Big Take Asia An American Toymaker Struggles to Break Up With China
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Oct 28, 2025 Alana Woldenberg-Ruffman, Vice President of Marketing and Product Development at Learning Resources, shares insights on the challenges of relocating toy manufacturing from China to Vietnam. She discusses the impact of U.S. tariffs that prompted their shift and the complexities involved in building a new supply chain. Alana highlights Vietnam's rapid industrial growth and the challenges of local labor and automation. She also addresses how reliance on Chinese components continues to affect production costs.
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Family Toy Company Faces China Shift
- Learning Resources is a family-run toymaker led by Alana Woldenberg-Ruffman and her father Rick Woldenberg.
- Many of its flagship toys like Botley have long been made in China and sold through major US retailers.
Tariffs Forced Legal Fight And Supply Moves
- The 2025 tariffs were a sudden shock that forced firms to choose between legal fights and costly supply-chain changes.
- Learning Resources sued the administration and won a lower court ruling but still faces ongoing uncertainty as the case advances.
China's Manufacturing Ecosystem Is Hard To Replace
- China built decades of specialized manufacturing expertise and sourcing networks that are hard to replicate.
- That deep infrastructure makes moving production away slow, costly, and incomplete.