IP protection

How we keep your design yours

The first question anyone asks before sending a character to a factory is: will you make it for someone else? A promise is not an answer. Below are five commitments, each with the thing you can ask for to check it.

1 · NDA before artwork

We sign before we see anything — a style guide, an unreleased character, a launch date. We will sign your template or send ours. Nothing is reviewed until both signatures are on it.

You can verify: ask for the signed copy before you send the file. If a supplier asks to "see it first so we can quote", that is the wrong order.

2 · Limited access to design files

Files sit in a project folder accessible only to named people on your account. Not the whole office, not a shared drive.

You can verify: ask for the list of names who will have access, and the name of the person who removes it when the project closes.

3 · Production isolation

Your order runs as its own job. Samples and overruns are counted and recorded, and are either added to your shipment or destroyed on written instruction — they do not become stock.

You can verify: ask for the overrun figure in the pre-shipment report, and where the rejected parts went.

4 · No cross-customer showing

Your design is never shown to another customer. Licensed samples do not enter our showroom and do not appear on this website without written permission.

You can verify: search our site for your character. If it is there without your permission, that is a breach you can point to.

5 · Rights holders and licensees only

We produce IP-based parts only for the rights holder or a licensed party who can show authorisation. We will not produce unlicensed copies of third-party characters, however large the order.

You can verify: ask what evidence we require before starting a licensed job. A factory that cannot answer this has never done one properly.

The line we will not cross

We produce IP-based products only when you are the rights holder or a licensed party. We do not accept unauthorised derivative work of well-known characters, and we will say no even when the order is large.

If you are building something new, that is a different conversation and one we like better: we can help develop an original character from a rough sketch, and the resulting IP is yours.

Why this protects you too: a factory willing to copy someone else's character for you is also willing to copy yours for the next buyer. The rule is the same rule in both directions.

What that means for the photos on this site

Most factories fill their product pages with whoever's character happened to be in the sample bin that day. We do not. Every product photo you see here falls into one of two groups: a generic or seasonal subject (Santa, snowman, zodiac animals), or a character we developed ourselves. Nothing else goes up.

So when a product page shows an illustration instead of a photograph, that is not a gap we have been too lazy to fill — it is the rule working. We would rather show you a drawing than a competitor's licensed character.

You can check this. Search this site for your character. If it appears without your permission, that is a breach you can hold us to.
Real samples travel privately. When you send an enquiry, we will show you the work that matches your project, under NDA, in a private gallery — not on a public page.
Generic work still proves the capability. Mould quality, colour matching, strap printing and plating do not change because the character is generic. What you are evaluating is the process, and that is fully visible.

Frequently asked

Will you sign my NDA or do I have to sign yours?

Either. Most customers send their own template and we sign it. If you do not have one, we will send a mutual NDA that covers design files, volumes and launch dates.

Who owns the mold?

You do, once the tooling fee is paid. We store it free for two years, will not run it for anyone else, and will return or destroy it on written instruction.

Can you produce a licensed character?

Only if you are the rights holder or a licensed party who can show authorisation. We do not produce unlicensed copies — that is a hard rule, not a negotiating position.

Will my product appear in your portfolio or on this website?

Not without written permission. Licensed samples stay out of our showroom and off the site by default, and we will tell you in writing if we ever want to ask.

What happens to the samples and overruns?

They are counted and reported. You can add them to your shipment or instruct us to destroy them, and we confirm destruction in writing.

I am launching a new character, not licensing one. Does this apply?

Yes, and it matters more, because an unreleased character is the most valuable thing you have. NDA first, then artwork — and we can help develop original IP rather than copying someone else’s.

Send your spec, get a quote

Tell us what you need and how many. within 1 business day (GMT+8) — usually much sooner. If you already have a drawing or 3D file, attach it and skip the back-and-forth.