Games, Playthings and Plush

Plush and Toys (From page 102)

been for a number of years. “We love them. We love the quality. They have a good weight to them plus they always use amazing fabrics,” said Owner and Buyer Thea Brown . Next in line are Douglas cuddle toys which feature a slightly lower price point. “Douglas animals also tend to be a bit more realistic which definitely has its customer base.”

As for toys, World of Mirth is experiencing strong sales with Fat Brain. “Customers love the bright colors plus the fact the toys are multi-functional and their kids are learning without even realizing it.” Brown’s 3,400-square-foot store has also found great success with the eeBoo line of puzzles and cooperative games which they’ve carried for over 20 years. “They work with lots of different artists and the artwork is always amazing and high quality. We love that almost everything from eeBoo is made out of recycled materials.” Although customers definitely help World of Mirth stay on top of trends, Brown is always scanning Instagram and magazines and seeing what is going on in other sales streams. “I’m checking out food and design magazines, for instance, to see what kind of colors are coming up and building off of that. The colors will always move over to the toy world.”

World of Mirth’s customer service philosophy centers around play. “We want everybody to come in here, have a great time and be a child. Whether you’re an actual child or a grown-up, we encourage that inner child to come out,” said Brown. “We also strive to treat people like we want to be treated.” Since the store has been around for almost 30 years, Brown believes it is essential to move things around constantly and to place new, top-selling items in a prime spot. “The store itself is very bright and can be kind of its own character sometimes so we need to make sure we merchandise in ways that are eye-catching.” She also knows plush is never going to sell sitting high on a shelf. “People want to feel the texture and weight of it. When somebody takes a plush and holds it, gives it a hug – probably eight times out of 10 it’s walking out the door with them.”

Legacy Toys, with five locations in Minnesota and one in North Dakota, is seeing many requests for soft, squishy plush these days which means Squishables, Squishmallows and Ty Squish-A-Boos are flying off the shelves. “I think kids and people in general are looking for that comfort type of item and those fit the bill,” said Chief Operating Officer Peter Cpin . Classic toys such as Barbie and Hot Wheels continue to be popular even as Legacy leans more into fidget toys. “Last year we saw interest in fidget toys surge – we couldn’t keep them in stock – and it’s never faded. So much so we’ve created some branding around the idea and now have fidget islands featuring all of our fidget toys. We’ve made some fidget blind boxes and even carry a teddy bear that has a popper feature built into its stomach!”

Continued on page 106