A Magical Beginning: Music, Trees & Puggles

Filled with talking trees, whimsical sounds, enchanting smells, engaging Storytellers, and toy versions of over 100 different magical and mythical creatures—including Puggles that continue to live safely beneath our forest trapdoors to the Otherworlds—the first Lost Forests store was planted by well-known Australian musician and toymaker, Anthony Barber.

Thanks to his collaboration with friend and famed Australian musician Billy Thorpe, alongside the McDonnell family, an impressive total of 18 Lost Forests stores were “grown” across Australia, New Zealand, and the USA.

The Legend & The Slides: A World-Famous Toy Shop

Based on the curious legend of Barber’s adventurous Grandfather (retold in our best-selling book ‘The Lost Forests’), our fantastical stores soon became the stuff of legends. People would travel around the world just to visit them… and why not? After all, we were the only toy shop in the world that delivered our most popular toy—the Puggle—down a slide directly to their new owners!

Keeping the Magic Alive Today

While economic shifts in the 90s forced The Lost Forests stores to take an extended pause, the magic never faded. Tony has since moved on from the business, but in 2017 we planted the seed for a brand-new store at Melbourne’s District Docklands.

These days, The Lost Forests experience continues to be owned and operated by the McDonnell family. Our original stores still evoke fond memories for all who visited them in their youth, and our team looks forward to planting more Lost Forests throughout the world in the coming years.

The Lost Forests stands for Peace, Understanding, Gentleness, Generosity, Love, and Energy—just like every Puggle does!