The Olive Branch Toyshop: Our Vision

Our Story

The Olive Branch Toyshop opens:

In October 2016, Julie, Alex and their daughter Holly, opened the doors of The Olive Branch Toyshop, Castle Donington, for the very first time, with excitement and nerves in equal measure! As an independent, family run business situated in the heart of a vibrant East Midlands village, we strive to be a place where everyone feels welcome. With a unique collection of traditional and contemporary toys, books, games and gifts for young and young at heart.

Whether you are looking for gorgeous neutrals for a baby shower, classic characters to welcome a newborn or a traditional Christening gift, we have a variety of beautiful baby gifts to choose from. We are very proud to stock an extensive range of traditional wooden toys for children of all ages including sustainably produced Lanka Kade Fairtrade wooden toys. Learning is made fun through our variety of educational games, puzzles, puppets, craft and construction kits. Additionally, you will also find many innovative and contemporary gifts in our store, jewellery boxes and keepsakes: modern designs of timeless favourites.

Community and Friendship:

To us, The Olive Branch is a symbol of reaching out to those around us, extending a hand of friendship to all who visit us. We aim to put a smile on the face of everyone who comes into the shop! Our knowledgeable, attentive and friendly staff are always on hand to welcome you to our store and help you choose the perfect gift for your special occasion. What’s more, we will even gift wrap it for you free of charge!

We continue to stock an ever increasing range of fun and educational toys and gifts, carefully chosen from ethical and responsible suppliers. We can even arrange the order of a specific item from them: if you can’t see what you are looking for on our website, please feel free to ask! But is does not end there. In addition, we opened the room above our beautiful Olive Branch Toyshop to be a meeting place, available to hire, for our local community. Whether you are looking to host a charity coffee morning, a regular group meeting or a small party, we are happy to help.

Spreading our Branches:

With our village toyshop growing, we then set about widening the branches of our reach. Holly began to share news of our successful shop over social media and our audience has continued to grow. In April 2018, The Olive Branch website was launched to extend our welcome to customers further afield. We strive to offer the same range of high quality, affordable toys and our attentive service to our online community. Furthermore, to thank our loyal customers for their continued support we have established a generous points scheme, because your custom and feedback really do matter to us.

Welcoming our community is central to our vision. With this in mind, we opened the Rainbow Room in January 2019, to provide a large and vibrant space for all ages to enjoy. Just around the corner from the shop, we are delighted host regular classes and craft workshops, led by skilled professionals. We can also host children’s parties and will work with you to make a perfect celebration for your child’s special day.

Whether you are looking for a perfect gift for a special occasion or somewhere to host it, we are happy to help.

We look forward to meeting you!

• BigjigsToys
• Floss & Rock
• GALT Toys
• Green Toys
• Halilit
• Hape
• House of Marbles
• Lanka Kade

• Matchstick Monkey
• Nee Doh
• Orchard Toys
• Rainbow Designs
• Rachel Ellen Designs
• The Puppet Company
• Usborne Books
• Wilberry Toys