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Less than a decade ago, magnetic toys had a scarlet letter on their back. The dangers associated with unsafe magnetic toys had become headline news, and by 2009 the Consumer Product Safety Commission had posed a ban of the sale of children’s toys that included super-strong magnets.

At the time, many manufacturers were either reigning in their investments in magnetic toys or completely shuttering them. But for Magformers it was a different tale.

While the company had started small, proving itself and its products in specialty, by 2010 it was ready to take on major players in the mass sector. The company had already partnered with major e-tailer Amazon and signed Toys “R” Us that year as its first major brick-and-mortar partner.

“There were skeptics at the time, still questioning why we’d want to bring magnetic construction back,” says Chris Tidwell, CEO. “But the reality is magnetic toys are fantastic. They’ve just got to be so safe.” 

For Magformers, that’s the company’s No. 1 priority.

Magformers fully encases its patent rotating magnets in the product and uses the highest quality plastics (HQABS) to ensure safety.

“We test the heck out of everything,” says Tidwell. “And even within the last two years, we continue to retool and redesign to ensure we are putting out the safest magnetic toy product on the market.”

Magformers uses a unique patent magnet technology that allows its magnets to be placed on every side of a shape and rotate so when a child connects the pieces, the magnetic attraction will always be positive. Needless to say, the company works tirelessly to ensure its products are more than up to snuff for safety and fun.

Part of its quality assurance also comes down to the protection of its brand. A side effect of its success means regularly dealing with counterfeits, especially regarding online distribution.

“It’s easier with brick-and-mortar to educate and communicate to the consumer, but with the dot-coms it’s much more complex,” says Tidwell. “Sometimes, not only is it a counterfeit but they actually name the product Magformers, and we have to identify the small differences.” 

Sometimes this can come down to pointing out the subtlest differences in packaging, most of which is coming out of China and Japan. One tool that is helping its fight is MAPP Trap. While the platform is more commonly known for ensuring the integrity of retail pricing, for companies such as Magformers, it also helps track down the sellers/resellers behind the counterfeit product.

“There’s real educational value to our products, especially when it comes to math and science,” says Tidwell. “But all it takes is someone to come out with an inferior product and put it in the wrong hands to jeopardize what should be a great play experience for a child.”

STEM/STEAM is a significant area of growth for the company as it heads into 2016.

Magformers puts its magnets into motion in the space by adding gears and motors to its 28 geometrically shaped magnetic building pieces Examples of this can be seen in its 2016

TOTY-nominated Magnets in Motion 61-piece set as well as its new Walking Robot 45-piece set, which is powered by the company’s new S.T.E.A.M. motorized engine block.

“The way it’s designed, it’s not simply walking, but it’s moving and lighting up,” says Freddie Jordan, marketing manager. “So, there are six to eight play functions happening at once to make it complex and fun for a child.”

In addition to new play patterns, Magformers is also focusing on its younger consumers, ages 3 and up, with the My First line as well as expanding into licensing for the first time.

Walk over to the company’s booth at Toy Fair this year, and you’re likely to see a giant Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle made out of Magformers, symbolizing its deal with Nickelodeon as well as the company’s potential as a major player in the space.

“Are we where we are going to be two years from now?” says Tidwell. “No. But between what we are doing in the U.S. and internationally, from our design team and our expansion at retail, the best days are ahead.”

This article originally ran in the February 2016 issue of Toys & Family Entertainment magazine.