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Storytelling and creating a strong visual universe is something all brands strive for, but that isn’t easily achieved. Though it’s expanded and grown over more than a decade, the Spanish brand Tinycottons has remained true to the values and identity it established at the beginning. From children’s fashion into women’s, toys, and even ice cream, the founders Barb and Gerard have continued to serve their customers around the world with thoughtful brands full of surprises.

This summer marked the brand’s return to Playtime Paris with their own experiential stand, so we felt it was the perfect moment to put them in the spotlight! While Tinycottons is well-known throughout the children’s industry, we wanted to learn the full story of the brand and its sibling labels. So we spoke with Barb, asking her to walk us back to the beginning.

Join us as we explore the Tiny universe from its inception to today, and learn a little about their design and production process, too.

Barb and Gerard, founders of Tinycottons

In the beautiful city of Barcelona in 2012, husband and wife Gerard and Barb set out to start their own children’s clothing brand with a strong focus on graphic design, storytelling, and quality. They firmly believe that children deserve the same level of creativity, design, and quality as adults. So, they set out to build a brand with its own personality and voice. Through it, they create products with soul that connect with both children and adults. All these beliefs and values come together as Tinycottons.

From this children’s clothing brand, a broader creative universe has naturally evolved. These expansions have happened very organically, with each new category or brand emerging from a creative need. What started with kidswear naturally expanded into women’s fashion with The Tiny Big Sister, and then to sustainable toys with We Are Gommu.

Today, under the Double Tiny Company umbrella one finds the brands Tinycottons, The Tiny Big Sister, We Are Gommu, Hijos de Nata, and, their latest project which is coming soon, Tiny The Pantry. While each label has its own personality, they all share the values Barb and Gerard established at the start: thoughtful design, authenticity, quality, and emotional storytelling.

Barb and Gerard don’t believe in growing for the sake of it, but rather in making thoughtful decisions that preserve their creative identity and emotional connection with their customers. They’ve remained committed to their philosophy of growing carefully and without losing authenticity. Each line has its own identity, while sharing the same visual language, values, and commitment to design.

Across their lines for babies, kids, women, some pet capsules, toys, and other lifestyle projects, everything starts with a story. Each collection begins with an idea that gradually becomes prints, colors, garments, and campaigns. This is how Barb and Gerard build brands with soul, rather than simply creating products.

Every collection begins with a strong concept and narrative. The Tiny team approaches it with an editorial mindset, creating complete visual stories rather than simply designing children’s clothes. Barb finds inspiration in art, travel, conversations, children’s books, and everyday life, drawing from these sources to create the narrative that gradually becomes prints, colors, garments, and, finally, the campaign itself. This unique creative process makes the collections feel like visual publications with their own universe.

The different product lines share this visual language and its values, while maintaining their own personalities.

When it comes to production, Barb and Gerard firmly believe in being both responsible and transparent. They work exclusively with certified factories operating under BSCI and SEDEX standards. This ensures that their manufacturers across Portugal, Turkey, India, and China have ethical working conditions and responsible manufacturing.

That being said, Tinycottons is continuously working to improve their practices. They keep looking for even more sustainable choices across everything from materials to packaging, without ever compromising on quality, durability, or design.

Tinycottons also appreciates working with others when they find brands with similar values. These natural connections aren’t about visibility, but rather about creating something neither brand could do alone. They allow the Tinycottons’ universe to be seen from a different perspective, while maintaining its strong identity.

Collab between Tinycottons and Victoria Shoes

To further immerse people in the Tinycottons and The Tiny Big Sister universes beyond the products themselves, the brand has opened 13 retail stores around the world. This allows them to create a deeper emotional connection with their customers, and to express their visual langage in a physical space.

With the recent opening of their store in Paris, Tinycottons is now present in Barcelona, Madrid, San Sebastian, Valencia, and Korea, in addition to their Miami, Florida warehouse that brings them closer to their United States clients.

With each project, Barb and Gerard aim to offer an experience that reflects the same creativity, authenticity, and attention to detail found throughout their brands.

In 2025, Hijos de Nata opened as another natural extension of the Tinycottons universe. With it, Barb and Gerard wanted to explore another way of creating experiences beyond fashion.

For them, the future isn’t only about selling products – it’s also about creating places and experiences people want to live in. Hijos de Nata represents a more sensory, experiential expression of the same creative vision that defines their other brands.

Their next project, Tiny the Pantry, will further this initiative by bringing a coffee space to their flagship store in Barcelona.

Playtime has been a part of Tinycottons’ journey for many years. It has been more than a trade show for Barb, Gerard, and their team. It’s a place where they reconnect with clients, discover new markets, and meet people who genuinely appreciate creativity and independent brands. After the pandemic, coming back has been important for them. Nothing replaces the face-to-face conversations and relationships that are built there.

With the growth of the Tiny universe, this season marked the right moment for them to be presented in a more complete way with a bigger booth at Playtime Paris. Today, they have more stories to tell, more categories, and a stronger identity than ever, so having a larger space allowed visitors to experience the brands as a whole, rather than simply viewing a collection.

At Playtime New York this month, visitors will be able to once again immerse themselves in the Tiny universe.

Tinycottons’ booth this summer at Playtime Paris

While the Tiny universe is renowned throughout the world, one thing people may not realize is that each brand Barb and Gerard create feels like another member of the family for them. Barb often describes the different labels as children. Each one has their own personality, strengths, and challenges. Rather than following the trends, they focus on building brands with their own identities. This enables them to create products that have meaning and remain true to the values she and Gerard set at the start.

As 2026 continues, Tinycottons remains focused on thoughtful, international growth that preserves their identity. The brand is continuing to expand across Europe, Asia, and the United States. They’re developing new retail formats and strengthening the different brands within the Tiny universe.

At the same time, Barb and Gerard are always working on new creative ideas. Throughout everything they do, they remain sincerely committed to building brands with soul that can endure over time.

Tincottons AW26

Thank you to Barb for taking the time to share the thoughtful story behind Tinycottons and all the concepts that have been born from it! The Tiny universe is creative and distinct, making it recognizable across different categories and even outside of the fashion sphere.

Get your pass here to step into their universe at Playtime New York July 26-28!

All images courtesy of Tinycottons