Vol. 27, No. 2
March/April 2011
p U e l g Snug h s u l P to
page 19
at right: Laser Pegs
R/C Handles the Curves
T
he R/C category as a whole is on an upswing. According to The NPD Group, 2010 U.S. sales for the category were up over 2009’s retail sales, totaling $641 million. This year is setting up to be an even bigger success. Whether it’s an R/C that can go from the street to the backyard, or those that bring the video game experience to the living room floor—features that enhance the play experience are becoming prevalent in the category. Silverlit’s 3D Twister
page 41
Plush
page S6
page 26
ASTRA’s Tips for Bringing New Products to Shelf
page S4 Building Sets
page S12
What’s Next in Plush? page 36
Plush Showcase page 38
table of contents Published by Adventure Publishing Group, Inc.®
M a rc h / A p r i l 2 0 1 1
Volume 27, Number 2 www.toybook.com
departments
P UBLISHER
Features
Jonathan Samet
jsamet@adventurepub.com
Editor’s Viewpoint
Building Innovation
Page 6
New Ideas Yield Category Growth
E DITOR
Jackie Breyer
Feature Driven
Stat Shot TIA Perspectives Page 9
R/C Toys Climb Their Way up the Sales Ladder with Added Extras
The Next Frontier Is Here
Page 10
Page 58
Toddlers, Tablets, Strollers, and Smartphones Page 60
CPSC Database:
Page 15
What You Should Know About Planning and Insurance
Property Profile: Chuggington
Elizabeth A. Reid
ereid@toybook.com C ONTRIBUTING W RITERS /E DITORS Aronson, Bernie Brennan, Kimberly Carcone, James S. Carter, David L. Elkind, Margaret Feinstein, Sanford Frank, Bryan Joiner, Andy Marken, Kathleen McHugh, Lori Schafer, Nancy Zwiers
Digital Engagement with the “iGen” Consumer
Talking Social Media
A SSOCIATE E DITOR
Mackenzie Allison, Howard
The App Space
Industry Update
Page 14
Page 26
What’s Next in Plush? Page 36
Marketing Memo
C HIEF
jbreyer@toybook.com
Page 19
Page 8
IN
Page 66
Page 16
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
Raising the Bar
Specialty Toys & Gifts: Page 41
Page 62 Construction Showcase
What’s New Page 64
Industry Marketplace
Page S12
nter Media CSe16 Page
Page 68
Flashback: March/April 1991
Page 70
New Page s S2
case w o h S h Plus age S6
U.S. 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
P
ASTRA’ s Insigh Page S4
ts
What’ s New
Page S 5
Member, International Toy Magazine Association
Editor’s
Viewpoint
C’mon, Get Your App Together Jackie Breyer editor
I
am on level 11-15 in Angry Birds. I find that many of the conversations I have with my niece begin with “So what level are you up to?” And no matter how awesome I think I’m doing, she is always levels ahead of me. That’s a trend I’m beginning to get used to. Whenever I think I’m up on technology, a quick chat with the kids in my life reveal that I’m just barely up to speed. Apps in particular have really taken off with kids of all ages, and it’s actually really fun trying to keep up. So I was really enthusiastic when I heard that our sister publication, The Licensing Book, was writing a story on apps for their spring issue. So enthusiastic, that I asked the editor, Bryan Joiner, to write an app article for The Toy Book while he was at it. You can check it out on page 58. Apps have infiltrated the toy industry, which anyone who walked the aisles of Toy Fair was sure to notice. Not only are there apps based on toys (Alex recently introduced one called Moody Monster Manor, in which children ages 36 can learn about emotions through interactive games), but there are toys that are controlled by apps that you download to your iPhone or iPad. These were found to be prevalent with remote-controlled vehicle manufacturers. Companies such as Interactive Toy Concepts allow you to control a helicopter with your iPhone. Simply tilt your iPhone and the helicopter is controlled by the phone’s accelerometer. Check out more about the latest in R/C and Bluetooth/wi-fi-controlled vehicles beginning on page 26. Some toy manufacturers are even creating “toys” that are really accessories to be used with an iPhone. Hasbro recently introduced a handheld viewer, My3D, that makes specified apps playable in 3-D, right on your iPhone. Fisher-Price introduced a case to hold an iPhone so that a young child can safely play with apps without busting
6 • THE TOY BOOK
your phone when they get bored (bored?!) and chuck it on the floor. Innovation is not just about iPhones and apps, however. Innovation is still important (perhaps more important than ever) to the iGeneration. Check out what Laser Pegs is doing with light-up bricks in our coverage of the building sets category. The story begins on page 19. Lastly, we hope you’ve been following our ongoing series, Talking Social Media. This month’s article focuses on how to use video to share your story with consumers. You can find it on page 15. Enjoy! ■
MARCH/APRIL 2011
S TAT S HOT TOP 10 FAMILY E NTERTAINMENT & CASUAL GAMES TITLES R ANKED BY T OTAL U.S. U NITS , F EBRUARY 2011 RANK TITLE
PLATFORM
A MAZON . COM B EST-S ELLING T OYS M ARCH 1 - M ARCH 30, 2011 1 INSECT LORE LIVE BUTTERFLY GARDEN
11 LEGO ULTIMATE BUILDING SET - 405 PIECES
2 MICHAEL JACKSON: THE EXPERIENCE* WII
2 SYMA S107 R/C HELICOPTER - YELLOW
12 THE SETTLERS OF CATAN
3 DANCE CENTRAL
360
4 JUST DANCE KIDS
WII
3 SYMA S107 R/C HELICOPTER - RED
13 LEGO STAR WARS MANDALORIAN BATTLE PACK
5 JUST DANCE
WII
4 BANANAGRAMS
14 LEGO NINJAGO SPINJITZU STARTER SET
6 WIPEOUT: THE GAME
WII
5 STOMP ROCKET JR. GLOW KIT
15 LEAPFROG LEARN & GROOVE MUSICAL TABLE
7 PLANTS VS ZOMBIES
NDS
6 FISHER-PRICE BRILLIANT BASICS BABY’S FIRST BLOCKS 16 BLOKUS CLASSICS GAME
8 GAME PARTY: IN MOTION
360
7 QWIRKLE BOARD GAME
9 SUPER SCRIBBLENAUTS
NDS
10 MARIO PARTY
NDS
8 FISHER-PRICE SESAME STREET SILLY SOUNDS REMOTE 18 SPOT IT
1 JUST DANCE 2
WII
*Includes Collector’s, Limited, Legendary, Bundles (Guitars) Editions
Source: The NPD Group/Retail Tracking Service
17 MANHATTAN TOY WINKEL
9 PERPLEXUS MAZE GAME
19 NERF N-STRIKE MAVERICK
10 BEYBLADE METAL FUSION SUPER VORTEX BATTLE SET
20 OCEAN WONDERS SOOTHE AND GLOW SEAHORSE BLUE
The line between “socializing” and “entertainment” is increasingly blurred.
2009
Share of Leisure Time Activities Kids Ages 2-12
2011
“The most notable change weʼve seen in the way kids are spending their roughly 68 hours of leisure time per week is that the line between “entertainment,” which has become broader and more device driven, and “socializing,” which has moved beyond “traditional” interaction (i.e. person to person) is increasingly blurred. What one person might subjectively put into the category of entertainment, another might consider socializing. This is exemplified most clearly by social network sites, which are built on the foundation of socializing, but are equally popular as entertainment, with access to games and other entertainment applications. Similarly, in the world of gaming, “MMORPGs” (massively multiplayer role-playing games) such as World of Warcraft are a prime example of intersection between entertainment and socializing in that you are gaming (“entertainment”) while at the same time interacting and, in fact, building relationships (“socializing”). The phenomenon of cloud-based gaming also speaks to this trend, as does the general, ever-growing multi-functionality of phones and other devices.” —Anita Frazier, industry analyst, NPD Group
Source: NPD Group/Kids Leisure Time 2011
8 • THE TOY BOOK
MARCH/APRIL 2011
Toy Industry Association Perspectives
TIA Invites Global Play Professionals to PlayCon 2011 Conference Features Impressive Lineup of Speakers by Kimberly Carcone, director of trade show and event marketing, Toy Industry Association
R
epresentatives of youth- and play-focused businesses will come together in Scottsdale, Ariz. next month to learn tips and techniques that can help build an organization’s creativity and innovation for success in the marketplace. During PlayCon 2011, the Toy Industry Association’s (TIA) international conference of play professionals, there will be discussions on sales and profit growth, strategies for managing costs, cutting-edge business development tools, in-depth consumer insights, and proprietary consumer research. The event, to take place May 4-6 at the Hyatt Regency Resort and Spa, will also feature networking opportunities unlike any other in the toy and licensing industries.
GameChangers CEO to Deliver Keynote Mike Bonifer, author of GameChangers—Improvisation for Business in the Networked World and co-founder and CEO of GameChangers, LLC, will deliver one of the conference’s two keynote addresses. His philosophy is built upon the premise that quick collaboration and continual adjustments are Mike Bonifer vital to businesses operating in a highly matrixed communications environment, and that brand narratives need to be unscripted and improvised in collaboration with a brand’s audience. Bonifer has been sharing his techniques and tips in books and professional development programs for years. After getting his start in 1980 as a publicist for the Walt Disney motion picture Tron, Bonifer was the founding producer for The Disney Channel, and has
MARCH/APRIL 2011
since written, directed, and produced hundreds of entertainment and marketing projects in different media for major companies, such as Disney, Mattel, NewsCorp, United Airlines, Diversey, Golin Harris, and Franklin Covey. He was a pioneer in producing websites for motion pictures, beginning with Disney’s Toy Story in 1994. This sparked his exploration of the Internet as a vital communications platform. Prior to founding his company in 2006, he was co-founder and vice president of creative for Network Live, a leading producer of the Live 8 online benefit music concerts.
Faculty to Share Concepts and More More than 20 other forward-thinking industry leaders and influencers will lead PlayCon general assembly presentations and interactive workshops designed to help every individual attending the conference gain new insights regarding the business of play, regardless of their professional role. The “Retail Landscape 2011” panel discussion will include experts from Toys “R” Us, Sears/Kmart, Marbles, and Barnes and Noble. A diverse “Consumer Insight Summit” will feature quantitative industry research from NPD and qualitative insights on consumer trends from The Marketing Store and Nickelodeon, followed by a combined question-and-answer session. Additionally, five interactive workshops will focus on accessing overseas markets, alternative sourcing, social media, blogging, and direct response TV (DRTV). “Every individual attending PlayCon will gain new insight that will help them grow his or her business as well as personal and professional networks,” says Marian Bossard, TIA vice president of meetings and events. “If you are involved in the business of play, we look forward to seeing you at PlayCon!” Visit www.PlayCon2011.org for more information about the conference and to register. ■
THE TOY BOOK • 9
Industry Update TOYS “R” US NAMES NEIL FRIEDMAN PRESIDENT OF U.S. BUSINESS
FanTOYstic Fact
This year, Scholastic is celebrating the 20th anniversary of I Spy. In honor of the occasion, a variety of products are being released, including I Spy Spectacular, a game by Briarpatch. Briarpatch has been Scholastic’s exclusive licensee for board games, puzzles, and card games for the past 17 years. I Spy Spectacular is a game with a three-tiered spinner that will send players over the edge looking for picture matches. The game includes the spinner, double-sided spinner graphics, 36 double-sided cards, 50 scoring tokens, and rules.
MEMBER DISCOUNTS FOR SHOWS The Toy Industry Association (TIA) and the Hobby Manufacturers Association (HMA) announced a one-year cooperative agreement that will offer members in each industry reciprocal member discounts for exhibit space at their respective trade shows—iHobby Expo 2011 (October 20-23 in Rosemont, Ill.) and the American International Toy Fair (February 12-15 in New York City). The arrangement will provide exhibiting members of each organization a chance to meet with a broader range of retail buyers and see expanded ranges of products and product categories.
10 • THE TOY BOOK
Toys “R” Us, Inc. has appointed Neil Friedman as president, Toys “R” Us, U.S. Friedman most recently served as president, Mattel Brands. In his new position, he will oversee all merchandising, marketing, store operations, merchandise presentation, global sourcing, and product development, as well as merchandise planning and allocation for the company’s 866 stores and online business in the U.S. Friedman will report to Gerald Storch, chairman and CEO, Toys “R” Us, Inc. “We could not be more pleased that Neil is joining our leadership team,” says Storch. “Neil has extensive knowledge of, and has made significant contributions to, the toy and juvenile product businesses throughout his career. We look forward to working with Neil to further our growth strategy as we continue to advance our authority and specialist positions through our many initiatives ahead.”
GIOCHI PREZIOSI NAMED MASTER TOY LICENSEE FOR HUNTIK Rainbow has announced that it is investing $10 million into the second season of its boys’ property, Huntik. Additionally, Rainbow has inked a multi-territory master toy deal for action figures, role-play, and play sets with Giochi Preziosi, covering Europe and Russia. In Italy, where Series Two debuts this fall, Giochi Preziosi will distribute several merchandise ranges such as back-to-school and gifts. The rollout will coincide with the launch of 26 brand-new Huntik episodes, for a total of 52 episodes. Rainbow now owns 100 percent of the rights to the property. Additionally, there will be Huntik-themed attractions at the upcoming Rainbow Magicland Theme Park, including the first 4-D attraction in Europe, “Dark Ride.” Huntik is an action-adventure property targeted to 6- to 12-year-old boys. The storyline revolves around two rival groups: The Huntik Foundation’s Seekers and the evil Organization. The Seekers’ mission is to search the world for long-lost ancient amulets containing the magic energy of the Titans, and keep them out of the hands of the Organization.
