| Type | Public limited company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Toys |
| Headquarters | Watford, England |
| Products | Educational toys |
| Parent | Mothercare |
| Website | ELC |
The Early Learning Centre is a British chain of shops selling toys for very young children.
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Originally set up as a mail order company in 1974 and was always based near Swindon; by 1980 it had ten shops; and it has grown to include 215 shops in the UK and over 80 in 19 other countries such as Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Canada and Australia. In addition, their toys are available in selected Debenhams, Boots and Sainsbury's. The company has also sold their products via their website (link below) since 2001. In 2003 it won the New Media Age Best Retail Website Award. In the 1980s ELC opened a number of "nursery stores" which sold equipment such as pushchairs and cots. The chain had stores in the United States until the early 1990s. Over 80% of products sold are own brand, being designed at a research centre in Hong Kong.
John Menzies rescued Early Learning Centre in 1985.[1] Sales struggled in the late 1990s. After some years, the company's board of directors led by Mike France, bought the company back in October 2001 for £30m, being backed by 3i, before selling it to Tim Waterstone (who founded Waterstones bookstores) under the name Eagle Retail Investments for £62m in April 2004 and he joined it with his Daisy & Tom chain of shops within the "Chelsea Stores Group". More recently, Early Learning Centre was purchased by Mothercare in June 2007 for £85m from Chelsea Stores Holdings. Mothercare have continued to expand the high street presence of ELC by opening additional stores; mainly as concessions within over 100 existing Mothercare stores.
They are known for selling products which use wood such as plywood and Chinese Maple. Toys are designed to be primarily about play, with a focus on educational and developmental aspects. Early Learning Centre playtest their toys to check they can withstand the expected knocks and bumps and employ various techniques into their manufacturing process such as ultrasonic welding and use of virgin plastics.
In Australia and New Zealand, Early Learning Centre (often abbreviated to ELC) also means preschool or kindergarten.