Childhood ideas applied to succesful businesses

November 21st, 2008
  • What businesses have applied any or all of the following wonders of childhoosd into their organisations? Innocence, Passion, Unconditional love and trust, Bravery and persistence, Ideas and imagination, Total self-belief, and Wonder itself. I know this is a big one, hence the big price.


  • For the researcher answering this question - if possible can you do your answer by 8am Sunday 8th May please (PST)


  • Hi dtnl42-ga! I know that the ideal time you want this question answered has elapsed. But I would like to know if you still want this one answered at this particular point in time? If YES, what would be the new deadline? Thanks!


  • YES PLEASE! However I need it asap - within the next 14 hours if possible - i.e. by 8am British time Tuesday! If you can do this please let me know by return Thank you dtnl42


  • Hi easterangel-ga - that's midnight your time, I think! Thanks


  • Ok. I am doing this right now. Thank you for your speedy reply.


  • Thank you!


  • Hi! Thanks for another question. Please take note that before providing a rating; please ask for clarification if you will need further assistance in the answers I have provided below. I was able to find the following articles discussing about aspects of childhood dreams or concepts that shaped a particular business. ------------------------ Build-A-Bear Workshop: ?Her idea: Create a place where children build and dress their own bears or bunnies or other stuffed animals. She calls herself Chief Executive Bear and her company is Build-A-Bear Workshop.? ?Former Payless chief hits pay dirt with Build-A-Bear? http://www.post-gazette.com/businessnews/20010803bears0803bnp1.asp ?Build-A-Bear Workshop , a teddy bear-themed experience retail store that combines the universal appeal of plush animals with an interactive process that allows children from 3-103 to create their own huggable companions. The first Build-A-Bear Workshop store opened in Saint Louis Galleria in the fall of 1997 to a resounding success. Guests of all ages are shopping at the innovative retail store that promotes creativity and encourages family entertainment in a fun and unique environment.? ?MAXINE CLARK? http://www.buildabear.com/aboutUs/OurCompany/ourFounder.aspx ------------------------- LEGO: ?They decided that a good name for their company would be LEGO, which means ?play well? in Danish, and also, they discovered, happens to mean ?put together? in Latin! ? ?In fact, it was Godtfred who perfected the special design that makes every single LEGO brick fit together in any combination, over and over again.? "Bricks & Pieces: The LEGO Story" http://www.canlearn.com/legohist.htm ?A Chronological History of the LEGO Company and LEGO Toys? http://www.lugnet.com/pause/chronology.html ------------------------- Leapfrog: ?At LeapFrog our vision is to inspire in children and families a lifelong love of learning. That's why we're committed to developing the highest quality educational toys?? Leapfrog http://www.leapfroginvestor.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=131670&p=irol-irhome --------------------------- Disney: ?Walt became interested in drawing at an early age, selling his first sketches to neighbors when he was only seven years old. At McKinley High School in Chicago, Disney divided his attention between drawing and photography, contributing both to the school paper. At night he attended the Academy of Fine Arts.? ?In August 1923, Walt Disney left Kansas City for Hollywood with nothing but a few drawing materials, $40 in his pocket, and a completed animated and live-action film.? ?Walt Disney: A Biography? http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/index.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p2.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p3.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p4.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p5.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p6.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p7.html ----------------------------- SUPERMAN Comics: ?Jerome Siegel was born in Cleveland, Ohio on October 17, 1914. An avid reader with a great interest in science fiction & fantasy, he published his own fanzine in 1929 called Cosmic Stories, a "hectographic" booklet with stories written by himself. It is recognized as the first sci-fi fanzine, and it was just a prelude to future accomplishments. He published several other booklets over the next few years.? ?Inspired in part by Philip Wylie's novel "Gladiator", and in part by the Samson & Hercules legends, the redesigned "Superman" was put together in comic strip form as early as 1932, and then as a comic book in 1933.? ?Jerome Siegel Co-creator of Superman? http://www.comic-art.com/bios-1/siegel01.htm ?Jerry Siegel? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Siegel ------------------------------ The Erector Set: ?Watching out the train window as some workmen positioned and riveted the steel beams of an electrical power-line tower, Gilbert decided to create a children's construction kit: not just a toy, but an assemblage of metal beams with evenly spaced holes for bolts to pass through, screws, bolts, pulleys, gears and eventually even engines.? ?Gilbert began selling the "Mysto Erector Structural Steel Builder" in 1913, backed by the first major American ad campaign for a toy. The Erector set quickly became one of the most popular toys of all time: living rooms across the country were transformed into miniature metropoles, filled with skyscrapers, bridges and railways.? ?A.C. Gilbert? http://web.mit.edu/invent/iow/gilbert.html ------------------------------ Hershey?s Chocolates ?Milton was in the fourth grade when his Mennonite father, Henry Hershey, found his son a position as an printer's apprentice in Gap, Pennsylvania. Milton later became an apprentice to a candy-maker in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and candy-making became a passion which Milton grew to love. In 1876, when Milton was only eighteen-years old, he opened his own candy shop in Philadelphia.? ?In 1894, Milton started the Hershey Chocolate Company?? ?The History of Hershey Chocolate - Milton Hershey? http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blchocolatehershey.htm ----------------------------- Wendy?s Restaurant: My colleague bobbie7-ga included Wendy?s and the story of Dave Thomas in one of your answered questions. I am repeating it here since I feel that this example is particularly suitable to this question as well. ?In his troubled childhood, there was one bright joy in his life. His love of visiting family restaurants. He loved to sit and watch as families interacted with each other, their happy laughter filling the room.? ?Right then and there, at the age of eight, he knew what he was going to do when he grew up. He was going to own his own business; opening a family restaurant.? ?History behind Family Restaurant- 'Wendy's? http://www.marriageromance.com/stories/11069339460.htm ----------------------------- Steven Spielberg, Amblin Entertainment & Dreamworks: ?Born in Cincinnati on December 18, 1946, and raised in the suburbs of Haddonfield New Jersey and Scottsdale Arizona, Spielberg always had a love and fascination for the movie industry. As a pre-teen, he charged admission to his home movies (which involved wrecks he staged with his Lionel train set) while his sister sold popcorn. At the age of 12, his first production was complete, including script and actors. Just one year later at the age of 13, Spielberg won a prize for a 40-minute war movie he titled Escape to Nowhere.? ?Steven Spielberg Biography? http://www.filmmakers.com/artists/spielberg/biography/ ------------------------------ The Barbie Doll: ?Handler sensed that it was just as important for girls to imagine what they themselves might grow up to become as it was for them to focus on what caring for children might be like.? ?Handler decided to create a three-dimensional adult female doll, one lifelike enough to serve as an inspiration for her daughter's dreams of her future.? ?RUTH HANDLER? http://web.mit.edu/invent/iow/handler.html Search terms used: History biography of ?childhood dreams? business build-a-bear lego leapfrog ?Walt Disney? ?Jerry Siegel? Superman ?Steven Spielberg? ?Ruth Handler? ?Erector Set? ?Dave Thomas? Wendy?s I hope these links would help you in your research. Before rating this answer, please ask for a clarification if you have a question or if you would need further information. Thanks for visiting us. Regards, Easterangel-ga Google Answers Researcher


