Moose Toys’ Audrey Freda Tam on bringing a beauty-inspired twist to slime play with Gui Gui
Audrey, it’s great to re-connect! We haven’t interviewed since you joined Moose back in 2021, so how has your time been with them so far?
It’s been such an exciting ride, filled with creativity and innovation! One of Moose’s superpowers is spotting trends early, and being based in Melbourne has been a game changer. Every brand I’ve worked on has pushed the envelope in design and trend leadership.
A few standout examples include the magic reveal innovation in Magic Mixies Pixlings, and raising the bar on material finishes in our Art Toy inspired XOX Kweenies doll line. Currently, I’m leading the Design Team on reimagining the slime space with the launch of Gui Gui in the Activities category – bringing a beauty-inspired twist to classic slime play!
Yes, on Gui Gui, for anyone yet to get their hands on it, how would you pitch it?
It’s a brand that is very personal to me merging two of my favourite interests – Activity Toys and Cosmetics.
Gui Gui is slime beautified! It’s a premium, layered, five-step unboxing experience that takes inspiration from multi-step skincare routines. As you unbox Gui Gui you will reveal one of four types of slime – my personal favourite is our clear slime which has an ultra-glossy glass finish. You will also find your slime boosters: glow-up charms, a glam figurine and shimmer powder for that final slime glow up. We studied trending beauty brands – both product and packaging – and took inspiration from our favourites.
Nice! What else fed into the inspiration behind Gui Gui?
On a trend trip to cosmetic stores, the team and I observed kids obsessing over premium skincare brands and getting excited over free sampler packs – something I also get excited about. Another trend we were seeing a huge resurgence of is slime play and ASMR. We thought… Why not merge the two with packaging that’s evocative of the premium skincare products for an innovative twist? It’s an exciting brand for the arts and crafts aisles.
Can you speak to the process of getting the slime – and the scents – right? What did they need to do that maybe other slime products – ones that don’t have that beauty aspect – do not?
Getting the slime and scents right for Gui Gui was all about becoming an expert in the slime space. The team and I dove deep into the world of high-end slime – testing products from leading brands and learning every texture, from cloud to gloss to butter.
We spent countless months play testing dozens of slimes to understand what makes one feel high quality. Then we worked closely with our slime scientists to develop a toy-safe slime that still delivers that long sloooow stretch, buttery smear, soft drizzle and glossy hand feel that slime lovers are obsessed with. We did countless consultation and testing sessions with kids who are experts in this category to make sure our textures hit all the right notes – because they know when a drizzle’s not drizzling!
We also beautified our scents by taking inspiration from trending perfume mists. Instead of going for typical “toy aisle” scents, we looked to the cosmetics world for inspiration – including premium scents like pistachio, cherry blossom and coconut… Fragrances that feel fresh and modern. Everything about Gui Gui was designed to feel like an ASMR “unboxing beautified” experience, so the slime had to look, feel and smell like the most beautiful slime you’ve ever experienced.
Terrific. Now, looking ahead, where do you think you could go next with Gui Gui?
We will continue to keep an eye on beauty trends so we can continue to beautify our slime experience with new slime boosters, glow-ups and shimmering touches as we expand our slime range. In the meantime, there’s a variety of 13 to collect and if you are lucky, you could find one out of 1,000 Golden Limited Edition chase unicorn sets.
Gui Gui is designed for anyone who loves ASMR slime play and beauty-inspired collectibles – stayed tuned for what’s next.
Will do! Thanks Audrey – and congrats on Gui Gui!
–
To stay in the loop with the latest news, interviews and features from the world of toy and game design, sign up to our weekly newsletter here