HELLO NOODOLL, THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO CHAT WITH US, TO BEGIN PLEASE TELL US MORE ABOUT THE FOUNDER OF THE BRAND
I'm YiYing, the creator of Noodoll. Growing up as an only child, I had loads of time talking to myself (not in a scary way, haha!) and I think this encouraged me to be imaginative! I also watched loads of cartoons when I was growing up. My favourite character was Doraemon, who is a cat robot and he has a magic pocket that stores every kind of gadget inside. The most amazing thing in his pocket is a 'magic door' that can take you anywhere you want to go. It was so imaginative and inspiring to a young me. I actually still watch lots of animation nowadays, inspiration is never short because there are so many interesting people in the world, plus everyone is welcome to Noodle Town!
HOW DID NOODOLL BEGIN AND WHAT DID YOU WANT TO BRING TO THE CURRENT MARKET?
I began creating Noodoll whilst studying my MA at Saint Martins. I have always loved characters and imaginary worlds and for my MA final project I wanted to create a cartoon town where eastern and western cultures mix. I was trying to think of a medium which could link everything together and for some reason noodles entered my mind! They are flexible and can form almost any shape – everything in Noodle Town is made from noodles!
When Noodoll first started out it was quite different to the brand it is today. Noodoll was a porn star and the most famous celebrity in Noodle Town! A while back he took a career move and now the brand is a bit more family friendly!
At the heart of Noodoll is playful, fun design with functionality and quality in mind! I wanted to create a product that people couldn't help but fall in love with!
HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH THE NOODOLL BRAND NAME AND WHAT IS THE STORY BEHIND IT?
Noodoll is a combination of the words noodle and doll. It also kind of sounds like nude doll, which is a nod to Noodoll's original job!
WHAT OR WHO ARE THE INSPIRATIONS BEHIND YOUR PRODUCTS?
Everyone, YOU!
YOU HAVE RECENTLY HELD A MONSTER MAKING WORKSHOP, CAN YOU TELL US A BIT MORE ABOUT IT AND ARE YOU PLANNING ON HOLDING ANY MORE?
It was such fun, we will definitely be holding more soon! The workshop was a brilliant experience, it was amazing how creative people were – it seemed like everyone was a seasoned designer! The workshop at Southbank Centre, it was a great venue and we fitted about 45 people in. I gave a short talk about how Noodoll developed from and idea to what it is today, then everyone had a go at making their own monsters. It was really interesting to see how Noodoll has attracted the attention of such a range of different people – there were business men in suits making pink stuffed dinosaurs – it was excellent!
HOW IMPORTANT IS YOUR ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT WHEN MANUFACTURING YOUR PLAYFUL AND ENGAGING CHARACTERS?
Very important - we manufacture all our products responsibly, with welfare and the environment in mind! Before I work with any manufacturer, I always make sure I visit them first to get to know more about how they work and the working environment. Our toy factory is run by a few moms, they sometimes tell me off just like my mom does!
THE PLAYFUL STYLE AND VISUAL IMPACT OF NOODOLL COULD QUITE EASILY BE SEEN ON A SMART PHONE APP SUCH AS A CHILDREN'S GAME FOR EXAMPLE. HAVE YOU EVER CONSIDERED CREATING ONE?
Yes it's on my to do list... the list is pretty long though.... I like to achieve goals step by step!
WE LOVE THE WAY YOU MAKE YOUR CHARACTERS PERSONAL AND CURRENT WITH SNAPSHOTS OF THEM OUT AND ABOUT WITH NEW FRIENDS AND AT NEW DESTINATIONS, WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR FAVOURITE ONE SO FAR?
Noodoll loves meeting new people, he was very excited to meet Michael Bond the Paddington bear creator. That was a pretty big deal!
TALK US THROUGH YOUR TYPICAL WORKING DAY?
I wake up really early every day, I'm very much a morning person. I have a huge breakfast, cook lunch, then I'm off to the studio. First I check all my emails, I usually have to deal with lots of emails from my Taiwan manufactures due to the time difference, then have I meetings with the girls in the studio. Then its just multitasking throughout the whole day, sometimes design, a lot of admin work, I always find the day finishes too quickly!
WE WOULD LIKE TO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR STEPPING OUT OF YOUR BUSY DAY TO DO THIS INTERVIEW FOR US. TO FINISH UP, DO YOU HAVE ANY ADVICE TO GIVE TO PARENTS TO HELP BUILD THEIR CHILDREN’S CREATIVITY?
Its all about encouragement and just having fun! It doesn't matter if the end product isn't what you imagined, spending time together, coming up with new ideas and messing about is way more fun! I'm always inspired by children, whatever they create is always interesting!
Noodoll have an Instagram competition running at the moment where they ask you lovely Noodoll fans to instagram a photo of you and your best friend along with #noodollbestfriends and their favourite wins a bundle of noodoll stationary! What could be easier than that?! Click the link for more information: COMPETITION
COMPETITION TIME!!
Noodoll have an Instagram competition running at the moment where they ask you lovely Noodoll fans to instagram a photo of you and your best friend along with #noodollbestfriends and their favourite wins a bundle of noodoll stationary! What could be easier than that?! Click the link for more information: COMPETITION
You can enter the wonderful world of Noodoll via their website, Facebook page or follow them on Twitter.
All images courtesy of Noodoll.
