sustainable play

Who is Play to Learn and when did you launch the business?

I’m Lisa, founder of Play To Learn. I’ve been working in the Early Childhood field for 23 years, I am a qualified Early Childhood Educator. Play to Learn began 12 years ago after realising that there was a lack of quality products to create inviting environments for children that were natural and open ended.

So the journey began to becoming a small business owner.

Tell us more about why you decided to focus on Eco friendly or non-toxic products as a focus for the business?

Most plastic toys are made in factories using chemicals such as BPA, Phlatates and PVC that has been linked to cancer, endocrine disruption, development delays, and reproductive system damage. Scary… and wrong!

I felt inspired to research and find the best quality products made from sustainable materials that are safe, non-toxic that really mean ‘non-toxic’ and Eco friendly. It is our responsibility to keep children healthy and safe.

We wanted to educate people on how to make better choices. By buying less and buying better quality with considerations to materials and manufacturing

How has starting a family influenced the choices of the business?

Along the way Anthony and I started planning to have a family, sadly this was not an easy journey… filled with heart ache and loss over 7 long years….something I wouldn’t wish upon my worst enemy. I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s and some other health challenges. This led us to taking a huge leap of faith into the world of international surrogacy and our baby girl Milla was born in 2016. Words truly can’t express the gratitude and love we feel each and every day for the team of people who supported us along the way. While Milla is a huge achievement and a blessing in our life sadly our marriage came to an end in 2019.

About a year before Milla was born I started to look at the food we were eating, the products I was putting on my body and the environmental toxins we were exposed to. Wow… did this open up Pandora’s box!

How has your customer changed? Are they now more educated than when you started about eco conscious choices?

I’ve noticed that many new customers are giving feedback about how they’re grateful to receive new information about the products we promote and how they’re ethically traded and eco friendly.

If you could choose one toy or product for every new family what would it be?

Oh this is a tough one because so many products are so amazing. If I had to pick just one I would say that every child needs a Grimm’s rainbow in their life. A rainbow provides a child with so many learning concepts, and it’s suitable for all ages. I absolutely love it.