Mercury (toy manufacturer) Marklin, the company was started in 1932, by Attilio Clemente and Antonio Cravero, but its first toy was a gun produced about 1939 (Batazzi et al 1974; Force 1992, 5; History of Mercury 2013; Ralston 2009, 62). The company first began making toy cars just after World War II, so is one of the earliest diecast model makers preceding Corgi and many others and it was the earliest producer in Italy (Richardson 1999, 134). In Italy there was little competition for Mercury through most of the 1950s (Force 1992, 5). Early cars were more Tootsietoy-like with simple cast bodies, wheels
Majorette (toy manufacturer) became more visible in the United States with new lines appearing in several retail stores like Toys R Us. With Toys R Us going out of business in 2018, however, much of that Majorette's visibility was eliminated. Majorette (toy manufacturer) Majorette is a French toy manufacturer which mostly produces small die-cast cars and other construction and military vehicles particularly in . This is a normal 2.5 to 3 inch size, thus Majorette has sometimes been called the Matchbox Toys of France. Traditionally, production was centered in the urban area of Lyon, but models are now made in Thailand. The company