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, and add that address 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 our blog at www.toybook.com.
MARCH/APRIL 2011
Want to Reach Millions of Consumers During the Holiday Season? • Holiday Gift Guide in the November issue of Womanʼs Day magazine, read by 20 Million* Consumers (*MRI Fall 2010).
• Extensive Online Presence a comprehensive companion website, thetoyinsider.com, features links to participating advertisersʼ and retailersʼ websites.
• Participation in National Sweepstakes and Guerilla Marketing Programs to showcase participantʼs products.
• Extensive Media Coverage across TV, Print, Radio and Online News Sources.
To participate in the 6th Annual The Toy Insider™ contact: Jonathan Samet — 212.575.4510 x 2321, jsamet@adventurepub.com Laurie Schacht — 212.575.4510 x 2320, Laurieschacht@aol.com www.thetoyinsider.com
LI & FUNG ACQUIRES TECHNO SOURCE Techno Source USA has joined the family of Li & Fung Limited, following a March 14 agreement under which LF Products has acquired the business assets of Techno Source USA, Inc. The Techno Source business will continue to operate under the management of founders Rich Migatz and Wayne Nathan, as well as Eric Levin, and will provide a platform for Li & Fung to continue to build and expand its toy business globally. “We’re really excited about this opportunity,” says Eric Levin, president. “Because Techno Source and Li & Fung have been partners—they’ve been our agent— we’re just bringing our relationship even closer together, and we’re getting the opportunity to tap into the immense amount of resources that they have in terms of finance, network, customers, and supply chain, which puts us at an entirely new level in terms of our ability to take the business and drive it to the place that we’ve always hoped that it could go. “ LF Products is part of Li & Fung Limited. The group manages the supply chain for retailers and brands worldwide from approximately 240 offices and distribution centers in more than 40 economies.
CPSC APPROVES NEW LEAD TESTING METHOD The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) unanimously approved a new test method to measure lead in paint and other surface coatings of children’s products and household furniture. XOS, a provider of mission-critical materials analysis solutions, joined with the CPSC, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), leading third-party testing laboratories, and others over the past two years to develop this new test method. The new method, “ASTM F2853-10,” involves the use of HDXRF, an XOS-developed technique that measures lead and other regulated elements in coatings and substrates at much lower levels, with greater precision and reliability, than traditional XRF analyzers. Until now, the only CPSC-recognized method for testing and certifying lead in paint involved the use of wet chemistry techniques that require lab personnel to perform multiple steps, starting with first scraping the paint off product samples, which often destroys products in the process. For more information on HDXRF as well as HDXRF analyzers, such as HD Prime and HD Equity, visit www.xos.com/hdxrf.
GREENZYS EXPANDS DISTRIBUTION In time for Earth Day, eco-friendly brand Greenzys has expanded its distribution to more than 650 retailers, including Borders. Additional mass retailers will be announcing their Greenzys plans soon. Borders stores across the nation have started carrying the Greenzys book along with four plush toys. The Greenzys plush toys are manufactured by Kids Preferred. The company is currently in development with new products that are scheduled to launch later this year.
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TOYS “R” US LAUNCHES RIO MERCHANDISING PROGRAM Starting next month, Toys “R” Us customers can experience Rio via an exclusive partnership between the retailer and Twentieth Century Fox. Toys “R” Us stores and Toysrus.com/Rio will offer consumers a first look at the family film, which opened in theaters April 15. At Toys “R” Us, customers can find a merchandising assortment, including an exclusive toy line from ToyQuest, featuring poseable 3.75-inch mini figures in two packs, eight-inch basic plush pals, 10-inch animated talking plush, nineinch feature plush and beanies, a nine-inch interactive plush version of Blu and Jewel chained together, and a seven-inch walking and talking plush Luiz bulldog. Customers who buy the Rio video game, from THQ, for the Xbox and Wii will receive a DVD featuring never-before-seen sneak peeks of the film, while supplies last. Those who purchase the video game for the PlayStation 3 will receive a free Blu-ray version of the DVD. The retailer has also launched a microsite for Rio merchandise, Toysrus.com/Rio. The website includes movie trailers, exclusive downloadable coloring pages from the Modern Publishing coloring books, and more.
MADE IN USA REGISTERED MARK NOW AVAILABLE FOR LABELING On December 14, the Made in USA Brand Certification Mark became registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office. American companies now have the opportunity to label their goods produced in the U.S. with the registered certification mark. The Made in USA Brand Certification Mark joins other symbols such as Certified Organic, Certified Gluten-Free, and Rainforest Alliance Certified. Marcie Gabor, a principal at branding and marketing firm Conrad Phillips Vutech, developed the mark. The certification mark is based on the Federal Trade Commission’s regulations for complying with Made in USA origin claims. The certification mark is available for any U.S. business that meets the accreditation standards found at http://www.madeintheusabrand.com/form/.
THE JUNO COMPANY PICKS MANUFACTURER AND DISTRIBUTOR The Juno Company has selected Technicolor as its manufacturer and distributor. Under the agreement, Technicolor will provide the replication and manufacturing of The Juno Company’s DVDs from both the Juno Baby and Juno Jr. lines. Technicolor will also manage distribution and fulfillment of all Juno products.
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Marketing
Memo
Boy Toys? Girl Toys? You Bet ! by Nancy Zwiers ell-meaning adults often have strongly held opinions about what is best for children and their play. They have plenty of ideas about the purpose of play—everything from preparing children for academic success to preparing them for a specific career. The phrase “purpose of play” suggests that these adults are misguided in their attempts to craft a rationale for what toys kids “should” play with. True play is not meant to be purposeful; one works to achieve a goal, but one plays for the pleasure.
W
But children play from the inside out, and they choose how they play. What these critics don’t understand is that the toy industry is motivated to sell what children most want to play with. We are responsive to children’s wants and needs versus being active influencers of how children play. History is littered with examples of failed toys that were launched with an adult agenda, but my personal favorite example is the “Happy to Be Me” doll, touted as the antidote to Barbie (she had proportions that were more realistic than Barbie). Never heard of it? Hmm, I wonder why.
ORIGINS OF PLAY
DEVELOPING GENDER IDENTITY
Children live to play. They don’t stop playing unless someone forces them to stop (or they fall asleep). This inner drive to play is natural in the young of all higher species—humans as well as other mammals. Because play patterns within species are fairly universal, evolutionary biologists believe play is designed by nature to help the young prepare for their adult roles in perpetuating the species. Children are programmed by nature to play the way they do; they are programmed for success. Therefore, inner-driven play is inherently healthy for children—even when it looks “wrong” to adults. Nonetheless, parents and activists sometimes point to toy companies and criticize us for the toys we sell to kids, telling us we should make toys that are “good” for kids—good being defined as reflecting their adult values.
Gender identity is an important developmental task for children and obviously a requirement for the perpetuation of the species. This kicks in at about age 3, when children begin to respond to gender cues, especially those that are exaggerated. Boys love superheroes with their hyper-masculine cues (strong, ultra-muscular), and girls love Barbie and princesses with their hyper-feminine cues (curvaceous with super long hair). Furthermore, boys love fighting play patterns and girls love nurturing. While this doesn’t mean there aren’t girls who fight and boys who nurture, the numbers are relatively small. When I was about 4 years old, I remember my favorite play pattern was to wrap my blankie around my waist as a long skirt, calling out to be rescued—I was role-playing a damsel in distress! How I played at that age had little bearing on my sense of self-sufficiency as an adult. I am a feminist who believes in my own power, a self-supporting business owner hardly waiting to be rescued. I didn’t get stuck in my fantasy identity back then, and neither will children today playing with princesses or superheroes. As an industry, we shouldn’t be defensive about the gender-based toys we sell, because there is a good reason why children want to play with them most: it’s natural! ■
CONCERNS ABOUT GENDER STEREOTYPES One common adult complaint about toys is that many are stereotypically gender-based. Adults worry that toys that reflect strong gender stereotypes are sexist and will erroneously influence children in a way that will not serve them as adults. Some of these concerns include: • Toys that let boys play out fighting encourage violence. • Toys that reflect fashion and beauty themes are superficial and don’t prepare girls for important careers. • Dolls that look grown up make girls grow up too quickly, or worse, give children unrealistic standards to live up to. • The distinction between boys’ toys and girls’ toys is harmful because it will limit a child’s self-concept.
14 • THE TOY BOOK
Nancy Zwiers is CEO of Funosophy, Inc., a leading consulting and girls’ brand invention firm. For more information on company services, contact information, and/or Funosophy’s collaborative invention services, call (562) 436-5251 or email nancy@funosophy.com.
MARCH/APRIL 2011
Talking Social Media
Social Media: Show Me Your Story PART 4 OF A SERIES
by Andy Marken, Marken Communications
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rab a consumer’s attention and hold it with a video. Informational how-to videos can be quickly and economically produced and posted on the web to not only get your product message across, but to be used as customer support to help consumers resolve their problems and answer their questions. Until recently, companies exchanged information and ideas in words, pictures, and diagrams. You talked in meetings, sent emails, showed pictures, and made presentations. Today, people are increasingly going online to watch all types of videos—entertaining and educational. According to a recent report by eMarketer, this year, more than 68 percent of U.S. Internet users will be watching videos online at least once a month. The videos include news, comedy, movies and TV, music videos, sports, commercials, non-professional videos, podcasts, animation, and informational videos. As companies move more of their consumer communications to the web, they need to make their messages more interesting by adding video content. Short videos—product demonstrations, applications, installation, trouble shooting, technical discussions— meet this need. In addition, many organizations that have integrated videos into their social media activities have seen their material go viral. Channel partners link the videos to blogs and other social media sites, which are shared to others in a variety of ways, including through email, social-networking websites, instant messaging, video-sharing websites, blogs, and the comments section of other blogs and social network groups.
BE BELIEVABLE Many of the most believable videos that are watched and passed around the web are shot in a minimalized office, engi-
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neering lab, or a natural-user environment, not produced by a video professional who charges costly studio time, uses tons of cameras and lights, and demands expensive, time-consuming post production. Using staff members to take viewers through a product not only adds credibility, but it can encourage others to share the video and link with others. New compact cameras, such as Sanyo’s Pocket Movie Dual Camera, can be used by anyone to produce real mini-stories quickly, easily, and economically. Then, video editing software, such as muvee’s Reveal, does most of the work automatically. Reveal and similar products analyze photos, or the video, to automatically create a finished product that is synched to the background music’s beat, with transitions and effects added in. This type of editing software can help companies explain products, develop SEO (search engine optimization) links, and visually assist customers in how to effectively use their product.
REALITY VIDEO For departments on a tight budget, low-cost cameras, simple business environment locations, homegrown talent, and automated video production software can be used to produce interesting yet informative service videos that can be uploaded to the company’s website and social media networks. Technical videos can help customers who have to assemble products or install them, and they allow the consumer to feel connected to the company or brand because of the intimate way the information is presented; the consumer isn’t just being advertised to. The key is to tell the story quickly and effectively, and then stop. If successful, the video can go viral, and a consumer’s feedback can be a start in building company or product reputation equity. But best of all, it’s easy, economical, and fun. ■ This is Part 4 of a series. Andy Marken is a marketing and communications consultant with more than 30 years of experience, and has written more than 400 articles. In addition to consulting with and being a spokesperson for major clients, he also speaks on industry subjects including management, marketing, and consumer relations.
THE TOY BOOK • 15
Property Profile Licensor: Ludorum, plc Main Characters: Wilson, Brewster, Koko, Hoot and Toot, Vee, Old Puffer Pete, Zephie, Harrison, Calley, Frostini, Mtambo, Action Chugger, Speedy McAllister Chuggington airs on Disney Channel’s Disney Junior Block. “Since launching on Disney Junior a little over a year ago, Wilson, Koko, and Brewster have been on the fast track to becoming kids’ favorite trainees, while the show’s social readiness lessons—like respect, cooperation, and listening—have been applauded by parents. Following the immediate success of the show, parents and children were clamoring to get their hands on Chuggington products, which is why we started rolling out product in late 2010. Our consumer products launch is now well underway and there will be even more innovative and interactive products hitting shelves this year, from toys and games to apparel and décor.” - Maureen Taxter, senior vice president of consumer products, Ludorum
Did you know. . . — Coming up with the character names is a group effort. Did you know Mtambo means "engine" in Swahili?
— The phrase “chug around town" inspired the property's name "Chuggington." — The trains in Chuggington are based on trains throughout history from all around the world. — Chuggington birthday supplies are the most requested product on Chuggington's Facebook page. See some of the amazing cakes that moms and dads are making for their young trainees at www.facebook.com/chuggington. — Learning Curve has now shipped out more than 1 million Chuggington engines to retailers in the U.S. and Canada.
Cardinal Cardinal offers kids a hands-on Chuggington experience with its line of high-quality puzzles, including wood puzzles, lenticular puzzles, floor puzzles, and basic puzzles. With the A-Round Me Floor Puzzle, the child actually builds the puzzle in a circle around them on the floor. It comes with a bonus puzzle as well.
Rubie’s Costume Co. Rubie’s Costume Co. offers kids the chance to dress up like Chuggington and friends. Wilson is the lovable little red engine. This two-piece costume includes a red foam romper and hat. Brewster is known for being steady and strong. His costume includes a twopiece blue-and-yellow foam romper and hat. The adventurous electric engine, Koko, has a costume that features a two-piece green foam romper and hat (shown here).
