Corgi

Mettoy introduced the Corgi range in 1956, with production at its Swansea factory. The first models represented British cars, including the Ford Consul, Austin A50 Cambridge, Morris Cowley, Vauxhall Velox, Rover 90, Riley Pathfinder and Hillman Husky. Clear plastic glazing distinguished the early models, which were promoted as ‘the ones with windows’. Trucks, tractors and fuel tankers joined the range as production expanded. Mettoy was exporting to 100 countries by the end of the 1950s, and its first Corgi product catalogue appeared in 1957.

In the 1960s, Corgi added film and television subjects, including the Aston Martin DB5 from Goldfinger. The maker’s history also records injection-moulded plastic interiors from 1962. In 1970, the Whizzwheels range introduced low-friction wheels. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, falling sales and rising production costs contributed to a quieter period, while manufacturing shifted to more cost-effective facilities in the Far East. The Corgi brand was sold to Mattel in 1989, and production moved to China in 1990.

Corgi became independent again in 1995 as Corgi Classics Limited and moved its headquarters to Leicester. After its 1999 takeover by Zindart International, the range expanded to include Aviation Archive aircraft and Original Omnibus buses. Hornby Hobbies acquired Corgi in 2008. Its later ranges included licensed entertainment models and preschool vehicles, while the company’s history records the introduction of LiDAR scanning to model development and a 2022 1:12-scale motorcycle.