Vol. 25, No. 4
Ga m e s page 14 & Puz zl e s Mobile Apps Shake Up the Games Industry
T
his is the first generation of kids that have been encouraged to poke, swipe, shake, and pinch their favorite playthings. With nearly 225,000 iPhone Apps already available, and near-
ly 375,000 apps expected to be available on the top two platforms by year’s end, it is no wonder that app fever has caught hold in the toys, games, entertainment, and licensing markets for kids and families.
page 20
Specialty Games Showcase page S6
Toy Inventing (How to Think Like a Kid) page S14 page 31
Dolls Showcase page 29
July/August 2010
table of contents Published by Adventure Publishing Group, Inc.®
July/August 2010
Volume 26, Number 4 www.toybook.com P UBLISHER
departments Editor’s Viewpoint Page 4
Jonathan Samet
Features Games
jsamet@adventurepub.com
Mobile Apps Shake Up the Games Industry
Page14
Page 20
Stat Shot Page 6
5 Questions with Meccano Page 7
TIA Perspectives Page 8
Industry Update
Mega Bloks Turns 25 Page 22 7 Tips for Opening a Pop-Up Shop Page 23 Creating StinkyKids: Not Just Child’s Play Dolls Page 24 Page 29 Regulatory Update: Defining “Children’s Product” Page 52 Bonus Pages! Page 56
Page 10
E DITOR
IN
C HIEF
Jackie Breyer
jbreyer@toybook.com A SSOCIATE E DITOR Elizabeth A. Reid
ereid@toybook.com E DITORIAL I NTERNS Christina Edwards Justin McCraw P RODUCTION D IRECTOR Anthony K. Guardiola
aguardiola@adventurepub.com P RODUCTION A SSISTANT Yasmin Johnson
yjohnson@adventurepub.com C ONTROLLER /O FFICE M ANAGER Robert Forde
rforde@adventurepub.com
Go Figure! Page 12
Raising the Bar Page 54
What’s New Page 55
C ONTRIBUTING W RITERS /E DITORS
Specialty Toys & Gifts: Page 31
ASTRA s InsigehS2t Pag
To y I n v e nting (How to Think Li ke a Kid Pa ge S ) 14
Board Games Are Hot Let’s Make Them Hotter Page S4
Industry Marketplace Page 60
nter Media CSe20 Page
Flashback: July/August 1991
Page 62
Dolls
Page S 16
New WhaPatg’esS13
s Negw e S3 Pa
Games Page S 6
Mary Couzin, Bryan Joiner, Christina Norsig, Dave Parzen, Reyne Rice, Jennifer Ringler, Peter Wachtel U.S.A. Corporate Headquarters Laurie Schacht, President laurieschacht@aol.com Adventure Publishing Group, Inc.® 286 Fifth Ave., 3rd Floor New York, NY 10001 Phone: (212) 575-4510 Fax: (212) 575-4521 THE TOY BOOK (ISSN-0885-3991) is published bi-monthly by Adventure Publishing Group, Inc.® Editorial and advertising offices are located at 286 Fifth Ave., 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10001, Phone (212) 575-4510. Periodicals Postage paid at New York and additional mailing offices. Copyright © 2010 Adventure Publishing Group, Inc.® All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher. Printed in U.S.A. Subscription rates: $48 one year, foreign $200. The Toy Book is a trademark of Adventure Publishing Group, Inc.® Registered in the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office. Postmaster: Send address changes to: The Toy Book, c/o Adventure Publishing Group, PO Box 47703 Plymouth, MN 55447. Opinions and comments expressed in this publication by editors, contributing writers, or solicited or unsolicited documents are not necessarily those of the management of The Toy Book.
Editor’s
Viewpoint
Updating the Games Aisle Jackie Breyer editor in chief
G
ames is one of my favorite categories in the toy industry, and for good reason. It is a category that is capable of bringing friends and families together for a fun hour (or more, or less). There are so many games to choose from, and so many introduced each year, that there is a game to appeal to any personality. Games can be played by the whole family, so no one is left out. The variables—age range, number of players, amount of time needed to play—are wide-ranging and cover every need, so it’s likely that you will leave the store with a stack of games rather than just one. In this issue, one of our main focuses is on good, oldfashioned board games, as well as puzzles. However, even the classics get updated once in awhile. Check out our feature about how mobile apps are taking the games we grew up with (along with plenty of new introductions) and formatting them for on-the-go play on the iPhone or iPad. It’s good to know what games kids are enjoying on mobile devices, because when they see them in store they may say something like, “Hey look, they make Scrabble on a game board now, too!” We also take a look at the games and puzzles category in our Specialty Toys & Gifts section, which begins on page 31. Here we have a feature about what we can do to make the board games category hotter. Mary Couzin, president and founder of the Chicago Toy & Games Group, talks to us about how games impact literacy and education. Personally, I had a blast at ASTRA’s Game Night, which took place at the ASTRA Marketplace and Convention in Rhode Island in June. There were so many people letting go of the stress of the day by playing games with other members of the industry. What better way to find out whether you like a game enough to carry it in your store than to spend some time playing it with a group of your peers?
4 • THE TOY BOOK
We also take a look at the doll category in this issue. Jennifer Ringler (formerly Jennifer Sinclair—congrats Jen!) of The Licensing Book contributes a story about Britt Menzies’ adventures in turning a self-produced cartoonish painting of her daughter into a real brand, including a doll line produced by Madame Alexander Doll Co. We also take a look at what’s new in the doll category on pages 29 and S16. There is so much more to check out in this issue so please take the time to flip through and see what’s new and what’s happening in your industry. We hope you are enjoying the summer! ■
JULY/AUGUST 2010
The Voice Reaching Both Trade and Consumers
CONTACT: JONATHAN SAMET ADVENTURE PUBLISHING GROUP 286 5TH AVENUE, 3RD FLOOR NEW YORK, NY 10001 TEL: 212-575-4510 FAX: 212-575-4521 WWW.ADVENTUREPUB.COM
S TAT S HOT TOP -S ELLING FAMILY E NTERTAINMENT T ITLES R ANKED RANK
BY T OTAL
A MAZON . COM
U.S. U NITS , J UNE 2010
TITLE
PLATFORM
T OP S ELLING T OYS J UNE 14-J ULY 14, 2010 PUBLISHER
1
SILLY BANDZ ROCK BANDZ - 24 PACK
2
SILLY BANDZ PRINCESS - 24 PACK
3
SILLY BANDZ FANTASY SHAPES - 24 PACK
WARNER BROS.
4
BANANAGRAMS
NDS
NINTENDO
5
STOMP ROCKET JR. GLOW KIT
GREEN DAY: ROCK BAND*
360
MTV GAMES/EA
6
SILLY BANDZ SEA CREATURES - 24 PACK
7
TETRIS PARTY DELUXE
NDS
MAJESCO
7
SILLY BANDZ FUN SHAPES - 24 PACK
8
WIPEOUT: THE GAME
WII
ACTIVISION/BLIZZARD
8
INSECT LORE LIVE BUTTERFLY GARDEN
9
TETRIS PARTY DELUXE
WII
MAJESCO
10
BEJEWELED TWIST
NDS
POPCAP GAMES
9
STEP2 WATERWHEEL ACTIVITY PLAY TABLE
10
SILLY BANDZ BASEBALL SHAPES - 24 PACK
1
JUST DANCE
WII
UBISOFT
2
PICROSS 3D
NDS
NINTENDO
3
ZHU ZHU PETS*
NDS
ACTIVISION/BLIZZARD
4
SCRIBBLENAUTS
NDS
5
MARIO PARTY
6
*Includes Collector’s, Limited, Legendary, Bundles (Guitars) Editions
Source: The NPD Group/Retail Tracking Service
Moms Trust Word of Mouth over All Other Sources of Information on Parenting and Baby Products
Most Trusted Source of Information on Parenting or Baby Products Organizations Magazines Books Internet
“When moms are looking for information about parenting or products for their kids, advice from other moms—or word of mouth—is the source they trust most. This speaks to the power of promoting products and services through individuals who can serve as trusted evangelists who put their own personal ʻstamp of approvalʼ on the goods.”
Health Professionals —Anita Frazier industry analyst, NPD Group
Word of Mouth 0
6 • THE TOY BOOK
10
20
30
40
Source: The NPD Group/Juvenile Products 2010 Edition
JULY/AUGUST 2010
5
QUESTIONS WITH Michael Ingberg, managing director, worldwide
1.
What is Meccano’s back- With the brand Erector for the the different, mechanical building play ground? How did the company American market, and Meccano for the experience. Asian operations are secstart and how has it evolved? rest of the world, the group has a pres- ond to none relative to production, In 1898 in a small Liverpool shop, ence in more than 80 countries and testing, quality, and safety. Franck Hornby invented a construc- earns 70 percent of its revenue outside How is the Erector line brandtion game for his children using screws of France. ed and segmented? and nuts. This gave rise to the What are the In 2010, we changed the packaging Meccano system in historical Erector product challenges of the graphics to make all segments of mer1901. Hornby construction cate- chandise work together. We also finalized his system gory? enhanced our product feature points and marketed it Lego has a domi- and communicated more clearly to the under the brand nant share in most consumer. name “Mechanics markets so licenses, In the U.S., the line is segmented Made Easy.” The movies, and retail into Build + Play Erector (ages 5+), feaname “Meccano” space are challeng- turing larger plastic parts for the was registered in 1907. The first Meccano factory opened ing. Meccano is developing a 3-D fea- younger child; Xtreme Erector (ages in Liverpool in 1907, one opened in ture film with Helix Films that should 7+), featuring easier assembly, which Berlin in 1912, and another in stimulate renewed interest with the allows kids to get to the fun faster; and Traditional Erector (ages 8+), which is Belleville, France in 1920, which was latest generation of kids. further segmented into Multi Models, replaced by one in Bobigny in 1951. It How does Meccano’s Design, Tuning, and Special Edition. manufactured more than 500,000 Meccano sets a day. In 1959 a new fac- Erector differentiate itself What inspires you in an tory was built in Calais, France, which from other construction economy like this? manufacturers? still exists today. The Erector line is 100 Strategically, we have During the ’50s, the Line brothers inserted the price points owned Meccano. General Mills years old, so grandparand values necesacquired Meccano in the ’70s through ents, parents, and kids recsary. Inspirationally, 1985. In 2000 the Ingberg family and ognize the product. The multiwe see the USA market Nikko bought the company. Nikko model feature allows multiple share opportunity relative to removed itself in 2007, and the com- play experiences in each set as pany was then held by Ingroup well as free play, which drives the Xtreme Erector Europe and know growth is ahead of us. We subscribe to (Ingbergs, 51 percent) and 21 Centrale play value and consumer satisfaction. The play pattern of nuts and Meccano core values and continue to Partners (Benetton, 49 percent). Meccano focuses on what children bolts is second to the brick worldwide. develop toys that inspire countless want in a toy by counting on innova- Erector sales are incremental construc- engineers, designers, architects, and ■ tion and integrating new technologies. tion sales for most retailers because of creative minds of all ages.
4.
2.
3.
5.
