With the publication of the annual Sunday Times Fast Track 100 supplement on Sunday, Silver Cross was absolutely delighted to be once again announced as one of Great Britain’s fastest growing private companies, finishing at number 3 in the final list of the top 100 fastest growing firms.
The iconic British pram manufacturer has risen into the top 3 from 12th in last year’s listing, and this success has much to do with the company’s entrepreneurship and the ability to move nimbly and react to changeable market conditions. Silver Cross chairman, Alan Halsall was understandably thrilled by the result, stating:
“We are absolutely delighted with where we are in the list, although it has absolutely nothing to do with me but everything to do with the team we have at Silver Cross. Don’t forget this is a re-birth of a company; this is a fantastic brand and our appeal continues.”
With exciting developments and new products planned for 2009, Silver Cross looks set to consolidate the strong position developed over the last few years, and Mr Halsall (pictured below) went on to comment:
“Major investment is coming to fruition in 2009 with new products. This Yorkshire company is moving forward, and there are fantastic opportunities open to us because we have great brand name and a great team of people. We have to offer not only great British design, but also brilliant value for money. In the present economic climate offering value for money is more important than ever.”
Click on the links below to read more about Silver Cross and Fast Track 100:
This Christmas, the iconic Silver Cross Oberon Doll’s Pram looks to be the hot gift for little girls, as the classic design has appeared in the ‘Star Style Ultimate Christmas Gift Guide’ in popular celebrity magazine Heat.
The weekly celebrity favourite title featured the Oberon alongside a host of other stylish Christmas gifts in the feature, and it’s no surprise considering the list of celebrities who own Silver Cross Doll’s Prams already: Hollywood A-listers Gwyneth Paltrow and Angelina Jolie, top R’n'B crooner P Diddy and England footballer Steven Gerrard have all taken Silver Cross toys for their little girls. To read more about Oberon, click on the button below:
Silver Cross is certainly the flavour of the month for families in New York City who enjoy the finer things in life, as an article in The New York Daily News proved recently.
The ever popular daily newspaper set out to find New York’s most expensive and luxurious goods, and in the stroller category, they named the classic hand built Balmoral as the nursery product to own, mentioning the timeless British pram’s hand sprung chassis, leather suspension straps and hand spoked wheels. The piece also mentioned a few of the many celebrity Silver Cross owners such as Jennifer Lopez and Helena Bonham Carter.
With A-list names like these, it’s no wonder the Balmoral is seen as the height of luxury for little stars everywhere! To read more about the Silver Cross Balmoral Pram, click on the link below.
The Great British success story that is Silver Cross once again appeared in the financial press at the weekend, with Financial Times writer Lucy Killgren interviewing Silver Cross Chairman, Alan Halsall.
The piece, intriguingly entitled “Man who pimped P. Diddy’s pram” tracked Mr Halsall’s meteoric progress with the iconic nursery brand; from receivership in 2002 through to the dynamic international business - with turnover in excess of 21M - that Silver Cross has become today.
The article also made reference to a number of celebrity owners, mentioning a host of A-list celebrities who own Silver Cross products including Madonna, Jennifer Lopez and Sean “P Diddy” Combs (hence the headline). You can read the Financial Times article in it’s entirety by clicking on the link to FT.com below.
Preparations for Halloween are in full swing in Hollywood, with stars and their kids flocking to celebrity favourite ‘Mr Bones Pumpkin Patch’ to choose their pumpkins for the spooky season.
Celebrity Silver Cross owner Marcia Cross was amongst the A-listers to visit the popular Halloween spot, along with her daughters Eden and Savannah and husband Tom Mahoney. The Desperate Housewives star pushed little Savannah in the Blueberry Dazzle stroller (pictured above), while Tom pushed Eden in the Grape example. Other celebrities shopping for halloween pumpkins included spiderman star Tobey Maguire, Gwen Stefani and Tori Spelling. Many thanks to celebrity-gossip for the pic; click here for more!
Following the fantastic announcement of Silver Cross as top nursery brand in the annual UK Superbrands awards, The Sunday Telegraph ran a Superbrands suplement featuring all that is good in British trade, industry and manufacture.
