American Greetings
American Greetings is a greeting card company, and in the late 1970s it did something that had not really been tried: it set up a division whose job was to invent characters that could leave the card. Those Characters From Cleveland produced Strawberry Shortcake, then Care Bears, then Popples, and the method was consistent — design the character first, license it to a toy company, then let television follow the toys rather than the other way round.
About American Greetings
American Greetings is a greeting card company, and in the late 1970s it did something that had not really been tried: it set up a division whose job was to invent characters that could leave the card. Those Characters From Cleveland produced Strawberry Shortcake, then Care Bears, then Popples, and the method was consistent — design the character first, license it to a toy company, then let television follow the toys rather than the other way round. It is the inversion of how Disney or Warner worked, and for a decade it was extremely effective. The Care Bears arrived on cards in 1981, as Kenner toys in 1983, and in cinemas in 1985.
The characters were designed for cards and licensed outward — the reverse of the studio model, and the reason the artwork is flat, symmetrical and easy to reproduce.
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Key eras
| Era | Years | What happened |
|---|---|---|
| Those Characters From Cleveland | 1977–1980 | A division created to invent licensable characters. |
| Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears | 1980–1985 | Cards first, then toys, then film and television. |
| Licensing | 1985– | Sustained nostalgia licensing, particularly in apparel. |