JULY/AUGUST 2010
THE TOY BOOK •
7
Toy Industry Association Perspectives
Building an Effective and Sustainable Long-Term Public Affairs Voice for the Toy Industry by Ed Desmond, executive vice president of external affairs, Toy Industry Association
M
ore than 6,000 state government officials from facts and for perspectives of the industry if and when toyaround the nation gathered in Louisville, Ky. in related issues are raised in their states.” late July for the National Conference of State In 2009, TIA actively lobbied or tracked 265 bills in 40 Legislatures (NCSL) annual summit, and the Toy Industry states that could have had an impact on the manufacture Association (TIA) was there to greet them with thousands of and sale of toys and games in the United States. Though no toys and resources on toy-related issues ranging from safe- legislation was passed last year that had a direct negative ty and the environment to the benefits of play. impact on the toy industry, 210 bills were carried over from Featuring a “Come Out and Play” theme, TIA’s booth 2009 into this year’s sessions. With the 90-plus new bills emphasized the importance of keeping kids and families introduced in 2010, TIA is monitoring and influencing more engaged in physical than 300 distinct pieces of activity and supported a legislation that could negbroad range of initiaatively impact toy busitives that promote and nesses. Thus far in 2010, support active lifestyles. TIA has been able to preDuring conversations vent passage of any bills with legislators, TIA that directly focus on toys staff demonstrated, and and continues to address gave away, toys and legislative and regulatory games that promote challenges that are still active bodies and active pending in several states, minds for the entire including some that carry family and explained over from laws that how these products help passed in 2008. to shape the social, At NCSL, TIA staff emotional, and intelleccautioned state officials tual development of about moving forward Toy industry members meet with the Department of Commerce. children. with legislation that may Additionally, staff introduced key points about the potentially duplicate, overlap, or conflict with the laws in industry’s efforts to establish and implement uniform other states or with the rigorous requirements of the federnational safety standards and promote toy safety compli- al Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). ance practices, foster economic growth for workers around the country, and support philanthropic efforts that provide Federal Outreach Brings Toy Industry new toys to children in need. Perspectives to Capitol Hill “The NCSL event is a critical component of TIA’s proacIn terms of the CPSIA and other federal issues, requests tive state-level advocacy program,” explains Andy for legislative relief and the development of regulatory Hackman, senior director of state government affairs at TIA. implementation rules continue to stay at the forefront for “Our goal is to position TIA as a resource for state govern- the toy industry. They were key topics for discussion when ment officials and their staffs so that they turn to us for representatives of toy companies from across the U.S. con-
8 • THE TOY BOOK
JULY/AUGUST 2010
vened in the nation’s capital May 4-5 to meet with members of Congress, the Secretary of Commerce, a Commissioner from the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), and other key decision makers. The third-annual TIA-sponsored Washington, DC Fly-In provided toy industry stakeholders with an opportunity to teach others about issues that affect workers and jobs, economic development, market expansion, and other factors affecting the growth of U.S. toy businesses. Similar to the NCSL event, a key focus of the annual event was to strengthen relationships between TIA members and federal officials; educate those officials about the size, scope, and activities of the industry; and enhance the influence of the industry trade association. During the meeting at the Department of Commerce, Secretary Gary Locke thanked the toy industry for “encouraging innovation and the intellectual stimulation of children.” While on Capitol Hill, legislative staff for Congressman Joe Barton (R-TX), ranking member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, provided a brief update on the process and timing of the proposed bill to amend the CPSIA. Unfortunately, in the weeks leading up to the August recess, Congress and the White House have been focused on matters such as financial reform, the oil spill in the Gulf, and the nomination of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court. As such, no significant activity has taken place on the proposed bill in Congress aimed at providing CPSIA relief. From the regulatory perspective, however, several actions continue in the ongoing effort to provide clarity regarding the CPSIA’s provisions. One highlight of the DC Fly-In dinner meeting was when CPSC Commissioner Robert Adler announced that some of the more burdensome aspects of the Commission’s proposed rules for periodic testing requirements, in fulfillment of the CPSIA, had been eliminated from the current draft now under CPSC review. With regard to testing requirements, process controls, and documentation, TIA president Carter Keithley acknowledged the industry’s relief but noted there was still a lot of work to be done. On behalf of the toy industry, TIA has submitted consolidated comments on the other proposed rules that were submitted by the CPSC for public review and comment this summer, which include: •
Proposed Interpretative Rule Defining “Children’s Product” Subject to CPSIA
JULY/AUGUST 2010
• • •
Testing and Labeling Pertaining to Product Certification Proposed Rule on Component Part Testing Proposed Rule on the Publicly Available Consumer Product Safety Information Database
In addition to the CPSIA actions, another topic introduced this summer was the Federal Trade Commission’s call for public comments on its implementation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) through the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule. The COPPA Rule was enacted in April 2000 and requires website operators to obtain parental consent before collecting, using, or disclosing personal information from children under the age of 13. It also requires that the operators keep the information they collect from children secure, and prohibits them from requiring children to turn over any more personal information than is reasonably necessary to participate in activities on their websites. During a full-day roundtable held in Washington D.C. on June 2, the FTC explained that consideration of the law was expedited from its normal 10-year review schedule to five years due to rapidly changing technology such as the increased use of smartphones and other devices to access websites and online services, as well as new methods for collecting and using information online. Under the joint leadership of its Responsible Marketing to Children Subcommittee and the Federal Government Affairs Committee, along with the assistance of outside counsel, TIA submitted written comments on behalf of the toy industry. In its response, TIA indicated its belief that the COPPA Rule has worked well to protect children’s online privacy and that changes to the rule should not be made lightly. Any modifications must offer substantial privacy and safety benefits to both children and their parents without undue burdens on operators. TIA’s comments also suggested that all the parental consent mechanisms currently recognized in the COPPA Rule remain necessary and valid. “TIA has long been an advocate of sound and sensible measures to protect children’s privacy and safety online,” says Carter Keithley. “Nothing is more important to our members than the safety of children and the trust of their parents.” TIA will continue to work on the government and state level to address all of the issues currently impacting the toy industry and its members. For the latest updates, visit www.toyassociation.org. ■
THE TOY BOOK •
9
Industry Update FanTOYstic Fact
The Ohio Art Company recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of Etch A Sketch. Developed by Frenchman Arthur Granjean in the late 1950s, Etch A Sketch was originally named L’Ecran Magique. The invention was discovered by W.C. Killgallon at the International Toy Fair in Nuremburg, Germany in 1959, and later that year Ohio Art bought the rights to the product and began marketing it under the Etch A Sketch name. Today, more than a million Etch A Sketch toys have been sold.
CHINA TOY EXPO
TO
OPEN
TO
MANUFACTURE
BABY GENIUS ELAS Winfat Industrial Co., Ltd. has signed a new licensing deal that will grant the company the rights to manufacture electronic learning aids (ELAs) for Pacific Entertainment’s Baby Genius brand. The ELAs will include bilingual preschool laptop computers and learning boards for distribution to mass-market and mid-tier retailers, e-commerce, specialty toy stores, and book stores throughout the U.S. The deal will run through 2013, and the first line of products is expected to be released next spring.
10 • THE TOY BOOK
OCTOBER
China Toy Expo (CTE) 2010, a trade fair focused on toys, hobby, and baby products, will be held October 12-14. China Toy Association (CTA) arranged the event. The show will include eight main production areas for wooden toys, plush toys, baby carriages, playground equipment, plastic and electronic toys, and more. CTE 2010 expects more than 1,000 exhibitors, 900 factories, and 2,500 brands. The association also estimates that 42 percent of this year’s exhibitors have never exhibited in China or at other trade shows. To reassure buyers, CTA is encouraging Chinese exhibitors to obtain necessary certificates or test reports to comply with all toy safety standards and regulations. Additionally, exhibitors are carefully examined before being invited to the fair.
RUBIE’S OBTAINS LICENSE
WINFAT
IN
FOR
THE GREEN HORNET COSTUMES
Rubie’s Costume Co., Inc. has secured a license to create costumes ranging from deluxe to accessories based on characters from Sony Pictures’ January 14 release of The Green Hornet. Rubie’s The Green Hornet costumes will include Kato, Green Hornet, hats, gloves, masks, and more. The Green Hornet stars Seth Rogen in the title role, Jay Chou as Kato, Cameron Diaz as secretary Lenore Case, and Christoph Waltz as Benjamin Chudnofsky. The movie is directed by Michel Gondry, written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, produced by Neal H. Moritz, and based on the 1930s “The Green Hornet” radio series created by George W. Trendle. The film will be released in 3-D.
Get the latest toy industry news delivered straight to your inbox each week for free! Subscribe to The Toy Book’s Toy Report. Just send an email to subscribe@adventurepub.com. Add jbreyer@toybook.com to your address book to ensure delivery. For up-to-the-minute news, follow The Toy Book on Twitter: twitter.com/ToyBook, and “like” us on Facebook: facebook.com/TheToyBook. Visit The Toy Book’s blog at www.toybook.com.
JULY/AUGUST 2010
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS
TO
DEVELOP BABY LINES
Discovery Communications, Inc. and Big Tent Entertainment have announced the brand formation of TLC Baby. The TLC Baby brand will span markets including learning and development, health and safety, bath, feeding, electronics, furniture, room décor, bedding/blankets, layette, and apparel. Big Tent is the sole licensing agent of record for all TLC-branded content. Also announced is Discovery’s Animal Planet Baby, a new line of infant and toddler products for North America. Animal Planet Baby products will include apparel, layette, infant and toddler bedding, room décor, feeding products, and more. H.I.S. plans to release baby products, such as strollers, car seats, and bath toys under the brand between this fall and spring 2011. Discovery Communications is seeking partners for Animal Planet Baby in the infant bedding, home décor, and plush categories. All licensing deals for Animal Planet Baby will be brokered by The Joester Loria Group (JLG), on behalf of Discovery Communications. ■
PLAY VISIONS FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST DOLLAR TREE STORES Play Visions, Inc. has filed an infringement lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington against Dollar Tree Stores and its sister company, Greenbrier International, Inc. The lawsuit alleges that Dollar Tree Stores “knowingly, willingly, and unlawfully is infringing patents, trademarks, and copyrights, and intended to infringe on Play Visions’ intellectual property rights.” The lawsuit lists more than 20 items that Play Visions believes infringes on its IP rights, and the company also believes there might be more. Play Visions is seeking damages and attorney’s fees.
Go Figure!
by Funosophy
The Classics Prevail by Nancy Zwiers
T
here is no question that—whether they are played indoors or outdoors, on a board or with a ball—every child has a favorite game that they like to play. Funosophy, Inc. took a deeper look at kids’ favorites by asking 217 boys and girls, ages 9 to 11, to tell us about their favorite games that were not video or online games.
“Not counting video games and online gaming, what is your favorite game to play with your friends right now?”
Overall, the favorite category of games played by kids and their friends are board games. Thirtyfour percent of kids mentioned a board game as their favorite game to play with friends. Some board games that were frequently mentioned include Monopoly, Life, Sorry, and Scrabble. The second highest category cited among kids as a favorite were sports games such as basketball, football, and soccer. The sports games category represented 29 percent of kids’ favorite games. Outside games, mainly tag and hide-and-seek, was another popular category.
When looking at differences by gender, nearly half (46 percent) of girls listed board games as their favorite game to play with friends, followed by outside games (19 percent). While boys enjoy board games too (the second favorite at 24 percent), their favorite is sports games: 44 percent of boys mentioned a sports game as their favorite game to play with friends.
12
• THE TOY BOOK
JULY/AUGUST 2010
When looking at the younger end of children surveyed (age 9) and the higher age (age 11), there was one very distinct difference in their preference of game category: children age 9 preferred board games over any other category. Over half (51 percent) of children age 9 listed a board game as their favorite game to play with friends. Children age 11 preferred sports games over any other category, with 37 percent of children at that age listing a sports game as their favorite game.
Board games represented 34 percent of kids’ favorite games to play with their friends. We took a look further into the board game category and coded mentions into genre subcategories. The top two subcategories mentioned were family-style board games and strategy board games. A whopping 55 percent of kids mentioned a family-style board game, such as Monopoly or Life, as their favorite. Strategy games, including games such as Mancala, Checkers, and Chess, represented 18 percent of the board games mentioned. Of all board games mentioned by brand name, only two games were relatively new: Apples to Apples and the Twilight board game.
In Summary As previously stated, the classics, both indoors and outdoors, have prevailed. Indoors, more kids enjoy classic games such as Life, Monopoly, and Scrabble. Outdoors, whether it is sports or games like tag and hide-and-seek, once again the tried-and-true games are preferred. There is something about these games that sets them apart from the rest, and they continue to top the lists as favorites in the games category.
Nancy Zwiers is CEO of Funosophy, Inc., a kids’ brand building firm in the toy industry. For information on conducting your own survey or any of Funosophy’s research, marketing, or product design services, email nancy@funosophy.com or call (562) 436-5251.
JULY/AUGUST 2010
THE TOY BOOK •
13
It’s
GAME
Time...
PLUS PUZZLES!
Top Trumps’ card games put a fresh spin on the classic game of war. In the game, for two to six players, all 30 cards are dealt face down to the players. Each player holds his or her cards face up, but can only look at the top card. The first player chooses the best statistic from the top card. Depending on the game’s theme, the statistic may be a speed, skill, strength, or something else. After the first player’s statistic is read, all the other players read the same stat. The highest or best value wins the round and takes the cards. The first player to win all 30 cards is declared the winner. New Top Trumps card games include Avatar, Disney’s Phineas and Ferb, Marvel Heroes, NYC Pack, and more.
The 1,000-piece Signature Collection by Buffalo Games is a new line of five puzzles featuring popular images. The images of the puzzle sets include paintings “Starry Night,” “The Last Supper,” and “La Grande Jatte,” as well as the famous buildings Taj Mahal and Neuschwanstein Castle. In addition, the company has debuted a 1,000-piece series from artist Dennis Lewan, which includes four playful images: Flower Vendor, American Holiday, Beary Patch Park, and The Playful Cat.
Hasbro introduces U-Build, customizable games that players build. In the games, players control the action by moving brick-based pieces to different places around the game board. The games include U-Build Monopoly, where players snap together hexagonal property spaces and build structures such as skyscrapers, stadiums, and hazards, as well as U-Build Battleship, U-Build Connect 4, UBuild Mouse Trap, and U-Build Sorry!.
Pressman Toy has “revolutionized” Chinese checkers. In the company’s new version, Chinese Revolution, players must jump to get all of their pieces to the opposite side of the board. But if a player picks a card that instructs to turn, the entire center ring of the game board shifts. The spin of the center ring may help a player get his or her checkers to the other side of the board, or it may throw off the path entirely.
14 • THE TOY BOOK
JULY/AUGUST 2010
Ravensburger’s Puzzleball features curved plastic pieces that are numbered on the back so puzzle constructors can know where the pieces fit together. When the puzzle is finished the pieces create a smooth, round surface, with no glue required. Each puzzleball, ranging from 30- to 960-piece counts, includes its own matching base stand for 360-degree viewing. New Puzzleballs include Animal Babies, Sports, New York City, Underwater World, The Earth, and The Solar System, which features eight puzzleballs, one for each planet. The Earth Puzzleball
Lego’s Creationary is a game of creative building. Players roll the Lego dice to select one of four building categories: vehicles, buildings, nature, or things. After a category is selected, players pick a card (96 in all) and use the Lego bricks to build what’s on the card while other try to guess the creation. The game, for 3 to 8 players, includes three levels of difficulty to test players’ imagination, creativity, building, and guessing skills.
