The Birth of King Marbles

It was the year 2009 when my grandson Harry came downstairs at the house my daughter Rebecca and I shared, clutching a bunch of marbles. It must have been 43 years since I last held any marbles. Harry, with his wide-eyed enthusiasm, asked me to play a game with him. As there was one larger marble and twelve smaller marbles of various styles, I decided we’d choose six each, roll the larger one first, and see whose marbles landed closest. We played this way for a while, and Harry thoroughly enjoyed selecting his six marbles each round.

However, about fifteen minutes into our game, Harry’s sister, Emily, came downstairs and was upset that we were playing with her marbles. She had never played with them before! The look on her face made me realise we needed another set of marbles to avoid further conflicts.

Determined to get Harry his own set, I drove into Newport city centre and walked the length of the High Street, searching for a shop that sold marbles. Despite my best efforts, I had no luck. Undeterred, I drove to Cardiff and headed to Toys “R” Us. After a fruitless search through the aisles, I asked the lady at the till, who directed me to the enquiry counter. The man there admitted they had some marbles in the back but hadn’t put them on the shelves yet. With this disappointing information, I headed home, resolved to find a solution.

I turned to the internet and began researching where I could buy marbles. Eventually, I found a manufacturer in China willing to supply marbles, but I ended up purchasing £20,000 worth of them. I then set about designing unique header cards for each style of marbles, giving each set its own distinctive name.

Having just paid £20,000, I started to panic. It was a full 20-foot container I had ordered, and it dawned on me that I had no customers. After a change of underpants and a deep breath, I spent many days scouring the globe to find some buyers. Luckily, I found two fantastic customers on the other side of the world in Australia and New Zealand.

Slightly more relieved, I arranged for four pallets of marbles to be delivered to Chelmsford, where I was living part-time. I stressed that they needed to deliver in the afternoon to give me time to travel from Newport. However, the delivery company, in their infinite wisdom, decided to deliver mid-morning to the house without any outside parking, on the busiest road in Chelmsford, on December 23rd. My girlfriend at the time, Miriam, had to see the delivery in, and the large lorry had to park across the road. The four pallets were wheeled across with a hand pump, causing a commotion on the busy street.

All the while, I was getting frantic phone calls while driving up the M4, asking where I was. Thankfully, Miriam managed to find some willing workers to help, which alleviated the horrendous situation. By the last phone call from the importer asking what was happening, I was so exasperated that I felt like telling the driver he could put the marbles up his backside for all I cared! To this day, I still have nightmares about that chaotic delivery. But in the end, everything worked out well, and King Marbles was born.

That Christmas, Harry had his own set of marbles, and I had embarked on a new adventure. The initial panic subsided as I realised the potential of what I had started. King Marbles grew, and so did the stories that came with each unique set. It was the beginning of a journey that would bring joy to children and collectors around the world, and it all started with a simple game with my grandson.