Your gift list is long, the holidays are approaching, and you want more of this year’s shopping to come from Canadian brands. You might be surprised to learn how many kid favourites come from companies in our own backyard.

We’ve rounded up three Canadian toy brands that we love gifting, and that kids love unwrapping. Choosing them is an easy way to support Canadian businesses and the people behind them.

Canadian Toy Brands on Our Gift List

Here are some Canadian picks from our toy category that we keep adding back into our carts for birthdays and holidays, and what makes each one a good gift.

Great Pretenders

Great Pretenders is a Canadian-owned dress-up brand from Point Edward, Ontario, known for costumes that turn kids into knights, dragons, fairies, and princesses for the afternoon. Its parent company, Creative Education of Canada, has been based in southwestern Ontario since 1989.

They offer everything from full gowns, capes, and tunics to wands and sticker earrings that make easy stocking stuffers. Most costumes are sized for kids 3 to 8, and they’re a natural pick for any kid who lives for imaginative play.

Shop Great Pretenders at Well.ca

Cherrypick

Cherrypick is a Canadian kids’ brand started by a mom who couldn’t find modern playroom decor she actually liked. Their best-known product is the Magic Playwall, a peel-and-stick wall decal that kids can draw on with dry-erase markers or chalk.

If your kid loves to draw, the Playwall gives them plenty of space for their next big idea, and cleanup just takes a damp cloth. At 37 by 24 inches, it turns a bare patch of wall into a screen-free art station.

The Playwall also doubles as a magnetic board, so kids can build with tiles or spell out words with letters. Cherrypick makes magnetic letter sets and dustless chalk crayons to go with it, and all of their products are third-party safety tested and made with non-toxic materials.

Shop Cherrypick at Well.ca

PlaSmart

PlaSmart is an Ottawa-based toy company founded by Tim Kimber in 2003. They’re best known for the PlasmaCar, a ride-on toy for ages 3 and up that kids power just by turning the steering wheel. There are no batteries, pedals, or gears, so there’s nothing to charge or replace.

It’s a fun way to keep kids moving, especially in a Canadian winter. On a long, snowy afternoon, it turns the kitchen floor into a racetrack. Once the weather warms up, it’s just as fun on a smooth driveway or path. It holds up to 220 lbs on smooth surfaces, which means older siblings can take a turn (and so can you). For kids who’d rather stand, PlaSmart also makes scooters.

Shop PlaSmart at Well.ca

Make This Year’s Gift List a Little More Canadian

Buying Canadian can be as easy and as fun as anything else you shop for. From knight costumes to kitchen-floor races, there’s a homegrown brand for every kind of play. Whatever ends up under the tree this year, you’ll know your gift dollars are staying closer to home.

When you’re ready, browse the Well.ca Holiday Toy Shop to find something for every kid on your list.