Sometimes the characters that weren’t supposed to make it are the ones that stick around the longest. Square Bear began life as a sketch during a 48-hour Global Game Jam, never actually making it into the finished project. The little bear who quite literally didn’t fit in refused to disappear.
Cubed3 speaks with Square Bear Club founder Niky Szabo about turning that original sketch into an expanding world of characters, stories and handmade creations. Niky discusses the meaning behind the motto “In a round world, be square,” the personalities of Square Bear, Nacho and Chai, meeting fans at Hyper Japan and the growing ambition to take the characters beyond physical products.
Adam Riley, Director at Cubed3: For readers discovering Square Bear Club for the first time, what’s the story behind the very first Square Bear?
Niky Szabo, founder of Square Bear Club: The very first Square Bear was born from a sketch during a 48-hour Global Game Jam. We didn’t actually get the chance to use him in the game, but he stayed in the back of my mind — this little bear who quite literally didn’t fit in. So I kept sketching him. One sketch became another, then another, and eventually I realised I wasn’t just drawing a square-shaped bear anymore. I was starting to build an entire little world around him.
Adam Riley: Your motto, “In a round world, be square,” feels like more than just a cute slogan. What does it mean to you personally, and how does it shape the brand?
Niky Szabo: I am a geek in pretty much every sense of the word. I love data, machine learning, anime, manga, games and engineering — a square in the truest sense! But it was quite a journey for me to stop trying to fit in and fully embrace who I am. Square Bear embodies that experience: he’s a square-shaped bear living in a naturally round world. He doesn’t quite fit the shape he’s expected to be, and that’s precisely the point. Through Square Bear Club, we’re trying to spread the message that it’s not only okay to be different — you should embrace the things that make you uniquely you, whatever those things happen to be.
Adam Riley: The idea of “adopting” a Square Bear gives the plushies a real sense of personality and connection. How did that concept come about?
Niky Szabo: It really stems from that same idea of embracing — or “adopting” — your uniqueness. I wanted people to connect with Square Bear as a character rather than see him as just another generic plushie. He is bear. He is square. And through the comics and stories, hopefully people get to know him, relate to him and see a little bit of themselves in him. The physical side of Square Bear Club follows the same philosophy. Everything we sell is originally designed by us, with products predominantly handmade or manufactured in the UK, and sustainability is at the heart of how we choose what to make.
Adam Riley: Square Bear Club has grown beyond plush toys into prints, stationery, accessories, home items and more. When did you realise you were building a whole creative world rather than a single character?
Niky Szabo: Square Bear is adorable, but none of us exists in a vacuum! For people to see Square Bear the way I do, he needed stories. He needed friendships, growth, situations where he shines and situations where he spectacularly doesn’t. That’s eventually what led me to introduce Nacho and Chai. Nacho is a cat — think rounded triangles; yes, we are sticking with shapes! — while Chai is our much rounder, more oval panda. Once the three of them started interacting, Square Bear Club naturally became less about one character and more about the little world they inhabit together.
Adam Riley: Characters like Square Bear, Nacho and Chai already feel like they belong to a wider universe. How do you approach developing their personalities and stories?
Niky Szabo: I think of the three of them as personalities that balance each other out. Square Bear is the introvert and the thinker. He’s happiest reading, pondering something or quietly pottering around his garden. He’s thoughtful and reflective, but he can also be quite rigid and easily overwhelmed when things don’t go according to plan. Nacho is almost his complete opposite: a hyperactive ball of energy. He’s extremely clever, endlessly confident and has a tendency to act before thinking everything through because he’s absolutely convinced he’ll figure it out along the way. Which works… most of the time.
Then there’s Chai. He’s so calm and committed to the slow life that you could easily underestimate him, but underneath that enormous panda exterior there’s a lot of warmth, wisdom and surprising clarity. He often understands what’s happening long before the other two do; he just doesn’t necessarily feel the need to rush into doing anything about it. That’s why they work together. Each of them has something the others lack, and each has shortcomings the others naturally compensate for. Their stories usually come from very ordinary situations, because putting these three personalities into exactly the same situation gives me an endless canvas to play with.
Take something as simple as going to an arcade. Nacho would be completely at home, dragging everyone from machine to machine and obsessively collecting tickets. Chai would somehow discover the one game he’s inexplicably brilliant at and quietly monopolise it for the entire evening. Meanwhile, Square Bear would genuinely try his best while becoming progressively more overwhelmed as Nacho drags him everywhere — until he finally sees his opportunity to escape by very graciously offering to get everyone a drink. Once I know who they are, the stories almost start writing themselves.
Adam Riley: You’ve been a regular at Hyper Japan over the years. What keeps bringing you back, and how has the event changed from your perspective?
Niky Szabo: I’ve been exhibiting at Hyper Japan since it reopened after Covid. One thing I’ve always appreciated is that they try to celebrate Japanese culture in its entirety. Pop culture is obviously a wonderful part of it, but it isn’t everything Japan has to offer. That means I get to meet an incredibly varied group of people — crafters, anime and gaming fans, people fascinated by traditional Japanese culture, and some truly hardcore Japanophiles. The event has continued to evolve over the years, and I particularly liked the recent addition of the traditional Japanese vendor tables. I think spaces like that are really worth protecting because they can so easily be swallowed up by everything else happening at an event of that scale.
