Luki Lab, known for its original toys, has its eyes firmly set on 2026 and is roaring out of the gates faster than a Flat 2 Fast Card Racer.
“It’s been an interesting five years if you look at it, but in reality, it has been a blessing for us,” explains Luki Lab CEO Didier Pietri. “We had to adapt and be very creative at the core of the company.”
Pietri, who jokes that he is “known as the Prince of Timing,” started Luki Lab in 2019, “basically nine months” before the global pandemic. “And of course, during COVID-19, you have no more tricks, you are not able to meet with reps, you’re not able to go anywhere,” he shares, adding that the pandemic was swiftly followed by market disruption and tariffs.
For Luki Lab, the past few years have been dedicated to building new brands. It currently has 23 unique brands in its portfolio, shipping 550 containers of toys annually. The company introduced several brands last year, including a few that debuted at Astra Marketplace & Academy in San Antonio.
Pietri joined Luki Lab’s parent company, Strottman International, as CEO after a long tenure at The Walt Disney Co., where he held numerous roles, including serving as President of ABC Pictures. While the 40-year-old Strottman serves clients in the B2B space, Luki Lab’s B2C focus presents opportunities that Pietri and his team can fully own.
“I’ve always been programmed to own the content, own the brand, own the design, and that’s what we wanted to do,” he says. In addition to fostering new ideas, Luki Lab is committed to making toys that caregivers can afford.
“Innovation doesn’t have to be expensive, especially in today’s world where a lot of consumers are tight for money,” Pietri adds. “We want to bring them innovation at a good price.”
He points to Pets 2 Love, which retails for $14.99; Flat 2 Fast, which starts at $9.99; and Spinchaku, which retails for $11.99. Toys are not the only category Luki Lab explores. Its game portfolio receives the same level of care and consideration. “We try to bring great designs to ideas,” Pietri shares.
Offering innovation and affordability benefits retailers, not just parents. “From go-to impulse purchases like the Flat 2 Fast cars to games that involve fun physical components such as Run Beaver Run and Ixi Kix, Luki Lab offers products that are out of the box and not the same old,” says Joe Novak, Co-Owner of Kazoo Toys in Atlanta.
THE POWER OF INVENTION
To create and innovate across its brands, Luki Lab collaborates with outside inventors. Pietri says the company “has a tremendous amount of love and respect” for the inventor community, calling them “the true geniuses in the industry.”
Pietri personally reviews 1,200 submissions each year and shares every submission with his in-house team. “We are focusing on the way our products look, on values, and creating brands that you haven’t seen anywhere before,” he explains.
“Didier shows up consistently and cares deeply about product and quality,” says Trina McFarland, Managing Director at Bright Door Ideas, an inventor relations agency that works closely with Luki Lab.
As a result, the company draws attention at Astra Marketplace & Academy and Toy Fair New York because it offers original brands rather than relying on licensed properties.
Luki Lab also operates an animation arm, Luki Lab Animation Studios, housed in its Irvine, California, offices. “Everything is content-related these days,” Pietri explains. “We want to control our content and create content based on our brands.”
When Luki Lab launches a new brand, it renders it for 3D animation shortly thereafter. The company also handles its social media and commercials in-house rather than outsourcing production to third parties. A dedicated YouTube channel hosts its videos, reinforcing Luki Lab as a “beginning-to-end toy company,” in charge of its own destiny, Pietri says.
MUTUAL RETAIL SUPPORT
Luki Lab has solidified itself as a company to watch. At recent industry shows, retailers consistently gravitated toward the brand’s simple, tactile concepts, a sign that its approach to innovation is resonating across categories.
“We have carried Luki Lab products for two years now,” Novak says, calling sales of its toys “a pleasant surprise.”
Luki Lab debuted its Flat 2 Fast line at Astra in 2023, marking the company’s first appearance at the specialty toy expo. “We were a pretty new company at the time, and we had no one at the booth the first day,” Pietri reflects.
Soon, one visitor turned into a crowd that stayed all day, clamoring to see the company’s cars. “It became a huge seller on Amazon, which attracted Target,” Pietri says, noting that the company’s strategy remains more focused on specialty retail than mass retail.
Luki Lab works to protect specialty retail by controlling pricing and self-distributing through Amazon, ensuring other retailers are never undercut. “We rely a lot on specialty retailers,” Pietri says, calling independent, boutique shops “amazing incubators” for new toys.
For Pietri, specialty retail is “very, very important.” He knows most of his retailers by name and calls stores weekly to check on inventory. During the holiday season, Luki Lab sent promotional postcards to homes near its top 100 stores.
“The fact that they sent out postcards to our surrounding neighborhoods that highlighted an item we carry, and our name, was something I have never witnessed and appreciate,” Kazoo Toys’ Novak says.
Controlling prices benefits Luki Lab as well. On Black Friday, Flat 2 Fast ranked No. 2 in vehicles on Amazon, just behind Mattel’s Hot Wheels. On Dec. 11, Flat 2 Fast pulled ahead of the Hot Wheels 10-pack to claim the top spot for the day. “It’s Mattel, it’s enormous. I love Hot Wheels,” Pietri says.
And Flat 2 Fast wasn’t the only holiday hit. Run Beaver Run sold out for the season three weeks before Christmas. “It’s a big success for us,” Pietri says.
As the team prepares for an even bigger year, it leans into the idea that kids don’t need elaborate systems to experience transformative play. Sometimes all it takes is a clever twist, a strong visual identity, and a play pattern that invites repeat discovery.
RACING FORWARD
Luki Lab’s path into 2026 and beyond includes strategic expansion, continued category development, and exploring new product concepts that build on its “innovative but intuitive” creative DNA.
Later this year, the company plans to relaunch Robo-Max, a popular item from 2023 that has become a perennial part of the Luki Lab portfolio. The updated Robo-Max is set to arrive at retail in June with “vastly improved” features, including motion sensor activation and voice control. “We also loved the Robo-Max T-Rex and look forward to its reintroduction this year,” Novak shares.
While many details about upcoming products remain under wraps, the company’s focus remains on thoughtful design that encourages active, repeat play. Six new brands arrive this month, supported by original content and animation, including Sweetopia, a world where treats become friends.
The collectible surprise looks like a tasty treat and transforms into a benevolent ruler or her pet with a simple flip. Kids and collectors ages 5 and up can look for Sweetopia on shelves this March. Sets include two princesses, two pets, and one pop-up playset, offering a complete storytelling experience.
“We are basically innovating and launching quite a bit,” Pietri shares, “to increase the visibility and the portfolio of the company.”
As the company continues to grow, one thing is clear: Luki Lab is shaping itself into a force with personality and staying power — and the industry is paying attention.
Stay on the Pulse of Play!
A version of this feature first appeared in the 2026 International Issue of The Toy Book. Read the full issue here!
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