The Wonder Forge The Traintastic Cargo Game, from The Wonder Forge, is a game of memory, pattern matching, and discovery. A trainload of surprises is chugging into the depot. Can you find the right cargo? Look inside the boxcars for the shapes, colors, and numbers you need. But watch out—you never know when Old Puffer Pete will chug around the track and mix everything up.
Giddy Up Giddy Up is in the process of developing technology-based coloring and drawing activities and books using platforms such as its ColorBlast magic reveal coloring activity and the new Magnix Play Scene format.
Mega Brands The Chuggington Coaster is the heart of the world of Chuggington, featuring a wrap-around air-track. This buildable play set includes the Clock-Tower, Train-Station, and two collectible chuggers: Wilson and Action Chugger, as well as a jet-pack with sky-rail. This play set can be combined with other Chuggington characters and play sets to further build a child’s Chuggington adventures. Additional Chuggington items from Mega include the Roundhouse Race Set, Koko’s Ice Adventure, Old Puffer Pete’s Garage, and the Buildable Chuggers Assortment. Mega Bloks’ Chuggington items will be available internationally this fall, and in the U.S. next spring.
Learning Curve Brands Featuring SmartTalk technology, Learning Curve’s Chuggington Interactive Railway engines recognize and interact with one another and with key buildings and tunnels in the collection. The more engines, buildings, and tunnels that are added, the more interactive the world becomes. The specialty retail-exclusive Chuggington Wooden Railway features a series of robust, brightly colored engines, starter train sets, and modular buildings and tunnels all constructed with classic, high-quality wood. The Chuggington Wooden Railway is expandable and compatible with all other major wooden railway toys. Also available is an array of Chuggington die-cast and play sets.
18 • THE TOY BOOK
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Building Innovation New Ideas Yield Category Growth by Jackie Breyer
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uilding sets has consistently grown as a toy category over the past few years. According to The NPD Group, the category was up 26 percent in 2008, 23 percent in 2009, and 13 percent in 2010. As the category grows and major industry players, including Hasbro, enter the category, new trends and innovations emerge, keeping the play pattern novel for young builders. While the concept of building with blocks is tried and true, various new twists on the concept continue to keep the construction aisle fresh, and freshness breeds growth and strength. Because Lego has long been a top-selling brand in the construction aisle, many newcomers have introduced bricks that are compatible with Lego bricks. This way, they aren’t asking parents to “switch” to a new building system; parents can simply buy something new, and add on to the building sets they have at home. One example is Hasbro’s new Kre-O system, set to hit stores this fall. Not only are Kre-O bricks compatible with “most other brick-based construction sets on the market,” describes Hasbro, the line is launching with Transformers building sets. While this narrows their target audience mainly to males, it significantly expands the target age range. Each Transformers Kre-O set comes with two types of builds: create a robot and then disassemble to build a vehicle, or disassemble the vehicle to build a robot. Most sets come with themed accessories and a poseable mini figure in robot or human form. Neat-Oh!, a manufacturer that provides storage solutions for building sets, found that applying the Lego license to its ZipBin line helped them get the recognition they needed to build their own brand. “In 2009, Neat-Oh! began to work with licenses, the first license being the Lego brand,” says Dee Farrell, senior vice president at Neat-Oh! International. “A key part of the agreements Neat-Oh! reached with Lego was to keep the ZipBin brand name on licensed items. This set the stage for similar agreements with subsequent licensors Mat-
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tel and Lucasfilm. With the ZipBin name on all products, Neat-Oh!’s licensing strategy is helping consumers learn the ZipBin brand and the benefits of ZipBin products.” Neat-Oh!’s innovative storage solutions have helped propel the company and its ZipBin brand forward in the category, and the company has expanded its offerings to include ZipBin play sets and more for a wider demographic of kids. Innovation is important in any category’s growth, and Laser Pegs Ventures has innovated in the construction category. Available at more than 2,000 specialty retailers in the U.S. alone, Laser Pegs are building bricks that light up, providing kids with an entirely new product to build with, and bringing a new dimension to the concept of building blocks. “I saw the lighted necklaces Laser Pegs that are acrylic at TechEd 2002 and instantly thought to myself, ‘Wow, if those were construction set toys, in all different shapes, where each piece fed the next piece a low voltage current, illuminating the LED, those would be a hit!,’” says Jon Capriola, CEO of Laser Pegs Ventures. The problem with being innovative is that no matter how much time and effort you put in, there’s a way for a copycat to steal the idea. According to Capriola, Laser Pegs took five years to make, but it only takes 90 days to copy. To protect itself, Laser Pegs has patented all of its core concepts with utility and method patents. “In this world we live in, all we can do is work hard and work smart, and hopefully, if all the stars align correctly, we can continually build upon our success,” says Capriola. ■
THE TOY BOOK • 19
ADVERTORIAL
Hasbro is bringing its iconic TRANSFORMERS brand to builders’ fingertips with introduction of KRE-O brand
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his fall, Hasbro will bring action and adventure to the construction aisle with the introduction of a completely new brand: KRE-O. Blending the company’s popular TRANSFORMERS property with an exceptional brick offering, the new line enhances the classic construction play pattern and offers builders of all ages the opportunity to construct and interact with some of the most popular TRANSFORMERS characters in a new way. The line brings Hasbro into the construction aisle and is a natural next step as the company strives to deliver branded play to consumers across a wide variety of platforms. The KRE-O brand also fills an important gap, both in the company’s strong brand portfolio and at retail shelves. “The introduction of the KRE-O brand and KRE-O TRANSFORMERS line offers consumers a new and refreshing way to play within the construction category,” says John Frascotti, chief marketing officer, Hasbro, Inc. “With KRE-O TRANSFORMERS, we are giving TRANSFORMERS fans and builders the unique opportunity to create and interact with iconic AUTOBOT and DECEPTICON characters like never before.” Each KRE-O TRANSFORMERS set is “MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE,” with two types of builds that double possible play scenarios: users can create a robot and then disassemble it to build a corresponding vehicle, or disassemble the vehicle to build a robot all over again. And because KRE-O bricks are compatible with other brick-based construction sets on the market, consumers will receive the product quality they’ve come to rely on from Hasbro with the convenience of integrating KRE-O bricks with bricks they already have in their toy box. To enhance builders’ adventures, most KRE-O TRANSFORMERS sets also feature themed accessories unique to each individual set, as well as a poseable KREON figure (both robots and humans). And while the sets are suitable for children ages 6 years and older, Hasbro believes the KRE-O TRANSFORMERS line will appeal to fans of all ages. “BUMBLEBEE and OPTIMUS PRIME continue to be two standout characters in the TRANSFORMERS franchise and most relevant to our younger builders’ knowledge of the brand,” says Frascotti. “That said, older TRANSFORMERS fan communities will be excited to see that the entire line draws from 25 years of rich TRANSFORMERS history and is based on classic TRANSFORMERS lore.” In addition to a variety of new sets and collectible KREON figures, the TRANSFORMERS KRE-O line also ranges in skill level and price, offering basic sets for beginner builders priced at approximately $7.99 retail all the way to deluxe sets, the largest and most intricate of which will be the OPTIMUS PRIME set, which will retail for approximately $59.99 and comes complete with more than 500 pieces. Consumers can also “roll out” with KRE-O sets featuring other notable TRANSFORMERS characters including MIRAGE, AUTOBOT JAZZ, AUTOBOT RATCHET, PROWL, SIDESWIPE, MEGATRON, STARSCREAM, and SENTINEL PRIME. Although the debut of the KRE-O collection will solely feature TRANSFORMERSthemed sets in 2011, considering Hasbro’s role as an industry leader with an extensive portfolio of brands and strategic entertainment property alliances, it’s not hard to imagine the potential growth of the KRE-O line. “The TRANSFORMERS brand’s strong history, coupled with the tactile play inherent to the brand, makes it a natural fit for the inaugural KRE-O collection,” says Frascotti. “We are thrilled to lead with TRANSFORMERS and look forward to bringing a variety of popular brands and play themes to life through our KREO construction brand.” ■
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Lego City expands with a new space theme. Builders can create a state-of-the-art Space Center to prepare the rocket for launch or build the Space Shuttle for blastoff. Construct the Satellite Launch Pad to deploy the communications satellite and explore the moon with the Space Moon Buggy. Set piece counts vary from 37 pieces to 494 pieces.
Tegu’s wooden blocks feature magnets that allow the blocks to stick together in a variety of ways, inspiring open-ended play. The blocks are made from Honduran hardwoods and safe water-based finishes. Newest to the Tegu family is The Jungle Set, featuring a combination of natural, mahogany, and green-tinted blocks. The jungle set is available in an eight-piece pouch, 26-piece Discovery Set, and 52-piece Original Set.
Neat Oh! partners with Lego and Lucasfilm for the Lego Star Wars ZipBin Media Toybox & Playmat. Kids can keep their room organized with the Lego Star Wars storage case. When unzipped, the ZipBin becomes a Star Wars-themed playmat for testing out new Lego creations. When play is done, simply capture all the bricks inside.
Imagibility’s Switchbotz are a series of robotic-styled characters that are built out of geometric blocks, including graduated rhombus shapes, octahedrons, and multi-angled extension parts. Each Switchbotz character (eight at launch) can transform into multiple characters, giving kids an extended play experience. The product comes with a construction guide that includes step-by-step assembly instructions on how to build all of the characters.
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The U.S. Army has collaborated with Best-Lock, a private manufacturer of plastic building toys, to create a line of U.S. Army military construction sets. The construction sets include helicopters, tanks, and other military vehicles, all designed with a rugged look.
Kids ages 7 and older can build and role play at the same time with Meccano’s Erector Space Chaos Fighters. The good Silver Force fighter has lights and the bad Dark Pirates have sounds. The two 110-piece sets build separate models that each transform three different ways. Two gaming trading cards, stickers, tools, and instructions are included.
Kids can learn how to walk as they recognize their shapes and colors and build with Mega Bloks’ 3-in-1 Build ’n Go Walker. The walker serves as a stable helper and can be pushed or pulled depending on the child’s position. As the child’s walk improves, the foldable walker transforms into a wagon that can be pulled along to transport his or her Mega Bloks.
The Cosmic Twist DoubleShot Roller Coaster by K’nex has more than 1,000 pieces. With the pieces, kids (and the young at heart) can build a dueling roller coaster that reaches more than 3.5 feet high and has more than 32 feet of track. Arms up! The motorized, vertical chain lift elevates the two cars and two tracks to the top for racing action all the way to the bottom. Included in the set are step-by-step instructions for building.
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Hasbro debuts in the construction aisle with the introduction of its Kre-O brand. For kids ages 6 and older, Kre-O allows young builders the chance to build their favorite characters. At launch, KreO will offer 12 building sets featuring Transformers characters, each having two types of builds: create a robot and then disassemble to build a vehicle or build a vehicle and then disassemble to build a robot. Most sets also come complete with themed accessories and a poseable Kreon mini figure in robot or human form.
FEATURE DRIVEN
R/C Climbs Up the Sales Ladder with Added Extras by Elizabeth A. Reid
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uring last year’s fourth quarter, Carrera of America entered the R/C category in what President Ed Gershowitz called timing that was “absolutely spot-on.” Carrera’s parent company, the Stadlbauer Group, first focused its efforts in Europe before launching in the U.S., taking 7 percent of the R/C market in Europe. “We went with an innovative new battery technology that set us apart. The specialty toy and hobby stores really embraced the products right away,” says Gershowitz. The radio/remote-controlled toy category as a whole is on an upswing. According to The NPD Group, 2010 U.S. sales for the category were up over 2009’s retail sales, totaling $641 million. This year is setting up to be an even bigger success. “[Last year], mass-market buyers still had some trouble wrapping their head around the fact that our product was $15 to $20 more than others, but when you add features they come at a cost.” Gershowitz says that more mass-market retailers will be supporting the Carrera R/C line this year, and that the company will be focusing on its core style of remote-controlled vehicle, the off-road R/C, which is selling well. Off-road R/C toys are just like the real-life vehicles they are stylized after: they can drive on a paved surface, yet can take on gravel and other tough terrains, and this type of vehicle is becoming popular with many toy companies. Maisto’s new Baja Beast features coil-over shocks and digital proportional steering. Hasbro is continuing to produce its Tonka TS 4000 Dump Truck for younger kids, which includes a working steel dump bed for hauling and traveling over rough terrain. And this year Carrera will debut a rock crawler and dune buggy that will be able to move over rocks and branches at an up-to12-mph speed. Off-roaders allow kids to expand their R/C playground from just driving their vehicles indoors and on the street to tackling their backyards, parks, and more. In addition to becoming an off-road expert, Carrera is adding licenses to its vehicles, another big trend in R/C. This year, the company will premiere licensed vehicles in exact scale models, including a Ford 150 truck, a Jeep Grand Cherokee, a Volkswagon Touareg, and a Ferrari boat, among others. Kohsche Koh, president of NKOK, Inc., believes that licensed R/C products set companies apart from and give them an edge over their competitors. NKOK has a vast array of entertainment licenses, including Hello Kitty, Sega’s All-Stars, Mi-
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Carrera’s Dune Jumper Buggy
crosoft’s Halo, Sony’s Ratchet & Clank, and Discovery Kids, which is new this year. But picking the right license for an R/C toy, says Koh, is not an easy task. “You must review trends in gaming and movies, and combine them with [your knowledge] of real-world game play. Once you determine the trend, you determine which licensor best suits your needs.” Interactive Toy Concepts (ITC) recently picked up EA Games’ Medal of Honor license and will debut its line of Medal of Honor products this fall. In this case, ITC already had a product idea in mind, but wanted the right brand to make it more authentic. “We had these five interactive toys that do battle with one another, and we knew we had to team up with an aggressive boys’ brand,” says Ian Chisholm, director of marketing and licensing at ITC. “So we actively pursued aggressive boys’ brands and settled on Medal of Honor.” Far from just labeling the vehicles with a Medal of Honor sticker, the R/C toys will be actual replicas of vehicles that exist in the video game, with each vehicle having the added feature of their own battling style. Although it will drive retail price points up, says Gershowitz, “the consumer definitely seems ready to get back into R/C products that have real features. When you leave out features, it limits the performance, and when you limit performance, the play experience becomes that much less for the child.” Fortunately for consumers—whether it’s an R/C that can go from the street to the backyard, or those that bring the video game experience to the living room floor—features that enhance the play experience are becoming prevalent in the category. ■
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Cars 2’s Finn McMissile fires! Spin Master’s Air Hogs Cars 2 Missile Firing Finn McMissile remotely transforms to reveal Finn McMissile’s payload of four plastic missiles. Kids can take aim and deploy each missile at the included Cars 2 “lemons” targets. Each time McMissile fires, he says one of his famous lines from the upcoming movie.
