Melissa & Doug
Products
About MELISSA AND DOUG
(from their website)
KIDS AT HEART
From her earliest days, creativity and imagination were a big part of Melissa’s life. Outgoing Doug made friends easily thanks to his playful sense of humor and infectious energy. Raised by educators, the young couple knew in their early 20’s they wanted to create meaningful products for children.
A MODEST PROPOSAL
At age 24, Doug made his first proposal to Melissa when he asked, “Will you go into business with me?” Melissa said yes! A few years later, when Doug proposed another kind of partnership (MARRIAGE!), Melissa was so busy crafting she had no idea what Doug just asked and unwittingly responded YES! The rest is history!
Start-up story
After pooling their life savings together, Melissa and Doug worked night and day out of Doug’s parents’ garage to develop their first product. They borrowed Doug’s father’s stick-shift station wagon to make deliveries up and down the East Coast.
ANSWERING THE CALL
Listening to feedback from their customers is so important that the couple emblazoned their names and phone number on the back of every product. They took calls at all hours from a phone that rested between them in bed.
A FUZZY FEALING
Both big fans of puzzles, Melissa and Doug asked themselves, how can we take puzzles to another level? They decided to make the pieces textured, and “voila!,” the Fuzzy Farm Puzzle was launched. It’s the first instance of what will become a major part of their approach, putting a new twist on a classic play pattern. It also sparked a generation of kids to wonder, are pigs really FUZZY?