Mettoy

Mettoy was a British toy-manufacturing company established in Northampton in the early 1930s by Philip Ullmann, a German Jewish émigré who had previously worked for the Nuremberg toy company Tipp and Co. Arthur Katz, a South African-born German who had also worked with Ullmann at Tipp and Co, later joined the business. The name Mettoy was derived from “metal toy,” reflecting the company’s original specialization in lithographed tinplate toys and clockwork mechanisms. The founders moved their business to Britain after Adolf Hitler’s rise to power in 1933. Company registration took place on 31 August 1932, while the business is generally associated with its establishment as a manufacturing operation in 1933. Its first Northampton premises were on Stimpson Avenue, between Abington Avenue and Wellingborough Road. Mettoy initially produced toys similar in form and construction to German tinplate products, but developed into a substantial British manufacturer. Within six years, the Northampton operation was reported to employ approximately 600 people. Arthur Katz became managing director in 1944. During the Second World War, Mettoy adapted its manufacturing capabilities to wartime production. The Northampton factory made munitions and also produced a cooking stove intended for troops serving in tropical jungle environments. The company later moved to a larger Northampton site at the corner of Spencer Bridge Road and Harlestone Road. The premises had previously been used as a boot factory and were subsequently redeveloped for retail use. Mettoy’s postwar product range extended well beyond traditional tinplate toys. In 1948 it introduced Castoy, a line of toy motor vehicles with clockwork motors. It manufactured dollhouses from 1954 to 1965 and produced toy aircraft, boats, trains, weapons, space hoppers, and playsets. It also issued the Vapour Trails model-aircraft line and created licensed or tie-in products connected with properties such as Dan Dare and the television drama Emergency Ward 10. The business additionally distributed Petite typewriters, Bandbox radios, and Aurora Plastics Corporation model kits in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth markets. The company’s most important strategic development was its expansion into model vehicles and electric racing systems. Mettoy created the Corgi Toys branch in 1956, producing die-cast toy vehicles that became the company’s most recognizable product line. In the same year, Mettoy merged with Playcraft, a company associated with model railways and slot cars. Playcraft Highways, introduced in 1959, was an early HO-scale slot-car system. Although it was not a major commercial success in Britain, its design was developed for the United States market as Aurora Model Motoring, where it became highly influential and commercially successful. The system’s pickup standards and track geometry were adopted or echoed by later slot-car manufacturers. Mettoy also sold low-cost toy trains. From 1961 to approximately 1971, Playcraft Railways offered mainly plastic HO-scale trains, most of which were imported from the French manufacturer Jouef. The range was supplemented by building kits sourced first from Aurora and later from Pola of West Germany. This helped Mettoy compete in the mass-market model railway sector alongside established manufacturers such as Hornby. By the early 1980s, Mettoy’s management recognized that home computers were attracting children who might previously have been interested in conventional toys. The company responded by creating the Dragon Data branch to manufacture computers aimed at children. This move represented an attempt to diversify from traditional toys into emerging consumer electronics, although it did not prevent the company’s eventual decline. Mettoy was sold in 1984. Its assets were transferred to the independent company Corgi Classics, but the original Mettoy business folded shortly afterward. The Mettoy name is therefore principally remembered for its…