  • Thanks for this - I would have hoped for a few more examples, and specficically the answer being split between innocence / bravery (different categories) as different topica, for a $200 payment - so a bit more if possible, please


  • Hi again! I am just going to repeat some of the posts in categories without the quotes. I will be also adding some more businesses in the list. Wonder & Innocence: Disney Company http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/index.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p2.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p3.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p4.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p5.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p6.html http://disney.go.com/vault/read/walt/waltbio_p7.html Build-A-Bear http://www.post-gazette.com/businessnews/20010803bears0803bnp1.asp http://www.buildabear.com/aboutUs/OurCompany/ourFounder.aspx Steven Spielberg, Amblin Entertainment & Dreamworks http://www.filmmakers.com/artists/spielberg/biography/ ------------ Ingenuity LEGO http://www.canlearn.com/legohist.htm http://www.lugnet.com/pause/chronology.html Leapfrog http://www.leapfroginvestor.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=131670&p=irol-irhome The Erector Set http://web.mit.edu/invent/iow/gilbert.html Toys?R?Us ?Toys "R" Us traces its roots to 1948 when founder Charles Lazarus opened a baby furniture store in Washington, D.C. Lazarus quickly realized the incredible potential of filling his customers' orders for baby toys and toys for older children. In 1957, the Toys "R" Us name made its debut when Lazarus introduced a "supermarket environment, " a revolutionary concept featuring specialty retailing and off-price positioning.? http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=120622&p=irol-history BigIdea Productions ?Big Idea was founded in a spare bedroom by computer animator and storyteller Phil Vischer in July of 1993. With one computer, little capital and no connections, Phil set out with the goal of creating values-based family media products.? ?Working with two young art school grads and friends volunteering on weekends, Phil completed the first half-hour episode of VeggieTales, Where's God When I'm S-Scared? before Christmas, 1993. It was the nation's first entirely computer animated video.? http://www.bigidea.com/company/ourstory.htm Baseball Cards ?The Trade Cards distributed by Peck and Snyder are generally regarded as the first baseball cards. They were the first 'mass produced' advertising cards with a baseball theme. Peck and Snyder was a manufacturer of baseball equipment, and their cards featured prominent teams of the day. They are the size and style of a Carte de Viste with a paper team photograph pasted to a cardboard mount. The backs can be found with advertisement for Peck and Snyder, other companies or are blank.? http://www.cycleback.com/1800s/trade.htm ------------ Courage: Superman Comic Books http://www.comic-art.com/bios-1/siegel01.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Siegel Wendy's Restaurant http://www.marriageromance.com/stories/11069339460.htm Barbie Doll http://web.mit.edu/invent/iow/handler.html Nickelodeon " When Nickelodeon first launched on April Fools Day, 1979, our goal was to give kids a place on television just for them. We began as the kids' programming block of the Qube Network and we were available to just 600,000 subscribers in Columbus, Ohio. " http://www.nick.com/all_nick/everything_nick/history_home.jhtml Sesame Street "The original format of the show called for the humans to be shown in plots on the street, intermixed with the segments of animation, live action shorts and Muppets. These segments were created to be like commercials: quick, catchy and memorable. This format would make the learning seem fun, and were the stepping stones in creating the now common edutainment-based program." "To make sure that this revolutionary new format was going to work, CTW aired the program for test groups. The test watchers were entranced when the ad-like segments, especially those with the jovial puppets, but were then seriously uninterested by the street scenes. It was a quick and easy choice for the producers to add Muppets to the street scenes, although psychologists had warned against this mixing of fantasy and reality elements." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sesame_Street ALEX G. SPANOS (San Diego Chargers Owner) ?In his early years, Alex Spanos worked night and day, seven days a week in his father's bakery. His growing family was struggling to make ends meet on $40 a week. In 1951, at the age of 27, the time came for Spanos to make the toughest business decision of his life - to stay in the family business or strike out on his own.? ?The success of the A.G. Spanos Companies has allowed him to pursue many dreams, including owning a National Football League team.? http://www.chargers.com/team/fo_bio_alex_spanos.cfm I hope these additional companies will be of help.


  • Thank you - perfect


  • Thanks as well. I am glad you liked the reseaerch. Easterangel


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