Kids can take Senario’s Zibits to new places with the company’s ZX-34—the biggest, baddest machine in the entire universe of Z-7. Completely controlled by kids, the full-function R/C robot launches power orbs at an opponent through ZX-34’s chest. Then, the built-in reloading function picks them up, reloads, and fires again. ZX-34 can carry up to seven Zibits.
Wild Creations premieres its RC MicroBugs line, including a ladybug, tarantula, potato beetle, sky bird, and scorpion. The RC Scorpion has eight legs, two claws, and a red stinger tail. Use the R/C controller to steer the scorpion forward, backward, left, and right to its location. If there is prey nearby, strike it with the Scorpion’s fierce tail.
The Hexbug Spider, by Innovation First, is the largest member of the Hexbug family with internal mechanisms that allow for 360-degree steering with its six legs. The crawler also has a forward-facing LED eye and the two-channel remote control enables users to operate multiple bugs independently or at the same time.
Carrera’s off-road Fire Fighter Watergun truck has working lights (Xenon and flashing) and a siren. Made in a 1:14 scale, kids can shoot water from the truck for more than 30 feet. The playing time for the truck can last up to 30 minutes, while the charge time is 80 minutes. The Fire Fighter can top a speed of 11 mph.
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Silverlit Toys’ 3D Twister is two-sided and knows exactly which side is driving for easy user control. New features include twoway communication between the car and remote, including crash feedback and power con3D Twister sumption. Also rolling into stores this year is the company’s Head Shotz, R/C characters that transform and compete in head-banging battles. The collection of characters roll, battle, then open to attack and shut down their opponent’s ability to function.
NKOK has launched its Air Banditz line with Air Raptor, a 3.5-channel helicopter with gyroscope for precision control. The helicopter has a lightweight aluminum frame and flashing lights in the front and rear. The multi-directional controls can fly the helicopter forward, up, down, left, or right, or make it hover. Charging is easy with the USB plug-and-charge design that allows it to power up from either the transmitter or your computer system.
Kids ages 3 and older can race Bandai’s Roary R/C Vehicle using its infrared steering wheel control. Roary can drive forward, backward, left, and right and the car “rubbles” as he accelerates. The Roary R/C Vehicle features real engine sounds and six phrases.
The Maisto Tech Baja Beast is a hobbygrade R/C with off-road features, such as coilover shocks, long-travel suspension, and a lightweight vacuum-formed body. The large pro-style controller features digital proportional steering that helps to control the Beast, and the tri-channel transmitter has an extra-long range.
If the Lazer Stunt Chaser, by Thinkway Toys, flips over it’s no big deal—it is dual-sided. The R/C can drive on either side and has a different color and design (either Dragonfire or Flameout) on each side. Kids use the remote control to project a light and the car chases after it. Speed can be adjusted and tight turns are made possible by pressing the left and right buttons. Each set includes a stunt ramp for racing.
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Self-proclaimed as Interactive Toy Concepts’ most ambitious project, the Medal of Honor Interactive Battle Series includes five R/C vehicles replicated from the Medal of Honor video game series by Electronic Arts. Each vehicle can interact with one another, allowing up to five players to play at the same time. Additionally, each item will have its own battle style and damage results.
The first step in the Erector Turbo Radio Control Racer set is to build one of two different cars from the 90-plus included parts. Once the car is built, all users need is the fullfunction radio control and batteries to make it zoom off. Included are the control, tools, and instructions. The racer is for ages 7 and older.
MerchSource’s Blue Hat Micro Race Car is a fully functioning radiocontrolled vehicle. Featuring working headlights and an independent spring suspension, the car can be recharged through a direct connection to the remote control. The car also has two different frequencies for racing.
Hasbro is expanding its Tonka brand with the introduction of Tonka XT, a line of action vehicles that do stunts. The Tonka XT Ricochet Tricksters can perform tricks and take on Rampage Flip tough terrains. Each full-functioning double-sided stunt vehicle— Rampage Flip, Buzzsaw Spin, and Zig Zag Jolt—include a pre-programmed stunt that can be executed simply by pushing the Trick Trigger button on the infrared controller. The Tricksters can also perform other freestyle stunts.
Dr. Zoom, from Eastcolight, takes live video via the video camera on the tank. The camera has a 2X digital zoom and broadcasts the video on the 1.8-inch color LCD screen on the remote. The remote features four directions as well as controls to adjust the camera angle and LED light. The earphone output on the remote allows users to view and listen at the same time. Video is recorded to the onboard SD memory card.
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Based on the question “How does it work?” Worx Toys’ radio-controlled vehicles teach kids how different vehicles operate by giving them a peek inside. This year, the company is premiering the Inferno Fire Truck, featuring 29 different parts with 70 bright LEDs. Using the small joystick on the transmitter, the vehicle can run forward, backward, and side to side, and the ladder can go up and down. Included with the fire truck is the Worx Storybook Transmitter.
Uncle Milton’s Horrible Pets R/C Rat resembles a real rodent and has realistic movements. But, no fear, there’s no infestation. Targeted to kids 6 and older, the toy rat can be steered in multiple directions toward its destination by using the remote.
Is that a fish in the sky? William Mark Corporation’s Air Swimmers, for indoor use, are four-foot-long, helium-filled mylar balloons shaped like fish. Air Swimmers are propelled by the back-andforth movement of the tailfin and the remote control steers the balloon through the air like a fish, in any direction, including up and down. Users can fill the fish (a shark or clownfish) with helium at a party store and it will stay filled for up to three weeks. AAA batteries are needed for both the fish and the remote control.
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Swann is debuting its first range of R/C helicopters, Swann Air. The initial releases include four different types of choppers: Micro Lightning, Micro Hornet, Military Thunder, and Emergency Strike. Each helicopter features internal gyro technology for stability and a dual-charging functionality; the chopper can be recharged from either the remote control or from the computer’s USB port. Each of Swann’s R/C helicopters can be flown indoors or outdoors.
Playmobil’s Robo Gang Truck can shoot weapons that are mounted on the wing doors. The truck’s satellite can be launched from the fold-out satellite launch pad. To upgrade the R/C, use Playmobil’s RC Module Set or RC Module Set Plus. The truck can also be upgraded with the Playmobil Spy Camera Set, which includes a camera with a USB port and a color monitor. Images shot from the camera are displayed on the monitor via wireless transmission.
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ot all R/C toys are defined as “radio-controlled.” As smartphones and mobile applications gain popularity, more and more Bluetooth- and Wi-Fi- controlled vehicle toys are popping up on store shelves. For most of them, all that is needed is a smartphone, digital tablet, or similar gadget and a simple download from a mobile application store. Interactive Toy Concepts is premiering its first Wi-Ficontrolled toy, the Wi-Fli helicopter. “We’re really excited about it,” says Ian Chisholm, director of marketing and licensing. “We know it’s more geared toward the tech community. It’s not geared to an 8-year-old, or even a 9- or 10-year-old, but a more mature customer.” Read more about the Wi-Fli helicopter and other gadget-navigated R/Cs below.
Interactive Toy Concepts debuts the Wi-Fli helicopter, the first product in its Wi-Fi series. The helicopter can be flown indoors or outdoors and is controlled by a Wi-Fi-enabled device, such as Android devices and Apple’s iPad, iPod Touch, and iPhone. After downloading the application program, a flight screen will appear. Touch the screen for takeoff and slide the throttle up to control and fly. Pilots use their left hand to control the altitude and their right hand steers the direction. The helicopter features gyro technology, providing stability and enabling users to tilt the helicopter right, left, or forward.
Desk Pets International’s TankBot can be fully controlled by a tilt of an Apple iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch. The ’bot’s three modes use infrared sensors to navigate mazes, avoid obstacles, and react with military precision. Each TankBot easily plugs into the headphone jack of each device for navigating, and the retractable USB gives users 15 minutes of play for each 30 minutes of charge. When idle, the robot’s eyes will flash like a heartbeat, and when active each color robot (orange, blue, black, and green) will operate on its own frequency, allowing for multiplayer racing and battling.
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Parrot’s AR.Drone is a quadricopter that uses augmented reality and can be piloted with an iPod Touch, iPhone, or iPad. This is the first quadricopter for video games and piloted by Wi-Fi. Two downloads to fly the Drone are available from the iTunes App Store: AR. FreeFlight, a piloting application, and AR. Pursuit, a twoplayer pursuit game. In piloting mode, users can choose from beginner, which features two on-screen buttons to control the Drone, and Ace, an expert mode with one on-screen button. For outdoor flight, a shaped hull reduces wind, and for indoor flight, a different hull surrounds and protects the propellers from obstacles. Additionally, a front-camera broadcasts and streams what the Drone is seeing onto the controlling device and image processing allows integration of real-time special effects of augmented reality.
MARCH/APRIL 2011
What’s Next in Plush?
by Jackie Breyer
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fter being down in 2009, the plush category was up 18 percent in 2010, according to The NPD Group. This rise is credited by many to the popularity of Pillow Pets for the holiday season. After the “It’s a Pillow. It’s a Pet. It’s a Pillow Pet!” TV jingle caught the attention of kids everywhere, the plush line topped kids’ holiday wish lists. The questions that remain following that surge are: Will the plush category be able to maintain this new level of success? Or will sales of plush drop off for 2011 as the Pillow Pets phenomenon ebbs to a “normal” level of sales? Some are banking on the phenomenon rolling over to new types $1.73 billion of pillow-style plush, creating a new plush craze for this year. Jay at Play’s Happy Nappers are plush pillows shaped like animals’ $1.46 billion homes. Unzip the door of the home, flip it inside out, and an animal-shaped plush pal is revealed. This new take on $1.68 billion plush-friend-as-pillow will be available at specialty stores beginning in the third quarter, and will roll Source: The NPD Group/Consumer Tracking Service out to mass retailers heading into the fourth quarter. Jay at Play is already building up demand for the line with an As Seen on TV launch (currently airing). Most plush manufacturers don’t utilize TV for their lines, so they have to attract consumers based on in-store impressions instead. LicensJay at Play’s Happy Nappers LadyBug ing is one way to get that attention. Commonwealth Toy has licensed Angry Birds, the top-selling children’s app, for its plush. These pieces are instantly recognizable in a sea of plush, which is a tremendous advantage in a category so vast. Another recognizable tech character, Google’s Android, is also available as plush. Custom plush toy manufacturer Gann Memorials has introduced its first stand-alone line of Android operating system-inspired plush toys and accessories. The Ganndroids plush toy was originally commissioned, designed, and ordered by Google's Android team for promotional use, but is now available to anyone who wants to boast their brand of choice. Another way to draw attention is to offer a style of fabric that consumers can’t help but notice, and are drawn to pick up. Wide wale corduroy is gaining in popularity, and is drawing attention from consumers. Gann Memorials’ Companies showcasing this fabric include Mud Pie; Gund, for its Disney-licensed plush introductions; and Ganndroids plush Globe Trotoys, for its Deglingos line of plush. For consumers who are concerned with environmentalism, as well as the use of non-toxic materials and dyes, environmentally friendly plush continues to grow by leaps and bounds. Hosung’s miYim brand, which is offering eco-friendly Disney plush for the first time, is a leader in ecofriendly plush. Re-Think-it, Inc.’s Dandelion brand is another company that has made headway in this category. Quirkiness is another trend in plush that has really taken off, with Pretty Ugly’s Uglydoll line leading the way. These ugly/adorable creatures have given rise to a long line of quirky, irresistible plush shouting out to consumers from plush shelves everywhere. The reality of the plush category is that it is a fluctuating category, and fairly basic by nature. While every so often it produces the “next big fad,” most plush are not part of a phenomenon like Pillow Pets, and must find a point of difference that leads to sales. ■ Pretty Ugly’s Citizen Collection
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Jakks Pacific has a licensing agreement with Microsoft to design and manufacture interactive plush toys that integrate with the Kinectimals video game for Kinect for Xbox 360. Kinectimals plush toys work with Microsoft Tag (mtag) technology, allowing players to scan the tag on their plush toy with the Kinect for Xbox 360 sensor and watch the King Cheetah or Maltese Tiger appear in the game. Players interact with their pets using full body movement, voice commands, and gestures. Just like real pets, the animals will come running when they hear the player’s voice, respond to commands such as “jump,” “roll over,” and “play dead,” and purr with joy when they are scratched behind the ears.
