for
[00:18:11] the dressing room, but there's like a back, a back door you can open where you can change it really quick and make it seem like a real fashion show.
[00:18:17] And to me, that was a big deal as a kid.
[00:18:20] Azhelle Wade: What was your first big win in this book?
[00:18:24] Maude Campbell: So the first big win was I had started reaching out to people on LinkedIn who used to work at Bluebird and Mattel and Chris Wiggs had a partner named Chris Taylor. He was more the business side of Origin. At some point I hadn't, I didn't really know of his existence. I hadn't found him. At some point he reached out to me because he had heard from other people.
[00:18:45] About me and about what I wanted to do. And I just got this email and I was so shocked and that eventually led me to Chris Wiggs as well. But I. I was like, little old me, like [00:19:00] you want, first of all, you want to email me, let alone talk to me and participate was so huge because I couldn't have done this without their participation, of course and I had, you know, participation pretty much from everyone who was with, you know, able to remember the stories, you know, as people age, it's a little challenging.
[00:19:18] But so many people's children were also involved, like Torkel, Norm, and son Casey. Okay. Okay. work with him at Bluebird. So he was able to give me so many great stories and he worked, you know, he was there when Polly came to be. So he was able to give me everything just as much as his, you know, dad would be able to.
[00:19:37] So that, yeah, the first major win was definitely when somebody, when Chris Taylor reached out to me and I was shook is probably the easiest way to say it.
[00:19:45] it.
[00:19:46] Azhelle Wade: What would you tell yourself if you could talk to Maude, who first had the idea?
[00:19:51] What advice would you give yourself now? Aww.
[00:19:55] Maude Campbell: the one thing I would mainly say is be nicer to yourself. I put a [00:20:00] lot of pressure on myself. I really, the, the deadline was far enough away, so I had time to write it. It's not anything like that, but I was putting so much pressure on myself to get certain interviews and to, you know, be a certain way.
[00:20:13] And I wasn't as much of myself in the beginning, toward the end I did, but when I went to interview people, I was trying to be so business and so professional, and I wasn't who I was as this toy lover, and you know, somebody who just wanted to learn the story, and not that I think it was a disservice, but I just think I would have enjoyed it more, and it would have made writing maybe a little easier I should have had more fun with it in the beginning. I mean, it's crazy fun now, but like in the beginning I was really just like, I'm doing this big thing. Like I have to be so serious and yes, it is a big thing, but toys are also so fun.
[00:20:47] Azhelle Wade: Are there any plans to do another toy book?
[00:20:50] Maude Campbell: Yes, I have an idea that I've started coming up with the proposal for and I would like to work with Amy again because I just, her, her art is brilliant. [00:21:00] Also, she's become such a wonderful friend to me. We've really become close throughout this and, you know, it'll something, something that'll exist long after the book is published.
[00:21:07] But, so yes, I do have a second book idea. I already have a, a list drawn up of people I'd like to talk
[00:21:14] to and I just have to do all the rest of the stuff. So that's why I've been a little hesitant to move forward cause I just know how much work it is.
[00:21:23] Azhelle Wade: It's so funny because these big accomplishments that we make in our lives, sometimes we go into them so blindly that we're just like, okay, I'm just going to like do this thing. And then you're like, oh, I guess I'll just do the next step. And I guess, I guess I have to do the next step.
[00:21:37] And the next thing you know, you've done something major, like written a book. and,
[00:21:42] Maude Campbell: that's exactly what happened.
[00:21:43] Azhelle Wade: and had you known you might've been too scared, like had you known what it would have taken or what you would have had to do, you might've said, I can't do that. Who do, who am I to do that? How would I do that?
[00:21:55] And maybe you would have never started. So there's some beauty in just kind of being [00:22:00] ignorant. One. And then once you're not ignorant, I think you just have to tell yourself, one step at a time. I'm not writing a book. I'm just interviewing an inventor. You know? Just one step.
[00:22:10] One step. Right? Mm
[00:22:12] Maude Campbell: an outline is, was my best friend. I would break things down probably to a crazy point, but that was the only way sometimes when it was really hard, you know, I was stressed or tired to get through it as like, okay, so you're writing this chapter. Okay. Write a paragraph today about just this one thing and that's fine.
[00:22:27] And then, you know, go through it because you're right. If I knew in the beginning I might've taken more time. I might've psyched myself out.
[00:22:35] Azhelle Wade: You said the story behind this book is like a father's love for his daughter, but how do you frame it? Is it from your perspective? Is it a third person perspective?
