Our story
We are an independent micro-business based in the West Country, and we produce sustainable artisan games.
The company is named after our nicknames: Ian is “Sprout” and Dan “Gherkin” (it’s a long story!).
Dan and Ian got into games design completely by accident. Working for the NHS we had invented a game called “Game of Flow” which helped staff understand hospital flow better.
One lunchtime we were chatting over our sandwiches, and Dan blurted out a random idea he’d had for a word game. “I think you’re on to something”, said Ian, and over the coming months and many paper prototypes over drinks, it evolved into Sproutword. We launched successfully on Kickstarter in 2019, and held our inaugural World Championship in 2020 !
We launched Hedgeways successfully on Kickstarter in 2020. Following a break for Covid, when we were quite busy, we are back with About Turn! - a brilliant card game - in 2023!
We have put a lot of thought into how to be environmentally friendly. We decided from the start that we would have no plastic in our products.
All our wood is sustainable - with a certified FSC core and oak veneer from managed forest plantations in Europe.
The inks used to print onto the wood are UV cured, which means they are more energy efficient and less harmful than solvent based inks.
In terms of our packaging, we use recyclable materials, and, again, no plastic!
Production travel miles are important too - virtually all our game materials are made in a coastal town in Devon, within 100 miles of our base in the beautiful Chalke Valley.
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