Initiatives of theHamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft
David Amoateng didn't want to give his niece a white doll. But he couldn't find any alternatives in Germany. The Hamburg-based founder is now closing the gap in the market himself – and, with the support of Hamburg Kreativ Gesellschaft, is bringing more diversity into the nursery.
Henry, Mira and Kwame sit in the back seat of the old Renault. In the front, David Amoateng pushes a tape into the cassette recorder of his small car and tells his story. How a shopping trip turned into a business idea. And how the three dolls in the back seat bring everything together: His entrepreneurial spirit, the family connection to Ghana and the desire to improve the upbringing of children all over the world.
"Dolls in Germany are almost all white. And the few dolls with a different skin colour have a lot of stereotypes sewn into them."
Right from the start: As a trained social economist and without children, David Amoateng actually had little to do with the German toy market. That changed with the birth of his first niece. "I just wanted to give her a doll," he says on the way out of Hamburg's city centre traffic. One that she can identify with, that is made from organic materials and fairly produced. One that would accompany her not just for a few years, but ideally for her whole life. But after a short period of research, David realises that this is more difficult than expected. Because almost all dolls in Germany are white. And the few dolls with a different skin colour have a lot of stereotypes sewn into them. David Amoateng only found what he was looking for in Amsterdam - and when he made the purchase, his quiet indignation was replaced by the feeling that there was an opportunity in the annoyance after all. "That was the starting point for Little Ashé."
As we drive towards the North Sea, the January sun breaks through the cloud cover. "The first thing I did was take a doll workshop with a designer to get a feel for the complexity," says David Amoateng. There are more than a hundred steps involved in making a doll. "Together with our product designer Sue Göldner, who has been with us since day one, I then worked out our designs and patterns." With the first doll, he set out to find a manufacturing partner - including in Ghana, the country where his father was born. The sewing workshop he wanted should have a manufactory character, and the quality and craftsmanship of the dolls should ultimately be recognisable. In addition, children's products that are sold on the European market must fulfil high standards and guidelines. As he was unable to find a suitable company, he and his friend from university and current business partner Gideon Frimpong Baah, whom he had met in China, quickly set up two tailoring centres in Ghana. Today, a good twenty employees are involved in the realisation of Little Ashé products, under fair working conditions and wages, as David Amoateng says.
When a batch is ready, it is packaged and, after an ocean crossing, reaches the small town of Meldorf in northern Germany. David Amoateng drops by every few weeks, as he did today. The dolls are stored on a large shelf in a spacious hall, organised by product name. We empty one of the plastic bags on the table. Henry, Mira and their contemporaries look at us somewhat mischievously from the side - a deliberate design decision, as David Amoateng explains. "I've spoken to many families who find dolls rather creepy. Their eyes always stare straight ahead, right into the soul. We wanted to do things differently." The hands and feet of the dolls are also marked out during the manufacturing process so that children can playfully learn to count fingers and toes.
Today, his dolls not only sit in the back seat of a car, but also at La Tribune Noire, a shop in Hamburg's creative planet Jupiter, for example. The most important thing for Amoateng, however, is direct sales. Most customers buy via the online shop. "To strengthen our online presence, we took part in the Creative Business Academy and the storytelling programme in 2022," says David Amoateng. Communications experts Djenna Wehenpool and Eva Dietrich worked with the team to develop a brand story that simply and clearly conveys the idea behind Little Ashé.
"To this day, we benefit from a huge network that has not only created great connections, but also friendships."
"Within the programmes, we were able to revise our website, organise photo shoots, take part in exciting workshops and were also provided with a helpful guideline. Participation in all the programmes was pleasantly barrier-free. As a creative person, I don't want to deal with bureaucracy, I want to be given useful tools. Tools that I can later use on my own."
The doll siblings of Henry, Mira and Kwame are checked in Meldorf by employees of the Mensch im Eescher Weg foundation, individually packed and prepared for onward dispatch. David Amoateng remembers how things were different in the beginning: he was still tying up the first parcels in his own living room. He is now supported in the next steps by a broad network: the many connections from the Creative Business Academy. "To this day, we benefit from a huge network that has not only created great connections, but also friendships."
The term "Ashé" comes from the Yoruba language, which is spoken by 30 million people in West Africa. The term means to make things possible and thus bring about change. A name that symbolises the company's path - because it should always continue to develop. In addition to the expansion of the team in Germany, the operations in Ghana will also continue to grow. In the future, the team is also planning to set up a tailoring school that will enable women to live and work more independently.
The big goal: "To become the Steiff for dolls with Little Ashé." To revolutionise the doll market. And not only in Europe, but also on other continents. So that many more children, regardless of skin colour, will find real companions in their toys.
David Amoateng always knew that he wanted to work independently one day. With Little Ashé, the businessman from Neumünster gives himself the opportunity to work with selected people and to be able to say "no" from time to time. At the same time, he stays grounded: He regularly travels between Hamburg and Meldorf in his 20-year-old Emmy, a Renault. What he likes best about his job is being his own boss and being able to devote himself to a wide variety of tasks.
