Companies to collaborate connecting Quirky’s vibrant global inventor community with Mattel’s iconic brands and products ranging from toys and games to baby gear and preschool products

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Mattel (NASDAQ: MAT) and Quirky, the company that makes invention accessible, today announced an exclusive partnership to spark invention in toys, play and baby gear. Harnessing the power of Quirky’s global community and Mattel’s iconic Brands, Quirky and Mattel will reimagine Mattel’s portfolio of products to drive growth for brands like Barbie, Fisher-Price, and Hot Wheels. This partnership combines Mattel’s scale and 70 years of toy-making history with Quirky’s open and agile approach to product development.

Starting today, the companies invite everyone to submit new product ideas for toys, games, and family products to Quirky’s online platform to support Mattel’s vision to create deeper consumer connections and reimagine how children play, learn, and grow. Quirky and Mattel will begin developing the new products alongside Quirky’s global community, the first of which may be available for holiday 2015. Watch the video to learn more here.

“This marks a new era for Mattel,” said Richard Dickson, President and Chief Operating Officer, Mattel. “Leveraging Quirky’s platform allows us to discover new ideas for our toys and unique solutions for our baby products. Just as importantly, this new partnership will enable us to accelerate the speed and scope of invention by tapping into Quirky’s dynamic community. This is an industry about creating and inventing, whether based on a consumer insight or a really fun idea, with the power of our own talented inventors and now Quirky, we are realizing our vision to reimagine Mattel’s core brands and bring truly great unexpected play to families.”

The relationship with Mattel is the third addition to the Powered by Quirky initiative, a new series of product-development partnerships with category leaders. Powered by Quirky enables Quirky’s community to work with industry-leading companies like Mattel to impact the brands they love.

“Few companies inspire creative imagination like Mattel,” said Ben Kaufman, CEO and Founder, Quirky. “Partnering with Mattel gives our community the opportunity to tap into their own childhood memories to dream up entirely new ways to play.”

To date, Quirky has received close to 15,000 toy-related idea submissions from its community. Starting today, each and every idea in the category will have an opportunity to become the next big product from Mattel.

About Quirky:

Quirky (www.quirky.com) makes invention accessible by bringing real people’s product ideas to life. To take ideas from pipe dream to consumer product, an in-house team of designers and engineers collaborate with Quirky’s online community on nearly all aspects of development. Anyone can make their mark by submitting a problem-solving idea or weighing in on others’. And when a product is sold, Quirky shares its revenue with every community member that had an impact. Founded by Ben Kaufman in 2009, Quirky’s products can be found at The Home Depot, Best Buy, Bed Bath & Beyond, Target, Amazon.com, and of course—Quirky.com.

About Mattel

The Mattel family of companies (Nasdaq: MAT) is the worldwide leader in the design, manufacture and marketing of toys and family products. Mattel’s portfolio of best-selling brands includes Barbie^®, the most popular fashion doll ever produced, Hot Wheels^®, Monster High^®, American Girl^®, Thomas & Friends^® and Fisher-Price^® brands, including Little People^® and Power Wheels^®, MEGA^® Brands, including MEGA BLOKS^® and RoseArt^®, as well as a wide array of entertainment-inspired toy lines. In 2014, Mattel ranked No. 5 on Corporate Responsibility Magazine’s “100 Best Corporate Citizens” list. With worldwide headquarters in El Segundo, Calif., Mattel’s companies employ 31,000 people in 40 countries and territories and sell products in more than 150 nations. At Mattel, we are Creating the Future of Play. Visit us at www.mattel.com, www.facebook.com/mattel or www.twitter.com/mattel.