Jodi’s Journal: Of mice and memorable experiences

June 29, 2025

If you’ve never heard of Marileg – and I hadn’t until I wrote this column – stick with me for a quick trip to Child’s Play Toys in downtown Sioux Falls.

It’s where you’ll discover the Danish company’s line of toys, built around small whimsical mice. There’s the mouse house farm house.

There are mice on bikes. There’s a rather adorable camper set.

It’s all done in an appealing aesthetic with a retro twist – I mean, how cute is this fridge – designed to appeal to everyone from Instagramming moms to discerning grandparents.

Since store owner Nancy Savage saw it in Minneapolis and began carrying it this year, Marileg has proven to connect with her customers in a big way.

“It’s just amazing,” she said. “In one month, it was our second-best vendor next to (collectible stuffed toy line) Jellycat.”

Unlike her other shoppers, I managed to leave without a few mice of my own for gifts.

But I bet these kids and their families didn’t.

They were guests of Child’s Play Toys for one of two tea parties hosted by the store – the first filled up so fast another was added.

While hearing a story, the kids were treated to a menu crafted by local small-business friends: Chilled Bonita peach tea created by The Spice & Tea Exchange, finger sandwiches and chocolate chip scones created by The Cookie Jar Eatery and special Maileg sprinkle cake made by Oh My Cupcakes.

There were crafts, a photo booth and a take-home Marileg butterfly.

Not surprisingly, the young guests literally ate it up.

So did Megan Simonson of Sweet Pea Sales, the Twin Cities-based representative who works with Savage on the Marileg line and came to Sioux Falls to watch.

“It’s very unique,” she said. “This is my first one, and this is the first store (in Sioux Falls) to carry it. It’s a great event.”

It’s also a great example of retailers thinking creatively to capture consumers’ attention.

Let’s unpack everything that Child’s Play Toys did right here.

First, Savage knew her customer well enough to know that Marileg would be a hit. To be clear: The stuffed mice are tiny, but the price tag isn’t exactly.

Still, a quality product with a collectible element sells at her store – and these certainly are proving it.

Then, she crafted an experience designed to bring people into the store, with limited availability, that all but guaranteed sales of the product line.

She also easily could have turned the tea parties into revenue-generating events and incredibly chose to offer them for free, which is a pretty amazing example of customer appreciation. However, I’m guessing that after a fabulous free activity, parents and grandparent were even more likely to leave with purchases.

She reached out to tell me about it, too – which I subjectively think was a good PR strategy, of course!

This isn’t new for this store, by the way. I went to something similar for the Jellycat line here this spring – and that was as simple as creating a bakery-themed area for the checkout, which still drew massive response.

“That’s what you have to do anymore. You have to have experiences,” Savage said. “I’ve said that forever, but it’s more important than ever.”

She’s right. Discretionary consumer spending still exists, and shoppers are still willing to indulge. While the competition for time and money is heightened, those who provide the right overall value proposition are still going to come out ahead.

I saw a similar approach at work recently for the Ballard Building restaurant group, owners of Parker’s Bistro, Myrtle’s Fur Vault, DaDa Gastropub and Club David.

All four are partnering in monthly events themed around offering unique global cuisine and cultural experiences. These are dishes you don’t often see on Sioux Falls restaurant menus, combined with immersive experiences from dance to live music to guest speakers. Go to enough of them and you’ll be invited to a secret final culinary experience.

Also smart: The restaurants are offering each over two days, which is wise given that I think many people make plans last minute and struggle to commit if there’s only one option.

“I think it’s a fun way for people to get involved in something where the point is not to make it cost an arm and a leg, just make it a fun street food experience,” owner Stacy Newcomb said.

“Downtown is changing so much, and that certainly has an effect on everything with an existing business. It challenges you to dig in pretty deep and try to figure out what else a downtown might need or want and get creative.”

Obviously, events like these are one element of a business’ bigger strategy, but it’s great to see local retailers and restaurateurs thinking differently and trying new ways to succeed in a challenging environment. Let’s do our part by supporting them.

By the way, if I do end up indulging in a product by Marileg, it probably will be this one: a play set designed around the fairy tale “The Princess and the Pea” – a story about a princess who could feel a tiny pea underneath layers of mattresses and featherbeds.

It’s a good metaphor for this retail reminder. Small things can create powerful responses.

The post Jodi’s Journal: Of mice and memorable experiences appeared first on SiouxFalls.Business.