Mettoy emerged from the migration of two toy-industry professionals from Germany to Britain. Philip Ullmann and Arthur Katz were both Jewish and had links to Tipp and Co, a Nuremberg toy manufacturer. After Hitler’s rise to power, they established a new business in Northampton. The company was registered on 31 August 1932 and began its British manufacturing activity in 1933. Its name, an abbreviation of “metal toy,” described its early emphasis on lithographed tinplate products, particularly wind-up toys. The first factory stood on Stimpson Avenue in Northampton. Mettoy’s early products resembled the tinplate toys then made in Germany, but the company grew rapidly in Britain. Within six years the factory was reported to have around 600 employees, making Mettoy a significant local manufacturer. Katz became managing director in 1944. Wartime conditions required the company to redirect some capacity toward military supply. It produced munitions and manufactured a field cooking stove intended for troops operating in tropical jungle conditions. After the war, Mettoy moved to a larger factory at the junction of Spencer Bridge Road and Harlestone Road. The site had formerly been a boot factory and later became retail property. Mettoy developed a broad range of toys during the postwar period. Its 1948 Castoy line used clockwork motors in toy motor vehicles, anticipating the company’s later importance in miniature cars. It made dollhouses between 1954 and 1965, as well as metal aircraft, boats, trains, toy weapons, and play equipment. The Vapour Trails range covered model aircraft, while licensed and entertainment-related products included Dan Dare space toys and an Emergency Ward 10 hospital playset. Mettoy also distributed products from other companies, including Petite typewriters, Bandbox radios, and Aurora Plastics Corporation model kits in Britain and Commonwealth countries. The decisive change in the company’s market position came in 1956. Mettoy created Corgi Toys, a die-cast vehicle brand that became its most famous commercial identity. The same year, it merged with Playcraft, bringing model railways and slot cars into the business. Playcraft Highways was launched in 1959 as an HO-scale slot-car system. Its British performance was limited commercially, but the system was developed for Aurora in the United States as Model Motoring, where it became a market leader. The design established conventions for electrical pickups and track geometry that remained influential in later slot-car products. Playcraft also sold low-cost model railway products. Between 1961 and approximately 1971, Playcraft Railways offered mainly plastic HO-scale trains, with most of the rolling stock imported from Jouef of France. Buildings and accessories came initially from Aurora and later from Pola in West Germany. These products allowed Mettoy to compete in an affordable segment of the model railway market and complemented its toy vehicles and slot-car systems. The company continued to diversify as children’s leisure interests changed. In the early 1980s, a Mettoy director observed the increasing attraction of home computers and established Dragon Data to develop computers for children. This was a strategic attempt to enter consumer electronics, but the initiative did not secure Mettoy’s long-term survival. Mettoy was sold in 1984, its assets being transferred to the independent Corgi Classics company. The original company folded soon afterward. Its historical legacy rests chiefly with Corgi Toys, the Playcraft product families, and its contribution to the British mass-market toy industry.

1. 1984Sale and closure

   Mettoy was sold and its assets moved to Corgi Classics; the original company folded shortly afterward.

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2. 1980Dragon Data diversification

   Mettoy created Dragon Data to pursue computers designed for children as home computing gained popularity.

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3. 1961Playcraft Railways period begins

   Mettoy began selling low-cost HO-scale Playcraft Railways products, most of which were sourced from Jouef, with associated building kits from Aurora and later Pola.

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4. 1959Playcraft Highways launches

   Playcraft introduced its HO-scale Highways slot-car system, later influential through its American development as Aurora Model Motoring.

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5. 1956Corgi Toys is created

   The company launched the Corgi Toys branch for die-cast toy motor vehicles.

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6. 1956Merger with Playcraft

   Mettoy merged with Playcraft, adding model railway and slot-car activities.

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7. 1954Dollhouse production begins

   Mettoy manufactured dollhouses as part of its expanding postwar toy portfolio until 1965.

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8. 1948Castoy vehicle range introduced

   Mettoy introduced Castoy, a line of clockwork toy motor vehicles.

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9. 1944Arthur Katz becomes managing director

   Arthur Katz took the role of managing director during the later wartime period.

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10. 1933Northampton manufacturing business begins

    Philip Ullmann and Arthur Katz established Mettoy in Northampton after leaving Germany, initially producing lithographed tinplate and clockwork toys.

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11. 1932Company registration

    The company was registered on 31 August 1932 before its Northampton manufacturing operations were established.

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Mass-market British toy manufacturer combining affordable tinplate, die-cast, plastic, model railway, slot-car, and licensed play products. Its strongest identity came from accessible toy vehicles and the Corgi Toys range, while Playcraft extended the company into model railways and electric racing systems.