Disney fans can experience the magical world of Disney in a new way with Screenlife’s Scene It? Disney Magical Moments Deluxe Edition. Players can solve new puzzles and trivia, and play minigames that will test their memory, observation, and knowledge of their favorite Disney and Pixar movies. Also available are Scene It? Twilight Saga Deluxe Edition and Rudolph the RedNosed Reindeer—The DVD Game.
MEGA
IS
ALL FUN
AND
GAMES
Mega Brands is releasing an array of new board games based on building and the blockbuster film Avatar. Avatar The Board Game features scenarios straight from the movie as players ages 8 years and older work to protect the Navi’s All Soul Tree. Mega Bloks Racecar Builder combines building with a fast-paced board game experience, as players ages 6 years and older race to construct their cars and make it to the winner’s circle. In Mega Bloks Match & Build, preschool players ages 4 years and older collect five blocks from the board to construct their animal and win the game. Mega Bloks Domino Build combines colors, matching, and motor and numbers skills in a preschool game where the player to construct their four-piece domino animal first wins.
16 • THE TOY BOOK
JULY/AUGUST 2010
Artist David O’Keefe, known for his caricatures and humorous images, is the man behind the images of Ceaco’s new Celebrity Superstars line, a 550piece puzzle series. The new puzzles by O’Keefe––whose work has appeared on covers of Sports Illustrated, Sports Illustrated for Kids, Mad Magazine, The Village Voice, and more––include Michael Jackson, titled “Michael;” Elvis Presley, titled “Elvis;” and The Beatles, titled “65 Beatles.” The puzzles are sold in Ceaco’s new environmentally responsible packaging, which uses up to 18 percent less packaging than before. The puzzles are made with 90 percent recycled materials and vegetable-based inks, and are 100 percent biodegradable.
Tara Toy introduces new games in its Zwiggle line. In Shakin Bacon, there’s a hungry customer waiting for breakfast. Players take turns trying to get the most pieces of bacon and eggs to the customer’s plate by using a vibrating spatula. The player that gets the most pieces to the plate before the spatula stops vibrating wins the game. Tara Toy also debuts Pop Tac Toe, a new way to play Tic Tac Toe, and Spingo, a spin on Bingo.
Late for the Sky releases a new licensed Monster Jam game, Monster Jam-opoly. In the game, players build their own Monster Jam fleet of monster trucks, buy toolboxes to upgrade their trucks, and then trade the tricked out vehicles to build their dream garage. The aim of the game is to maximize your fleet’s value while avoiding a trip to Digger’s Dungeon. As a bonus, each monster truck title has fun facts about fan favorite drivers and the monster trucks.
BubbleTalk is a family board game of captions. In this Techno Source game, players are challenged with matching funny captions to even funnier pictures. At the beginning of the game, each player draws seven random caption cards. The judge for that round draws a picture card and players must quickly try to match the funniest caption they have to the picture. The player who makes the judge laugh the most wins that round. Caption cards can also be used with funny, personal photographs. The game includes 150 image cards and 300 caption cards.
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Idea Storm Products debuts new Yamodo! Good to Go! Theme Packs. The travel versions of Yamodo! can be used on planes, trains, or in cars. In the game, players create drawings and definitions for made-up Yamodo! words. Then, the drawings and accompanying definition is passed around and everyone adds to the story. Each card starts with a new word and the beginnings of a doodle, and there’s never a wrong answer. The new themes, available this fall, are Monsters & Aliens, Magic & Mayhem, and Gizmos & Gadgets.
Sumoku, by Blue Orange Games, is a game of arranging numbers and colors. In this crossword-style game, players arrange numbered tiles (96 in total) in rows or columns to add up to multiples of the number shown on the die. The game can get tricky as a row or column may not contain duplicate colors. Sumoku, for one to eight players ages 9 and up, helps with number recognition and math skills. Players use addition and multiplication in each of the five versions of the game that are included in the travel pouch.
For more games and Puzzles, turn to page S6.
Mobile Apps Shake Up the Games Industry by Reyne Rice, toy trend expert
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his is the first generation of kids that have been encouraged to poke, swipe, shake, and pinch their favorite playthings. With nearly 225,000 iPhone Apps already available, and nearly 375,000 apps expected to be available on the top two platforms by year’s end (iPhone and Android combined: Annual 2010 forecast by Yankee Group), it is no wonder that app fever has caught hold in the toys, games, entertainment, and licensing markets for kids and families. DFC Intelligence recently released a report that predicts that games for the iPhone/iTouch/iPad platforms will be the principle driving force in the mobile games market five years from now. According to this report, the overall mobile gaming market will continue to grow, but the percentage owned by portable gaming devices like the PlayStation are expected to shrink. DFC predicts that revenue from mobile games will grow from $46 million in 2008 to $2.8 billion in 2014. The NPD Group has reported that traditional games, in general, have been a growth category for the past three years. Traditional games represent $2.4 billion annually in the U.S. With the growing use of iPhones and other SmartPhones, and with today’s mobile lifestyle, Gen Y parents are more likely to hand over their smart phone to entertain kids-on-the-go, so mobile gaming is also expected to grow, for use with kids and family apps. Portable
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devices keep kids entertained while on the move, and this keeps families sane. Most younger care givers, who are digital natives themselves, have no qualms about sharing their iPhones or smart phones with their preschool children to keep them engaged for car rides, grocery store trips, or in waiting rooms.
Tap Apps for Retail Sales of Physical Toy and Gaming Products New research studies by The NPD Group support the fact that kids who digitally download content are more likely to have the physical product. For every dollar that kids spend on entertainment media, 85 cents go toward physical products, with the balance going to digital content, according to The NPD Group. More than three quarters of kids ages 2-14 (79 percent) have acquired some form of physical or digital content in the past year, with 31 percent acquiring both. Kids generally use digital media to supplement their physical collections, says NPD, and less than 1 percent of kids acquired only digital content in the past year. Retailers can capitalize on this trend by tracking the best-selling kids and family apps on the iTunes App store, and stocking up on the physical products that bring those favorite characters and well-loved content to life in a 3-D format, such as with classic books, games, soft plush characters, or other categories of licensed products. New and best-selling children’s active games by I Can Do That Games support Dr. Seuss, Curious George, and
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Richard Scarry properties, with handson interactive preschool games for kids. The Dr. Seuss organic plush collection by Hosung provides new options for gift-givers looking for organic plush products. Best-selling eBooks for kids will be best-selling hardcover books for grandparents who are familiar with the classics in the tried-and-true storybook readers and coloring book formats.
Alternative Retailers Are Tracking the Trends in Gaming Book-sellers, specialty retailers, and airport, hotel, university, and hospital gift shops are all examples of alternative retail outlets that have added travel-size and full-size physical board and dice games to their shelves to complement best-selling apps for mobile games. Electronic Arts creates apps to support over two dozen Hasbro Games classics such as Scrabble, Clue, Game of Life, Trivial Pursuit, Boggle, Monopoly Here and Now: World Edition, and Yahtzee Adventure games. ThinkFun offers both physical and mobile Rush Hour and Rush Hour Deluxe games, with more on the way. Mattel has produced Uno in both formats, and Around the Table Games created Family Talk as dual options. One of the newest storytelling “everyone-wins-with-open-ended-play” dice games for 2010, Rory’s Story Cubes (distributed in the USA by Ceaco/Gamewright) is also available in
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a compact dice format in both physical and mobile choices. Let your customers know that you have researched their favorite individual handheld play options by creating instore game nights to encourage social group play events with physical games to strengthen those brand loyalties, and cross-sell more merchandise.
pages coming to life and other embedded interactive features to delight readers. Keeping abreast of the changes will keep retailers on their toes. Enterprising retailers will capitalize on the power of this new medium, by offering complementary physical toy and gaming products in-store, to meet the consumer’s needs for a balanced approach to the toy box. ■
Gaming Trends for Future Apps As we approach 2011 and beyond, gaming and mobile applications will incorporate the newest technologies. Expect to see greater use of multi-player games and puzzles on mobile devices, and wider use of multi-touch interactions—especially for the larger screen format iPad apps and in-store kiosks and entertainment events. Look for GPS locator interfaces (such as treasure hunts and fan gatherings in parks, malls, and zoos) and accelerometer technologies that will engage consumers with motion-activated play modes. We will see wireless and wi-fi access links to additional features that can also enhance the inherent play value. Augmented reality will move beyond the current “trading-cards-coming-tolife” scenario and offer more bold, hands-on experiences that today’s digitally native kids will naturally be able to activate. eBooks development will continue to challenge publishers to offer colorful, illustrated books to appeal to younger readers, and incorporate engaging options, such as
Reyne Rice is a seasoned industry professional with 30 years of experience in marketing, researching, and analyzing the toy industry and the youth marketplace. Reyne is currently toy trend specialist for the Toy Industry Association and advises broadcast and print media on the hottest trends in toys, games, technology, entertainment, and licensing as it affects the youth marketplace.
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21
Mega Bloks Turns 25 by Bryan Joiner
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hen Vic Bertrand was just a kid, his parents used to hand him the keys to Mega Bloks’ 20 showrooms, and Bertrand would be let loose upon them like a kid in a candy store… that he owned. Bertrand and his brother Marc still run the company (as CIO and CEO) that was founded by Victor Bertrand Sr. and his wife Rita, and this year they’re celebrating the 25th anniversary of the toys that put the company on the map of the world—Mega Bloks. The celebration will culminate with a retail promotion featuring a $25,000 grand prize toward a child’s education, gift packs, and a loyalty program offering consumers savings on products. Mega will also be doing birthday party themed events at retail, “Mommy Parties,” and a massive social media campaign using its Parent Panel, as well as social media platforms. But none of it would be happening if it wasn’t for a stroke of inspiration a quarter-century ago that has changed the way kids grow and play. Vic Sr. and Rita had run manufacturing and distribution businesses for more than 18 years… and then lightning struck. “They saw a huge void in preschool construction and decided to bridge the gap between wooden blocks and other intricate systems by bringing down the age group and cre-
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ating an easy fitting block system,” says Vic Bertrand. “They immediately knew they had a winner.” Creating the product, though, is only half the battle. You also have to get it on shelves, and as a Canadian company in 1985, international distribution was “daunting,” says Bertrand. The company made the bold decision to handle international distribution on its own, and it paid off to the tune of Mega Bloks in more than 100 countries within a decade. From the beginning, Mega has operated both as a family business and one with a corporate culture. Its success is “rooted in traditional, family values,” Bertrand says. Mega has moved into stationery, puzzles, games, and activities—and has grown from Mega Bloks to Mega Brands. Like most companies, it faces daunting challenges in a toy business that is today driven by trends and content. That means “continuous revitalization of your brands and products,” says Bertrand, and obtaining licenses to differentiate yourself. When a good idea strikes, Mega can bring it to market in as few as three months. Any great idea, though, is built on hundreds of other ones. For Mega Brands, it all goes back to that first source of inspiration 25 years ago—seeing the opportunity to build something where no one else had. ■
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7 Tips for Opening a by Christina Norsig, CEO, PopUpInsider
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Pop-Up Shop
hile digital media, social networking platforms, and a multitude of communication gadgets have been cited as contributors to the shifting retail landscape, these challenges are not met without new strategies and tactics to help navigate the daunting retail market. The overarching goals to increase brand recognition and personal connections with your customer have remained the same, but an increasing number of retailers have used the “instant gratification” nature of the consumer as the impetus toward temporary retail outlets. More commonly referred to as pop-up shops, this retail platform will be one of the most important elements of a successful retail marketing campaign in the years ahead. Taking your products to your customer, as an online or brick-and-mortar outfit, will give you a chance to build loyalties with customers before the competition does. And with so much commercial real estate space sitting vacant—10.1 percent according to published reports—you would think that this should be a fairly simple process. Think again. Finding landlords with space for lease to house your company’s wares temporarily can be just the beginning of a hectic process, unless you follow these steps: • Start Early—By planning several months out, you can increase the effectiveness of your pop-up shop and save a considerable amount of time and money. Make sure you create a budget and identify your objectives as early as possible. • Location—Finding the right neighborhood or store location is critical to ensuring the success of a pop-up shop. This includes doing due diligence on area demographics, other retailers present in the neighborhood, visibility, foot and vehicle traffic counts, and neighborhood safety. Speak to neighboring stores for the real scoop. • Lease Duration—How long a retailer should keep their pop-up store open depends on their business objectives and budget. Most pop-up stores are open for about three months. Making sure that you give yourself enough
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time to see results—at least three to four weeks. • Physical Branding—Knowing how you want to set up your store—what products and how much of them you will be displaying, lighting, décor, and theme—is critical in creating an atmosphere that speaks to your brand identity and that will leave a lasting impression on consumers long after the store is closed. • Know Your Landlord—Has your landlord ever done a temporary lease arrangement before? How accessible are they? Are they willing to work with you to improve the space? These are key questions that need to be asked during lease negotiations, and will weigh heavily in ensuring the success of your pop-up store. • Educational Experience—A pop-up store is an excellent way to educate your customers on all that is great about your products. Make sure your sales staff is educated and trained on the unique selling points of your wares, and that they have a clear understanding of how you want them to articulate these points to customers. • Follow Up—Once you close your store, the benefits of having opened a pop-up shop can still be reaped. Retailers should take down email addresses of customers who visited the store and conduct follow-up outreach, either through emails or social media platforms, to keep the customers engaged and to solicit feedback. ■
Christina Norsig is founder and CEO of PopUpInsider.com, an online exchange created to connect landlords with vacant retail space and retailers in search of a temporary home. The company also offers concierge services at an additional cost to help retailers set up their pop-up shop by providing turnkey guidance on establishing a temporary space. Norsig has pioneered several techniques for using pop ups as interactive marketing tools for both brands and real estate owners.
