A nationwide hunt was launched at the beginning of lockdown searching for a dedicated team of kids and canines to review bean bags while schools were closed.
Among thousands of applications, 14-year-old Toby Youlden from Pagham in Bognor Regis and his spaniels, Stickle and Blisco stood out for showing ‘exceptional’ teamwork and dedication to the role.
In response to the job ad, in his application for the role, the Chichester school boy said:
“My name is Toby and my dogs are called Stickle and Blisco. We love to snuggle up together, but unfortunately my parents won’t let the dogs on the sofa or upstairs, which means we have to cuddle up on the floor! My English teacher would be very proud that I am doing something different and extra. With schools being closed I am walking the dogs every day with my Mum and we do lots of training.”
The campaign to find bean bag testers, was launched by Great Bean Bags in a bid to get a ‘brutally honest’ review of its products by real life users and to give children something to focus on during the multiple lockdowns.
The campaign received thousands of applications from children and their pooches all over the world, but it was Pagham’s Toby and his two spaniels who stood out.
Commenting on the role and Toby’s success, creative director at Great Bean Bags, Patrick Tonks said:
“Toby and his pair of four-legged friends, Stickle and Blisco excelled in the application process and gave real examples of teamwork, making them the perfect fit for our role. We know just how brutally honest young people are and we wanted to put our products to the test in this process. Toby reviewed a standard kids bean bag, with Stickle and Blisco testing the comfort of our dog bean bags.
“The trio donned a Great Bean Bags reviewer uniform and gave their feedback which we will take on board and use going forwards. This was our first role ever launched for a tester and we hope to open more positions in the future! Could the next reviewer be you?”
Commenting on the new role Stickle and Blisco said:
“Bark bark bark”