• Corgi ToysDie-cast toy vehicles1956

  Created in 1956, Corgi Toys was Mettoy’s best-known product identity. The range focused on die-cast miniature motor vehicles and gave the company a durable place in British toy history. It represented a shift from traditional tinplate clockwork products toward detailed, affordable vehicle toys.

• CastoyClockwork toy vehicles1948

  Castoy was introduced in 1948 as a line of toy motor vehicles powered by clockwork mechanisms. It formed part of Mettoy’s transition from general tinplate toys toward vehicle-focused products, a category that later became central to the Corgi Toys business.

• Playcraft HighwaysHO-scale slot cars1959

  Introduced in 1959, Playcraft Highways was an HO-scale slot-car system designed by Derek A. Brand of Crafco and licensed to Playcraft. Although it was not a major commercial success in Britain, its design was developed for Aurora Model Motoring in the United States and influenced later slot-car standards, including track geometry and electrical pickup arrangements.

• Playcraft RailwaysHO-scale model railways1961

  Playcraft Railways was a low-cost model railway range sold from approximately 1961 to 1971. It consisted mainly of plastic HO-scale trains, with most equipment imported from the French manufacturer Jouef. Building kits initially came from Aurora and later from Pola of West Germany.

• Vapour TrailsModel aircraft

  Vapour Trails was a Mettoy line of model aircraft. It formed part of the company’s wider portfolio of toy and model aviation products, alongside its metal toy aircraft.

• Dragon Data computersChildren's home computers1980

  Dragon Data was a Mettoy branch created in the early 1980s in response to the growing appeal of home computers among children. The initiative represented a strategic move from traditional toys into consumer electronics.

• 1984Sale and transfer of assetsM&A

  Mettoy was no longer able to continue as an independent toy manufacturer.

  What changed. The company was sold and its assets were transferred to the independent Corgi Classics company.

  Aftermath. The original Mettoy company folded shortly after the transaction, while Corgi remained the principal successor associated with its die-cast vehicle legacy.

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• 1980Entry into children's computersStrategy

  Mettoy’s management observed that children were becoming increasingly interested in home computers rather than only conventional toys.

  What changed. Mettoy established Dragon Data to manufacture computers aimed at children.

  Aftermath. The diversification did not secure the survival of the original Mettoy company, which was sold in 1984 and folded shortly afterward.

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• 1956Merger with PlaycraftM&A

  Mettoy operated across several toy categories and sought to strengthen its presence in model railways and slot cars.

  What changed. The company merged with Playcraft, bringing Playcraft’s model railway and slot-car activities into the Mettoy organization.

  Aftermath. The merger led to the Playcraft Highways slot-car system and Playcraft Railways products being associated with Mettoy’s broader portfolio.

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• 1984Mettoy is sold and subsequently ceases operations

  The company was sold, with its assets transferred to the independent Corgi Classics company. Mettoy folded shortly afterward.

  M&ABankruptcy
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• 1980Mettoy enters children's computers through Dragon Data

  Management created Dragon Data after observing the growing appeal of home computers among children and sought to diversify the company beyond traditional toys.

  Product launch
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• 1959Playcraft Highways reaches the market

  Playcraft introduced Highways, an HO-scale slot-car system whose track geometry and electrical pickup arrangements influenced later slot-car systems.

  Product launchProduct generation
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• 1956Corgi Toys branch is created

  Mettoy established Corgi Toys, the business associated with its best-known die-cast toy motor vehicles.

  Product launch
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• 1956Mettoy merges with Playcraft

  Mettoy merged with the Playcraft model railway and slot-car company, broadening its product portfolio beyond conventional tin and die-cast toys.

  M&A
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• 1939Mettoy undertakes wartime production

  During the Second World War, the Northampton factory produced munitions and a cooking stove designed for troops serving in tropical jungle environments.

  Other
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• 1933Mettoy begins manufacturing in Northampton

  Philip Ullmann and Arthur Katz established Mettoy as a British toy manufacturer after moving from Germany following the rise of Hitler. The company focused initially on lithographed metal and clockwork toys.

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1. Mettoy