Aurora introduces Roxie the Doxie, a pup designed to inspire young girls to learn more about the world’s most interesting cities. A line featuring plush animals, stationery, and room décor for girls, Roxie the Doxie takes tweens along for the ride as she travels the globe to meet new friends and explore the food, fun, and fashions other cultures have to offer. The Roxie the Doxie line will initially include a small and large plush; a Fancy Pals pet carrier (embroidered with a scooter on one side) and a mini-pet carrier; a dream plush with journal; a Roxie diary; an easel and frame, and a fashionable wristlet.
Dressed in a concert style tee, Let’s Rock Elmo, from Hasbro, takes the stage singing and making music, and encourages preschoolers to join him. Elmo comes with his own microphone, tambourine, and drum set. Kids can choose which instrument Elmo plays, and he magically recognizes which one they give him. Kids can also play along on Elmo’s instruments. Elmo also interacts with other Let’s Rock instruments (each sold separately); he knows when you’re playing the Let’s Rock Guitar, Keyboard, or Microphone and plays along with you. Let’s Rock Elmo play six songs.
Mud Pie’s Buds Large Bear is available in four styles. This chenille bear features multiple textures and patterns with an embroidered face. Coordinating Buds Bear Rattles, Stroller Buddy, and Neck Pillow are also available.
Manhattan Toy is introducing 15 new puppets this year. Children can now transform into a colorful monster and show their wild side. The collection includes three different vibrant plush monster costumes: orange, blue, and green. Every monster costume also has a coordinating monster friend that children can bring along with them everywhere. Shown here are the Roaring Ruzlow Soft Toy and Roaring Ruzlow Costume.
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Commonwealth Toy introduces a line of licensed plush based on My Pillow Pets. Commonwealth offers backpack clips, six-inch bean bags, and hand puppets featuring the recognizable Pillow Pets characters.
Alex introduces its new Mix ’n Max line. Soft and cuddly Max comes in a huggable size. Max includes a squeaker, a stretchy arm, teether ears and tail, crinkly legs, and fun textures. Max is designed for little ones from birth and up.
Senario’s Little Big Planet Plush are high-end, detailed collectibles made with rich textures and materials, designed to bring the LittleBigPlanet game to life. The plush is available in a variety of LittleBigPlanet characters and sizes.
Alpha Toys LLC introduces Alphabeasts, a new line of educational plush dolls designed to help children learn while playing. All 26 characters have a different name that starts with their letter of the alphabet along with a different story/personality trait that helps define the characters, and they all work together to help teach the alphabet and spelling. Children can mix and match the beasts to spell out words. Each beast has a capital letter on the front, and then a lower-case letter with reversed colors on the back. These plush dolls are 15 inches in size.
Muttles, LLC introduces Muttles, a collectible puppy brand. Muttles is based on the designer dog trend and features mixed-up breeds with names such as Labradoodle, Puggle, and Snorkie. In stores now, each pack includes a three-inch mini-plush, two trading cards, a tattoo set, and an adoption certificate with a unique registration code assigned to each Muttle. Owners can register their new puppy and build a Muttles Puppy Profile at muttles.com by selecting a name, entering its birthday and gender, and customizing by selecting from a menu of favorite things: food, toys, tricks, place, and “BFF.” Muttles owners can also participate in some “Social Petworking” by sharing their pages, viewing the brag book, and playing online games.
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Cloud B’s Twilight Turtle & Friends collection is designed to help bring tranquility and comfort to little ones. Each friend soothes a different sense (sound, sight, smell, and touch) to help babies and children achieve better, more peaceful sleep. Mimicking Monkey features Velcro hands for easy attachment, personalized soothing sounds, and records voices over three unique sound options for fun and sleep. There is a 30minute sleep timer as well.
SmileyWorld Ltd. works with licensee OneO-One to create plush toys for the SmileyWorld brand. Two new plush items will launch this month as part of a range of back-to-school products, including stationery and backpacks. The new plush will be based on the plush shown here, which were launched previously.
Tandars Interactive Pets, from YoHa Technology, can sense, speak, and call to each other. Infrared sensors in their eyes allow the Tandars to detect movements and interact with their owner. Tandars Pets blink their eyes and move their head, ears, and mouth. Their moods can be changed by interacting with them. If left alone, Tandars get bored and start to snore as they fall asleep. Tandars also burp and fart at random. Tandars Pets will let their owner know when they are hungry and low on energy. To “feed” them, owners can connect their tail to a USB port. A portion of sales for each pet sold will be donated to The Philippine Tarsier Foundation, Inc.
Plushland offers a variety of Sock Monkey styles, including Collegiate Sock Monkeys in eight-inch and 20inch sizes. Both sizes are available in more than 100 schools.
PenPalz are cuddly plush companions whose mission is to encourage children to write and create. Created by a school teacher looking for a way to make writing more fun and encourage penmanship practice, the collectible plush slip on a child’s wrist and remain there to encourage writing and creativity. Shakes the Puppy Dog, Benji the Turtle, and Haiku the Panda each come with a pencil and a literary tie-in designed to spark questions and encourage further discussion. PenPalz stay on the wrist via an elastic strap and magnetic paws.
40 • THE TOY BOOK
MARCH/APRIL 2011
MARCH/APRIL 2011
T HE D EFINITIVE I NFORMATION S OURCE
FOR THE
T OY
AND
G IF T M ERCHANT
NEWS THE ORB FACTORY ACQUIRES CURIOSITY KITS The Orb Factory Limited has acquired the assets of Curiosity Kits, the makers of activitybased kits for children that are popular in the specialty market. The Orb Factory has assumed the rights to all of Curiosity Kits’ brand trademarks and copyrights. The company will introduce the products at summer shows for shipment beginning in July.
ON THE COVER: FOLKMANIS’ PIRATE PUPPET, NAMED BLIMEY, FEATURES AN EYE PATCH THAT FLIPS UP, GOLD TEETH, AN EARRING, AND A STITCHED SCAR ON HIS NOSE. BLIMEY IS 14 INCHES TALL.
SPECIALTY TOYS & GIFTS
MANUFACTURERS COLLABORATE
FOR
GREEN EARTH 2011
In celebration of Earth Day, eight manufacturers of eco-friendly children’s products are collaborating for Green Earth 2011 to cross promote their green products. The companies produce a wide range of children’s products, such as eco-friendly toys and dolls, and promote recycled, re-usable, organic, and fair trade materials. The sponsors of Green Earth 2011 include ImagiPlay; Global Green Pals, a manufacturer of eco-friendly educational dolls; Eco-kids, which produces handmade art supplies; Mimi the Sardine, manufacturer of eating accessories; Kids Konserve, maker of waste-free lunch kits; Uncle Goose, manufacturer of eco-friendly blocks; Lunchbots, maker of stainless steel lunch, snack, and bento containers; and Jamtown, creator of handcrafted musical instruments.
ASTRA EXHIBIT SPACE SELLS OUT Kathleen McHugh, president of the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA), has reported exhibit space at ASTRA’s Marketplace & Academy has sold out, even after ASTRA arranged for additional exhibit space to accommodate a growing waitlist. McHugh recommends that independent toy retailers register for Marketplace & Academy as soon as possible to avoid missing out on any of the limited-registration events. ASTRA’s Marketplace & Academy will be held in Anaheim, Calif. from June 19 to 22.
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CRICKET MAGAZINE GROUP NAMES LICENSING AGENCY Cricket Magazine Group (CMG), a division of Carus Publishing Company, has named Synergy Licensing, LLC as its new licensing agency of record. The magazine group publishes several children’s magazines, including Cricket, LadyBug, BabyBug, Click, and more. With the new partnership with Synergy Licensing, CMG will be able to expand its brand portfolio with new licensed and brand opportunities for products. Synergy will license related CMG trademarks, characters, and content, such as LadyBug’s characters (LadyBug, Muddle, and Thud), BabyBug’s Kim and Carrots, and more.
SCHLEICH ANNOUNCES NEW ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE Schleich North America, Inc. is implementing a new organizational structure that will aim to enhance the growth of its sales in Canada and the U.S. Matthew Dawes has left his position as executive vice president of sales and marketing, Schleich North America. Don Rothwell, sales manager U.S., will now be responsible for the entire U.S. market and Marc Ethier, sales manager Canada, will have complete responsibilities for the Canadian market. Both Rothwell and Ethier will report directly to Walter Haack, president of Schleich North America, Inc. and Schleich head of global sales. ●
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WILD CREATIONS PARTNERS WITH
FLIPOUTZ
Wild Creations has partnered with Flipoutz, a new product that was recently featured on ABC’s Shark Tank. Wild Creations will help grow the product nationally with its manufacturing and distribution capabilities. Flipoutz is a kid-invented bracelet that contains five personalized coins. Kids can trade the themed coins with friends and, by using the unique serial number on the coins, can track the coins as they travel around the world with each trade, or “flip.” Kids can also create an owner profile page and coin profile page.
SPECIALTY TOYS & GIFTS
ASTRA’S INSIGHTS
Introducing New Stars Tips for Bringing New Products into Specialty Toy Stores by Kathleen McHugh, president, American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA)
S
pecialty toy retailing is all about product assortment and customer service. While patrons expect to find many classic toys on shelves, unique and innovative new products will keep them coming back. As manufacturers begin to have more confidence in the economy and put more new toys in the pipeline, retail members of the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA) need to find fresh ways to incorporate such items in their stores. What do store owners need to consider as they freshen up their shelves?
Select new products that fit with your store’s brand. Your store has a personality and that personality helps customers understand what to expect when they shop with you. You want your store’s brand to work for you, which means that everything you carry needs to fit together cohesively and make sense to your target audience. New for the sake of new doesn’t work. Instead, carefully choose among the new items to find those that support, rather than muddle, your store’s image.
Imagine selling new items before you carry them. As you select new items at shows, such as ASTRA’s annual Marketplace & Academy (to be held this June in Anaheim, Calif.), run through the sales pitch in your mind before buying. If it’s not obvious how to present the product to a typical customer, and it’s hard to imagine yourself and your staff selling it, take a pass.
Build anticipation for what’s coming. If you’ve just planned your fourth quarter at ASTRA’s Marketplace & Academy, or with your sales representatives, you know what you will be introducing into your store and when it will be there. Let your customers know how excited you are about the new items that are on the way. Build the anticipation on your Facebook page and in your e-newsletters.
Re-merchandise as new items come in. Not only do you want to feature new toys prominently, new products present an opportunity to rethink your presentation of other items in your
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store. How can the new toys make your regular assortment seem fresh and new? You may want to put different combinations of products together and refresh your displays. The new items may help draw customers into the store, and the way you merchandise them will help customers experience your store in a fresh and fun way.
Train staff on new products. The new items in your inventory are comfortable conversation starters when your staff approaches customers on the floor. Make sure they understand new toys inside and out. Get them up to speed on the features, benefits, play value, age range, and selling points. Of course, always require that your staff members play with new toys before they try to sell them.
Make sure new products are easy to find. Consider signage that identifies anything new in your store. It should be easy to spot and consistent so your customers will know instantly that this is a new item. Use the same look when promoting new toys on your website or Facebook page. Think about your placement of new products—in your windows, on tables, in a special place—so that they attract attention. As we begin to see a greater number of new products coming to market this year, think carefully about how you can use them to strengthen your business. ASTRA can be an especially important resource for you as the specialty industry works together for a successful holiday season. Not only will ASTRA’s Marketplace be a great resource for finding new items—with more than 40 new, innovative exhibitors that will be showing product for the first time on our biggest-ever show floor—but you will also learn the latest in inventory management and visual merchandising at ASTRA’s Academy. ●
MARCH/APRIL 2011
WHAT’S NEW
Growums allow kids to grow the vegetables needed to create a healthy meal easily and within a few weeks. The six themed garden kits—named after popular dishes, such as Pizza Garden—include peat pellets that magically expand when placed in a shallow dish and watered. After the pellets have expanded in their enclosed container, kids add seeds to each dish and place in sunlight. When the plants begin to sprout, kids find a sunny spot, plant them, and water. The peat will only absorb as much water as it needs so kids will never over-water their plants.
THE ORB FACTORY’s The Frog Prince, from the company’s new StoryCraft line, allows kids ages 4 and older to read along with their parents or guardians without needing to know the words. The kit comes with a text-only book for the adult to read, and children follow along with their own specially designed picture book that they decorate with jewels and tiles to see what happens next. The kit includes a 12-page book, a story booklet, and more than 1,000 sticky foam pieces that are reusable.
Kids can take the simple art form of doodling on the go with IMAGINATION BRANDS’ Doodle Roll, which is now distributed by Schylling Associates. This allin-one craft kit features a roll ’n go dispenser of blank paper with a tear edge, plus a specially shaped well to hold the included non-toxic crayons. Kids simply roll out the paper—which curls downward toward a table for easy doodling—and draw. The packaging is designed to be easy for kids ages 3 to 8 to open, and the paper roll measures four inches wide and 15 feet long. Doodle Roll is also available in a larger size, measuring six inches wide and 30 feet long.
