The Eperfa project was born out of demand for a developmental children’s toy family linked to locations in Hungary (the Lake Balaton and the Buda mountains). The group formed in February 2014, consisting of Anna Nóra Nagy architect (toy design), Emese Berán (fabric accessories) and Nóra Garbai economist (accompanying poems and texts), was mentored by Imre Branyiczki in the one-year MOME+ program in building an independent business. Concept development, product development, marketing and organizational development were done simultaneously, which enabled the group to establish a working business based on the original draft plans in less than a year. The first members of the toy family, forest animals from the mountains and Balaton fish were in stores by December 2014. The creators sought the opinion of several professional organizations (BirdLife Hungary, the Balaton Uplands National Park, Pilisi Parkerdő Zrt., the Children’s Railway). The high-quality toys are manufactured in Hungary with the involvement of socially disadvantaged people or persons of diminished work ability, using natural materials from Hungary.
"It feels amazing to support an enthusiastic team and experience how the beautiful blueprints become prototypes and finally finished products. The Eperfa team came a very long way from the initial ideas through shaping their exact story through organizing the production of certain toys and accessories to their market launch. Soon they will have to deal with the dilemmas of startup companies. I am very proud of them!" - Dr. Imre Branyiczki, mentor
