Santa's workshop

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Santa's workshop (plural Santa's workshops)

1. The mythical structure, usually envisioned as located at the North Pole, where Santa Claus and a large number of capable elves work tirelessly and gladly year-round to produce all of the toys and other gifts to be delivered throughout the world on Christmas Day.
2. A fanciful replica of this structure, temporarily erected in a retail store, shopping mall, or other public venue at Christmastime as an attraction for children and parents.
3. (idiomatic, by extension) A busy, productive large or small work environment, populated by dedicated workers.
   • 1983 Feb. 11, Robin Herman and Laurie Johnston, "Frenzied Finish For Trump Tower Atrium," New York Times (retrieved 15 May 2014):

     Like a Santa's workshop for the rich, the huge shopping atrium was jammed with frenzied workers pushing to finish by Monday's opening.

   • 1999 Feb. 21, Michael Isikoff, "The Right Wing Web," Newsweek (retrieved 15 May 2014):

     An acid-tongued blonde who writes a legal-affairs column for the right-wing weekly Human Events, Ann Coulter . . . laughed. "There are lots of us busy elves working away in Santa's workshop."

   • 2001 Jan. 8, Aparisim Gosh, "Trapped in the System," Time (retrieved 15 May 2014):

     U.S. consumers . . . will look to China, as they have since the country a decade ago became a regular Santa's workshop for toys, clothes and electronic gizmos.

   • 2012 June 13, Deborah L. Jacobs, "How My Book Became A (Self-Published) Best Seller," Forbes (retrieved 15 May 2014):

     Next week 500 books not shipped elsewhere directly from the printer will arrive at our house. . . . At that point my Brooklyn brownstone will turn into Santa’s workshop as I package courtesy copies for all the sources who helped and people whose photos appear in the book. I will also send out review copies.

• (busy, productive workplace): hive of activity