Oxford Entrepreneur Brings Bedtime Stories to Life with Roald Dahl Sleepwear
With children spending more time on screens and less time reading, Ducky Zebra‘s new sleepwear celebrates bedtime stories from birth.
In the UK, daily reading among 8-18-year-olds has dropped by 50% in the last twenty years*. At the same time, children are spending more time on screens. These habits often begin in early childhood, affecting language, empathy, and imagination, skills that reading helps nurture.
Against this backdrop, Oxford entrepreneur Sally Dear is using fashion to make a difference. Four years ago, she left her career in automotive and rail to launch Ducky Zebra, a sustainable children’s wear company challenging gender stereotypes in kids’ fashion. Building on this mission, Ducky Zebra has partnered with the globally recognised Roald Dahl Story Company to bring stories to life – quite literally.
* National Literacy Trust, Annual Literacy Survey 2025
Designed in-house, the brand has launched a limited-edition sleepwear range, ‘Bedtime Mice’, which brings Quentin Blake’s mischievous mice to life. It shows them enjoying a bath and bedtime story – a whimsical nod to the magic of reading before lights out.
Made from soft, GOTS-certified organic cotton, the Bedtime Mice sleepwear features two-way zips for easier dressing and roll-down cuffs that let it grow with the child. Each item comes with a matching bookmark to further celebrate the joy of reading.
The launch builds on Ducky Zebra’s ‘A Celebration of Reading’ collection, featuring animals from various Roald Dahl stories, including the newt from Matilda, Alfie the tortoise from Esio Trot, and Muggle-Wump the monkey from The Twits. Together, these prints celebrate stories, friendship, and imagination.
“As a mum, I know how powerful the bedtime story ritual can be – but it’s now competing with screens in ways it never did before. Our aim is to make reading feel like the main event, not an afterthought. When a child gets excited about wearing their Roald Dahl pyjamas, they’re already thinking about stories.”- Sally Dear, Founder of Ducky Zebra
As a four-year-old, award-winning brand, Ducky Zebra recently won a Junior Design Award for its Roald Dahl Sleepwear Collection. 1% of sales from the collection support UK charities dedicated to improving literacy skills among children, young people and adults.
Through Ducky Zebra’s partnership with thelittleloop, these limited-edition pieces are eligible for trade-in, allowing families to return old items in exchange for credit. This helps reduce textile waste and gives the sleepwear a second life with another child.
The Bedtime Mice sleepwear is available now alongside the full Roald Dahl collection via Ducky Zebra’s website. It’s also available in their Burford store, The Story Museum, and the Caper Bookshop.