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Creating StinkyKids: Not Just Child’s Play Britt Menzies’ story starts with a painting she created for her daughter, then leads to a T-shirt line, licensed products, and eventually, plush dolls from Madame Alexander. Getting to that point has not been easy, and the journey is still in progress, destination unknown. by Jennifer Ringler
Painting a Dream In 2005, Britt Menzies was your average stay-at-home mom. Her daughter, then 2 years old, asked Menzies to paint a picture of her as a ballerina. Menzies considered herself artsy but not an artist, dabbling in crafts as a hobby, but decided to go all out with the painting, eschewed her usual pen-and-paper doodles for paint and a canvas. Menzies’ daughter loved the painting, and so did family and friends who saw it. A friend suggested making similar paintings of other kids in the neighborhood using the same style, colors, and design. Before she knew it, Menzies had a fledgling business, selling paintings of kids, for kids, to capture their tiny personalities and big dreams, earning for her what she called “extra grocery money.” In early 2006, Menzies showed her painting to a local retailer in Atlanta, Ga., and asked if she could hang the paintings in his store to generate more business. The owner of the store liked the paintings so much, he offered to buy the rights to the characters from Menzies, hoping to put them on T-shirts and sell them in his store. Menzies turned down the offer and decided to sell Tshirts featuring her characters herself. She and a few of her closest friends and family picked six of the characters she had created—two Asian, two African American, and two Caucasian—and the painting business became a Tshirt business.
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Menzies named the characters StinkyKids, remembering how she used to call her own children “little stinkers” for their mischievous ways. StinkyKids’ motto, “Always be a leader of good,” is also inspired by her own children. “That was something we came up with when my kids were on the playground, and they would see bad behavior, and I would say, ‘If you’re always a leader of good, good things will happen to you,’ and it kind of stuck,” she says. Even the characters themselves are each based on someone important in Menzies’ life—including StinkyKid Max (her son), and StinkyKid Britt (her own StinkyKid likeness). From there, things snowballed into success, including appearances on The Today Show and, eventually, StinkyKids T-shirts being sold in Nordstrom department stores. Once the T-shirts hit stores, people wanted StinkyKids on stationery, pajamas, key chains, and anywhere else they could get them. “That was the point when I realized that it wasn’t just a T-shirt business anymore, it wasn’t just a painting—that’s when I decided StinkyKids was going to be a full-fledged brand,” recalls Menzies.
Building A Brand Once Menzies realized she had something much bigger than a couple of cartoon paintings and a few T-shirts at her fingertips, she went back to the drawing board, creating
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personalities for her little stinkers, including favorite foods, personality traits, and career dreams. Then she went back to Nordstrom, which was already selling StinkyKids T-shirts, and pitched the idea of StinkyKids dolls and books. Nordstrom loved the idea and wanted to sell the dolls. Menzies got in touch with a manufacturer in China, and spent nine months going back and forth, coming up with the perfect prototype.
The Dolls Are Born Nordstrom loved the dolls and ordered 3,000 of them. But when Menzies went back to the manufacturer she’d been working with for the better part of a year, they said the order was too small, and they wouldn’t create the dolls. “I was a little bit shocked. We were in a bad economy, and I would have thought that any order would have been a good order,” says Menzies, “but they denied me.” Now, with a 3,000 doll order from Nordstrom and no manufacturer to fill it, Menzies again went back to the drawing board, relying on mentors and networking to get the job done, learning how to go from being a mom who painted pictures to a one-woman business. Menzies found another manufacturer in China, Furst Plush Designs, to fill her order to get the dolls to Nordstrom in time for holiday 2009. Menzies also pitched the dolls to FAO Schwarz, who initially asked for 300 dolls—the “leftovers” Menzies had purchased for herself from the large Nordstrom order. The orders for both stores were shipped directly to Menzies’ home, where she single-handedly opened, inspected, tagged, re-packaged, and shipped all 3,000 dolls to all 110 Nordstrom locations and to FAO Schwarz in New York City. “I had a zillion boxes all over my living room and dining room,” Menzies says. “It took me about two and a half weeks, day in and day out. But it was a good lesson for my kids, because I tell them now, when you get overwhelmed and you don’t think that you can finish something or succeed, just think about Mommy and do one doll at a time. And that’s what I did… one doll at a time, until that last doll was done and that last carton was marked, and it went out the door.” The dolls sold well at Nordstrom, and the department store’s online website even had to take dolls from the brick-and-mortar locations to fill the online orders. The dolls at FAO Schwarz sold out completely.
Stone America and Beyond With the dolls selling so well at Nordstrom for the holiday season, it wasn’t long before StinkyKids caught the eye of Rob Stone at Stone America Licensing. Menzies made the decision to sign with Stone in December of last year. “Rob was great, and he saw the huge potential and the endless opportunities with these characters,” says Menzies. Less than two months later, StinkyKids had its first licensee, Madame Alexander (also known as Alexander Doll Company), on board as the exclusive manufacturer of soft-bodied StinkyKids Dolls.
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Madame Alexander will bring the dolls back to Nordstrom in September with all 10 characters in four different sizes, from a 20-inch doll to an eight-inch plush key chain. Stone America also facilitated a deal in which Pearson Publishing has signed on to create children’s books based on the characters, also launching in September. When you ask Menzies where she sees StinkyKids a year from now, or five years from now, she’s not afraid to dream big. She speaks hopefully of StinkyKids with new outfits, StinkyKids with their own plush pets, a line of StinkyKids books, an interactive website, and even pitching StinkyKids to a television network for a possible animation. “Rob Stone and I always joke,” says Menzies. “We say we’ll know we’ve made it big when StinkyKids has their own float in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.” ■
The Toy Book also spoke with Gale Jarvis, president of Alexander Doll Company, to understand the evolution of StinkyKids from the manufacturer’s perspective. The Toy Book: Why was StinkyKids the right property for you? Jarvis: When we first saw it, we liked it because it had such a wonderful message for kids that we believe in as a company: everybody is a leader of good. The dolls are all multi-racial, with both boys and girls. and they all come with a card that distinguishes their personalities—like trading cards, which we think is really fun. They all have different characteristics. It reinforces a lot of value systems that are a good message to send. It’s a message that parents like to reinforce as well, and they’re also very affordable. The Toy Book: Do you often get pitches from such little-known entrepreneurs? How do you know which ones to gamble on? Jarvis: We get a lot of people who have ideas, and they pursue us, and we look at them. We look for things that fit into our line, into what we have, that supplement what we’re already doing or that we’ve done. And this fit in very nicely. We look at lots of things, and we evaluate how they work within our company, and if they’re meaningful to us. We felt that this was meaningful to us. We have enough experience in dolls and cloth dolls to know what generally works. The Toy Book: Where do you see Madame Alexander and StinkyKids going together in the next year, or in the next five years? Jarvis: I think we’ll have all kinds of clothing and accessories and additional characters. We’d like to have all kinds of things to make the line bigger, to make it a concept unto itself. We think Britt’s a great partner to work with. She’s really an entrepreneur who loves what she does, and this is a great asset to the whole product line. Already we’ve gotten a very strong reaction. Everybody likes the message; it’s a really wholesome, great story. ■
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Dolls aa The Goldberger Co. has introduced new dolls in several of its lines. From the Basic Training Line, Zip-ity Princess is a soft, 14-inch Play & Learn doll complete with six learning activities: zip, button, snap, buckle, tie, and fasten. She helps to teach young ones basic dressing skills, letter and word recognition, fine and gross motor skills, and hand-eye coordination.
Hasbro’s Baby Alive brand extends its care-giving play to girls of all ages with three different segments: 1st For Me dolls for girls as young as 18 months; Simple Care For Me dolls for girls ages 3 to 5; and Real As Can Be dolls for girls ages 4 to 7. Part of the Simple Care For Me line is Baby Alive Bouncin’ Babbles. Hold her hands and watch this energetic tot bounce up and down while giggling and making playful baby sounds. Baby Alive Bouncin’ Babbles will also chuckle and coo just like a real baby when “Mommy” comes near.
Bandai’s Harumika line lets girls create their own looks with no gluing, sewing, or scissors. Girls pick a fabric, wrap it around the dress form or mannequin, then secure it into place with the Style Lock System. New for 2010, the Harumika Mannequin allows girls to change hairstyles, shoes, and more. Each Mannequin set includes a Mannequin, a wig, exclusive fabrics, a pair of shoes, fashion accents, and a stylus tool.
Manhattan Toy’s Lilydoll dolls are the very best of friends. They value their friendships and just love spending time together. These young ladies are always thoughtful of other people and the environment. The dolls have embroidered facial detailing, soft fabric hair, and removable outfits. These dolls have realistic body shapes and are designed to invoke a positive self-image along with creative and nurturing play. The Lilydolls are Harper, Josephine, and Astrid.
Playmates Toys’ charitable Hearts for Hearts Girls will debut this fall. Each 13.5 inch doll represents a girl who is working to change the world in ways unique to her home country. Story booklets included with each doll show young girls how their peers in other countries live, and how they contribute to their families, communities, countries, and the world. The initial launch includes girls from six countries: Belarus, Ethiopia, India, Laos, Mexico, and the United States.
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Dolls Founded in 1964, Guidecraft’s mission has been to create products for children with a focus on safety, creativity, quality, and durability. Serving both the educational and consumer markets, Guidecraft presents a full line of educational toys, dramatic play items, and furniture collections. The company’s doll furniture features thick wooden posts with elaborate turnings and details, birch hardwood construction, simple assembly, and different finishes to choose from.
On September 7, Raggedy Ann will turn 95, and in honor of that milestone, she now boasts a fresh—yet retro—new look. To mark her 95th anniversary, Applause by Russ has created exclusive, vintage-inspired Raggedy Ann and Andy Anniversary Dolls that harken back to the illustrations from the earliest Raggedy Ann books by Johnny Gruelle.
MGA’s Bitty Buttons is a unique and whimsical collection of eight different 13-inch rag dolls who magically came to life when their very last stitch was sewn. With a tag line of “Sew magical—Sew cute,” each Bitty Button was born on a special day in history and has her own personality developed by the fabrics used to make her.
This fall, Spin Master’s Liv dolls—Daniela, Sophie, Katie, and Alexis—return with new doll lines and new friend Hayden. Each of the girls in the new School’s Out line comes fully ready to hang out in fashions unique to each girl, whether they spend their afterschool time skateboarding, working, shopping, or styling their friends’ hair. School’s Out Daniella
JAKKS Pacific has introduced two new Rapunzel dolls from Tollytots. The soft and cuddly 12-inch Rapunzel baby doll features a purple dress, blanket, comb, tiara, crown, and illuminated flower rattle. This set contains everything a little girl will need to care for this precious Princess.
more dolls on page S16 30 • THE TOY BOOK
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T HE D EFINITIVE I NFORMATION S OURCE
FOR THE
T OY
AND
G IF T M ERCHANT
ASTRA’S INSIGHTS
Linking Play to Reading How Retailers Can Help Customers Understand the Connection by Kathleen McHugh, president, American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA)
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he government is concerned about it. Schools are worried, too. For many moms and dads nationwide, their children’s literacy has become a way of measuring whether they are “good enough” parents. As we gear up for another school year, this topic is back on everyone’s mind. How can members of the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA) and other locally-owned independent toy retailers help parents relax about their child’s literacy––and profit at the same time? The key is in the link between good, healthy play and reading. “Children’s literacy development begins at birth,” says Edgar Klugman, professor emeritus at Wheelock College. “Research has confirmed that one of the best ways for children to master early skills that lead to reading––everything from eye muscle control to understanding how and where print is used, to knowing the alphabet to wanting to be a reader––all these can be learned during the natural, fun, and motivating activity of good, old-fashioned play.” ASTRA retailers, with their business model that focuses on personalized service and a staff highly knowledgeable about the developmental benefits of play, are uniquely positioned to establish the connection between play and reading for their customers. Here are suggestions you can give customers––all supported by research––for promoting early literacy: Read to children daily. Board books or soft cloth books for babies help them learn to savor the warm feeling of cuddling up with a story. Many books for babies incorporate play materials like mirrors, different textures, or peek-a-boo flaps to engage young “readers.” As kids get older, they will be eager to name objects, colors, shapes, and characters—and will thrive on simple questionand-answer games parents can make up on the spot.
Engage in “eye tracking” play right from birth. From the first few days of a baby’s life, many parents engage in simple play with their infant that encourages the little one to follow movement with his eyes. This starts to build the eye muscle control skill that is essential later on for following print on the page. As the baby and toddler get older, they will enjoy toys that
SPECIALTY TOYS & GIFTS
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encourage the child to follow movement with the eyes––everything from crib mobiles to racing cars around a track.
