Why the Yorkshire Baby & Toddler Show Reminds Me Why I Do This
From Our Founder
Why the Yorkshire Baby & Toddler Show Reminds Me Why I Do This
This weekend was our third Yorkshire Baby & Toddler Show, and each time we go, it seems to get bigger and better. I'll be honest though — these shows are a BIG job.
Shop Our Full RangeEvery time one comes around, there's a point in the run-up where I wonder whether I've taken on too much. At the moment, I'm back working in schools doing some supply work alongside running Ellor & Co, then there's family life, the children and all the usual day-to-day stuff thrown in too.
There's stock to organise, products to pack, prices to print, a stall to plan and approximately 101 things I remember at the last minute.
Every time, I wonder whether I've done enough. And then I get there.
And every single time, I'm so glad I went.The Best Part
It's About So Much More Than Selling Toys
One of my favourite parts of the Yorkshire Baby & Toddler Show is meeting people. Over the last three shows, I've got to know so many of the other businesses there. Each time we come back together, we know each other that little bit more, and the support between everyone is amazing.
Then there are all the new and expectant parents coming through the doors. Excited. Nervous. Overwhelmed. Probably a mixture of all three!
When they come over to Ellor & Co, I love being able to bring a little bit of the fun side of parenting into the conversation.
There is SO much information thrown at you when you're expecting a baby — so many things you're told you need, things you need to learn and things you suddenly feel like you should know. But there are also so many exciting things to come.
The first time they properly play with something. The bath-time giggles. Building towers just to knock them straight back down.
Those ordinary little moments somehow become the ones you remember.When I'm standing there chatting about play, showing parents our silicone toys and talking about the different stages ahead, I sometimes have one of those moments where I think… how lucky am I that this is my job?
My Third Talk
Toys That Grow With Your Child
This time, I also did my third talk at the show, all about toys that grow with your child. Public speaking definitely hasn't come naturally to me, but with each show, I can feel my confidence growing too.
As part of my talk, I showed a video of my own children playing with our toys over the years. And suddenly, I had a lump in my throat.
Maybe it was the cold that was developing… 😂 But I think it was actually the realisation of just how much they've grown.
My eldest is at school now. How did that happen?!
And what made me smile even more was realising that some of the toys in those old videos are still being played with today. We have bath toys that Elizabeth played with when she was a toddler and Harris was still a tiny baby. They bonded over those toys then, and years later, they're still in our bathroom and still being played with every night.
That's exactly what I mean when I talk about
toys that grow with children.I love open-ended toys that don't tell children exactly how they have to play. Toys that can be stacked, sorted, built, filled, emptied, used for pretend play, taken into the bath or simply turned into whatever their imagination decides that day.
The way a baby explores a toy can be completely different from the way a toddler or older child uses that same toy. For me, that's where the magic is.
One Toy, Every Stage
How the Same Toy Grows With Them
It's the reason a simple silicone toy can stay in the toy box for years. The same set means something different at every age.
Baby
Soft to hold and mouth-safe, it's all about exploring textures, grasping, and discovering cause and effect.
Toddler
Now it's stacking, sorting, filling and emptying — building fine motor skills and plenty of knocking towers down.
Older Child
The same set becomes a castle, a café, a small world — led entirely by their own imagination.
Keeping It Simple
Do You Really Need the Fanciest Stall?
Every time I do one of these shows, I look around the room and wonder whether I've done enough. I don't invest in loads of merchandise. I don't have huge fancy signs. I didn't even have business cards!
There are some absolutely incredible displays at these events, and compared with them, mine is pretty simple. It's basically me and my toys.
But this time, I did add a couple of little touches that I was really proud of. I had a lovely new QR code board made so anyone visiting the stall could quickly scan it and find Ellor & Co on social media. I also made little "Did you know?" signs to sit amongst the products.
They weren't anything huge or fancy — simply there for people to read while they were browsing or waiting to chat. Little facts about the toys, silicone and play. And actually, I loved watching people stop and read them.
