This case chronicles the start-up of 1uptoys, a Dutch start-up that aims to commercialize innovative electronic music toys in the highly competitive toy business. It examines the challenges resource-limited start-ups face when attempting to introduce a consumer product onto a market characterized by a highly concentrated seasonality, and short product life cycles.
In a race against time to meet the deadline for delivery of 1uptoys’ prototypes to its Chinese manufacturing partner the founder, Ronald Mannak, goes through a series of setbacks as he tries and fails to findthe necessary funding to pay the wages of his team and complete the prototypes. The future of the company is left on a knife-edge.
Written by Armand Smits and Wynand Bodewes from Maastricht University and Maastricht Centre for Entrepreneurship. Download the case and teaching note at www.thecasecentre.org or request them from w.bodewes@maastrichtuniversity.nl.
