Girl Power - A Rising Star in 2021

Female designer of top-selling card game named in influential figures list.

A big congratulations to our Product Designer Marty Pardoe for being named as one of Mojo Nation’s 100 influential figures in the toy and game industry for 2021. It’s an incredible achievement to be named in the Rising Star category, and we’re all excited to see what this year brings for this talented designer.

We first met Marty back in 2018 when she came on board with the Bubblegum Stuff family as a Design Intern. Marty really hit the ground running, and following her graduation from the University of Brighton with a first-class degree in Product Design, she returned to the company as a freelancer.

Marty worked on some of BS’s signature brands such as Weird Crushes, which was a Gift of the Year finalist in 2019. And by the end of that year, Marty had become a permanent member of the Bubblegum Stuff team. Since then she’s worked on some of our most popular products, including Girl Power: a card game that she designed in its entirety, from conception through to production.

This level of responsibility might be daunting for some designers, but it was a challenge that provided the sort of creative freedom Marty relishes, “Being part of the process from initial concept through to production allows me to explore a range of my own ideas and interests,” she said.

Girl Power - the inspiration

Girl Power is a card game that celebrates female achievement. Marty designed it as Bubblegum Stuff’s contribution to the gender equality zeitgeist. The aim was to create a positive game that inspires young girls by showcasing the accomplishments of women, both in the past and in the modern era. “At the beginning of 2020, everything seemed a bit doom and gloom so I wanted to design an uplifting, positive, and fun game for all ages,” she said.

Based on the super speedy card game, spoons, Girl Power is a fun game to play with friends that’ll also educate and inspire. It contains 50 modern women from categories such as music, film and activism, as well as 6 pioneers. These are the trailblazers, like Rosa Parks, that paved the way for the females that are now making waves in all aspects of modern life.

How to play it

The game tests your speed and reactions; the aim is to beat your opponents by being the first to collect all four females from a single category and grab a pioneer from the middle. If you’re not quick enough to collect a pioneer you’ll be eliminated from the game. Rounds continue until there’s only two players left - this is the final. Here, the first player to collect a full set and snap up the last pioneer will be crowned the undisputed female boss.

If you’d like a more detailed look into how to play this super speedy, super inspiring card game, take a look at our video tutorial.

Girl Power is a fun game to play at a party or after dinner, and it’s suitable for the whole family. Get it as a gift for the feminist in your life. And yes, that includes boys, people!

What’s next for Marty?

Well, she’s currently working on new material. But, with her talent, we have a sneaky feeling her second “album” will be anything but difficult. 

And what did she have to say about her achievement? “I had so much fun researching and designing Girl Power and I’m really proud of the outcome. All the positive responses it’s received since its release have been amazing, and to get recognition from Mojo Nation has been an amazing start to 2021!” So modest there, Marty. Doesn’t it make you sick?!

Want a copy of Girl Power today? Pair it with one of Marty's other games like JOMO or Weird Crushes and your shipping is free!