For young children who cannot yet read a clock, the Zazoo Photo Clock, by ZAZOO KIDS, is a multi-media photo alarm clock that visually shows kids when it’s bedtime, when they should stay in bed, and when it’s time to get up and start the day. The clock is pre-programmed with two sets of awake and asleep images that appear and change according to the time of day or night; when young kids see the images, they know what time it is. Available in five styles for both boys and girls, the photo clock can also be personalized so that the awake and asleep images feature the child. For older children, the clock can be used as a digital photo frame, alarm clock, video or MP3 player, or calendar.
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SPECIALTY TOYS & GIFTS
Snuggle Up to Plush The new My Natural Dr. Seuss Stroller Toys, from MIYIM, feature The Cat in the Hat and Horton, from Horton Hears a Who! Each plush is made from all-natural cotton and colored with low-impact, non-toxic dyes that are free of heavy metals. Safe and soft for teething, each toy is 15 inches, including the velcro strap, and contains a chime that entertains baby when the toy is shaken.
Each Storybook and Plush Box Set, from INNOVAincludes a three-inch, Earth-friendly plush organic cotton animal stuffed with recycled pop bottles and an illustrated storybook. There's Little Panda, Little Polar Bear, Little Elephant, and Little Gorilla. The storybooks teach kids about endangered animals.
TIVEKIDS,
Spark Dogz, from REGAL ELITE, feature patented voice recognition technology with a better than 92 percent response accuracy rate. Each Spark character offers three to 10 responses to each question. If idle, the Sparks will try to engage children through songs, jokes, or various other means. On the Spark Dogz website, consumers will be able to speak to the dogs and have them respond to their voice commands. As with the toy, consumers will get different responses each time they ask a question. A Spark Dogz iPhone app will be available via the website and through television commercials. Customers can use their iPhone during the TV spot to capture one of the Spark Dogz from the commercial directly onto their phone. The Spark Dogz 3-D animated cartoon is under development for a 2012 network launch. All Spark characters will be able to interact through voice recognition with the TV show.
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LUVMPETZ INTERNATIONAL introduces Nuttipetz, a series of 11 wacky stuffed animals. Each critter is a combination of two animals, from Frohog (one part frog and one part pig) to Lady Pug (one part pug and one part lady bug). For each Nuttipetz product purchased, up to 25 percent of the pre-tax income is donated to selected children’s and animal charities.
MARCH/APRIL 2011
Kimochis, from PLUSHY FEELY CORP., are small pillows with a feeling (happy, sad, silly, brave, etc.) printed on one side and a corresponding facial expression on the other. Sometimes kids have strong feelings that can fuel challenging behaviors (yelling, hitting, pushing). Using the Kimochis, kids can get in touch with their emotions in a fun and comfortable way through puppetry and play. This year’s introductions include Kimochis Clover, which comes with three feelings (Happy, Optimistic, Disappointed), a Feel Guide, and a removable ladybug; and Kimochis Bella Rose, which comes with three feelings (Happy, Sensitive, Insecure) and a Feel Guide.
BLUE BOX TOYS has unveiled bebee and friends, a new line of plush toys and the centerpiece of its Bkids product line. Bebee and friends features five characters, including bebee the monkey, zu zu the giraffe, fi fi the elephant, ki ki the bird, and roaree the lion. Shown here is Play with Me Pals bebee.
The Cop, The Butcher, and The Cabby are new handpuppets, coming this fall from PUPPET HEAP PLAYTHINGS. Puppet Heap creates and brings characters to life, combining traditional and cuttingedge techniques to tell stories in the modern world. Puppet Heap has developed and designed characters for film, television, the web, theater, and the music industry, collaborating with entertainment companies such as The Walt Disney Company, Big Idea Inc., and Sesame Workshop,
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POOFIN introduces the Poofin Star and Charm collection. The Poofin starSPRIG OYSa’hollow Soarin’center Sea Plane includes Adventure Seaplane, shaped toyThas that can hold aan collection of small plush charms. The an Adventure an of Adventure Hat (interchangeable with charms featureGuide, images people, places, and things kids areother crazy about. Over characters), andtheir a pelican. Sprig’sStar toyswith are eco-friendly batterytime, kids fill pillow-sized as many as and 50 soft charms that allow free. Sprig toys harness the natural kineticinenergy of The first edithemKid-powered to reflect on all the positive experiences and things their life. push-and-pump actionnow play to generate tion of Poofin charms, available at poofin.com, feaelectronic features. Kidsofare rewarded tures 20 unique images things kids love, from ice for their efforts lights cream cones to with graceful ballerinas, and and sound. Sprig toys The are charms have even ferocious sharks. moldedtags using looped so kidsSprigwood, can attach their favorites which is a to their backpack. Kids can also create custom Poofin charms inside the online Poofin Factory.
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MRS. PINKELMEYER introduces the Moopus McGlinden Stuffed Animal. Moopus is 12 inches tall and incredibly cute and cuddly. It is intended for children ages 3 and up. Mrs. Pinkelmeyer musical plush is also available.
SPECIALTY TOYS & GIFTS
GLOBE TROTOYS introduces its Funky Garden line. Characters include Lulu the Turtle, Paul the Mole, and Clarabelle the Ladybug, as well as Leon the Mushroom, Claudine the Eggplant, Pacome the Apple, and Charlotte the Carrot. Products featuring these characters include musical plush, rattles, lovee blankets, activity cubes, activity balls, and more.
My Stuffie Puppy, from LEMONADE INNOVATIONS, is a fun and functional solution to stuffed animal storage. Kids can store more than 50 stuffed animals in My Stuffie Puppy, which transforms into soft, beanbag-like seating when full. It is 22 inches high and features a rear Velcro-safe closure plus three large mesh windows for viewing contents. The item includes a booklet, Cleaning Up Is Fun with My Stuffie.
The Glowberry Bears, from THE BRAINY COMPANY, are plush bears that glow, giggle, and talk. Each bear has its own personality. When two Glowberry Bears are put together, they talk to one another. The line consists of five bears, each hailing from the land of Glowberry Island.
MARCH/APRIL 2011
MARAI TOYS introduces Treefies, a line of plush animals that teach kids about the environment. The company plants a tree in honor of each owner. Each piece of plush comes with a unique code that allows access to treefies.com. The website offers games, an educational section on the world and the environment, and the ability to download a personalized certificate for having planted a tree.
This summer, an international adventure will take place in Disney/Pixar’s Cars 2, the feature film follow-up to 2006’s animated feature Cars. GUND, a specialty plush licensee for Disney, has created a new line of plush for the Cars 2 summer release. Finn McMissile, a new character for this film, will be available in May, along with Mater and Lightning McQueen. Each plush is 11 inches in size, and is designed for ages 3 and up.
The ALEXANDER DOLL COMPANY introduces plush versions of The Peanuts Gang. This trio of nine-inch Lucy, Linus, and Charlie Brown cloth dolls are dressed in their signature outfits.
FOLKMANIS’ Lobster puppet has coloring that makes it look like the real thing. The design includes an accordion-like tail, with movable claws and mouth. The Lobster puppet is 14 inches long.
BUCKLEYBOO toys encourage cognitive development through multi-stage learning. Matching is the first developmental step with BuckleyBoo. The child learns to scan and match the five brightly patterned ribbons, i.e., match polka dot to polka dot and stripe to stripe. At 18 months, children are ready to buckle, but are still not able to unbuckle, making BuckleyBoo a toy that is shared between parent and child. At 3 years, children will have both the physical strength and the problem solving skills to buckle and unbuckle. The BuckleyBoo line includes BuckleyCat, BuckleyBunny, and BuckleyMonkey, among others. The BuckleyMobile includes four removable Click Buddies, which are both finger puppets and rattles that buckle into a cloud canopy and can be clipped onto a stroller for toddlers on the go.
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SPECIALTY TOYS & GIFTS
HexActly, by FAT BRAIN TOY, uses 24 congruently colorful hexagonal building blocks as the basis to build imaginative structures. Users build by placing hexagonal blocks along one plane or in a 3-D configuration. The pieces include five unique hexagon arrangements: a single hexagon; two, three, and four hexagons joined in linear arrangement; and three hexagons joined in a non-linear arrangement. HexActly encourages complex thoughts, creativity, and visual spatial activity. Included with the blocks is a full-color, illustrated Building Guide with 20 design challenges and facts about hexagons in nature and mechanics.
INTERNATIONAL PLAYTHINGS, LLC has added Georello Tech to its Quercetti line. The construction set allows kids ages 5 and older to build 3-D structures. The pieces can be connected diagonally by creating a universal joint system that moves across the entire construction set. Georello Tech also teaches kids the first principals of mechanics and motion in a hands-on way.
AEROMAX’s RoadBlox allow kids to build vehicles, such as ambulances and bulldozers, and then drive them. Each of the construction toy sets has 16 different building pieces that snap together to create three different types of vehicles. RoadBlox is available in two styles: Emergency and Construction.
The Teifoc Piggery Construction Set features real, reusable miniature bricks for building, encouraging children to use their imagination to construct their own designs. The set includes more than 35 pieces, as well as soluble sand and corn extract-based mortar, allowing kids to build a home for their playful pigs. To build a new model, kids soak the bricks in water, dry them, and start again. Teifoc is designed, engineered, and manufactured by EITECH in Germany.
Arc-A-Teks is a collectible building toy line for budding architects, by WABA FUN’s Superstructs line. Each of the sets include 40 to 42 connector pieces that can construct two Arc-A-Teks characters simultaneously. Also included are collector cards that reveal each character’s name, details, and a secret code for an additional Arc-A-Tek online. Kids can choose from three sets: Earth, Sky, or Sea.
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LASER PEGS VENTURES introduces the 3D Lite Board, which acts as a building platform for the laser pegs. Featuring three light settings, kids can create an abstract model and set it to flash faster, strobe, or off. The board can support up to 200 laser pegs and its base serves as a storage compartment for all the pieces. The board can also be used to play five different board games. Suggested design models include holiday themes, space rocket platforms, drag racers, and robots.
With HABA’s Building Blocks Technics, kids can build anything from mobile constructions to vehicles and buildings. The patent-pending orange rubbery grippers allow kids to snap on wheels and axles, and suddenly the creation is on the move. The large basic pack includes 49 Beechwood pieces. The set is also available in a 26-piece pack.
Y O S H I R I T S U ’s LaQ line (pronounced la-queue) is based on the philosophy that almost anything can be built from only seven types of block parts. Manufactured in Japan, LaQ parts snap and click to create flat, two-dimensional, three-dimensional, and spherical models. The blocks include a flat square, a triangle-shaped base, and five types of joints. Refreshed for this year, the LaQ Basic Hamacron is a 650-piece kit with 24 moving Hamacron parts (wheels and shafts). Included with the set is a guidebook showing how to make 11 interchangeable models. LaQ is distributed by KumoTek Robotics in the U.S.
Slotto for Kids is a new wood construction set by THE DARLING COMPANY, LLC. Kids fit the wood pieces together by sliding them in other pieces’ slots, enabling them to create whatever they desire. Current kits have from 156 to more than 300 pieces, including squares, rectangles, triangles, connectors, finishers, wheels, tri-slot connectors, corner connectors, axles, and caps.
SPECIALTY TOYS & GIFTS
Swiss-made Geomag, by REEVES INTERNATIONAL, is a system of rods and spheres that show the magic of magnetism. The magnetic rods and non-magnetic steel spheres can be combined to make a variety of shapes, geometric figures, and models. Geomag rods are magnetized on each end but the round spheres are not, allowing for a perfect combination. Included in the new Geomag Color set, for builders 3 and older, are 216 pieces.
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All types of shapes and forms, from animals and puppet theaters to towers and airplanes, can be built with DAYDREAM TOY’s No Ends. The set includes a combination of straight and curved beams along with connector cubes so anything imagined can be built. Easy enough to manage for small hands, the beams and cubes are dishwasher safe and can be used indoors and outdoors. Wheels and axles take No Ends to a higher building level. No Ends is available in piece counts of 150, 250, 360, and 610. Also available is Mini No Ends.
PBS Kids recently announced its partnership with HAPPY KID TOY GROUP for a line of products, including Exploration Blocks. The blocks will be available in Towers, Buildings, and City, each coming with a canvas bag for easy storage. The blocks feature architectural shapes inspired by towers, buildings, and cities from different cultures. The tower set includes barrel, bell, onion, and conical shapes; the buildings set includes tall column shapes, triangles, and arches; and the city set includes cubes, circles, squares, and rectangles. The blocks teach problem solving as each bubble should point to a block that is slanted.
Roll-Up Roads by WILD CREATIONS gives kids’ building sets a background. Each of the six different play mats feature realistic road designs, including Lightning Highway, Blazin’ Asphalt, Parking Lotz, Supersonic Runway, Rockin’ Rails, and City Skyline. The roads are wide enough to fit cars, trains, planes, and building sets. Each set comes with more than 16 feet of mini-miles.
City Exploration Blocks
CITIBLOCS introduces new products that stand out and blend in. The Citiblocs Glow in the Dark 100 Piece Set can be used to build a spaceship, nighttime skyline, and more. Each block is coated with a special water-based and phthalate-free glow-in-the-dark paint. The Citiblocs Camouflage 100 Piece Set includes assorted green, brown, and tan blocks for building mini-tanks, helicopters, and bunkers. The company is also releasing the Little Builder Rattle Blocs, a “first building block set” for kids ages 2 and older.
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SPECIALTY TOYS & GIFTS
MEDIA CENTER Tikki Tikki Tembo!