The suplement extensively featured Silver Cross as a a talisman of UK industry, forging into global markets and leading the world in the field of nursery design. Top business writer Kevin Coyd wrote:
“A UK heritage can be an advantage in more niche markets, as shown by pram manufacturer Silver Cross - a brand that has seen remarkable growth in overseas markets and a leap of 126 places in the Superbrands top 500, from 227 to 101. It’s British pedigree could scarcely be more impressive. Silver Cross is the world’s oldest nursery brand and it’s prams have been relied upon by the Royal Family for more than a century. More recently, Anglophile celebrities such as Madonna, Nicole Kidman and Jennifer Lopez have ensured that the company’s products have become a fixture in glossy magazines.”
Kevin went on to quote Silver Cross chairman, Alan Halsall, who stated; “Internationally, brands with our sort of heritage produce a warm feeling among consumers. We’ve developed over a long period of time, and people have a high regard for British workmanship.”
The expansion of the Silver Cross brand into international markets was the subject of a nice story in The Sunday Times at the weekend. The piece, featured in the business section of the perennial broadsheet favourite, focused on the burgeoning relationship with Chinese distribution partner Goodbaby.
Along with pictures from the recent Balmoral Pram photo shoot in London and celebrity Silver Cross owner Helena Bonham Carter, business commentator Matthew Goodman wrote about the new Silver Cross presence in China through Goodbaby’s Beijing store and how it is hoped that the country will become a key market for Silver Cross in the future.
For Hollywood star Minnie Driver, the next few weeks are going to be amongst the most magical of her life as her first child is due to arrive in August; and to ensure that mini Driver has nothing but the best, the oscar & emmy-nominated actress has chosen a Silver Cross Dazzle Stroller in Grape for her special delivery!
Minnie Driver first shot to fame in the nineties in high-profile movies such as Circle of Friends, Good Will Hunting (for which she gained her oscar nomination) and brilliant hitman romcom Grosse Pointe Blank. Following on from these (and other) successes, Miss Driver enjoyed further starring roles on the small screen too, with appearences as Lorraine Finster in Will & Grace and more recently as Dahlia Malloy in hit black comedy The Riches . In addition to her acting portfolio, Minnie is a talented musician, having released two albums; Everything I’ve Got In My Pocket from 2004 and Seastorieslast year.
After publicly announcing her pregnancy in March on the Tonight Show With Jay Leno, the identity of her new baby’s father has remained a closely guarded secret, although rumours suggest that musician Craig Zolezzi is the man in question. Minnie has stated that she’s hoping for a little girl.
Sci-fi anoraks in the Silver Cross team were absolutely delighted this week as star of the smash hit X Files TV and movie series, Gillian Anderson (aka Special Agent Dana Scully) became another A-list celebrity to choose the Silver Cross Dazzle Stroller for her forthcoming baby, this time in the stylish Pumpkin colourway.
The Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning actress has recently reprised her role as Agent Scully alongside brooding alien hunter Special Agent Fox Mulder (co-star David Duchovny) in the new X Files movie: I Want to Believe. This follows further high-profile outings as Sarah Merrit in Oscar-winning film The Last King of Scotland and as Lady Dedlock in the BBC’s fine adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Bleak House.
Gillian and her partner, Mark Griffiths are expecting their second baby together. Their latest special little agent will join Oscar (their two-year-old son) and Piper, Gillian’s 13-year-old daughter from a previous relationship.
The stylish Silver Cross Dazzle stroller continues to grab the attention of Hollywood’s A-list, with a whole gaggle of celebrity dads deciding that the chic urban stroller is the choice for their babies.
Grammy award-winning megastar Usher and his wife Tameka Foster have chosen a Cosmic Black Dazzle for their son Usher Raymond V.
Following the conclusion of the Jason Bourne trilogy, all action heart throb and good will hunter Matt Damon will be pushing his new baby around in a Cosmic Black Dazzle too. Damon and his wife Luciana are expecting a second little girl to join their first daughter together, Isabella.
