What Lanka Kade does

Lanka Kade (UK) Ltd is a privately-held, founder-owned wooden toy company headquartered in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, United Kingdom. Founded in 1994 by Upul and Diane after they returned to the UK from Sri Lanka where they had worked for the Red Cross, the company designs an exclusive range of educational wooden toys in-house in the UK and produces them through ten independent artisan groups in Sri Lanka that employ 160-180 local people. The product portfolio spans wooden animals, figures, puzzles, playsets, push-along vehicles, dolls, games, and themed sub-collections (Scottish, Knights, Roman), plus downloadable educational resources, cotton storage bags, coconut-based specialty items, and gift vouchers. Products are manufactured from FSC certified rubber wood (70% of the range) and MDF, painted with non-toxic paints, and positioned around child development, safe materials, and the 10 Principles of Fair Trade.

The company generates revenue through a hybrid B2B and B2C model. Wholesale to UK and European retail stockists is the primary channel, supplemented by direct-to-consumer e-commerce at lankakade.co.uk, click-and-collect from the Market Harborough HQ, and event-driven sales. Retail unit pricing spans £2.25 for spinning tops to £140 for deluxe playsets, with most puzzles priced £5.95-£24 and gift vouchers from £5 to £250. UK delivery is £3.50 or free above £30, with Republic of Ireland delivery priced at £12 per carton plus local VAT and clearance fees.

The UK organisation comprises approximately nine staff covering design, warehouse, accounts, logistics, and management, supported by long-term partnerships with BAFTS (membership since 2001), the Sri Lankan Forestry Department for wood certification, ACID for IP protection, Iconography Ltd for the e-commerce platform, and WorldPay for payment processing. The business has no external investors, is described as family-run, and does not publish financial statements.

Name

Lanka Kade

Legal name

Lanka Kade (UK) Ltd

Website

https://lankakade.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Lanka Kade is a UK-based, founder-owned company that designs educational wooden toys in-house and produces them through fair trade artisan groups in Sri Lanka, selling wholesale to retailers and direct-to-consumer via e-commerce.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Market Harborough

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Wholesale Toy Sales: B2B wholesale distribution of fair trade wooden toys and gifts to retail stockists, including European wholesale. Businesses apply to become stockists through the company's stockist application process.
2. Direct E-commerce Sales: B2C direct sales through their e-commerce website www.lankakade.co.uk. Consumers can purchase individual products, gift vouchers, and bulk orders.
3. Gift Vouchers: Gift vouchers available from £5 to £250, valid for 12 months. Can be used as full or part payment against orders. Vouchers are emailed to recipients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Lanka Kade designs, sources and distributes fair trade wooden toys handcrafted by artisan groups in Sri Lanka from sustainably sourced rubberwood and natural materials. The company supplies its range primarily through a wholesale network of UK and European stockists, complemented by direct online sales to parents, gift buyers and educational settings.

Product overview

Lanka Kade is a fair trade wooden toy company that designs, manufactures, imports, exports and wholesales educational wooden toys for preschool and early years children. The company offers a distinctive range of handcrafted wooden toys with bright, bold colors and natural wood finishes, designed exclusively in the UK and handcrafted by skilled artisans in Sri Lanka. The product portfolio includes wooden animals (Birds, Farm, Dinosaurs, Sea life, Minibeasts, World animals), Figures (People who help us, Fairytale, Christmas characters), Puzzles (Simple jigsaws, 1-5 jigsaws, Alphabet jigsaws, Jumbo jigsaws, Block puzzles, Shape sorters), Playsets (Building blocks, Playscenes, Toy worlds), Wheels/Push along toys (vehicles, animal push alongs), Dolls, Games (spinning tops, skipping ropes, skittles), Letters (Animal letters, Name plaques), themed collections (Scottish, Knights, Roman), downloadable educational resources, and gift vouchers. Products are made from FSC certified rubber wood and MDF with non-toxic paints, comply with the 10 Principles of Fair Trade, and support the company's educational foundation providing books and milk to rural schools in Sri Lanka.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wooden Animals A range of handcrafted, fair trade wooden animal figures designed in-house in the UK and produced by artisans in Sri Lanka from sustainably sourced rubberwood, sold to retail stockists and direct consumers for children's play and learning.
• Wooden Figures A range of handcrafted wooden people, character and occupational figures designed for imaginative play, produced by Sri Lankan artisan groups using sustainably sourced rubberwood.
• Wooden Puzzles Handcrafted wooden jigsaw and chunky puzzles in various shapes and themes, designed to support early years development and produced by fair trade artisan groups in Sri Lanka.
• Wooden Playsets Handcrafted wooden play sets designed for themed imaginative play, produced by Sri Lankan artisan groups as part of Lanka Kade's fair trade wooden toy range.
• Wheels (Push Along & Pull Along Toys) Handcrafted wooden push-along and pull-along vehicles and toys for toddlers, designed in-house and made by Sri Lankan artisans from sustainable rubberwood.
• Wooden Dolls Handcrafted wooden dolls and doll-related toys produced by fair trade artisan groups in Sri Lanka, designed for imaginative play and gifting.
• Wooden Games Handcrafted wooden games for children and families, produced by Sri Lankan artisans as part of Lanka Kade's fair trade toy range.
• Wooden Letters Handcrafted wooden letter sets designed to support early literacy and play, produced by fair trade artisan groups in Sri Lanka.
• Cotton Bags Cotton bags produced as a complementary accessory line within Lanka Kade's fair trade product offering, supporting the brand's sustainable and ethically sourced positioning.
• Coconut Products Speciality coconut-based products sold alongside Lanka Kade's wooden toy range, leveraging Sri Lankan artisan sourcing capabilities.
• Gift Vouchers Gift vouchers redeemable against Lanka Kade's wooden toy and accessory range, offered to consumers via the company website.