[00:22:43] Maude Campbell: So I would say it's from a third person perspective. So I'm coming at it kind of like in the, like a nonfiction history kind of way. So laying out the story and then having the underlying foundation of just like, this was created because of this and look at all that it's [00:23:00] done in the world and how this love is transferred to so many other people and they can feel that.
[00:23:05] And then there's all the interviews are woven through to help, you know, take that story and continue propelling it forward.
[00:23:12] Azhelle Wade: For anybody that is listening and they also are inspired to write a book what, what would you say about, I mean, you mentioned an outline, but sometimes books can feel sterile, but it sounds like yours has this like heart. So how do you make sure if you're doing a history book how do you give it?
[00:23:32] Heart and flavor?
[00:23:33] Maude Campbell: So my first tip would be just something that you're passionate about, even if it's not It doesn't have to be your life like Polly's my life, but just something that you, you know, you really appreciate.
[00:23:43] You have a hunger to learn more about. It can feel sterile is when they're kind of just writing it to write it, you know what I mean? When somebody even has some kind of interest in it, to me, it takes the story to a different level.
[00:23:55] And you can feel it in their word choice.
[00:23:58] Azhelle Wade: Well, give me a, do you have [00:24:00] an example,
[00:24:00] Maude Campbell: it would be just in the way that you describe something like sometimes they can feel very technical, possibly with jargon, which because it's a book versus, you know, a manual, I would want to talking about.
[00:24:13] The design features and to me a romantic way, you know, and how they make you feel sometimes versus what they actually are,
[00:24:23] how does that tie into the whole toy and how does that make you feel and the play value?
[00:24:28] Azhelle Wade: Do you have a favorite excerpt from your book that you could tell us right now?
[00:24:32] Maude Campbell: I can think of one thing off the top of my head is, I had a conversation with somebody who used to work at Mattel and then was at gloob and he gave me so many great. Insights into the toy world and some talking about how certain toys were a ripoff of Polly when he worked at Galoob.
[00:24:49] And Said that on the record. So that for my little journalistic heart was very beautiful. And also he was just such, he was such a fun [00:25:00] guy. He was just such a nice guy. And I tried to maintain that personality throughout because he, he worked at Mattel for so many years. Then at glue, he had so many great stories, of these pivotal brands.
[00:25:12] He worked on sky dancers at glue, like. These are big, big
[00:25:16] toys that changed, our world. He worked on Barbie, and it, it was, I think that was, I mean, the inventor amazing, of course, can't top it, but like as an interview, that was my favorite interview, a hundred percent. And. He, I, I used as much as I could from it, and I think those are my favorite excerpts.
[00:25:33] Azhelle Wade: what toy blew your mind as a kid?
[00:25:35] Maude Campbell: Another one was Furby. Furby.
[00:25:37] absolutely blew
[00:25:39] my mind. I have a brand new one in box up there, the same one I had as a kid. Between that and like Tamagotchi, that electronic age, just absolutely drove me wild, and I loved it, and I still love it.
[00:25:51] To have this little thing that's just, Talking at you in another language.
[00:25:56] Azhelle Wade: Thank you so much, Maude. This was a great conversation. I [00:26:00] can't wait to read your book.
[00:26:01] Well, there you have it, that's my interview with Maude Campbell, the author of The Legacy of Polly Pocket, Mattel's micro moneymaker. But hang on, that's not all. I've got a little something special for you. Maud sent us a short clip recording from her book, so let's listen into that.
[00:26:17] And be sure to follow Maud on Maud Campbell on Instagram M O D C A M P B E L L and follow the Nacelle company to be notified when the book is available this year. Okay, let's dive into the excerpt of The Legacy of Polly Pocket, Mattel's micro moneymaker.
[00:26:39] Maude Campbell: Polly Pocket, two simple words that, when placed together, mean so much more than written separately. And her beauty lies in both her simplicity and her intricacy. She's not Barbie. She's ten and a half inches shorter, in fact, and she debuted at a time when consumers were tired of the same old play pattern.
[00:26:56] Azhelle Wade: And for my listeners out there, thank you so much for [00:27:00] listening to this episode. If you want to connect with Maude, head over to thetoycoach. com and look for the episode notes from this episode. We'll put in any contact information she provides there.
[00:27:10] As always, thank you so much for spending this time with me. I know there are a ton of podcasts out there, so it truly means the world to me that you tune into this one. Until next week, I'll see you later, toy people. [00:28:00]
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