Web-slinging Spiderman star Tobey Maguire is another action hero to take a Black Dazzle. He, wife Jennifer Meyer and their first daughter Ruby are eagerly awaiting the arrival of another spiderling.
After the recent arrival of their newborn son Levi, chiselled hunk Matthew McConaughey and his Brazilian beauty Camila Alves also joined the Silver Cross party with a Cosmic Black example.
Hollywood funnyman and Tenacious D rocker Jack Black is also now the proud owner of a Dazzle, this time in the stylish Blueberry colourway. The Kung Fu Panda star and his cello-bowing wife, Tanya Haden have recently had a second son, Tommy, who joins big brother Sammy in the Black household.
Star of adolescent lupine movie Teen Wolf Too and superhero comedy Hancock; Jason Bateman is now also a celebrity Dazzler as he and wife Amanda Anka have chosen a Cosmic Black stroller for daughter Francesca.
And finally, Sex and the City’s Mr Big, Chris Noth and his actress girlfriend Tara Wilson have taken a Silver Cross Dazzle in the funky Pumpkin colourway for their son Orion.
Silver Screen star Marcia Cross and her seventeen-month-old twin daughters Eden & Savannah (above) enjoy the sunshine whilst waiting for husband/daddy Tom Mahoney after a trip to the swimming baths in Santa Monica last weekend.
The Desperate Housewives star certainly showed her keen eye for fashion, with the beautiful twins safe and happy in a pair of super-chic Silver Cross Dazzle Strollers. Marcia, who has achieved global recognition for her performances as highly-strung perfectionist Bree Hodge in the hit US show was in relaxed mood as the family enjoyed their swim, and little Eden (pictured in the Blueberry Dazzle) and Savannah (in the Grape Dazzle) had a great time splashing with mom and dad. Thanks to celebrity baby blog for the pic. You can read celebrity baby blog’s review of the Silver Cross Dazzle here.
The seventeenth of July saw the proud launch of the Silver Cross brand in China. The Shanghai Nursery Fair is China’s (and one of the world’s) largest events of it’s kind, attracting a wide spectrum of high profile buyers from across China. Silver Cross has teamed up with one of the most prestigious nursery and children’s product distributors: Goodbaby Group. Goodbaby have a range of Chinese nursery stores and currently hold exclusive distribution rights for the Nike Kids and Miniman Fashion ranges for China.
The event was a huge success, with the world’s oldest nursery brand attracting a new and excited Chinese audience. With China fast becoming one of the world’s superpowers, the blossoming middle classes are keen to embrace the cream of western quality and design. Mr Shen - International Brand Manager of Goodbaby commented; “We have had a wonderful reaction to Silver Cross products at the show and we’re confident that the brand will have a bright future in China.”
. Silver Cross has climbed an impressive 126 places to position number 101 on the prestigious Superbrands list ahead of such well known names as Pepsi, Orange and Walkers. Still the UK’s favorite nursery equipment brand, Silver Cross was the second highest Baby Brand after Pampers.
The Superbrand list is created through a robust and entirely independent selection process which seeks the opinions of experts and thousands of individuals administered by The Centre for Brand Analysis (TCBA) on behalf of the Superbrands organisation. Which is why we are so proud of the result!
The Silver Cross Dazzle stroller has once again set tongues wagging as the chic British design has scooped another award, this time winning the prestigious ‘Mom’s Best Award’ in the USA.
The Mom’s Best Network, who’s mission is “to be the BEST resource site in providing reviews and information specifically regarding products and services, as well as retailers that carry these products/services” awarded Dazzle their seal of approval after putting the stroller through the toughest test of all; being used by mothers and their babies. The testers were delighted with the stylish stroller, particularly the light weight and eyecatching fabrics. Here’s what moms had to say:
“The Dazzle is easy to fold and the recline is great for newborns through toddlers.”
“It’s so lightweight and such a pretty colour.”
“It’s very lightweight, easy to maneuver and the colours are great.”
“I really liked this product - nothing about it needs improving.”
Academy Award-nominated actress Cate Blanchett certainly knows how to transport little Ignatius in style, showing off her dazzling side when arriving in the UK at Heathrow airport recently.
