Hi there, our names are Alyssa and Lakin East and we are creating the Lions Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme Business, Smile Bears. 

Together we are creating cuddly teddy bears with medical accessories mirroring common medical conditions in New Zealand.

Our vision for Smile Bears is to provide emotional security and comfort for children through our bears, as well as driving positive change. We hope to bring out children’s creativity and imagination to role-play with a toy with the same condition as them. By designing bears that reflect medical conditions we aim to help children feel seen, understood, and empowered with confidence. 

As a socially responsible business, we are dedicated to promoting normalization and build awareness of medical conditions like Type 1 Diabetes. To support this mission we will be donating 10% of our profit this year to Diabetes Youth Canterbury, which is an organization that arranges events for youth with type 1 diabetes, allowing people with the same condition to form friendships, and feel a sense of belonging. 

Our business idea came about after April last year when our younger brother, Ashwyn, was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. We took notice of the fact that there wasn't a single toy in New Zealand stores with an insulin pump or glucose sensor like Ashwyn has. Fast forward to today, we have made a range with 2 bears, the Bear with Diabetes and the Hearing Loss Bear, which we are currently perfecting, ready for our product release later on this term. 

Recently we both were tasked with pitching our product and business to YES judges. From this we placed second in our region. Additionally, we recently attended Summit 24, a Youth Business Conference to extend our knowledge and establish valuable contacts. 

So keep an eye out for the upcoming release of our products. Find us on Tiktok at https://www.tiktok.com/@smile.bears6 or jump on our website at https://smilebears.company.site/

If there is a medical condition you would like Smile Bears to create a bear for, please fill out the form below:

https://forms.gle/YZp6VduxktvjQnbn7