History
The company was originally named Pansy Ellen Products, and was founded in 1969 primarily as an infant bath and toy manufacturer.[10] In 1992, the company debuted its products in Toys "R" Us stores.[10] The company re-branded in 1993 and changed its name to Kids II, Inc.[10] Kids2 began licensing for Disney in 1999.[10]
In 2001, Kids2 opened its first international office in Hong Kong.[10] The company expanded to Mexico, the United Kingdom, Australia, China, Japan, and Canada by 2006[10][11]
The Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) partnered with the company in December, 2010.[12][13] The partnership allowed SCAD students to conceptualize and prototype toy concepts for the company.[12][13] The firm acquired the Oball and Taggies brands the following year.[14]
In 2012, the company relocated its headquarters from Alpharetta, to Atlanta.[1] The company's new office space and showroom were a finalist in the design category for Atlanta Business Chronicle's 2012 Best in Atlanta Real Estate Awards.[1] The company was also a finalist in the 2011 Georgia Family Business Awards in the large business category.[15]
The Atlanta Business Chronicle named Kids II one of the best places to work in Atlanta in 2013.[16][17]
In October 2013, Kids 2 acquired Baby Einstein, formerly owned by The Walt Disney Company.[18] Baby Einstein products use real world objects, music, art, animals and nature with the intention to introduce infants to the world around them.[18][19]
In April 2019, Kids2 announced a recall of 700,000 inclined baby sleepers sold under a variety of different brand names and models. [20] In August 2019, Kids II announced a name change to Kids2 and opened a new factory in China.[21]
In July 2022, Kids 2 acquired a public company, Summer Infant, out of Woonsocket, RI. Summer Infant is now a wholly owned subsidiary of Kids2 and part of the Kids2 Group.[22]