Throws the Book at Toy Retail The Great American Bookstore Makes Room for a Great American Toy Store by Phil Guie
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arnes & Noble is the largest retail bookseller in the U.S., with nearly 650 stores nationwide, as well as a thriving web presence. But in recent years, the bookstore chain has also been expanding its non-book offerings, balancing out shelves of New York Times bestsellers with educational toys, games, and collectibles. So far, the strategy has been beneficial. According to Barnes & Noble’s reported sales and earnings for the fiscal quarter ended January 31, growth in educational toys and games helped carry the company to an increase in comparable sales year-over-year. Last year, the retailer began rolling out Science Centers for toys that facilitate science, technology, engineering, art and design, and math (STEAM) education—further investing in a reputation for selling toys that help kids learn. Barnes & Noble’s educational toy department grew out of the retail chain’s weekly Storytime sessions in its children’s book section. According to Kathleen Campisano, vice president of toys and games, the department evolved organically from a question that the company began asking itself five years ago: Once kids learn to read, and after they begin developing their intellectual curiosity, what is the next logical step? “We have these avid little readers who come and love Storytime,” she says. “They themselves become readers, and then they’re reading to learn things about their worlds and their lives. So, we thought, ‘What is the physical manifestation of that?’” From its inception, Barnes & Noble offered children of all ages a highly curated educational assortment. The retailer also noticed that parents’ definition of what constitutes an educational toy or game was often different from
64 • THE TOY BOOK
Barnes & Noble, West Paterson, N.J.
the manufacturers’. For example, while the toy industry views arts and crafts as its own category, some parents consider these toys as educational tools. “Parents would say arts and crafts are fundamental to the early learning experience, and would even argue that they are a formative type of self-expression for a tween or teen,” says Campisano. “What we had to do was strip away our industry understanding and really start to craft the space as it related to our customers’ experience.” After half a decade of this sort of interplay, Barnes & Noble’s toy sections continue to evolve. An Educational Toys & Games section can be found in more than 450 Barnes & Noble stores, and following their introduction in 32 stores last year, the Science Centers will expand to more than 100 Barnes & Noble stores this year. The growth of these departments results in a careful tightrope-walking act that sometimes exists in meeting both the industry’s and parents’ expectations.
MAY/JUNE 2015