What do a play tower, two Wood IQ CNCs and €500,000 turned down at the Lion Empire have in common?

The birth of his daughter prompted him to think of ways of spending time that would educate and harmoniously develop the child. Thus was born the play tower. It was well received and appreciated, which led to the development of a concept and transformation into a business. And so it was born Leea Toys. But to be a real business, the idea has to become a marketable product. This required production, machinery, and the father started to research on the internet, to visit trade fairs where he met Dan Pruteanu and got to know the company Wood IQ. With the CNCs purchased, the play tower was mass-produced, ending up being delivered to many corners of the world. That's how Leea Toys reached a turnover of €600,000 in 2019, which made the father want to expand the business. He went to Empire of Lions where in exchange for 25% of the business, he asked for a 500,000 euro grant. Which he ultimately turned down. In short, this is the story. But life doesn't move fast forward and reality is never that simple.

The idea and the beginnings of Leea Toys

Dan Popa is the father in the story and the common element of the play tower, Wood IQ CNCs and hundreds of thousands of euros at Empire of Lions. He has a medical degree but gave up practicing medicine in favor of entrepreneurship. He chose it because he's always had more otherwise he wanted to put into practice. Although he has been in the business world for a long time, he has only been producing functional children's furniture since 2016. In 2015, when his daughter Leea was one year old, he became concerned about finding the best educational and developmental opportunities for her age. As the market was not offering what she wanted she thought to combine her knowledge of child development and parenting with possible practical solutions. So she built the first multifunctional play tower. The idea was for Leea to discover life through play, to be able to participate in daily activities with her parents and to have the opportunity to have fun with them.

Leea was growing and the tower had to adapt to the new needs. So it was developed and new functions were added, while respecting the original idea of multiple functions in a small space. The parts could be transformed, a door could become a writing board or a slide. Leea enjoyed the tower, it developed harmoniously, and their friends and children appreciated the concept because they couldn't find anything like it on the market. And so the idea of turning the play tower into a business was born.

"What is available on the market is unfortunately not very applied to children's needs, it is rather designed to please adults and/or to keep children occupied without a very precise educational purpose. What I am doing comes in the general context of radical changes in early childhood education, attitudes towards the child, the parent-child relationship. This context has come about recently because it is only recently (in the last few decades) that the results of long-term studies showing the impact of these things on children have emerged and are emerging." - says Dan Popa.

Production and meeting Wood IQ

The designed product has many component parts and a lot of machining that has to be done with precision. For children, play must be natural, simple and easy, and they must always be safe. It was out of the question that the machining could be done with ordinary woodworking machines, especially as it was to be a mass-produced product. After intensive research he concluded that he needed CNC.

It was early days, and the money, not very much, had to be well divided. His first thought was to contact Chinese manufacturers and buy directly from China. He even managed to get two CNCs from there, but it was an experience he wouldn't want to repeat.

"We had a lot of problems with them and it was very difficult to communicate with the seller. Although he was friendly, the differences in time zone, language (everyone had their own English 😊), software and holidays have created a lot of problems."

From this experience he understood how important it is how you choose your supplier. After-sales service is just as important as the machine itself, sometimes even more important. He decided to purchase his next CNC from a local supplier. Last September he visited BIFE-SIM where he met Dan Pruteanu and the Wood IQ team.

"I met them at a specialized exhibition at Romexpo. They seemed to know what they were talking about 😊 And they did an impeccable followup, professional and devoid of the usual salesman's aggressiveness. He was a Mr. Engineer who inspired my confidence from the start."

Wood IQ's offer was very good and so he was able to buy two CNCs 2030 Pro ATC which were assembled in the Leea Toys workshop in Chisinau. He is also satisfied with the machines and the service he received.

"[The machines] work very well! But most of all I know where to call if there's a problem and I get answered. The after sales service was very good, as it should be! In a manufacturing business, the after-sales service has to be very good, you can't have it any other way."

The CNC 2030 Pro ATC is part of campaign offering a discount of 10% for all CNC equipment purchased by the end of the year. It's a campaign in which Wood IQ is celebrating the 100th milestone, or 100 CNCs sold nationwide. The discount applies even to optional accessories (unloading table, axis 4, etc).

Leea Toys Development

The business started timidly in 2016. The market was not used to such a product and customers were not confident. Like most businesses, it was loss-making at first, but Dan Popa had faith in the product and its potential. The boom came in late 2018 and especially in 2019, when they posted the product on international selling platforms. Sales grew exponentially, with turnover going from €72,000 in 2017 to €600,000 in 2019.

"We work mainly with end customers. 901TPTP3T of our customers are from Western Europe. We have some retailers, but they are not big. Everything is online. There are no mass market products that fit in physical stores and the price doesn't allow for that either."

The large number of orders compared to the production capacity forced him to increase the price to attract buyers. So he came up with the idea of increasing production capacity and trying to find a partner to finance the development. He was not, however, willing to lose the majority stake so turned down the €500,000 offer for 50% of the firm he received from the Lion Empire. But his presence in the issue also had a consequence he would not have suspected.

"[It was] a kind of 'exam' and a mirror in which I could look at myself. But I only gained notoriety in Romania, so sales weren't affected too much. But it's interesting, people stop me on the street or in shops to congratulate me.😊„

Pandemic period

In these times of isolation, it has been the hardest for parents to find ways for their children to play and entertain themselves at home in order to get them away from the TV or phone screen. With its online presence, the multi-functional play tower from Leea Toys was highly visible and much sought after. Sales were up and it would have been a good time to increase sales. But quarantined production is not that simple.

"Orders are up but unfortunately all the other quarantine and containment issues are causing us a lot of problems. Couriers, raw materials, customs, it's all very difficult. So there's no point in having orders if the plywood factory where we get our plywood from has closed down or we send orders and we don't know when they're going to arrive. Or the paint supplier! Many areas in Italy have been completely closed down during this period, just as an example. Our workshop is in Chișinău, now I can't go there because of the restrictions, and that creates problems."

Despite the problems, the development idea has not been abandoned. Dan has confidence in his product and is convinced that it will reach more and more homes where there are children. The multifunctional tower can be further developed and new functions can be added. Purchasing CNCs that he can rely on and selling exclusively online were good decisions that have resulted in quality products, reduced production costs and increased visibility.

Good luck, Leea Toys!