Star Electronics' director Leo Lam with his award-winning Theatrix model. He says Own Brand Manufacturing or OBM has led to the success of the company in the global market

An interactive puppet theatre created by a Hong Kong company has won the Toy Innovation Award at the Nuremberg Toy Fair 2005. The judging panel gave the Theatrix high marks for its quality of workmanship, aesthetics and authenticity, ease of use and artistry in a competitive environment.

According to Star Electronics director Leo Lam, the Theatrix designed for toddlers and preschoolers is not the only international award the company has clinched. Creative Child Magazine awarded its Say'n Play Rattle the Top Toy of the Year 2004. Its non-breakable musical Garden View Mirror and interactive fabric animals, Fun Farm Activity Bar, are among some of the other award winning items.

Mr Lam said his company employs designers from Europe, the US and Hong Kong to come up with high quality, vibrant coloured creations with a lot of interactive electronic features. "We place a lot of emphasis on research and development and good designers from the US, France, Spain and Hong Kong. Winning prizes such as the one in Nuremberg has given us a lot of confidence and shown that we are going in the right direction."

The right direction is Own Brand Manufacturing (OBM). The four-year-old Star Electronics is a perfect example of a Hong Kong company trying to maintain a leading edge in a highly competitive sector by leveraging on its own design in the global markets.

A winning formula

"We rely on overseas designers but we have our headquarters in Hong Kong, a city that is very strong on technology. We outsource production to a factory in Shenzhen, southern China, but the proximity to the mainland means that we have quality control. It's a winning formula, a perfect match between hard and software," Mr Lam said. 

Business has been phenomenal since the company started in 2000. It takes between two and three years to develop a product, and about 50,000 orders per item before it breaks even. "We started at ground zero but business surged 300 per cent in 2004 when compared with 2003," Mr Lam said.

It also helps, he added, that there are very few companies producing interactive toys for infants to preschoolers. He has found a lucrative niche market. About 70 per cent of the "Star" brand toys are exported to Europe, about 20 per cent to the US and the rest to the Middle East and Asia.

Mr Lam said Star Electronics' success depends on the product's broad-based global appeal and export marketing strategies.  "We don't sell on pricing but on design quality and innovation. We don't have retail shops and depend solely on distribution. We have also managed to cut across all markets and appeal to children in different countries."          

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