Daddy a Go Go Remixed
In time for Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month in May, and beyond, SCHOLASTIC STORYBOOK TREASURES is releasing Tikki Tikki Tembo… and more stories to celebrate Asian heritage. The DVD features six stories, highlighted by the title tale, which is based on the picture book by Arlene Mosel and illustrated by Blair Lent. According to the story, in ancient Chinese times it was customary to give first-born sons a long name. One family finds out such names can cause a lot of trouble when the eldest falls down a well. The 66minute DVD also includes The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks, Grandfather’s Journey, The Stonecutter, Lon Po Po: A Red-Riding Hood Story from China, and Sam and the Lucky Money.
Children’s rock artist Daddy a Go Go, also known as former CNN producer John Boydston, has been churning out hits since 1998—five of his albums have made Amazon.com’s “Best of the Year” lists. This April, the artist is releasing Grandkid Rock, a greatest hits album of remixed tunes, such as “Big Rock Rooster,” “Grandpa Says,” and “It’s Hard to Be a Kid.” Featuring 40 minutes and 16 songs of alternative rock, BOYD’S TONE the RECORDS CD rocks out with plenty of electric guitars, drums, driving rhythms, and power cords. Grandkid Rock, Boydston’s eighth album, is targeted to kids ages 3 to 10.
Einstein, Alive
Go on a Dig in Roman Town
It’s time for kids to meet Einstein with a new book written by Mariela Kleiner and illustrated by Viviana Garofoli. Meet Einstein, published by MEET BOOKS, LLC, teaches kids that science is all around them and features Einstein as a likeable and approachable main character—with crazy hair, of course. With the book, kids learn how scientists make discoveries and see how those discoveries are used in everyday life, including light and gravity. The 32page book’s inside front and back covers feature objects kids might encounter in life paired with kid-friendly descriptions on how they relate to scientific discovery.
Players of DIG-IT! GAMES’ Roman Town can travel to exotic locations, sink their trowel into ancient ground, and become a virtual archaeologist. Created by professional archeologist and middle school teacher Suzi Wilczynski, Roman Town allows players to immerse themselves in ancient Roman history as they manage a team of diggers at an authentic dig site. Players discover and analyze artifacts, tour Roman buildings, and talk to ancient Romans. In-game quizzes and mini games test kids’ knowledge and there are reports at the end of each level. Wilczynski developed the game after years of excavation experience, aiming for the game to be as realistic as possible.
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SPECIALTY TOYS & GIFTS
The App Space
The Next Frontier Is Here by Bryan Joiner
I
n January 2010, Internet Security Company AVG released because, he finds, “once users have a relatively brief time with a study that found that more children ages 2 to 5 could the software, their mental model of how the interface behaves play a computer game than ride a bike, open a web browser is well formed and fully embedded.” It is complex in that the than swim unaided, and play with a smartphone application birds develop special behaviors as the game’s levels increase. than tie his or her shoe. And it manages time well simply by resetting a level quickly, Welcome to the digital future. then slowly flashing the board back at the user’s eyes, giving Television remains the key driver of children’s properties, them time to create a strategy free of errors. Its design brilbut the explosion in apps for kids and parents mirrors, liance is a major reason why its creator, Finland-based Rovio, and in some ways threatens, to outpace the explosion in Inc., recently raised $42 million in venture capital platforms on which to use them. There’s the varifunding. ety of Android phones, the Motorola Xoom, the The app is so big that it has expanded into BlackBerry Playbook, HP’s TouchPad, and several toy aisles. As of American International Apple’s iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, and, of Toy Fair 2011, held in February, Angry Birds course, the iPad 2. had 10 licensees in dozens of categories, with The situation is clear: grown-ups distribution from the U.S. to Australia. want their apps and, increasingly, kids Commonwealth Toy, which has the plush want them too. Apps can be effective license, is developing 25 different prodlearning tools for young children, but ucts and has focused a large part of its educational tools only scratch the business on making products for a vasurface of the market, which has beriety of apps, not just for Angry Birds. come dominated by simple-to-use but They also hold the license for the popuelegantly designed games. One of which lar game Cut the Rope, among others. soars above the rest, and gives a glimpse “We wanted to move into some new catAngry Birds plush of how a great app is created. egories of plush, and we saw that the market was trending toward apps,” says Lisa Shamus, executive The Angry Birds Phenomenon vice president at Commonwealth Toy. “We knew how popular In a blog post, “Why Angry Birds Is So Popular: A Cognitive it was worldwide—people from age 3 to 93 are playing it. It’s Teardown of the User Experience,” Charles L. Mauro, CEO of ageless, genderless. We translated the characters into specMauroNewMedia, tidily explains the game. Angry Birds, he tacular three-dimensional products, and from that, we can writes, “involves employing a sling shot to propel small can- translate our product line into all categories. We thought it was nonball-shaped birds with really bad attitudes at rather fragile going to be great, and it has taken off.” glass and timber houses populated by basically catatonic green pigs. The basic thrust of the game is to bring about the demise The Learning Possibilities In November, the Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame of the pigs as quickly and expertly as possible by collapsing the pigs’ houses on top of their (sometimes) helmeted heads.” Tak- Workshop published a report, entitled “Learning: Is There an ing the description at face value, he adds, “Obviously, this App for That?” The report, conducted by Cynthia Chiong and Carly Shuler, studied app usage on the iPhone and iPod Touch sounds like a truly dumb concept. However, there is a catch.” Angry Birds, Mauro finds, is a combined masterpiece of among young children after noticing that Nickelodeon, PBS simplification, complexity, and time management. It’s simple Kids! Sprout, and Disney all entered the app market in 2009.
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safety while online, and some parents did not view iPhones— and, by extension, apps—as a learning tool. But as the world changes, parents will adapt, according to J.R. Smith, CEO of AVG. “The smartphone and computer are increasingly taking the place of the TV as an education and entertainment tool for children. As our research shows, parents need to start educating kids about navigating the online world safely at an earlier age than they might have otherwise thought.”
Early Adopters The Monster at the End of This Book app, by Sesame Workshop
At the outset, they found that Apple’s application platforms were the strongest, with more than 21,000 games available for the iPhone and iPod Touch, compared with only hundreds for the Nintendo DS and Sony PSP—and the discrepancy has widened with the advent and update of the iPad. They also found that 47 percent of the top 100 selling apps targeted preschool- or elementary-school aged children, and 60 percent of the top 25 apps targeted toddlers or preschool children—almost double the number (36 percent) that target adults. In one study, two-thirds of children reported that they had used an iPhone before, and the majority of parents allowed their children to use the smartphone at least once per week. Often, this was a “pass-back” effect while driving. The researchers specifically studied PBS Kids!’s Martha Speaks and Super Why! apps and found that they showed promise for learning vocabulary and literacy skills, respectively. There were some parental concerns regarding child
In addition to the early adopters cited by Chiong and Shuler, Sesame Workshop is developing a presence in the app space, recently releasing the first Sesame Street app designed specifically for iPad, the Grover-heavy The Monster at the End of This Book. The book of the same name is the single most successful Sesame Street paperback book, which made it a natural fit for the app’s developer, Callaway, says Scott Chambers, senior vice president for Worldwide Media Distribution for Sesame Workshop. It’s also on the happy border between education and entertainment that is the sweet spot for children’s apps. “It’s literacy focused and reading-oriented, which makes people love it even more.” Unsurprisingly, Elmo has also been a hit, and Sesame has released its Elmo Loves ABCs app for iPad. The app, designed by Kavaleer Productions and Marino, gives children access to more than 80 classic videos, plus new videos and coloring pages. That’s right. The world’s most ticklish red monster has come to the iPad, in a major way. The future is here, in the digital space. ■ (Additional reporting by Mackenzie Allison)
Apps Go 3-D with Hasbro’s Handheld Viewer
H
asbro has introduced My3D, a handheld viewer that allows users to attach their iPhone or iPod Touch and enter a world of 3-D entertainment. The viewer is available now at Target and Target.com and is expected to roll out to more retailers in June. To use My3D, viewers attach their iPhone (either 3G, 3GS, or 4) or their iPod Touch (second, third, or fourth generation), then visit the iTunes App Store and download the available My3D apps. Initial apps include My3D Presents..., an introduction to My3D; My3D 360° Sharks, an underwater shark adventure; My3D Sector 17, a shooter game of galactic battles; My3D Teleport L.A., a virtual tour of Los Angeles; My3D Bubble Bolt, a puzzle game; My3D Tunnel
MARCH/APRIL 2011
Pilot, a tunnel race against time; and My3D Shatterstorm, a game in which the player must defend the galaxy from an invasion of the drones. The My3D viewer is available in black or white. My3D features two access openings that allow users to interact with the multitouch display of the iPhone or iPod Touch. -Elizabeth A. Reid
THE TOY BOOK • 59
Toddlers, Tablets, Strollers, and Smartphones Digital Engagement with the “iGen” Consumer by Bernie Brennan and Lori Schafer
A
pple Store is described by some consumers as their Children of All Ages Love the Apple Store Experience In our book, Branded! How Retailers Engage Consumers kids’ favorite toy store. That’s right—a toy store! Although Apple doesn’t sell traditional toys and chil- with Social Media and Mobility, we focus on the facts that sodren are not its primary market, children are as entertained cial media and mobility are not just for teens, and that reas the masses of adults who are seemingly ever present at its tailers must engage with their customers in these new stores. Mobile devices aren’t just for teens and adults. They communication channels. A large amount of demographic are just as much for educating and entertaining babies and information now shows the meaningful growth of mobile and toddlers—now referred to as the iGeneration or “iGen.” Dig- social media in Baby Boomer and beyond age groups. The fastest growth is at both ends of ital platforms are a part of these the age spectrum. Seniors are children’s DNA. It shapes everyjumping in at accelerated growth thing in their world as they unrates and young children with derstand digital interaction at a nimble hands and minds are very early age. doing the same. This is the power On an October, 2010 earnings of the new consumer-driven digicall, Apple announced that it had tal world, reaching various demomore visitors at Apple Stores in graphic segments through the same period than Disneyland accessibility and personalization. and Disney World combined. And Toy retailers and suppliers are we know how much children love in a unique position to engage Disney. Walk into any Apple Store with their customers: children, and you will see young children— kids playing with iPhones at an Apple Store parents, and other family memeven toddlers in strollers—right in the middle of the action. Children are highly proficient with bers. Children fall in love with toys and characters long bemobile devices well before they learn to read. Typing in “ba- fore they can read or write and they have an innate ability to bies smartphones” into a Google search reveals hundreds of play games on an iPhone and navigate and watch videos on web pages on the topic. And YouTube has a wide array of an iPad. This trend will become even bigger with newer videos showing babies and toddlers using smartphones. The smartphones and tablets now flooding the mobile market. bottom line is that children love digital media and they are IPad apps are a unique and exciting method for companies highly entertained in an Apple Store. This happy experience to introduce themselves to parents and children. Kids love is an exciting prototype for many other retail formats of the them because of the colors, ease of use, video viewing, and near future, and most assuredly for toy stores such as Toys the size of content. Companies need to look at creating their own educational games and video clips to bring their toys to “R” Us and The Disney Store.
60 • THE TOY BOOK
MARCH/APRIL 2011
life. It is projected that in the U.S. alone, there will be 100 million smartphones and more than 40 million tablets by 2015. As consumer investment in technology continues to grow, retailers and suppliers must focus not only on mobile apps and freshening their ecommerce sites, but also on tying them to an entertaining in-store digital experience.
Retailers Embracing the Digital World Toys “R” Us has more than 1.3 million Facebook fans, and the retailer understands how to continue to draw fans to their site. Through Facebook Connect, it requires consumers to “Like” the entry page to even see what it offers on Facebook. This is effective because a notice is then automatically generated, appearing in the news feed of that person’s Facebook friends saying that he or she “likes” Toys “R” Us. The company features a photo of a fan every week and of course, the fans are children. Sweepstakes offer customers the chance to win Toys “R” Us gift cards, and the higher the number of fans reached, the higher the value. Toys “R” Us also has a compelling mobile application. In addition to functions including a store locator, ratings, reviews, promotions, and the ability to share over Facebook, the customer can scan the bar code of any item in store to learn more. Videos about products, such as Tickle Me Elmo, show their features and other information. It’s an entertaining experience for a child to watch a video about Elmo and it’s more effective for parents to watch a video than simply reading text. Disney Store takes things to an entirely new level by integrating the digital experience within the store to new communication channels outside the store. If you haven’t been to the recently opened Times Square flagship store, go to the Disney Store website for a preview of its new, interactive store design, including talking mirrors that transform children into their favorite characters. In its San Francisco store, a large digital sign welcomes customers as they walk into the store. The sign scrolls through several messages, inviting customers to become a Facebook fan and to learn more through Disney websites. Once inside, there is a digital minitheater with child-sized furniture for the kids to sit and watch Disney cartoons and movies. There are also kiosks in the store that allow parents and children to push buttons and learn more about Disney. Disney Store has surpassed 222,000 fans on Facebook, on top of the 17.8 million fans of
MARCH/APRIL 2011
Signage outside Disney’s San Francisco store encourages visitors to become Disney Store fans on Facebook.