On a personal level, the first time I exhibited at Hyper Japan I genuinely felt like I’d “made it” as a creator. I still see that same excitement in people exhibiting there for the first time, and I always encourage them to keep going. Hyper Japan is quite a different beast from most events I’ve attended. You meet such a broad audience that you have to learn, adapt and figure out what connects with people.
Adam Riley: What was the standout moment from this year’s Hyper Japan, whether that was a customer reaction, a conversation, or a particular bear finding the right home?
Niky Szabo: I have to give a shout-out to my biggest fan! I won’t name them, but somehow they found me during my very first year, when I was tucked away in a dark corner with a shabby little table and a dream, and they bought one of the first Square Bear plushies I ever made. Every year I get to see them again and have a chat, and honestly, very little feels as heart-warming as that. It’s also why I always tell people: if you’ve bought something from me in a previous year, please don’t feel as though you need to buy something again to come over! Just pop by and say hello. Seeing familiar faces, hearing what you’ve done with something I made, or simply knowing that you remembered these characters gives an enormous amount of life and meaning to being a creator. So thank you to all the lovely people who have stood by me and supported Square Bear over the years.
Adam Riley: Meeting people face-to-face must be very different from selling online. What do events like Hyper Japan give you that a website never could?
Niky Szabo: They’re worlds apart! At an event like Hyper Japan, I get to see people’s completely unfiltered reactions as they walk past the stall. Nothing makes me grin like a silly goose more than watching someone stop, smile and say, “This is so cute!” or “Oh wow, this is different.” You can see someone’s face literally brighten up. A website can tell me somebody clicked on something. Social media can tell me somebody liked a post. Neither can really recreate that tiny human moment when something you’ve created unexpectedly makes a stranger smile.
Adam Riley: Square Bear Club blends kawaii culture with sustainability. Is it challenging to make products that are cute, affordable and environmentally responsible at the same time?
Niky Szabo: I’m not going to lie to you: yes. Yes, it is hard! Sustainable materials can cost considerably more, finding the right suppliers takes longer, and I try to manufacture in the UK wherever possible — currently all but one of our products are made here. At the same time, I still have to be conscious of what customers can reasonably afford and what comparable products cost.
That means I sometimes accept a smaller margin rather than passing the entire difference on to the customer. From a purely commercial perspective, I’m sure somebody could look at my books and tell me I’m making life unnecessarily difficult for myself! But my mission is to brighten people’s days with cute things without unnecessarily costing the planet in the process — or, realistically, while minimising that impact as much as I possibly can. If that means growing a little more slowly, that’s a trade-off I’m willing to make. Quality, sustainability and cuteness are the three things I don’t want Square Bear Club to compromise on.
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Adam Riley: Cubed3 readers love games, anime and character-driven worlds. Have you ever imagined Square Bear Club becoming a cosy game, animated short, comic series or something similar?
Niky Szabo: Yes, yes and yes. All of the above! Square Bear technically began life at a Global Game Jam, so there’s something wonderfully circular about the idea of eventually putting him into a game — especially because the poor little guy never actually made it into our original Game Jam project! I’d be incredibly proud to see the little guy being all square and all bear in a cosy or puzzle game. I’ve already started teaching myself animation, and I’m creating short comics around the characters, although I very much appreciate everyone’s patience while I’m on that learning journey.
Adam Riley: If Square Bear starred in a game or anime, what kind of experience would you want it to be: relaxing, funny, emotional, adventurous, or something completely unexpected?
Niky Szabo: Right now I’d lean towards relaxing, reflective and funny — although with this particular combination of characters, who knows where we’d end up! The important thing is that I would want it to feel good. I’d want someone to finish playing or watching and come away feeling a little lighter and a little more comfortable being themselves. Square Bear, Nacho and Chai all have their own shortcomings and struggles. They don’t magically stop having them; they learn to navigate them, usually with a bit of help from each other. So perhaps the best description would be: silly, reflective and wholesome.
Adam Riley: Looking ahead, where would you love to take Square Bear Club next: more characters, bigger events, new product lines, animation, games, or something fans haven’t guessed yet?
Niky Szabo: Oh Lord, no more characters — I can barely control Nacho! For now, I’d like to expand into some new sustainable products, and I’m working on a completely new website that will give me much more room to showcase the characters and their world rather than simply displaying products. My biggest focus next will actually be storytelling. I want to put much more energy into the comics on Instagram and TikTok and continue building their world until people can’t help but feel part of it — through both the lovely moments and the more challenging experiences the characters face. Beyond that, a game is definitely somewhere on the horizon. That idea still needs to take a more concrete shape before I’m ready to properly begin that journey, but it’s something I’d absolutely love to see happen.
Adam Riley: Over the years, you’ve watched Square Bears find new homes with so many different people. What have those adoptions taught you about the connection people form with handmade characters?
Niky Szabo: One thing I had to understand quite early as the creator is that Square Bear isn’t really mine. As soon as somebody connects with Square Bear, he becomes a little bit theirs — and I love that. That’s why I’ve leaned into the idea of adoption so much that Square Bears now come with adoption certificates where people can give their bear whatever name they want. They don’t even have to assign Square Bear the same gender I might use when I’m writing him. He’s a bear. He’s square. He can become whatever he means to you. That’s probably the greatest surprise and joy I’ve found in creating these characters. Once they leave me, they take on lives of their own with different people. Their meaning might become slightly different from mine, but underneath it all I hope the message stays the same: You are loved. You are accepted. Keep being your lovely, unique self.