Quantifiable outcome

• Teachers report much improved concentration and contribution from children in schools supported by the Educational Foundation
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• BAFTS (British Association of Fair Trade Shops and Suppliers)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2001Lanka Kade has been a proud and active member of BAFTS since 2001. BAFTS is the British Association of Fair Trade Shops and Suppliers. Lanka Kade complies with the internationally accepted 10 Principles of Fair Trade.
• ACID (Anti Copying in Design)minorOthersACID logo is displayed on the Lanka Kade website, indicating membership in this organization that supports designers against copying.
• Iconography LtdminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerIconography Ltd is the website design agency that built and maintains the Lanka Kade e-commerce website. They act as Data Processors on behalf of Lanka Kade.
• Sri Lankan Forestry DepartmentcoreOthersAll natural woods are certified as sustainably sourced by the Sri Lankan Forestry Department, while FSC certified rubber wood products represent 70% of the Lanka Kade range.
• Sri Lankan Artisan GroupscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner10 independent artisan groups in Sri Lanka handcraft Lanka Kade toys. Director Upul maintains direct relationships with over 160 people involved in production. Lanka Kade provides interest-free loans, training, and independent financial support to help producer groups grow into independent businesses.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Hape: Global wooden toy brand with bamboo-based sustainable manufacturing and a wide range of educational toys, puzzles and musical instruments. Overlaps Lanka Kade on sustainable materials and educational positioning but at a much larger scale.
• Melissa & Doug: Large US-based incumbent in wooden and plush educational toys with extensive range across puzzles, playsets and dolls. Overlaps Lanka Kade's category but operates at significantly greater scale and broader retail footprint.
• Djeco: French family-owned toy brand spanning wooden puzzles, craft kits, games and art supplies. Comparable to Lanka Kade on the wooden toy / puzzle / craft product overlap but operates a broader, design-led portfolio.

Direct peers

• Tender Leaf Toys: UK-designed wooden toy brand manufacturing in Indonesia with a focus on sustainability, ethical production and imaginative play. Closely comparable to Lanka Kade on the fair-trade, FSC-certified wooden-toy proposition and similar product mix (animals, playsets, dolls).
• Plan Toys: Thailand-based wooden toy manufacturer built around sustainable rubberwood production and ethical manufacturing. Comparable to Lanka Kade on sustainability positioning, FSC-grade materials and the wooden educational toy category.
• Bigjigs Toys: UK-based wooden toy manufacturer offering a broad range of educational wooden toys, puzzles, playsets and vehicles. Direct competitor to Lanka Kade across UK stockists, gift shops and early-years education channels with overlapping product categories.
• Le Toy Van: UK-based wooden toy brand specialising in educational toys, dolls houses, play kitchens and vehicles. Comparable on product range, target customer (preschool and early-years) and UK/EU wholesale distribution model.
• Janod: French wooden toy brand offering puzzles, playsets and themed collections with strong European retail presence. Comparable to Lanka Kade on the wooden educational toy proposition and European wholesale distribution.

Emerging players

• Tegu: US/Honduras-based maker of magnetic wooden blocks with focus on FSC-certified hardwoods and fair-trade manufacturing. Overlaps Lanka Kade on the FSC/fair-trade wooden toy proposition and ethical sourcing, but narrower product range.
• Bajo: Polish family-run wooden toy maker using sustainable beech wood and traditional craftsmanship. Smaller niche player with comparable ethical/sustainable manufacturing positioning and wooden educational toys.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/LankaKade
• Facebookfacebook.com/LankaKadeToys
• Instagraminstagram.com/lankakadetoys

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lanka Kade