Corgi Toys is the name of a range of die-cast toy vehicles produced by Mettoy Playcraft Ltd. in the United Kingdom. The Mettoy (Metal Toy) company was founded in 1933 by German émigré Philip Ullmann in Northampton, England, where he was later joined by South African-born German Arthur Katz, who had previously worked for Ulmann at his toy company Tipp and Co of Nuremberg. They decided to market a range of toy vehicles as competition to Meccano's Dinky Toys model vehicles, which had dominated the British market for many years. Corgi Toys were introduced in the UK in July 1956 and were manufactured in Swansea, Wales, for twenty seven years before the company went into liquidation.
The range was exported worldwide and sold in large numbers. Some of the best known and most popular models were of cars made famous in film and television such as the Batmobile, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and James Bond's Aston Martin DB5 – which remains the largest selling toy car ever produced.
MoreCorgi Toys is the name of a range of die-cast toy vehicles produced by Mettoy Playcraft Ltd. in the United Kingdom. The Mettoy (Metal Toy) company was founded in 1933 by German émigré Philip Ullmann in Northampton, England, where he was later joined by South African-born German Arthur Katz, who had previously worked for Ulmann at his toy company Tipp and Co of Nuremberg. They decided to market a range of toy vehicles as competition to Meccano's Dinky Toys model vehicles, which had dominated the British market for many years. Corgi Toys were introduced in the UK in July 1956 and were manufactured in Swansea, Wales, for twenty seven years before the company went into liquidation.
The range was exported worldwide and sold in large numbers. Some of the best known and most popular models were of cars made famous in film and television such as the Batmobile, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and James Bond's Aston Martin DB5 – which remains the largest selling toy car ever produced.
In 1989 the management sold the Corgi brand to Mattel and the factory was retained under the name of Microlink Industries Ltd. The products of the Mettoy owned company continue to be prized by collectors worldwide. In recent years the internet has allowed a far wider collector-base than in the past when swapmeets and antique markets were the only places they could be found.
A management buyout in 1995 saw the end of Mattel ownership and a new company was created, Corgi Classics Limited. On 1 May 2008, Corgi Classics was bought by the international models and collectables group Hornby.
Less