- Megan Goldberger, 27, from Cardiff, Wales, has over 150 jellycats
- READ MORE: The Jellycat 'cult' that has got grown women forking out THOUSANDS on cuddly toys
A woman obsessed with buying stuffed toys from the viral brand Jellycats has revealed she has spent over £4,000 on her collection - even resorting to selling her clothes online to fund the habit.
Megan Goldberger, 27, from Cardiff, Wales, became obsessed with the plush toys after seeing influencers showing off their own collections on TikTok.
She bought her first Jellycat - an aubergine called Vivacious - in February 2024 and has now amassed a collection of 150 stuffed toys.
'I've always loved teddy bears,' Megan said. 'My Jellycats heal my inner child.'
Despite acknowledging that Jellycats are 'designed for new-born babies', the 27-year-old's favourite toys include a brown bunny called Miss Pecan, an ice cream called Mr Whippy and a dragon called Flynn - who recently helped her conquer her fear of flying.
With Flynn in hand, Megan, who has ADHD and anxiety, was able to get on an airplane for the first time in 18 months. 'It was as if a person was there with me,' she said.
Megan also spends hours hunting down discontinued Jellycats online such as finding an old edition bunny on eBay and spending hundreds on a toy which would have previously retailed at £15.99.
Megan Goldberger, 27, poses with her extensive collection of 150 Jellycats which she has spent around £4,000 on
Her most expensive purchase to date is the 'Amuseable Ice Cream' Jellycat 'in size huge' that features a squishy waffle cone and and an 'ice cream hat' layered with strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate flavours.
Megan paid £130 for the 'huge' toy which she admitted would have cost around £60 to buy 'brand new from the shop'.
Justifying her purchase, Megan said: 'My rule is I don't mind paying double if they are super rare and super special.
'It was originally listed at £490, including postage and packaging,' she continued, while holding the ice cream toy wrapped in a pink cover.
Megan said she waited for the seller to drop the price to £130 until she could afford it, before adding she paid for the toy by selling her clothes 'like a mad woman' on Vinted - the internet's favourite online 'thrift shop'.
'I used to joke about selling my clothes for Jellycats but now I actually do,' said Megan.
The influencer estimated she has spent £4,000 on her collection of 150 Jellycats- which are currently on show in her bedroom.
She has received a mixed reaction from those watching her Jellycat videos on TikTok.
Megan bought her first Jellycat in February 2024 and has not stopped since, even selling her clothes on Vinted to fund the addiction
The influencer from Cardiff has now amassed a collection of 150 stuffed toys
Megan, who has ADHD and anxiety, said Jellycats help her 'heal my inner child'
Megan's most expensive purchase to date is the 'Amuseable Ice Cream' Jellycat 'in size huge'
'Some people comment that adults should not be collecting teddy bears,' Megan said.
'There are worse things I could be doing then collecting Jellycats. I don't do drugs, I don't drink alcohol excessively and I don't promote party culture to a predominately underage audience like many influencers do so I don't see anything wrong with my Jellycat content. You don't have to watch. I do things that bring me joy.
Megan hopes to keep growing her collection and has her eyes set on new drops as well as many discontinued Jelly Cats like the rare sought after bunnies.
In the future, she hopes to move out of her parents' house and decorate her own property entirely with Jellycats.
Megan is not the only person swept up by the Jellycat craze with women all over the world forking out thousands of pounds to get their hands on the plush toy trend.
Jellycats, a British toy company, was founded by brothers Thomas and William Gatacre in 1999 - around the same time as American businessman Ty Warner introduced the world to Beanie Babies that became the world's first Internet sensation.
Nearly three decades later, videos of people finding, unboxing, and cherishing their pricey Jellycats - available in a dizzying array of shapes, characters, and objects - are flooding TikTok, making these plush toys the world's most recent online fad.
Megan has received a mixed reaction to her Jellycat videos on TikTok - with some trolls claiming adults should not buy stuffed animals
The 27-year-old's favourite toys include a brown bunny called Miss Pecan, an ice cream called Mr Whippy and a dragon called Flynn (pictured). Flynn recently accompanied Megan on a flight - her first in 18 months
'Sometimes you just need a giant Jellycat,' one TikTok user captioned a video of her dancing with a Silver Bashful Bunny - estimated to be worth £225.
Multiple creators have posted their hauls, or shared clips of themselves unwrapping these plushies on social media - with hundreds of thousands of posts under the hashtag #Jellycat on TikTok and Instagram.
A Jellycat could, in fact, represent one of many things. From food and drink items such as the 'Toastie Vivacious Red Aubergine' and 'Sassy Sushi Egg', to farm yard animals like the 'Cluny Cockerel', fantastical creatures like the 'Lavender Dragon', and everyday objects like coffee cups and salt and pepper shakers.
Their creators breathe life into these Jellycats by giving them personality traits, such as 'Amuseable' or 'Bashful', or quirky names like 'Fergus Frog' or 'Isobel Chihuahua'.
And, at the time of writing, most Jellycats - typically priced between £12 and £200 - are out of stock.
According to Jellycat's latest filing with Companies House, revenue rose 37 per cent to £200 million in the 12 months to 31 December 2023 - with pre-tax profit up 24 per cent to £67 million.
In addition to the high quality of its luxury products, Jellycat's market value has also been bolstered by its celebrity clientele - including Princess Charlotte, who is the proud owner of a Fuddlewuddle dog, Kylie Jenner, who endorsed the brand and its line of 'Vivacious' vegetable toys in 2020, and 'big, big Jellycat customer' Bill Nighy.
