Duck World: Meet the little retailer dealing with the sector’s biggest problems

You may have seen a Duck World while walking through parts of central London. A splash of yellow in the corner of your eye as you weave through the mingling crowds heading into or out of London Bridge Station.

If you have young children, friends visiting from overseas in the market for a quaint keepsake of their visit to the capital, or a particular interest in taking long baths, you may have even been into one.

Duck World opened its first store, or ‘nest’ as employees refer to them, in 2023. The chain now has four permanent stores in the UK, all in London, and has just recently opened its first international location in Miami. The retailer has also had pop-ups in Westfield and in Victoria Station.

Despite being in something of a retailing niche, the business is growing. Sales are strong and, despite the travails of the high street, Duck World is on the hunt for new nests – around London, the rest of the UK and now the world.

Retail Week met with co-founder Irina Fedotova, ostensibly to learn what Duck World’s secret is. Instead, it heard an all-too familiar, but still harrowing, story of one small retailer’s battle against the socio-economic issues facing the sector at large.

Duck and cover

Stepping into the Charing Cross flagship, I had expected to see a lot of rubber ducks. What I didn’t expect was to see the stores’ lone employee, or ‘duck dealer’ as they’re known, dressed up entirely as Billie Jean-era Michael Jackson – sequin-studded jacket and glove, sunglasses and jheri curls all present and correct.  

“Hey there,“ Michael Jackson says, in a pitch-perfect sing-song impression. “Thanks for waddling in.”

Shortly after I arrive, holding a large hook for opening the awning outside, comes Duck World’s chief duck dealer herself. Rain might be good weather for ducks, but less so for encouraging passing foot traffic.  

Irina, I have to ask, why ducks?

“I always collected them myself,” she says. “I had a small collection; it was just a passion project. I was working in a corporate job at the time, at a Fintech start-up. After a while I thought, why not build a concept with different variations of ducks. It started there. I wanted to do something more creative – something I could build myself.” 

From Fintech entrepreneur to chief duck dealing retailer, Fedotova says a lot of Duck World’s success is largely due to millennials and the rise in this age cohort of ‘treatonomics’.  

“It’s hard to say exactly who our key customers are,” Fedotova says, as another young family and an older American couple come in. “The customer base is quite broad. I’d probably lean towards millennials though.  

“It really depends though. It’s like a small luxury [a duck], a little treat for yourself if you can’t afford something more expensive.” She smiles, “and it’s fun. That’s our mission: spreading happiness.”

In a row 

The Charing Cross location isn’t very big, surely not much more than 1,000 sq ft. Maybe less. Yet is absolutely festooned with fowl.

They sit in their serried ranks on hip to ceiling shelving. Some sit staring, wings tucked back, some hold cups of coffee, cameras and surf boards.

There are satirical ducks too. King Charles ducks with neat side-partings and tailored Jermyn Street suits jostle side by side with William Shakespeare ducks scribbling the greatest prose ever committed to parchment and former prime minister Boris Johnson ducks, their hair unkempt and shirt collars askew even in duck form.

Even more ducks are other animals: dog ducks, cat ducks, bat ducks, even a T-Rex duck.

It’s not just the sheer variation of the range that would surprise the first time Duck World visitor. It’s some of the price points as well.  

Your run-of-the-mill duck will cost you around £7.99. But some of the first edition collectibles and exclusive branded partnership ducks run into the hundreds.

“Some of the ducks we stock have been displayed at Art Basel and are highly sought after in the collectibles world,” Fedotova says. “Some of our most expensive ducks cost upwards of £3,000.”

Without thinking, a rude word escapes my mouth. Unfortunately, it is within the earshot of a toddler. “Quack, indeed,” Michael Jackson chimes in with the save.  

Behaviour most fowl

With such pricy merchandise on its walls, and with little to no resource to hire external security, Fedotova says Duck World is struggling with rampant crime.

“People have stolen ducks, sometimes in large quantities,” she says. “We’ve even had one of our high-value collectible ducks stolen.  

“The police didn’t do much. Usually because the value of the stolen merchandise wasn’t deemed high enough to pursue. Even when someone stole a duck worth £3,000, they didn’t take action.”

Fedotova is clearly frustrated. She sighs. “The idea should be to deter repeat offences,” she says. “Someone might only steal £50 worth of goods, but it adds up. And when a £3,000 piece goes missing, and there’s still no action, it’s demoralising.” 

It’s not just the cost of crime that’s going up, but the costs of everything. Duck dealers are more expensive than they once were, after the increases in National Insurance. It’s also harder to keep staff, when you can’t guarantee their safety in the workplace.  

“In December, two women came into one of our stores, and brazenly stole around £300 worth of goods. A staff member tried to follow them, but one of the women turned violent.” Fedotova’s face falls, as she remembers the incident. “Thankfully, no one was seriously hurt, but it’s a big issue across retail right now.  

“One of the women threw some liquid she was carrying on my employee. Thankfully, it turned out to be beer and nothing dangerous. We understand theft isn’t always a top policing priority, but it affects us directly.  

“It’s not fair. Our staff work hard. And some have been left very distressed, and the police haven’t helped much in those situations”.   

Ruffled feathers

The final piece of the cost puzzle is down to global issues. Most of Duck World’s products are made in China, so prices surged when US president Donald Trump slapped tariffs on the global production hub in April.  

“It was a very tight few weeks,” Fedotova recalls. “We are looking into outsourcing production to other locations, but it’s not easy. Some of these products have very specific suppliers.” 

After opening in Miami, Fedotova says she wants to continue to expand in the US but says Trump’s ever-changing tariff policies makes it hard. “It’s really tough to know what’s possible.”

As we talk, I look to my left and see the US president in duck form by my elbow. Bill pursed in a scowl under the trademark combed over coiffure. The commander in chief’s blue suit and long red tie all correct. It’s all a little surreal.

Interview over, I’m gifted a duck for my troubles – a red, London-phone box duck – and as I leave, Fedotova shakes my hand.

I had come to Duck World in search of a little whimsy. A feel-good retail story of a little brand doing well. Instead, I found that Duck World’s story is that of the retail sector in microcosm – a brand doing its best to fly on in the face of ferocious headwinds.

“Thanks again,” she says, a smile on her face, despite everything. “For waddling in.”