In the 1960s, a 4-year-old German boy was building a castle in his backyard when his grandmother called him in for lunch, so he ran into the house.

After the meal, the little boy ran joyfully back out only to find that, sadly, someone had destroyed his castle.

"The boy who lives down the street must've done it!" thought the boy, who was soon filled with anger and questions. It was then that the boy's grandmother said: "Let it go! Let's build another one."

And with this simple saying the boy's life was changed forever. Drying his eyes, he built another castle, which seemed even more beautiful than the last.

A castle can be destroyed easily, but the dream of building something can't be destroyed if you are lucky enough to meet someone who you can trust and rely on. When that little German boy grew up, he said: "The earlier you meet the appropriate person, the luckier you will be."

Peter Handstein, founder & CEO of Hape has never stopped making contributions to society in the 30 years that his company has flourished. His wish is to blend his grandmother's motto with nature and his own love, and to spread his sharing philosophy with others in order to help more children achieve the right outlook and lead a healthy life.

30 years is a short time in the grand scheme of things, and in a man's life it is quite a short time too.

From our beginnings as an educational toy supplier to kindergarteners in Germany in 1986, our company has grown to become one of the world's largest producers of toys made from sustainable materials. Hape toys are sold in over 60 countries and regions, and over the years we have diversified our product lines from wooden, bamboo toys to classic dolls, plush toys, licensed products and more.

30 on from its inception, Hape is much more than a toy manufacturing giant and is in fact a global brand with an advanced educational and ecological philosophy that serves as a platform that encourages various generations to improve their lives.

Our designers strive to meet the highest levels of safety and sustainability and to optimize children's playtime experiences and ability to learn through play.

Hape believes in educational play, active play, and imaginative play, and each product is designed to stimulate children in various ways, developing their social, sensory, physical and emotional skills along the way. Our vision is to create an enduring legacy of play that is intended to extend through generations and across cultures.

Hape believes that the future begins and belongs to our children. As such, we strive towards excellence in developing a product that is durable, environmentally sustainable, and engages all aspects of a child's imagination. Education and exploration blend in our products and we believe in educational play, active play, and imaginative play. Each product is designed to stimulate children in various ways, developing their social, sensory, physical and emotional skills. We also aspire to leave the world in a better condition than we received it.

This year, we will do something for children living in war zones, disaster areas, poverty-stricken regions and contribute towards the care of autistic children. We may not enter their inner-world, as neither can their parents, friends, outsiders or even toys. There is, however, one thing can touch deep straight down to their hearts. This may not happen today or tomorrow, but one day, it will. It will reconnect something which has been disconnected with the world for whatever reason. And that thing - the thing that lies at the heart of Hape's existence - is called love.