How Bethany Chambers is Turning Toy Waste Into Social Impact Through a Circular Economy Model Built on Inclusion, Sustainability, and Community Care

Quick Insights

• Founder: Bethany Chambers

• Organization: Merry Go Round Toys

• Founded: 2023

• Headquarters: Brisbane

• Industry: Social Enterprise & Circular Economy

• Core Focus: Sustainable toy reuse and community-driven social impact

• Specialization: Pre-loved toys, toy refurbishment, toy hire, and circular economy systems

• Key Differentiator: Combining sustainability, affordability, disability inclusion, and community reinvestment through toy reuse

• Impact: Nearly 1000 toys rehomed annually and over 1750kg of landfill diverted

For decades, the toy industry has quietly contributed to one of the fastest-growing forms of household waste in the world.

Children rapidly outgrow developmental toys, trends change quickly, and families often find themselves repeatedly purchasing products designed for only short periods of use. The result is an endless cycle of overconsumption where perfectly functional toys are discarded, stored unused, or sent to landfill despite retaining enormous educational and developmental value.

For Bethany Chambers, this was never simply an environmental issue.

It was also a social one.

As families increasingly struggled with rising living costs while quality educational toys became less financially accessible, Bethany saw an opportunity to rethink how communities value, circulate, and reuse children’s developmental resources.

That vision eventually became the foundation of Merry Go Round Toys, a purpose-driven social enterprise established in 2023 in Brisbane that is redefining toy consumption through circular economy principles, inclusive employment, and community-centered sustainability systems.

What makes the journey especially powerful is that the business was built not despite adversity — but through it.

Living with chronic pain, permanent disability, and complex health challenges, Bethany created a business model intentionally designed around accessibility, dignity, inclusion, and resilience while proving that social impact and commercial sustainability can coexist meaningfully.

Reimagining Toys as Community Resources Rather Than Disposable Products

Most traditional retail systems are built around continuous purchasing cycles.

Buy. Use. Discard. Replace.

Bethany believed that model no longer made sense — environmentally, socially, or economically.

She recognized that children’s toys are often among the most short-lived consumer purchases despite being highly durable, reusable, and developmentally valuable. Families regularly spend significant amounts on quality toys that may only be used for a limited age stage before becoming unused household clutter.

Rather than treating toys as disposable consumer goods, Merry Go Round Toys was designed around a simple but transformative idea:

good play should not cost the earth.

This philosophy shaped the company’s entire operating model.

The organization created a structured circular economy system where pre-loved toys are: cleaned,safety checked,refurbished,honestly graded,photographed transparently,and redistributed affordably to new families.

By removing many of the friction points that discourage second-hand purchasing — such as hygiene concerns, missing parts, inconsistent quality, or lack of trust — Merry Go Round Toys transformed toy reuse into a reliable, high-integrity alternative to buying new.

The result is a system where families save money, children gain access to quality developmental tools, and significant amounts of waste are prevented from entering landfill.

Building a Circular Economy Model With Human Impact at Its Core

What differentiates Merry Go Round Toys from many sustainability businesses is that its mission extends far beyond environmental waste reduction alone.

Every aspect of the organization was intentionally designed to create layered social impact.

Its consignment and “Shop and Swap” model allows families to exchange developmentally outgrown toys for age-appropriate alternatives, creating a more financially accessible and sustainable approach to childhood play.

But the impact does not stop there.

The business also integrates: charity-linked donations,community toy drives,inclusive employment opportunities,and social reinvestment systemsinto its operational structure.

Funds generated through toy circulation help support community organizations focused on:housing insecurity,youth wellbeing,and dignity-centered support for vulnerable women.

At the same time, the company partners with social enterprise organizations to provide supported employment opportunities for disabled individuals, particularly within refurbishment and quality assurance operations.

For Bethany, inclusion was never intended to be a corporate initiative added later.

It was embedded into the organization’s DNA from the beginning.

Building a Business Around Accessibility After Life-Changing Health Challenges

One of the most remarkable aspects of Bethany’s journey is the resilience behind it.

Before becoming a social entrepreneur, she served within emergency response and law enforcement environments, volunteering with organizations such as State Emergency

Service and St John Ambulance before later joining the Queensland Police Service, where she rose to the rank of Senior Constable.