Include printed words in the materials kids use for play. Children learn to read words during play—e.g. signs, labels, lists, charts—that are central to the content of their play. Play provides a motivation for understanding and mastering what a sign, label, or other print material means. Products like kits and games are often good sources of words that children can quickly learn to read. Encourage your kids to act things out. Dramatic play or pretend play is a great way to build the language skills kids need to become good readers because it introduces so many words, situations, and problems to be solved. The possibilities are endless; children can role play occupations (doctor, teacher, firefighter, farmer, hairdresser); family activities (going to the beach, camping, doing laundry, parenting); various forms of shopping (groceries, shoes, restaurants); activities related to transportation (airplane, school bus, cars), and much more. Just because reading is associated with school and causes so much anxiety for kids and grownups doesn’t mean that it can’t be fun, and store owners can help parents make it fun. Your assignment before school begins: think about all the products in your store—from infant mobiles to science kits—that can help kids become strong readers. Make sure your staff is prepared to talk to customers about how those toys promote both fun and early literacy. For expert advice about the developmental benefits of play from a respected child development specialist, plan to attend ASTRA’s 2011 ASTRA Marketplace & Academy in Anaheim, Calif. ●
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NEWS KIDS PREFERRED PICKED
AS
TOY LICENSEE
FOR
BISCUIT
Kids Preferred has been named the newest licensee for Biscuit, a preschool book series written by Alyssa Satin Capucilli, illustrated by Pat Schories, and published by HarperCollins Children’s Books. Kids Preferred will develop plush and fabric-based toys, bath toys, accessories, lunch bags, and activity kits. The Dimensional Branding Group is licensing all categories for the brand, including toys and games, apparel, interactive, collectibles, and room décor.
TALICOR NAMED DISTRIBUTOR
FOR
GDC
Talicor has been named the U.S. distributor for GDC GameDevCo, Ltd. Through this relationship Talicor has added to its product line games such as KISS DVD Board Game, Elvis DVD Board Game, Diamond Crosswords, TNA Wrestling DVD Board Game, and Vital Statistics Board Game. Other games include the Decision Day Fantasy Sports games. These come in Baseball, Basketball, Football, and Hockey versions, and the game play is that of having your own fantasy team racing to win the championship. These Fantasy Sports board games come with actual collectible sports cards that you use for game play. You can also incorporate cards from your own collection. ●
ON
THE
COVER: THROUGH
Stone America Licensing has announced the launch of Discovery Bay Games’ Oxford Game Collection at Barnes & Noble for spring 2011. The line will showcase the history of the University of Oxford in traditional games, including chess and checkers sets with gargoyle components, traditional cribbage, liar’s dice, dominoes, card sets, an authentic trivia game, and both jigsaw and popout puzzles. Following the launch at Barnes & Noble, the products will be available at other retailers, including Borders, K-Mart, Nordstrom, Toys “R” Us, Amazon.com, Target.com, and specialty toy retailers.
WARNER BROS. CONSUMER PRODUCTS, CHARISMA’S ADORA DOLLS WIZARD OF OZ DOLLS. FOR MORE INFORMATION, SEE PAGE S18.
A LICENSING AGREEMENT WITH
INTRODUCES AN OFFICIALLY LICENSED COLLECTION OF
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DISCOVERY BAY TO LAUNCH OXFORD GAME COLLECTION
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SPECIALTY TOYS & GIFTS
Board Games Are
Hot...
Let’s Make Them Hotter by Mary Couzin, president and founder, Chicago Toy and Game Group
B
oard game sales are up, more companies are adding them to their lines, game groups/clubs are increasing in number and scope, and libraries and schools want to have them on hand. I’ve never had so many game inventors contact me before about our Toy and Game Inventor/Industry Conference, www.tagie.net. It seems people are rediscovering that spending time with one another is fun and that they want face-to-face interaction. We may have many more “friends” via the internet, but how many of them would you call a personal friend—someone to help if you were in trouble? There is a 20year Benchmark Study from Duke University documenting this trend. The American Sociological Review commented on the weakening bonds of friendship, saying that people have fewer friends to turn to for help in crises, fewer watchdogs to deter neighborhood crime, fewer visitors for hospital patients, and fewer participants in community groups. We need to continue to work on reversing this trend. Games, and play in general, are good for us. Games are a tool to bring people together, to make us smarter, to lower violence, and more. Games increase literacy. I work on the American Library Association’s Games, Literacy and Libraries Committee. One of the ALA’s four initiatives is to get games into libraries. Hasbro, Top Trumps, and others have helped us with generous donations to all 16,541 libraries (did you know there are more libraries than McDonald’s restaurants in the U.S?). Chances are your local library has a game night and kids hang out in libraries after school playing games. Games make us smarter. More schools are hopping on the bandwagon. Games engage students in a fun activity that reinforces learning, strengthens social skills, and stimulates concentration and strategic think-
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ing. Games help students connect, interact, and learn team building and leadership skills. In addition, playing games builds denser webs of neural connections that can last a lifetime, keeping the mind sharp and possibly delaying diseases such as dementia and Alzheimer’s. Games are the mental counterpart to physical exertion. Strategic Intelligence (SI) is a hot topic for scientists, who believe that games increase SI. We see interest growing on our Games for Educators website, www.G4Ed.com, a joint venture with Live Oak Games. More teachers are visiting and signing up for our newsletter to find out how to incorporate games in the classroom. There are more than 230,000 educators and librarians already receiving the newsletter. Two of our contributors, Brian Mayer and Christopher Harris, have a new book out called Libraries Got Game: Aligned Learning Through Modern Board Games. Among other things, Brian and Chris work on aligning board game curriculum with state standards for schools. Brian told me, “Pew Internet Research let us know that 97 percent of teens in the U.S. play games. This means a common shared experience and reference point for educators and students. Add to this the built-in learning structures that these games have refined and the authenticity of the experience itself and you are left with a powerful learning tool that can help students make meaningful connections with the curriculum.” Game clubs in schools are popping up. There is an educator in Los Angeles who runs a Gangsters to Gamesters Program. The most common explanation as to why kids drop out of school is that they are bored. Playing games can engage them and their teachers and make learning fun. Giles Pritchard, an Australian teacher and Games for Educators columnist, writes: “The most useful skills learned through playing games are some of the most valuable the school system can provide, namely the interpersonal and intrapersonal skills involved with respectable and meaningful person-to-person interaction.” We host the Games in Education Forum during the Chicago Toy and Game Fair, www.chitag.com, a State of Illinois certified event for teaching credits. This year, we are excited to partner with Learning Resources. Teachers are admitted at no cost and there is no shortage of educators in the education industry wishing to speak about the importance of games in schools. Many exhibitors donate product for them to use in the classroom. I hope to see this event growing to a multi-day event in the future, attracting thousands of educators.
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The French Connection In addition to stylish fashion and delectable foods, the French are on to another good thing that would be wonderful to see here in the States (how do we get President Obama’s ear on this?). Les ludotheques is a fantastic concept to be found in France and other French-speaking areas, such as Belgium, Quebec, French-speaking Switzerland, and Luxembourg. It is an idea of the French Government to have in each city or community a “ludotheque,” which is given infrastructure, a budget, and all it needs to be able to bring games to the population. As of this writing, there were 1,150 ludotheques. In les ludotheques, people can come to play or loan games for free or for a symbolic amount. It is the social function that they focus on. They organize competitions, fairs, and game evenings/days. It keeps young people off the streets and brings people together. It also makes it possible for people that are interested in games to first play them and then decide what they are going to buy. Perhaps our libraries can serve such a role. The closest I have gotten to involving government was convincing the city of Chicago to host The Art of Play for a summer of toy and game events all around the city in 2006. It was one of their most successful programs ever, with dozens of events and a Play Headquarters for people to drop in to play—and they certainly did that. It was a busy place with busloads of kids visiting on field trips. It would be terrific to see other cities hosting similar events, and perhaps one day the entire nation would follow. France and Germany are also hosts to public game fairs that are attended by families. The French Games Festival had almost 120,000 attendees and the German Essen had more than 152,000 attendees last year. School children even have the day off in Essen to see the latest games. We have our Chicago Toy and Game Fair, www.chitag.com, to promote play (toys and games) to the mainstream public. Although ChiTAG does not have the high attendance of those international events yet, we are growing. We face the additional challenge of selling play as vital to our well-being on many levels. In addition to what I have already written, Dr. Stuart Brown has research that shows playing as children reduces violence. Other countries, including Sweden, Germany, and Japan emphasize play in kindergarten, and those children scored better than the U.S. on international tests years later. Board games are everywhere and sales are increasing, which is a step in the right direction. But play is highly undervalued and we as an industry should work together to promote play for the reasons above and many more. ●
Mary Couzin is president and founder of the Chicago Toy and Game Group, which is comprised of the Chicago Toy and Game Fair, www.chitag.com; the Toy and Game Inventors of the Year Awards, www.tagieawards.com; the Toy and Game Inventor/Industry Conference, www.tagie.net; Games for Educators, www.G4ed.com (in partnership with Live Oak Games); and DiscoverGames.com. She is passionate about promoting play and toy and game inventors.
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G A ME S
& PUZZLES
Outnumbered is a fast thinkin’, dice rollin’, challenging game of smarts. In each round of THE HAYWIRE GROUP game, up to six players roll their 10 colored dice and try to answer questions faster than their opponents by using only the dice they rolled. Players have to know the answer to the question and have that numbered die to win the card. Stooges? Did you roll a 3? Call it out and win the card. Brady Bunch? Got an 8? Shout it and take the card. Columbus sailed the ocean blue? Have a 1, 4, 9, and 2? Call out the answer, show the dice, and win the card. After a card has been won, players add up the points that are written on the card to keep score. The game includes 60 colored dice and 375 cards.
UNIVERSITY GAMES’ board game Callisto is easy to learn but requires strategic skills and a little luck to master. The object of the game is to be the player who successfully places the most tiles on the board, but tiles must always be placed next to another of the same color. The game is specially designed for two, three, or four players, and the playing surface can be altered for the amount of players. Callisto contains 72 plastic tiles, 12 pillars, one plastic playing board, three printed color backgrounds for two-, three-, and four-player versions, and instructions.
BRIARPATCH’s Fancy Nancy Grab & Go Acting Fancy card game challenges kids to act out Fancy descriptions written on the cards. Descriptions include “Balance on 1 Foot,” “Act Heartbroken,” and “Bend and Stretch.” The winner is the person who acts out the most Fancy words. The game includes 48 action cards, 10 card stands, and 21 clips, packaged in an elegant pink carry-along bag. The company is also expanding its Fancy Nancy line with games such as Fancy Nancy Hide & Peek, a 3-D board game of finding, matching, and memory.
MANHATTAN TOY releases the Puzzibits Megamix Set, a new product in the company’s Puzzibits Flexible 3-D Puzzle Art line. The set contains 250 pieces in 12 vibrant colors and comes with building instruction for shaping 3-D creations. Pieces in the set are flexible and can interlock with other pieces. The container doubles as a storage bucket for after play time.
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BANANAGRAMS, LLC’s ZipIt is a fast anagram game that can be played in as few as 20 seconds. The aim of the two-player game is to make a crossword with the six-sided letter cubes given. Each player starts with 12 cubes and uses those to make a crossword. As they take turns making words, the first to finish with no cubes remaining yells “Zip!” and moves the zipper on the included bag to the next box to indicate that he or she has won a point. After each round players exchange six cubes, and the first player to earn 10 points is the winner, and has consequently “unzipped” the bag. The game will be packaged with Weords, the company’s new mini-dictionary featuring “weird words that win word games,” and a scoring pad and pen.
Lexigo, by WIGGLES 3D, is a letter-tile game with a twist. In the game, players add their tiles to spell out words and the first player to use all his or her tiles wins the game. Unlike traditional letter-tile games, with Lexigo’s hexagon-shaped letter tiles words can be spelled in any direction—forward, backward, or in a twisting path. To construct words, players must start their next word with the last letter of their previous word. If a player chooses a word path that bumps into another player’s tile, they can move their opponent’s piece to any empty space. Sold in a hexagon-shaped tube, the game contains 100 engraved plastic letter tiles and a cloth travel pouch.
FIND IT GAMES is expanding its product line with another specialty-oriented game, Celtic Challenge. Bob Knight, the founder of the company, describes the game as a hybrid of Mah Jong and Solitaire, but with a twist. Typical game play lasts 15 minutes, but according to company, no one has ever achieved the ultimate success––clearing the board of every tile. The rich hardwood game board features laser etching, and the game includes a brief description of each Celtic symbol that is found on the hand-rubbed tiles as well as instruction for one- and two-player game play.
Brainstring Advanced, by RECENT TOYS, will tie players’ brains in knots. The advanced version of the puzzle has more sides, colored strings, and rubber tips. The aim of the game is to move the same colored buttons to one surface and untie the knot in the middle. To do that, players pull the rubber tips and slide the colored strings through the open slots of the sphere. Creating a solid color on each side is the easy part, but the real challenge is untangling the knot. The puzzle can be made easier or harder based on how much the player tangles it up.
