Golden Bear’s Christine Nicholls announces her retirement

Christine co-founded Golden Bear 46 years ago alongside John Hales, and has proudly seen it become the successful toy company it is today while also serving the BTHA for over two decades.

Christine Nicholls

Christine Nicholls, founder and vice chair of Golden Bear, has today announced her retirement from the company she co-founded with John Hales back in 1979. John sadly passed away earlier this year.

Christine has enjoyed a long and distinguished career in the toy industry, spending her first few years working with John at the Chad Valley Toy company before they set up Golden Bear together. Their mission was to make exciting, high-quality soft toys, and their first customers included Mothercare, Boots, BHS and Woolworths. Throughout the years since, Christine has been bringing her deft touch to the company’s product ranges, first honed at Birmingham Art College where she gained a BA Degree in Fashion & Textiles.

Early on, Golden Bear’s toys were designed and made in its own facility in Telford, England. Over time the business changed, with its first foray into licensing occurring in 1985 with The Snowman. Since then, some of the most famous and recognisable pre-school licences have passed through Golden Bear, such as Thomas the Tank Engine, Peppa Pig, In The Night Garden, and – most notably – The Teletubbies in the 1990s, one of the most successful licences of all time.

The company prospered under John and Christine’s leadership and was chosen as the Official Licensee for the 2012 Olympic Games, one of Golden Bear’s proudest achievements.

Christine retires as an industry legend. She won the BTHA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007, the Progressive Pre-School Outstanding Achievement Award in 2016, and the Mojo Play Creators Outstanding Achievement Award in 2023. She remains a Golden Bear shareholder and director and can be emailed on c.nicholls@goldenbeartoys.co.uk

Christine also represents the company in her role on the BTHA Council, a position she has held for over 20 years. During this time, she became the first female chairman, followed by the role of president.

Barry Hughes, managing director of Golden Bear, has wished Christine a happy and fulfilling retirement. He said: “Christine has been a driving force and influence as co-founder of Golden Bear and has blazed a path for women in the toy industry. It has been my privilege and honour to work with her closely over the last 14 years. Her contribution to both Golden Bear and the toy industry has been a true inspiration and everyone at Golden Bear wishes Christine a long and happy retirement.”

Christine added: “It has been a fantastic journey which John and myself embarked on over 46 years ago; we’ve had some good times and some challenging times, but we’ve always had lots of fun and feel very proud of the Golden Bear legacy. I’ve made some amazing friends in the toy industry, especially through working with the BTHA and look forward to keeping in touch with everyone at future events. I will always be passionate about creating toys and I’m privileged to have enjoyed such an illustrious career alongside the fantastic team at Golden Bear.”