The Australian A-lister has been visiting England to promote her latest Hollywood blockbuster; Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, in which she stars alongside craggy-faced whip cracker Harrison Ford, who reprises his role as peril-dodging trinket collector Dr Indiana Jones. Despite having her three-month-old baby boy to look after, Cate was taking it all in her stride, travelling with the super-chic Dazzle stroller and soft cot combination to keep Ignatius safe and warm during their long journey.
Cate is picture above arriving smiling with Ignatius and her Dazzle at Heathrow (thanks to celebrity-gossip.net for the pic) and below as Irina Spalko in the new Indiana Jones movie (thanks to indianajones.com for the pic).
Whilst hubby Lleyton was getting on with the important business of trying to win the championships at The All England Lawn Tennis Club, former Home & Away star Bec Hewitt was keeping busy around Wimbledon village, pushing baby Mia around in their stylish Silver Grey Dazzle stroller.
The Hewitts have recently announced that baby Mia will be getting a new baby brother or sister in January and have been on tour in europe while grand slam winner Lleyton played in the French Open and Wimbledon. Unfortunately for the celebrity pair, the racket-wielding Aussie’s progress in both events was short-lived, losing a titanic five-setter to fifth seed David Ferrer in the 3rd round at Roland Garros and crashing out of Wimbledon in the 4th round to eventual runner-up Roger Federer.
On June 10th, Silver Cross and a gaggle of technical staff went on the road , all in the cause of fashion as we descended on one of the quieter corners of Islington for a photo shoot starring the classic Balmoral Pram.
Top fashion model Jen Dawson was on hand to provide the glamour, while London-based photographer Jonny Storey took the snaps. The shoot took place in a number of locations and included a host of great still images, along with some dynamic video. The results will be arriving on international Silver Cross sites in the next two months, so watch this space…
Click play on the video to take a peek behind the scenes!
Following on from the successful showcases in Hong Kong, Silver Cross Asia is further developing it’s in store experience with a brand new display in the high-profile Forum Shopping Mall in Singapore.
The showcase, which sits in the main entrance lobby of the enormous mall, features standing space for Silver Cross strollers and a multimedia screen playing Silver Cross videos throughout the day. The stand will be initially used to promote the stylish Dazzle Stroller (pictured above), with plans to use it for the launch of POP & Fizz in July/August time.
For most parents, making sure that their new baby is kept safe usually means a shopping trip to get hold of all the latest, safety-conscious prams, highchairs and car seats, but for parents in Northern Spain, keeping baby safe means something completely different!
In a bizarre festival known as El Salto del Colacho (Spanish for ‘the jump of the devil’), babies born in the previous twelve months are dressed in their Sunday best and laid on mattresses in the streets of Castrillo de Murcia, near Burgos. Then men dressed as devils, carrying whips and truncheons, jump over babies by the dozen. This outlandish practice is said to protect the babies from evil spirits and illness. The festival, which originated in 1621, occurs every year on the Sunday following Corpus Christi, a Roman Catholic holiday observed across Spain.
The pictures above show the aerobatic devils in flight over unsuspecting tots. ‘El Colacho’ is pictured below in full diabolical regalia.
Mother & Baby have been conducting the latest lightweight pushchair like-for-like test in a bid to find out which strollers are best of breed.
The test was conducted by three mums and featured 6 different pushchairs from various manufacturers. The testers were considering criteria such as weight, practicality, style/looks and overall value. The Silver Cross POP pushchair proved to be the cream of the crop; recieving a four star rating and the coveted ‘best value’ award. Here’s what the M&B testers had to say about POP:
Gemma: “Getting my daughter in and out was a doddle. It’s also just the right height whether you’re tall or small.” Charlotte: “Smooth to push, sturdy and the basket is a good size. Good reclining positions and it’s easy to change the seating position with a child in place, too” Stacey: “Lovely to push and a smooth ride. The harness is easy to adjust, the raincover fixes on easily and it’s easy to recline the seat.”
In summary, Mother & Baby said: “Good value and good quality, our testers loved it!”