Her commitment to community service had always been central to her identity.

But following what was expected to be a routine surgical procedure, Bethany’s life changed dramatically.

The surgery resulted in permanent disability, chronic pain, and ongoing autoimmune health complications that ultimately forced her medical retirement from policing.

For many people, such a life-altering transition could have marked the end of professional ambition.

Instead, Bethany chose to reinvent how she could continue contributing to society within her new reality.

Merry Go Round Toys became not only a business, but also a redefinition of purpose — a way to continue serving community needs through a model designed around sustainability, accessibility, and social inclusion.

Growing Through Adversity While Redefining Sustainable Leadership

Building any startup without external funding is difficult.

Building a social enterprise while managing chronic illness, disability, multiple surgeries, and lengthy rehabilitation periods adds another level of complexity entirely.

Bethany openly shares that 2025 was originally intended to be a major expansion year for the business. However, serious emergent health complications required extensive surgery, full abdominal reconstruction, and an eight-month recovery process that significantly slowed operational growth.

Despite these setbacks, the organization continued growing steadily.

Rather than collapsing under reduced visibility and limited capacity, the business demonstrated the strength of the systems, education, and community trust Bethany had already built.

This became one of the clearest indicators that Merry Go Round Toys had evolved beyond a founder-dependent initiative into a sustainable community-driven model.

Her journey powerfully challenges traditional entrepreneurial narratives that often glorify burnout, constant scaling, and relentless productivity without considering human sustainability.

Making Second-Hand Feel Trusted, Safe, and Aspirational

One of the biggest barriers within second-hand consumer markets is trust.

Bethany understood that if families were going to embrace toy reuse at scale, the experience needed to feel: safe,transparent,clean,professional,and emotionally positive.

That is why every toy undergoes:non-toxic sanitisation,safety testing,transparent condition grading,and honest product presentationbefore being reintroduced into circulation.

The organization’s emphasis on quality assurance and operational integrity has helped transform second-hand toys from “budget alternatives” into trusted, community-driven sustainability choices.

This attention to detail has also contributed to national and international recognition for the enterprise, including global social enterprise awards and sustainability-focused honors.

Building Community Through Play and Sustainability

At its heart, Merry Go Round Toys is about far more than toys.

It is about community participation, shared responsibility, and creating systems where sustainability becomes practical, accessible, and joyful for everyday families.

The organization actively collaborates with:schools,councils,families,charities,and local communitiesto encourage broader conversations around waste reduction, affordability, and responsible consumption.

Its future-focused initiatives — including rental packs, toy corners, and lifecycle tracking systems — reflect Bethany’s broader vision of creating scalable sustainability infrastructure capable of evolving alongside changing consumer expectations and environmental priorities.

Advice to Women Entrepreneurs

Bethany Chambers encourages women entrepreneurs to begin building before they feel completely ready.

She believes many women — particularly those balancing caregiving, disability, health challenges, or financial limitations — often underestimate their own capability because traditional business narratives were never designed with their realities in mind.

Her advice centers around:building strong support ecosystems,protecting personal wellbeing,seeking mentorship early,and designing businesses that are sustainable for both the founder and the mission.

Importantly, she also emphasizes that progress matters far more than perfection.

According to Bethany, entrepreneurship is not about having unlimited resources. It is about using whatever resources are available creatively, consistently, and courageously.

Why Bethany Chambers Stands Out

Bethany Chambers is redefining what modern social enterprise can look like by transforming toy waste into measurable environmental, social, and community impact.

Her ability to combine circular economy thinking, disability inclusion, sustainability leadership, and compassionate entrepreneurship positions Merry Go Round Toys as far more than a second-hand toy business — it is a blueprint for how purpose-driven systems can create long-term value across multiple layers of society.

In a world increasingly overwhelmed by overconsumption and disposable culture, Bethany’s journey serves as a powerful reminder that meaningful innovation often begins with reimagining everyday problems through empathy, creativity, and resilience.

Through Merry Go Round Toys, she continues building a future where play becomes more sustainable, more accessible, and more connected to community wellbeing.