Stranded
TALICOR, INC. has launched many new games this year. Stranded is a light strategy game based on colors. In the game, players randomly remove placed game pieces from the platform hoping to trap their opponents. But each piece that is removed changes the game surface, which means a change in strategies for some. Stop ‘n Go is another game based on colors where players race to get rid of their cards first by matching colors and watching out for the special action cards Zap, Pass, and Stop ‘n Go. The game teaches hand-eye coordination, quick responses, and color recognition, and a double deck fits inside a small box that can be tossed in luggage or in a glove box. Fill in the “Bleep” is a single-answer card game for party and game nights. Players fill in sentences with their “Bleep” cards and then a judge chooses the best one based on a die roll. The judge might be looking for the funniest, quirkiest, or an answer of his or her choice.
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DISCOVERY BAY GAMES has partnered with Broadway Video to create Saturday Night Live-The Game, featuring the best moments from Saturday Night Live. The game features a mix of SNL-inspired activities and trivia that will have players acting, guessing, and laughing out loud. Players can customize the game by choosing cards from the eras they know best: the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, or 2000s.
B.DAZZLE introduces Dragonflies Scramble Squares, a nine-piece brainteaser puzzle in the company’s Scramble Squares puzzle line. The object of Scramble Squares puzzles is to arrange the nine colorful and illustrated square pieces into a 12-inch by 12-inch square so that the graphics on each piece’s edges match perfectly to form a completed design in all directions. There may be many possible combinations, but there is only one solution. Each puzzle package features educational facts on the subject matter of the puzzle (for exampple, there are 5,000 different species of dragonflies throughout the world), plus a trivia question and hidden answer, all packaged in a clear vinyl pouch.
THINK-A-LOT TOYS releases a new Think-ets game for fairy enthusiasts. The Think-ets Fairy Collection, contained in a bright pink pouch, includes 15 tiny trinkets for story telling, memory games, and more. The trinkets are imported from around the world and come with instructions for 10 different games. Some of the games kids can play include the memory game, “What’s Missing?,” “What’s Your Story?,” and the simple but challenging logic game, “Who’s Last?” All Think-ets games, for players ages 8 and up, are assembled in the U.S. by people with developmental disabilities.
Q-bitz, by MINDWARE, challenges players in three different ways. In round one, players race to manipulate their cubes to look like the pattern on the Q-bitz card. The first player to complete the pattern keeps the card. In round two, players test their luck by rolling their cubes to match the pattern. Round three requires players to re-create the pattern from memory. The player that collects the most cards wins. Q-bitz includes 120 cards, four wooden trays, and four sets of 16 cubes.
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Stix & Stones, by EDUCATIONAL INSIGHTS, is a prehistoric picture-making race that challenges players to create an image of a word on a card using only sticks and stones, caveman style. Players roll to bid on how many pieces they think their team will use to make the image on the challenge card. The lowest bidder has to build the image with the fewest number of sticks and stones. The team who guesses the image correctly before time runs out scores points to win. The game includes 75 challenge cards that feature 450 words ranging from easy to difficult, 40 plastic sticks, 15 plastic stones, an arrow, a die, a sand timer, and a burlap bag.
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Counting Animal Puzzles can teach a child the numbers one through 10 and how to spell them with just three puzzle pieces. The puzzles, by EEBOO, include 10 counting puzzles, each with three puzzle pieces that feature the letters that make up the number. The pieces have corresponding images, so kids can solve the puzzle successfully. Additionally, only the correct pieces will fit together. The pieces are sturdy for little hands, made from 90 percent recycled board and printed with non-toxic inks.
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GOLIATH GAMES, the makers of 2009’s Pop the Pig, has released Mad Mouse, a game of chasing and catching. In Mad Mouse, players try to catch the battery-operated mouse by its tail to get back the stolen cheese. When its switch is flipped, the mouse speeds away in zig-zag patterns. Kids then chase the swerving toy until they hook his tail with their cat’s paw and grab the cheese. The player who collects the most cheese is the winner.
PEACEABLE KINGDOM PRESS introduces a new puzzle game for preschoolers, Numbers Match Up Game. Kids ages 2 to 6 can learn numbers with the artistic and sturdy cards packaged in the box. Featuring three games in one box, the youngest players can start out by playing a basic face-up matching game. As they grow older, kids can keep the challenge going with a memory matching game or flip the cards over to construct a puzzle.
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For more games and Puzzles, turn to page 14.
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WHAT’S NEW
The Sliders, part of CALIFORNIA CREATIONS’ new line of Z Wind Ups, include two new dancing wind up toys. Larry and Lizzie each come with their own story, which is featured on their hang tag. Both toys bob their heads, wave their arms, and do splits when wound up. The 2010 Z Wind Ups include 20 toys that have been upgraded and redesigned, including the Dashers, dinosaurs that move forward rapidly and can move their heads, tails, and legs.
FIERCE FUN TOYS, LLC, is looking to promote a message of cultural diversity and inclusion as it debuts its Toys with a Tale line. The line, which will be available in the fall, includes three 10-inch plush toys. Norman PhartEphant, an African elephant adopted by a U.S. zoo and coping with a change in diet, emits eight different sounds when his tail is squeezed. Ben Kachoo is a hippo with allergies, and Harry Hiccers is a koala with hiccups. Each toy will come with its own 32-page picture book.
WILD CREATIONS’ Classic Eco-Aquarium Kit provides children and parents with a pet that has its own low-maintenance environment. The kit includes an aquarium with two dwarf African frogs, as well as a one-year supply of food. The aquarium requires a water change every three months but is otherwise self-sufficient. The kit, recommended for children ages 5 to 15, is part of the Wild Creations Eco-Aquarium line.
The Strange Plant Collection from DUNECRAFT offers an eclectic sampling of the world of plants. The collection includes oddities such as plants that move, plants with eyes on their foliage, flowers that look like brains, and plants that eat flies and insects. The kit includes four color seed packs. The Strange Plants Collection is recommended for ages 4 and up.
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Toy Inventing (How to Think Like a Kid) by Peter Wachtel, aka “KID Toyology”
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ll kids are inventors. Many of them certainly intend to be. With a mess of images and sounds beamed into their living room every day, kids scramble to find ways to make sense of them, and they’re not afraid to get their hands filthy. They’ll also eat paste, use a hammer as a brush, break something just to see how it works, and question the impossible. Most adults won’t do that, but to be a successful inventor, you have to think about why and how things are what they are without constraining your thinking. You need a great idea. How do we invent? Start with the most basic question: How do we do this? Begin with a simple idea and think about it from every angle, good or bad. Next, weed out the inconsistencies through direct application—i.e., (what). See if these inconsistencies have practical solutions, then use logic and realistic constraints to finalize the product. Most importantly, never be tied down to one idea. Don’t be afraid to expand on your idea until any problems basically solve themselves. In simple terms, take baby steps. Start with your idea, then modify, experiment, and try, try again until it works. Here is my process, in specifics. I surround myself with kid-centric things: toys, playgrounds, stores, and, yes, even kids—“I play, therefore, I am.” My kids are 4 and 2 years old (boy and girl), and I bring in more children, mostly relatives. I play with the kids, listen to them, and talk with them, and soon I start to become one of them. Sounds like fun, right? Well, it is. Not only does thinking like a kid help you invent, but it also makes your life more fulfilling, and opens your mind to a lot of possibilities outside of the workshop. When an idea comes to me that I think will sell or make people’s lives better, I research it on the web, search the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), and visit stores to see if there are similar products. If I don’t find anything close to my idea, I ask myself, “Why isn’t it there?” If I can’t come up with a reason that will stop me from making it, I
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start drawing or making rough models to demonstrate the idea. I get protection by filing a provisional patent at the USPTO for as little as $110, which covers my idea for up to a year until I decide whether to apply for a permanent patent. If my research is done and the prototype is made and protected, and it still makes sense, I start to look into representation, or approach companies that would be a good fit to manufacture, license, or buy my idea. Keep in mind that companies are more reluctant these days to sign onto an idea because of the difficult economy. If they’re going to buy, the idea has to be “idiot proof”—which is exactly what it sounds like—on all levels: cost, sales, marketability, etc. When you present it to them, show them what it will look like on the shelf, with packaging options, age grade, estimated retail price, estimated production costs—leave them with as few questions as possible. I started inventing under my own freelance design toy company—KID Toyology. I worked slowly at first. I designed toys for the companies I used to work for, then invented toys and submitted them to Hasbro, Mattel, Spin Master, Fisher-Price, MGAE, Jakks Pacific, Wild Planet, and almost everyone in the industry. Some of my ideas made the cut, and some were flops. One of my flops was the popcorn maker that looked like a train. It flopped because it could
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cause potential harm to kids— electricity, heat, and toys don’t mix—but it looked really cool making popcorn. (I’m now looking into a battery-operated version.) Some successes I had were the Water-Do! Water Factory—a water construction set for kids— and Snip n’ Stikz, an “All-in-One Scissor and Tape Combo.” No more losing the tape and scissors when wrapping gifts. They will be in stores and on the Home Shopping Network this summer. At the end of the day, if you want to be an inventor, you need to remember to constantly move forward, develop new skills, and expand ways to express your creativity. I became a very well-rounded toy guy by designing, inventing, teaching, and writing for a variety of clients. You get a lot of ideas by staying in touch with life in the industry. You also get a lot of ideas just by being a dad.
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The main two things I have learned are humility and patience. You have to be able to take rejection and smile in its face. That is what inventing is all about: creating new things that are cool, that people want, and that make you happy. Keep at it. Not even the wheel was built in a day. ■
Peter Wachtel, also known as “KID Toyology,” is an award-winning creative toy and entertainment designer, inventor, and teacher. He has designed more than 500 products for the toy, entertainment, and design education industries, many of which can be found at KidToyology.com. Peter was recently the chair/academic director and design instructor at Ai Hollywood for Graphic & Industrial Design, and has taught toy design at Pratt Institute, Parsons School of Design, and Otis College of Art & Design.
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Dolls The Best Pals line from KAT JAN consists of soft rag dolls, children’s music, and classic play sets. The line focuses on imaginative play and the idea of having and being a trusted friend. The soft rag dolls are based on a set of dolls that were given to Kathy and Janet Lennon in 1949, which were handmade for them by their mother and their Nana. The sisters decided to try their hand at being entrepreneurs as well as performers. The toys were developed especially for parents and grandparents looking to provide their children and grandchildren with high-quality toys at affordable prices, with the underlying premise of having and being a trusted friend.
Inspired by real girls from around the world, KIDSGIVE’s Karito Kids characters start the new decade with a completely new look. Each Karito Kids character looks like a real 11-year-old girl from a different part of the globe. Because these modern-day characters reflect the tastes and interests of actual girls in their home countries, the dolls’ new looks are inspired by fashions girls are wearing now. As always, a percentage of every Karito Kids purchase goes to help others in the developing world.
HABA presents a line of soft dolls perfect for playtime, on-the-go trips, and bedtime buddies. Meet Fay Finja, Souri, Lotta, Amelie, and Paola, each 15 inches of sweet smiles and outstretched arms. HABA’s soft doll collection features a padded body, chenille hair, cotton/polyester, and velour dresses. Each doll is dressed in the colors of the rainbow and carries an accessory that makes them special, from a flower basket to a headband.
Welcome home to LITTLE SIB’s Baby GoGo. This 13-inch baby doll comes dressed in soft, cozy pajamas and a hat. Children can tuck Baby GoGo in with the blanket included. The doll also comes with a storybook following Baby GoGo’s experience coming home from the hospital, meeting the family, having a bottle, and earning a nickname.
ADORABLE KINDERS are 18-inch soft dress up dolls. The name of each kindergarten character begins with a different letter in the alphabet—A is Alise, B is Brittany, C is Christy, and so on. Each doll comes with an internet key code that may be used to register online at the Adorable Kinders eSchool. There, children can play educational games for preschoolers through a sixth grade level.
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Dolls ALEXANDER DOLL CO. has introduced Where the Wild Things Are Carol and Where the Wild Things Are Max, adapted from the classic children’s story and the live-action film directed by Spike Jonze. Where the Wild Things Are Carol has a light tan painted nose, embroidered teeth, plastic eyes, a black faux fur mane, and white horns. Where the Wild Things are Max has brown eyes, cat ears, black whiskers, and an attached brown faux fur tail.
DANDELION has introduced its newest organic doll, the Organic Toddler Doll. She is 12 inches tall and features a pink velour dress and two ponytails. The doll is made entirely of natural and organic materials and is safe and super soft next to a toddler’s skin. Since she is stuffed with fluffy corn fiber filling (no petroleum filled polyfill), she is machine washable, and all of the details on the organic doll are embroidered.
DREAM BIG TOY CO.’s Go! Go! Sports Girls are a line of plush, sports-themed dolls for girls ages 3-12. They were created to promote self-appreciation and the benefits of daily exercise, healthy eating and sleeping habits, self-esteem, and overall healthy life skills for girls. Dream Big Toy Co. has introduced two new Go! Go! Sports Girls for 2010: Basketball Girl, Kate and Soccer Girl, Anna.
The Clara Doll, from Clara Organic, is a handcrafted, Waldorf-inspired doll. Clara is 16 inches tall and is made of organic cotton and filled with 100 percent organic wool. Her embroidered face holds a simple expression; she has medium length blond hair made from a blend of cashmere and merino wool. Each Clara Doll is custom designed and custom made. Clara comes with an individually designed wardrobe made from cotton, silk, and wool.