From Our Stall
A Few of Our "Did You Know?" Facts
Rather than just saying "here's a toy", I want people to understand what children can actually do with it.
Why one stacking toy does so much
A simple stacking toy can be stacked, nested, sorted, counted, filled and poured — one toy, dozens of ways to play and learn.
Why we love silicone
Soft, durable and easy to clean, food-grade silicone wipes down in seconds and won't trap water and go mouldy like some plastic toys.
The same toy, different stages
What a baby explores by mouthing and grasping, a toddler stacks and sorts, and an older child turns into imaginative play.
Simple sparks imagination
Because open-ended toys don't dictate how to play, children bring their own ideas — and that's where creativity grows.
Quite Us, Really
Simple toys. Simple play. Lots of possibilities.
And do you know what? None of the other stuff seemed to matter. People came for the toys.
They picked them up. They felt the silicone. They read the little facts. They asked questions.
For lots of people, it was the first time they'd really seen or handled silicone toys like ours, and I loved seeing that curiosity. They wanted to know what made them different, what children could do with them and why I chose to sell the products I do.
And that is why I do these shows.
Online, I can show you photographs and videos. I can write about our toys and show you my own children playing with them. But there's something completely different about being able to pick them up, feel them and have a proper conversation about how they can fit into real family life.
After my talk, people who had been sitting in the audience started coming over to the stall. The thing that meant the most was people telling me they could see how much it meant to me.
They could see the passion behind it.Sometimes, when you're the person inside the business every single day, you don't really see that yourself. You're thinking about orders, stock, emails, social media, accounts and what needs doing tomorrow. You're constantly thinking about the next thing.
Sometimes it takes someone on the outside to remind you to look at what you've actually built.
A Special Thank You
To the Women Behind the Show
I couldn't finish this without saying a huge thank you to the women behind the Yorkshire Baby & Toddler Show. Two mums, running their own businesses — The Mum Collective and Cria Cub — who, alongside their families, have built and grown something pretty incredible.
As another mum trying to build a business around family life, I know there will be a LOT happening behind the scenes that nobody sees. The planning. The late nights. The juggling. The worrying. The wondering whether it's all going to work.
Then suddenly, there's a room full of businesses, expectant parents, new parents and families — and you realise what they've created. It's incredible, and it's really inspiring to watch.
Worth It? Absolutely.
Glad I Went
So after another Yorkshire Baby & Toddler Show, another talk, lots of lovely conversations and one cold that definitely decided to make itself known by the end of the day… was all the preparation worth it? Absolutely.
I came home exhausted, but also incredibly grateful. Running a small business can sometimes mean spending so much time looking at what you still need to do that you forget to look back at how far you've already come. This weekend gave me one of those little reminders.
And I'm very glad I went. 🤍
Explore Toys That Grow With Your ChildGood to Know
Toys That Grow With Your Child, Answered
What does "toys that grow with your child" mean?
It means a toy that stays useful as your child develops, instead of being outgrown in a few months. A baby might explore it by grasping and mouthing, a toddler stacks and sorts it, and an older child folds it into imaginative play. One toy, years of play.
What are open-ended toys?
Open-ended toys don't tell a child exactly how to play. They can be stacked, sorted, built, filled, emptied, used for pretend play or taken into the bath — whatever a child's imagination decides that day. Because there's no single "right" way to use them, they encourage creativity and keep little ones coming back.
Why are silicone toys a good choice?
Food-grade silicone is soft, durable and really easy to clean. It wipes down in seconds and won't trap water and go mouldy the way some plastic bath toys can. It's gentle for little hands and mouths, and holds up to years of real family life. See our silicone range here.
What age are Ellor & Co toys suitable for?
Because they're open-ended, our toys suit babies right through to older children — the play simply changes with them. They're a lovely choice for a new baby, a first birthday or any little one who's growing fast.