Sylvanian Families History.
Sylvanian Families are a collectable range of small animals, beautifully designed with their own individual features, homes and accessories. Each figure belongs to a different family and they all live together in 'Sylvania'. Their homes are beautifully designed and each family has an endless choice of furniture and accessories to decorate it with. Sylvanian Families teach young children traditional family life and togetherness.
Sylvanian Families were first introduced in 1985 in Japan by Epoch. Tomy then introduced the figures into the USA and Canada soon after. It wasn't until 1987 that the Sylvanian Families were available in the UK and Ireland. By 1988 the Sylvanian Families cartoon was popular in both the UK and the USA. Sylvanian Families won 'The Toy of the Year' award, presented by the British Association of Toy Retailers (BATR), three years running (1987, 1988 and 1989).
However in 1990, Sylvanian Families were no longer available in the USA and Canada, though they were being sold in many other countries across the world. Sylvanian Families were then re-introduced to the USA and Canada by Tomy in 1993; they were launched under the new name of 'Calico Critters'. Distribution ceased again in the USA and Canada in 1996, and by 1998 Sylvanian Families also stopped being distributed in the UK and Ireland.
Fortunately, in 1999 Sylvanian Families were re-introduced into the UK and Ireland by Flair. At the same time, Calico Critters were also re-introduced in the USA and Canada by International Playthings. Popularity of the characters has remained high, especially with young girls in the UK. There is a huge range of furniture and accessories to fill the Sylvanian homes with, new Bathroom and Kitchen sets are available and new furniture for the Sylvanian babies is also available.