In June, CHARISMA’s Adora Dolls launched an officially licensed collection of Wizard of Oz dolls, through a license agreement with Warner Bros. Consumer Products. The Adora Wizard of Oz introductory collection of 20-inch vinyl dolls are representations of Dorothy, Tin Man, Cowardly Lion, Scarecrow, Glinda, and the Wicked Witch, intended for doll enthusiasts ages 6 and up.
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Lou
Part of COROLLE’s Babicorolle collection, Miss Grenadine features a cozy cloth body and cheerful face, wrapped in a soft hood and colorful dress. Corolle has also introduced the latest additions to its Babipouce line: Babipouce Sky, Babipouce Darling, and Babipouce Candy Pink. The Babipouce Activities doll, a Corolle classic, has new features: a press of the button on Babipouce Activities’ back starts a soft blinking light and soothing melody that lasts for four minutes. Press on the smaller button for the light feature only. The doll operates on three AAA batteries and is 11 inches tall. The music box is removable so that the doll is machine washable, like all others in the Babipouce collection. Corolle’s bath time doll family, Mon Premier, welcomes a new 12-inch baby: Tidoo Poppy. Specially designed for bath time fun, Tidoos are soft, poseable, and so light that they float. Filled with polystyrene beads that dry quickly, Tidoos are a great playmate out of the tub, too. Joining the Calin Collection this year are the 12-inch Calin Laughing Cerise and Calin Cheerful Raspberry. Thanks to their soft, beanbag bodies, they can be posed just like real babies. Corolle has also unveiled several other new dolls, including Nourrisson, Elise, Amber, Lou, Vanilla Red Head, Dolly Bon Bon, and Dolly Toffee Apple.
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Babipouce Activities
more dolls on page 29
MEDIA CENTER Moshi Monsters Hit the Books
Hairy Situations Abound
Moshi Monsters, a free-to-play online game from Mind Candy, will receive its own book series this fall from PENGUIN GROUP. Two books based on the property will be released this year, with five more slated for 2011. The first book will be based on Moshlings, the collectible pets within the Moshi Monsters world. Exploring the creatures’ history, nuances, and habitats, the book will include a poster and a unique code to access an exclusive Moshling online. With more than 20 million registered users, Moshi Monsters allows children to adopt their own virtual pet, play games, solve puzzles, and customize their virtual homes.
Narrated by Zach Braff, star of television sitcom Scrubs and cult movie Garden State, Barney Saltzberg’s Crazy Hair Day book is brought to life in a fully-animated DVD from S CHOLASTIC ’s Storybook Treasures collection. An official selection of the Kids First! Film Festival, Crazy Hair Day pits porcupine Stanley in an awkward situation at school. When the other animals come together to make him feel better, though, they all learn a lesson in friendship and compassion. The DVD includes five films and a guided reading companion, with both recommended for kids ages 2 to 8.
I-N-T-E-R-G-A-L-A-C-T-I-C Vocab
English, Spanish, Dance, Oh My!
Designed to help expand vocabulary in and out of the classroom, Cosmos Chaos!, a two-cartridge game for the Nintendo DS, teaches 450 words over the course of the 10-level, 24-hour experience. Developed by MENTOR INTERACTIVE, INC., as part of an agreement with Pacific Resources for Education and Learning and a Star Schools grant from the U.S. Department of Education, Cosmos Chaos! takes fourth- to seventh-grade readers on a role playing mission through space. Players use vocabulary picked up during their adventures to defeat evil robots and bosses. Teachers and parents can also log their child’s progress within the game and use the accompanying guides to increase the game’s effectiveness.
From award-winning singer and song writer Jorge Anaya comes Cha, Cha, Cha W HISTLEFRITZ ’s off Spanish for Beginners series. With 14 uptempo songs with beats inspiring cha cha, merengue, and rumba dancing, the compilation is marketed as a beginners-Spanish music CD. Songs include such classics as “La Cucaracha” and “Bingo,” and new songs such as “Los Números (The Numbers)” and “Que Llueva (Let It Rain).” Whistlefritz’s mascot, Fritzi, also makes an appareance on the album cover and has been used to promote the company’s other Spanish language learning projects. Songs are sung in Spanish with an accompanying lyric and translation guide.
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Regulatory Update:
Defining “Children’s Product” by Dave Parzen, business unit manager, consumer product safety, NSF International
I
n August 2008, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) was signed into law and included 41 references to children’s products. The Act requires that all children’s products meet strict lead limits, undergo mandatory third party testing, and contain permanent tracking labels. However, some manufacturers question whether their product is technically a children’s product.
What is a children’s product? The 2008 CPSIA defines a children’s product as “a consumer product designed or intended primarily for children 12 years of age or younger.” The CPSIA lists four factors to consider when determining whether a product is intended for children: • A statement by a manufacturer about the intended use of such product (i.e. age grade on packaging); • Whether the product is represented in its packaging, display, promotion, or advertising as appropriate for use by children 12 years of age or younger; • Whether the product is commonly recognized by consumers as being intended for use by a child 12 years of age or younger; and • The Age Determination Guidelines issued by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), which provides resources and examples to determine appropriate age grading for products. While the CPSIA’s guidance provides excellent insight regarding how to interpret whether a product is intended for a child, there is still much ambiguity for toy manufacturers. Making it even more difficult, the CPSC does not consult manufacturers and importers about classifying products as intended for children or general use. This means that a manufacturer may classify a product for general use while the
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• THE TOY BOOK
CPSC classifies it as a children’s product. This can lead to costly fines from the CPSIA and production costs for toy manufacturers—as the law not only affects manufacturers and importers, but the entire supply chain from raw material suppliers to retailers.
What resource can help with defining a children’s product? In April, the CPSC proposed a new rule for children’s products that provides guidance and detailed language to specifically define a children’s product. The nine-page document includes hundreds of examples and other considerations to determine if a product is intended for children. The goal is to improve the ability of the supply chain to differentiate between general use products and children’s products.
How does the rule clarify a children’s product? The rule refines the current definition. The CPSC uses four factors to determine whether a product is designed or intended primarily for use by children 12 years of age and younger. The term “for use” is defined as a child’s physical interaction with a product based on the “reasonably foreseeable use and misuse” of a product. A great example of this interpretation is a nursery-themed lamp. This would not be considered a children’s product because it is unlikely that it would be handled by children. The interpretation also defines a “general use product” as a consumer product that is not designed or intended primarily for use by children 12 years and younger. The CPSC uses pens and office supplies as examples of general use products. Even though these products may be used by children, they are not considered children’s products because they are intended for use by the general public. However, if a pen has features that appeal to children and is clearly intended for children, then it is considered a children’s product.
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With these terms more clearly defined, the CPSC outlines several examples of “children’s products” and “general use products” for each category listed below. It also provides features to look for when making a decision in each category. • • • • • • • • •
Furnishings and fixtures Collectibles Jewelry DVDs, video games, and computers Art materials Books Science equipment Sporting goods and recreational equipment Musical instruments
For example, musical instruments and science equipment are considered children’s products if they are specifically sized for children or incorporate childish themes/decorations. When looking at children’s jewelry, some of the factors that should be considered include size, cost, play value, marketing material, packaging graphics,
and appearance.
Where can further clarification be found? While the new interpretive rule goes a long way, there are still areas that require further guidance. For example, how to decide if a book is a children’s product. The CPSC says to consider themes, vocabularies, illustrations, and covers to determine a book’s primary audience. Though this is helpful, there is still room for further clarification. When in doubt, manufacturers, importers, and private-labelers are advised to contact the CPSC for further guidance. Otherwise it is best to be cautious and treat indistinct products as though they are intended for children. ■ For more information, please contact Dave Parzen, business unit manager, consumer product safety at NSF International at parzen@nsf.org, or visit www.nsf.org. NSF International is an independent, not-for-profit public health organization that tests and certifies products and writes standards for food, water, and consumer goods, such as toys and other children’s products.
Raising
the Bar
I Would Rather... Have a Strong, Enforceable Trademark! by Sanford Frank and Howard Aronson
I
n a recent decision, Zobmondo Entertainment, LLC v. Falls Media, LLC, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (California) addressed the issue of the enforceability of the trademark registration for “Would You Rather...?” On July 31, 1997, an intent-to-use trademark application (ITU) was filed for “Would You Rather…?” by a predecessor of Falls Media for use on books and games. In September 1997, Zobmondo also filed an ITU application seeking to register the mark “WOULD YOU RATHER” for use on board games. The United States Patent and Trademark Office rejected the second application because of the likelihood of confusion with the prior filed Would You Rather…? mark. In July 2005, the Trademark Office issued a registration for Would You Rather...? to Falls Media. But Zobmondo (the second filer) actually used the WOULD YOU RATHER mark first on games (in December 2004). In 2006, Zobmondo and Falls Media sued each other in California and New York for a variety of alleged wrongs, including trademark infringement, and to cancel the trademark registration. The trial court cancelled the Would You Rather…? registration, finding that the trademark was merely descriptive of games and not a protectable trademark. The appellate court reversed the trial court because there is a genuine issue about whether or not the Would You Rather…? trademark is inherently distinctive or merely descriptive. So after years of litigation in two states, the parties still need a trial court to determine if the registered mark can function as a trademark for games. In reaching this conclusion the appellate court noted that trademarks are generally classified in one of five categories of increasing distinctiveness: (1) generic, (2) descriptive, (3) suggestive, (4) arbitrary, or (5) fanciful. Suggestive, arbitrary, and fanciful marks are considered inherently dis-
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tinctive and are entitled to federal trademark protection. Generic marks are never eligible for trademark protection, while descriptive marks may be protectable (registrable) if the mark has acquired distinctiveness or a secondary meaning due to years of use and customer association. A suggestive mark is one for which a consumer must use imagination or multistage reasoning to understand the mark’s significance. It does not describe the product’s features but merely suggests them. Although not an exact science, the court described two tests––the imagination test and the competitor’s needs test––which are generally applied to differentiate between suggestive and merely descriptive marks. The imagination test asks whether imagination or a mental leap is required in order to reach a conclusion about the product being referenced. The competitors’ needs test focuses on the extent to which a mark is actually needed by competitors to identify their goods and services. The court also noted that federal registration provides rebuttable evidence of a mark’s validity and entitles the trademark owner to a strong presumption that a mark is a protectable mark. It is clear that federal trademark registration is very valuable, as it carries a strong presumption of validity. Further, choosing a clearly suggestive, arbitrary, or fanciful mark, in lieu of a descriptive mark, can help avoid years of uncertainty and costly litigation. ■ Sanford Frank, Esq. has, for the past 26 years, devoted his legal career to providing legal counsel to the toy industry both as general counsel (Tyco-Playtime and Toymax) and as outside counsel. Howard Aronson, Esq. is the managing partner of Lackenbach Siegel, LLP, an intellectual property law firm having deep, longstanding roots in the toy industry. For further information, please contact Sanford B. Frank at sfrank2@optonline.net or (631) 285-1147.
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What’s Will You Teach My…
Two-Inch Robots
C
hristy Cook’s Teach My coordinated learning kits, originally for babies and toddlers, adds Teach My Preschooler this fall, which is designed to prepare preschoolers for kindergarten. Teach My Baby incorporates learning with play through activities meant to spur development of sensory details and early first experiences. Teach My Toddler aims to teach toddlers the alphabet, numbers one through 10, basic shapes, and basic colors. Each kit contains various materials, such as activity books, mirrors, and flashcards.
Z
ibits are pint-sized, radio-controlled robots that come with a name, back story, and personal remote. Tilting the lever up sends the robot racing forward, while reversing the lever puts the robot in a 360-degree spin. Creator Senario, LLC, is also working on racetracks and mineshafts for the 12 different robots to interact with. With light-up faces and bendable arms, the robots make interesting companions for kids ages 8 and up.
Happiness in a Blanket
C
New
Think “Bakugan for Girls”
reated by a 10-year-old boy to inspire giving amongst his peers, Happy Blankie is a die-cut, plush blanket featuring the face of an animal. A dog, bear, frog, and pig round out the first batch of blankets, which come in three sizes. Every time someone purchases a blanket, Happy Blankie donates the same one to an orphanage or hospital. Each blanket can be personally monogrammed for an extra fee, as well as delivered gift-wrapped.
F
rom Spin Master, Ltd. comes Zoobles: magnetized, bulbous pets that “pop” into shape once applied to a special “Happitat” pad. Featuring more than 150 collectible pets, Zoobles range in exoticism from cats and dogs to deep-sea fish and elephants. The animals can be displayed on their pads or a collector’s “nest” that showcases up to 20. Other accessories include an underwater playground, a tree house play set, and more.
Redefining Disney Plush
D
isney Consumer Products is set to release new vinyl-toy inspired Pook-A-Looz plush this fall. The new dolls include characters such as Sorcerer Mickey (Fantasia ), Miss Piggy, Jiminy Cricket, Ariel, and more. Vinyl windup and bobble toys—called Topplers, Walkers, Spinners, and Yappers—are also in the works, from JAKKS Pacific. Fans can also find PookA-Sodes, short YouTube videos of the plush being cheeky, online.
