Beginning At the beginning of production, on March 20, 1985, Sylvanian Families were created and released in
Japan by
Epoch, which uses the concept of dollhouses and anthropomorphic animal figures. The first releases of the dollhouses and other playsets were made of porcelain and the furniture was made of wood, but later releases replaced the materials with plastic and metal in the production. The toys were later released in
North America the same year, but with different
packaging and minor differences to the characters themselves. The toyline was originally titled , but was changed to its current name. "Sylvanian" means "of the forest", from the Roman god
Silvanus. In September 1987, the series spawned an
animated series produced by
DIC Animation City and
TMS Entertainment, which ran for 13 episodes. The series was popular in the UK and
Spain. The name of the television series based on Sylvanian Families was adapted in different countries. It was also shown in the US in the late 1980s on
The CBN Family Channel and in the late 1990s on
PAX TV. Later that same year, the success in these markets led to expansion into
Western Europe, beginning with the UK subsidiary of
Tomy acquiring exclusive rights for the brand in the UK. Tomy introduced Sylvanian Families into the UK market in 1987, and it quickly became a bestseller. By 1988, Sylvanian Families had become a major success around the world, winning the
British Association of Toy Retailers award for "Toy of the Year" three years consecutively, in 1987, 1988 and 1989. In 1993,
Tomy, who had been distributing the toys worldwide, lost the rights to the name "Sylvanian Families" in
Canada and the
US. Tomy reintroduced the line under the new name
Calico Critters of Cloverleaf Corners, now simply just called
Calico Critters. The Calico Critters line is currently distributed in the US and Canada by Epoch Everlasting Play, LLC.
Decline and reinvention By the late 1990s, Sylvanian Families had been discontinued in the UK, although since 1999, they have been reintroduced by
Flair. An independent Sylvanian Families shop opened in 1992 in
Finsbury Park, London. Subsequently, Sylvanian Families have been reintroduced in Australia and are becoming more widely available there. Tomy stopped selling Calico Critters, but a new company, International Playthings, now called Epoch Everlasting Play, picked up the line. In 1999, the toyline celebrated its 15th anniversary in Japan, with the opening of the themed restaurant , which was operated and managed by Epoch. The restaurant not only served food, but also sold merchandise and toys based on the franchise. The restaurant closed in February 2011. In 2004, the franchise celebrated its 20th anniversary in Japan with the release of the Walnut Squirrel Family. That July, Epoch announced a new attraction in Grinpa, a theme park managed by
Fuji Kyuko. The attraction, originally called before it was renamed to , began its construction with Epoch's supervision. In 2005, the franchise hosted its first live event titled which was hosted at the Gekidan Kogumaza Theatre. It was later released on DVD in 2006. In 2006, the characters in the toy line were chosen to be the mascots for the
National Federation of Workers and Consumers Insurance Cooperativess national mutual aid. By the end of the year, the toys sold a total of 78 million units. In 2007, Epoch teamed up with
Itochu,
Nippon Columbia and
Shogakukan to produce a 3D CGI
OVA series based on the toy line produced by Kōji Kawaguchi and Yumiko Muriai and directed by Akira Takamura. All 3 episodes were released on June 20. According to Epoch, more episodes were planned, but these were never produced for unknown reasons. In the UK, Flair celebrated the franchise's 20th anniversary with a selected number of new items. The best selling was an Otter boat, and a reintroduced Dalmatian Family who now wore party hats that read "Happy 20th!". In March 2009, the series celebrated its 25th anniversary in Japan with the opening of the
Sylvanian Gardens attraction in Grinpa. Managed by Epoch, the attraction features real-life replicas of the houses and buildings from the toy line as well as a museum featuring an exhibition about the history of the toys. The attraction also has a shop which sells items exclusive to the park. In 2010, the franchise again hosted two musicals, and , which both became a staple on promoting the toys in conventions. In 2013, the rights for the toys in the UK were transferred to the newly formed Epoch UK, and they began distributing the toys from January 1, 2014 onwards. Flair stopped distributing the toys on December 31 the same year. In 2015, a series of tableaux by the British artist Mimsy featuring Sylvanian Families being threatened by "MICE-IS" terrorists was banned from the
Passion for Freedom exhibition. In 2018, an theme park opened based around the Sylvanian Parks as part of Komorebi Mori no Ibaraido with the grand opening on July 14, and officially opening to the public on June 23. In 2020 to celebrate the 35th anniversary customers were asked to participate in a poll to choose their favourite character with the winner being reintroduced. The sheep family came third, beaver family second and the duck family were announced as the winners. Also in 2020 the second Sylvanian Families park opened in the Osaka's Agricultural park. The Sylvanian Families shop in London was closed in April 2023. ==Setting==