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Bringing the Past to Light
A
fter a decade on the road, toy enthusiast Marlene Hochman’s vintage toy and doll exhibit has found a permanent home in historic Brooklyn Heights. Tucked away on the second floor of St. Ann’s church, the city’s first and only chartered museum exclusively devoted to toys houses a rare collection of playthings from the past two centuries. From Victorian era dolls to Barbies, and Lincoln Logs to GI Joes, each item on display at the Toy Museum of New York is hand picked to reflect one aspect of America’s rich cultural heritage. While most of the nostalgia-inducing toys are displayed behind a sheet of glass, the cozy 800-square-foot museum offers a small hands-on section where visitors of all ages can tinker with their favorite toys from the past. Executive Director Marlene Hochman invited Jordan Shakeshaft into her time-traveling playland to talk Easy-Bake Ovens, creepy-eyed dolls, and why kids need to put the video games down already.
What inspired you to start the Toy Museum of New York? I had written a couple of books on dolls and realized there was no toy museum in the city. My mission has always been education and teaching so we thought we could put together a nice museum, where people could have fun and learn a little bit of history through the dolls and toys from our collection. You pack over 500 of these items into your museum. How do you decide what to take in? We’re always looking for the most classic, mint condition toys. About a month ago a lady came in from Bay Ridge with an original 1960s Easy Bake Oven. She told us she got it when she was a little girl, but was only allowed to use it once before her mother realized how dangerous it was. Little girls could burn themselves from the bulbs inside—the heating mechanisms were so hot. So her mother said, “That’s it, I forbid you to ever use it again.” So she put it away in the back of her closet and said to her mother, “Fine, but when I’m older I’m going to play with it all the time.” Fastforward 40 years later, and she’s donating it to us. It had everything: the cake mixes, all the mixing bowls, everything. So what’s the value of that Easy-Bake Oven today? We didn’t really look at it in that way. We were just grateful to have it be part of our collection. Especially since its owner was from Brooklyn.
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What are some of the other rare toys you have in your collection? I think our old dolls from the late 1800s are pretty special. We even have a wax doll. We’re always looking for things that people might donate that would be special. OK, I have to ask. Don’t some people find some of those old dolls kind of creepy? Well, we do have one large doll that’s on display that was in the Fortunoff windows. When Fortunoff went out of business a couple years ago, we were contacted by the artist who created them to come save the large mannequins as part of New York City’s history. So now we have four of them on display. The large girl doll does scare some people, I will admit that. Some little children, even some adults point and go, “That doll is creepy.” I don’t think so myself, but it may be her bulging blue eyes… That’s the only complaint we’ve gotten from anything in our collection. You take mainly donations, but are there any items you’ve paid for? We don’t pay for a lot. The last thing we purchased was a pair of girls’ roller skates we needed for an exhibit. And we just couldn’t come across any good roller skates—we needed the old fashioned ones that buckle and adjust onto your shoes. We just thought those were really important to tell the story of childhood, so we had to buy those. What’s so different about the toys of the past compared to the high-tech toys kids are playing with today? When they get on the computer or play any electronic games, everything is programmed for them. I think that stifles their creativity, and that’s why when they come to the museum they’re not really going to see very many electronics—except for things we’ve archived like the Atari game, the first computer game. We want them to come and play with our Lincoln Logs and build a log cabin, or play with a few of our cars, or draw their favorite toy in the museum, and 157 Montague Street, 2nd Floor just be a kid. I think there’s no greater pleasure for a child than Brooklyn, NY 11201 to be in a space that’s comfortable and nurturing where they can (718) 243-0820; www. toymuseumny.org just use their imagination to play.
The Toy Museum of New York
Do you still consider yourself a kid at heart? Absolutely. And I hope I’m a kid at heart until my very last breath. ■
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Admission: $10 adults, $5 children Hours: Wednesday-Saturday 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sunday 1 p.m.-3 p.m.
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Toys drawkcaB and Forward by Justin McCraw
P
arents often purchase toys only for children to discard them moments later. Magazines like The Toy Book exist to blunt this trend by streching retailer and consumer dollars. YOTTOY also tries to prolong the life of its products by creating children’s playthings, that are also artistic mementos. Kate Karcher-Clark says she founded YOTTOY in New York City 15 years ago after witnessing a lack of high-quality material toys in the mass market. She wanted something well-constructed, and she set out to do it herself. Working with Creative Director Peter Doodeheefver, Karcher-Clark began producing specialty toys that involved the child and brought as many features into it as possible. “Nothing makes us more happy than seeing children who will cherish our toys forever,” Karcher-Clark says. “We want our toys to be something that they will remember and carry with them long-term and want to pass on to their children.” The advantage of working in New York, she says, is the pool of talent available from design schools including Pratt and Parsons. Talent is important when you’re creating patterns and prototypes in-house, with sculptors, designers, and other tools and tradesmen taking to the sewing machines to “take the guesswork out of the production,” Karcher-Clark says. For specialty orders of fewer than 50 units, YOTTOY manufactures the toys primarily in the U.S. For larger orders, the toys are manufactured overseas, with some assembly completed in a U.S. facility. That doesn’t detract from the quality; for Karcher-Clark, toys should rise beyond the pedestrian and into the realm of art. YOTTOY’s Good Night, Mr. Night doll, based on the Dan Yaccarino book of the same title, could be said to resemble the articulated work one might see at the New Museum or MoMA’s P.S.1. The doll is a facsimile of the book’s illustrations, complete with glow-in-the-dark accoutrements.
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Other creations, such as those based on Gustaf Tenggren’s illustrations in The Poky Little Puppy, resemble the books they’re licensed from so much that the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and Neiman Marcus have signed up to become YOTTOY clients. It takes a while to build that kind of cache. Karcher-Clark explains how, in the beginning, she sought licensing from publishers. Over the years, the quality of YOTTOY Gift Bag YOTTOY’s products has become known throughout the industry, and the breakdown of the company’s active and passive license-seeking strategy is approximately 50-50. For Paddington Bear’s 50th anniversary, YOTTOY produced a 500-unit commemorative edition of a 10-inch bear with detailed accessories such as Paddington’s signature toggle coat, suitcase, and hat. It’s not just book properties. YOTTOY creates custom products for pharmaceutical companies, museums, airline magazines, and book clubs. This part of YOTTOY’s business— approximately 20 percent of it—helps diversify the brand while also demonstrating the company’s design capabilities. With anniversary releases for Maisy, Paddington Bear, and YOTTOY itself, 2010 may prove to be a great year for the boutique toy maker. From its design-focused New York studio, YOTTOY adds another landmark to a city of great ones. ■ 50th Anniversary Commemorative Paddington Bear
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More G A M E S & PUZZLES When people play 25 Random Things About Me, by Winning Moves, they can discover new details about their family and friends, some of which may be surprising. Players try to match fun facts on the game cards with their opponents by guessing yes or no to the cards read aloud. After a match has been made, the player adds a new random thing about him or herself to the list. The first person to complete a list of 25 random things wins.
Kids can step into the fierce and furry world of full-contact Sumo hamster wrestling, with Gamewright’s new game, Sumo Ham Slam, Using magnetic force, kids maneuver their Sumo hamster and try to knock their opponent out of the ring. The game is a competition of brawn and bulk, so feeding the hamster at every chance is a must. The game includes an elevated game board, a custom die, two magnetic wands, four Sumo hamsters, four scoring pegs, 60 food tokens, and rules in English and Spanish.
As a part of a deal with Yuca Productions, the company that owns the rights to the Mentirosa game brand, MBR Industries has signed a North American deal to manufacture the Mentirosa Professional Set and the Mentirosa Travel Set. Mentirosa is a version of liar’s dice that is played with Mentirosa Professional Set Spanish poker dice and Mentirosa player tubes instead of traditional dice cups. The advantage is that with Mentirosa tubes players can see their hand without lifting a closed dice cup, reducing the possibility of opponents seeing their hand. Each six-player game includes Mentirosa player tubes, casino-grade Spanish poker dice, “loser chips,” and instructions in English and Spanish.
JULY/AUGUST 2010
Tailten Games & Puzzles, Ltd. premieres a new brand, Purrfect Games & Puzzles. The puzzles in the brand feature international artwork, religious architecture photography, and Irish Celtic images. Initial Purrfect Puzzles include images from artists Rachel Arbuckle and Jim Fitzgerald. Purrfect Puzzles also features the work of architectural photographer Achim Bednorz, and a series of PreRaphaelite paintings, in cooperation with the British Tate Gallery. The company plans to launch its Purrfect Games selection with the abstract strategy board game, Tara.
THE TOY BOOK •
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Industry Marketplace
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Classifieds Playtime Sales & Marketing Co. LLC A Toy Manufacturers Sales Representative Corporate Office 331 Piermont Road Norwood, New Jersey 07648 TEL: 201-784-7727 FAX: 201-784-1912 E Mail: murraybass@playtimesales.com // lensoyka@playtimesales.com The Playtime Sales & Marketing Company, LLC. is a Toy and Electronics Manufacturers sales representative organization. Our prime focus is to represent Toy and Electronics Manufacturers to the Mass Market Retailers. The principals of our Company our Len Soyka and Murray Bass. Our only vocation has been in the Toy Industry. We are dedicated toy professionals. Our geographical areas of sales coverage and accounts include: • NEW ENGLAND…Connecticut North to Maine and Upstate N.Y. Accounts… CVS Drug, BJ’s Whle. Club, Xmas Tree Shops, Benny’s and Ocean State. • N.Y. METRO…N.Y. City and New Jersey. Accounts… Toys R Us and their DOTCOM and Global Divisions, FAO Schwarz, Shepher Distributors and Supermarket Chains. •MID-LANTIC…Pennsylvania, Wash D.C., Northern Virginia and Western Ohio. Accounts…Rite Aid Drug, Group Sales and Lillian Vernon • K mart USA // JC Penney Catalog // Universal Studios Orlando // Gordman’s // Duckwall // Pamida // AAFES // Walmart // Variety Wholesalers • CANADA…Walmart, Toys R Us and Zellers’ We employ a staff of 5 toy sales specialists. Our contact information is listed on our above shown letterhead. We welcome your inquiries.
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Industry Marketplace Classifieds
BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE Klosters Trading, established in 1987, provides business intelligence on the toy and video game market to qualified clients. Sell-through data is derived from own retailer panels on a bi-weekly basis. Additional sources are national buyers at big box stores both in the United States and Europe; non-C level sales executives at the large manufacturers; and component suppliers located in China, Europe and the U.S. Please email lmuller@klosterstrading.com for quotes.
Place a classified in Please contact Yasmin Johnson 212-575-4510 x 2330 yjohnson@adventurepub.com
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Advertiser Index Adventure Publishing .....................................................5 All Baby & Child .......................................................S21 Bananagrams ..............................................................S11 Briarpatch Inc ...............................................................15 Charisma .......................................................................27 China Toy Association..................................................53 Corolle Dolls.................................................................25 Find It Games .............................................................S12 Forum 123.....................................................................57 George & Co ..............................................................S15 Gold Crest Funding ......................................................56 Guidecraft USA ..........................................................S19 HABA USA..................................................................S3 Holdenone LLC/Zippies ...............................................11
Jonny Hawkins .............................................................56 Maisto ...........................................................................60 NPD ..............................................................................59 Ollie’s............................................................................56 Pacific Play Tents ...........................................................2 Playtime Sales and Marketing ......................................56 Pressman Toy................................................................35 Re-think It, Inc ...........................................................S17 Recent Toys ..................................................................S7 Talicor Inc/Aristoplay...................................................19 The Haywire Group ......................................................17 University Games .........................................................S9 Wiggles 3D ...................................................................S8
THE AD INDEX IS PUBLISHED AS A COURTESY. WHILE EVERY EFFORT IS MADE TO BE ACCURATE, LATE ADDITIONS AND CHANGES IN LAYOUT MAY RESULT IN ERRORS OR OMISSIONS.
JULY/AUGUST 2010
THE TOY BOOK •
61
Flashback: July/August 1991 2. 1. 3. 1.
A new licensing program from Twentieth Century Fox launches for The Simpsons. 2. Jesco, Inc. offers a Pepsilicensed line of inflatable toys. 3. A U.S. District judge in San Francisco rules in favor of Lewis Galoob Toys in the Galoob vs. Nintendo of America copyright infringement case for Game Genie.
WILL CDS BE THE NEXT FRONTIER IN VIDEO GAME TECHNOLOGY?
FISHER-PRICE SPIN-OFF FROM QUAKER BECOMES DONE DEAL The Quaker Oats Company has finally spun-off Fisher-Price to its shareholders, allowing Fisher-Price to operate as an independent, publicly-held company. Trading of Fisher-Price, Inc., common stock on a “when-issued” basis began July 1 on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol FPP. Fisher-Price’s book net worth was established to be $201.75 million as of the distribution date. In connection with distributing Fisher-Price common stock to its stockholders, Quaker Oats was released from all Fisher-Price debt, but will continue to provide, for an interim period, limited administrative and consulting services to Fisher-Price.
62 • THE TOY BOOK
At the Summer Consumer Electronics Show, officials from the Dutch electronics maker Phillips N.V., were busy announcing deals with video game makers that could usher in a new generation of technology. The first show-stopping announcement came when it was revealed that Phillips had granted Nintendo a license to use its CD-ROM technology to develop a low-cost CD player that would be used with the NES system. Nintendo officials say they will have the system available in the States by fourth quarter 1992, but added it is too early to reveal its price tag. Before the news could sink in, Sony announced it also had a licensing agreement with Phillips that would allow it to develop a similar CD video game player.
JULY/AUGUST 2010