Disney movies, 5.7 million fans of Disneyland, 7.8 million fans of Disney World, and the millions of fans of other Disney pages. When it comes to Disney Stores, each of these pieces—in-store, website, Facebook, and mobile—combine to create the user experience. Disney also recently acquired a children’s social network, Togetherville. Togetherville seeks to mimic the experiences of sites like Facebook, but in a way that’s protective to children under age 10 and can be monitored by parents. The site allows children to connect with their real world friends in its virtual neighborhood. This acquisition follows Disney’s purchase of Playdom, a social gaming company, for $563 million in July of 2010, further illustrating the company’s commitment to social media and mobile. Take a bite from Apple, Toys “R” Us, and Disney. Every retailer needs to take advantage of smartphones, tablet computers, and social media to drive customers into both traditional and online stores. And to keep customers engaging across channels, retailers need to tie that online experience directly into their stores. As we’ve entered the iGeneration, these consumers not only want it, they will expect it. ■
Bernie Brennan and Lori Schafer are retail and retail technology executives and co-authors of the book: Branded! How Retailers Engage Consumers with Social Media & Mobility.
THE TOY BOOK • 61
Raising
the Bar
A RAY OF SUNSHINE IN FALSE PATENT
MARKING
by Sanford Frank and Howard Aronson
I
n the January/February issue, we discussed the false patent marking nightmare that has spawned more than 700 lawsuits in less than two years, targeting companies selling a product with either an expired patent number marked on the product or a patent number that clearly does not pertain to the product. Bringing such suits has become sport because of the windfall money damages available under a new enhanced fine interpretation of the law ($500 for each individual item mismarked). Finally, rays of sunshine have come from an Ohio district court, which ruled that the statute was unconstitutional; the court ruled that it violated the “Take Care” clause of the United States Constitution because it did not provide the Department of Justice “sufficient control” of the litigation. And on March 8, the U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passed legislation to overhaul the U.S. patent system. While the House Judiciary Committee has its own bill, significant change in patent legislation is inevitable—and welcomed. The way the system works, litigations are filed without approval or notice to the federal government. Any damages won are split between the private litigant and the U.S. Federal Treasury. The Ohio court determined that the patent marking statute is actually “a wholesale delegation of criminal law enforcement power to private parties,” meaning that the government should reasonably be involved in lawsuits more than just receiving money. The Ohio district court decision benefits more than 25 different defendants sued in Ohio alone by the same plaintiff. The decision is not binding in other states, although judges in those states are likely to seriously consider Ohio’s reasoning. The constitutionality issue may be authoritatively decided by a federal appellate court in the Federal Circuit soon, which will make the decision binding throughout the country. At stake
62 • THE TOY BOOK
are windfall profits based upon the $500 penalty. One such case involves Wham-O, Inc. Wham-O (which manufactures flying discs commonly known as Frisbees) was alleged to have marked its products with a specific patent number although the discs are not patented at this time. While Wham-O successfully had the case dismissed before a Pennsylvania district court, based upon “lack of standing,” the case did allege that the patent-marking statute was unconstitutional. The issue could be decided upon appeal, though it is not the primary subject of the appeal. What is clear is that district courts throughout the U.S. are looking for reasons to eliminate non-commercial plaintiffs from jumping aboard the false patent marking statute as purely sport and not based on a commercial reality. Until either the Ohio court decision or many other recent decisions are appealed, or the Federal Circuit states its opinion on the constitutionality issue, uncertainty will remain and the suits will continue. Businesses are advised to conduct patent audits to be sure that their products marked with patent numbers are covered and that the patents are still in effect. Failing to do so will allow non-commercial plaintiffs to sue, and litigants will continue to seek windfall damages based upon unfortunate technicalities. ■ Sanford Frank, Esq. has, for the past 27 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.
MARCH/APRIL 2011
What’s
New Mobile Friends
S
houlder Buddies are portable, collectible friends that kids can wear. Manufactured by The Bridge Direct, each Shoulder Buddy is a 1.5-inch figure with an embedded magnet that connects with a “magic coin,” keeping it secure on a shirt, hat, backpack, and more. Each Buddy (more than 30 characters in all), has its own special “Smart” lesson to share, such as friendship, fire safety, and peace. Belly symbols on figures represent their “Smart,” and there are included collectible “Smart Cards” to describe each Buddy’s message.
Neon Meon
K
ids can create and display their own neon-like signs with Skyrocket Toys’ Meon. Using either the licensed Meon templates or their own images, kids take the glowing wires and weave them into a design. Products include the Meon Picture Maker and the Meon Mini Picture Maker, which include a frame, Meon wire, and a licensed picture template. The Meon Interactive Animation Studio features animation, games, sound effects, and activities.
All Aboard the Rubbabu Train
R
ubbabu, a green toy manufacturer, introduces its Big Rubbabu Train to all retailers across the nation. The train includes an engine car, three trolleys, and six rubbapeople. Rubbabu toys are constructed from pure rubber foam derived from rubber tree sap, and no trees are leveled to create the company’s products. Rubbabu recently announced that it is now distributing its soft, antimicrobial toys in all parts of the U.S.
A Digital Tablet for Kids
W
hile mom uses her iPad, kids can play and learn with their own tablet, Winfat’s Kids Learning Pad. Targeted to children ages 3 and older, the Pad is packed with 30 educational activities in the categories of mathematics, music, games, questions, and general learning. The device has an LCD screen, animations, buttons for volume and LCD contrast adjustment, and shortcut category buttons.
Chic Essentials for School Lockers
A
dd instant glamour to the inside of any school locker with LockerLookz, a collection of ready-made locker interiors in a variety of high-fashion styles. Each of the wallpaper panels is precut, allowing the paper to fit perfectly around hooks and locking mechanisms. For odd-sized lockers, there is a grid system on the back. The wallpaper stays secure with the included magnets. Also available in the collection are locker lamps, chandeliers, organizational bins, shag locker rugs, jeweled flower magnets, magnetic mirrors, and white boards with markers.
64 • THE TOY BOOK
MARCH/APRIL 2011
CPSC Database: What You Should Know About Planning & Insurance by David L. Elkind, Margaret Feinstein, and James S. Carter
T
he Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) online consumer product safety information database launched in mid-March and companies in the toys and children’s products industries need to be prepared. The database enables consumers to post their own product safety reports on a CPSC website. Apart from checking whether a consumer’s report meets certain minimum requirements, the CPSC will not necessarily investigate or confirm the validity of the report. Instead, the CPSC will pass along the report to the manufacturer or private labeler of the product in question and give it 10 days to submit a comment in response. At the end of the 10 days, the CPSC will publish the consumer’s report and the responsive comment, if any, in the online database, which will be publicly available and searchable. Because the CPSC’s database places responsibility on manufacturers and private labelers to respond to consumer safety reports in a short time frame, and conceivably without all of the facts, companies need to have a plan in place to investigate and respond to reports. As part of this plan, companies should keep in mind the possible need for insurance coverage in the event that a report leads to a legal claim. Waiting too long to provide notice to the insurance carrier could jeopardize the availability of insurance coverage. I. The Consumer Product Safety Incident Database The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 called for the creation of a publicly accessible and searchable consumer database as a means to accelerate the dissemination of product safety information. The database—known as the Consumer Product Safety Incident Database—officially launched on March 11, 2011 and can be found online at www.saferproducts.gov. A consumer’s report must meet certain requirements to
66 • THE TOY BOOK
be published in the database. Most importantly, the report must concern a product’s safety; that is, it must describe an injury, illness, death, or a risk of injury, illness, or death relating to the use of the product. Reports concerning product quality or dissatisfaction will not be posted in the database. Thus, a report about a laceration injury to a child would satisfy this requirement, while a report about whether a toy is as educational as advertised would not. Moreover, a report must adequately describe the product and identify the product’s manufacturer or private labeler. Reports submitted anonymously will not be posted, but a consumer has discretion whether to permit the CPSC to release the consumer’s identity to the manufacturer. Even a report that meets all of the foregoing criteria, however, may provide a manufacturer or private labeler with very little information. II. Steps Toys and Children’s Product Companies Can Take in the Event a Report Is Posted About Its Product What can a company do if a report is posted in the database about its product? Even before such a report is posted, manufacturers and private labelers can register with the CPSC to receive reports about their products via a “business portal” that functions with the database. One of the benefits of registering with the CPSC is that a company can designate an employee to receive any reports involving its product. Another step companies can take is to set up an internal team with responsibility for responding to reports and establishing internal procedures for doing so. When a report is made, the 10-day window to submit a response may not provide sufficient time or information for a company to respond fully. Fortunately, the CPSC has stated additional comments can be submitted after the 10day deadline. For example, if a toy manufacturer is unable
MARCH/APRIL 2011
to completely address the safety issues in its first response, it may want to consider whether it is beneficial to submit additional comments, which could include, if helpful, the results of its investigation or other activities taken in response to the complaint. If a report contains materially incorrect information, a company has the option of notifying the CPSC. If the CPSC disagrees that the information in question is materially inaccurate, the company may then bring suit against the CPSC to compel the removal of the incorrect information from the database. The CPSC’s rules make clear, however, that the burden of proof rests with the company to demonstrate the material inaccuracy of the information in question. III. Steps Toy and Children’s Product Companies Can Take to Preserve Insurance Coverage In addition to investigating and responding to a report, companies in the toy and children’s products industries should also consider the possible need for insurance coverage. In the event of a legal claim alleging injury, a company most likely will turn to its commercial general liability (CGL) insurance. An important benefit under CGL policies is coverage for defense costs. Long before a claim is resolved by a court or is settled, a company named as a defendant in a lawsuit is likely to incur defense costs, which can be significant. CGL policies are designed to cover defense costs even if the claim is meritless or frivolous. A company whose product is the subject of a report in the consumer database should not wait until a claim has been asserted or a lawsuit has been filed before considering whether to provide notice under its CGL policy. A typical CGL policy requires notice of an “occurrence” “as soon as practicable,” in addition to notice of a claim or suit. An occurrence is defined as “an accident, including continuous or repeated exposure to substantially the same general harmful conditions.” The occurrence and the obligation to give notice may arise before the injury is known or a claim is made, but in deciding whether to provide notice under a CGL policy, companies should pay close attention to reports posted in the database that describe incidents in which someone has been allegedly injured by a product. A report that asserts, for example, that a child was hurt when playing with a toy may constitute an occurrence or accident
MARCH/APRIL 2011
within the meaning of the CGL policy’s notice provision. Notice provisions in CGL policies usually request certain information, such as the name of the injured party. This and other information, however, may not be available to the company from a consumer’s report. A company should not be faulted, however, for seeking to comply with the notice obligation before all of the requested information is known to it. This is especially true if the company supplements its initial notice letter with additional information that later surfaces. The failure to provide timely notice could jeopardize the availability of insurance or at least create a coverage issue that could have been avoided by providing earlier notice. Although some state’s laws require a showing of prejudice before an insurance company will be relieved of its coverage obligations, other states do not impose such a requirement. In states that do not require a showing of prejudice, late notice alone may extinguish a company’s right to insurance. When it comes time to purchase or renew insurance policies, companies frequently have to provide information in response to an insurance application. Thus, makers and suppliers of toys and other children’s products should review insurance applications carefully to determine whether disclosure of any information in the database is required in response to any of the application questions. The CPSC’s new consumer database presents a new challenge to toy and children’s product companies by making them responsible for responding to consumer complaints. Toy manufacturers and suppliers need to be prepared to respond to reports in a timely and effective manner. In addition, companies should take steps to preserve their rights to insurance coverage by considering whether a report potentially triggers their notice obligations under their insurance policies. ■
David Elkind is a partner in Dickstein Shapiro LLP’s Insurance Coverage Practice (elkindd@dicksteinshapiro.com). Margaret Feinstein is a partner in Dickstein Shapiro LLP’s State Attorneys General Practice (feinsteinm@dicksteinshapiro.com). James S. Carter is an associate in the Insurance Coverage Practice (carterj@dicksteinshapiro.com).
THE TOY BOOK • 67
Industry Marketplace
BUSINESS DIRECTORIES 2011 Trade Show Directory $39.95 Independent Sales Rep Directory $69.95 Toy Wholesalers & Manufacturers $29.95 We carry Salesman’s & Chain Store Guides 1-800-635-7654 www.forum123.com - Over 100 Titles avaliable OVERSEAS MANUFACTURING CONSULTANT (BASED IN NEW YORK) OVER 20 YEARS TOY AND CONSUMER PRODUCTS MANUFACTURING EXPERIENCE EXPERT IN PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT OVERSEAS SOURCING PRICE NEGOTIATIONS QA / QC ENFORCEMENT SPOT OVERSEAS PRODUCTION INSPECTIONS CONTACT direct at : 631-875-9719 or via email: manufconsulting@aol.com The Toy Book Volume 27, Number 2 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 © 2011 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.
68
• THE TOY BOOK
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 are 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.
MARCH/APRIL 2011
Industry Marketplace
STATEMENT OF OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT, AND CIRCULATION: REQUIRED BY 39 U.S.C. TITLE OF PUBLICATION: THE TOY BOOK. PUBLICATION NO. 750-050. FREQUENCY OF ISSUE: BI-MONTHLY. NUMBER OF ISSUES PUBLISHED ANNUALLY: 6. ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION PRICE: $48. COMPLETE MAILING ADDRESS OF THE HEADQUARTERS OF GENERAL BUSINESS OFFICES OF THE PUBLISHER: 286 5TH AVE, 3RD FLOOR, NEW YORK, NY 10001. FULL NAMES AND COMPLETE MAILING ADDRESSES OF PUBLISHER AND EDITOR: PUBLISHER, JONATHAN SAMET, 286 5TH AVE, 3RD FLOOR, NEW YORK, NY 10001; EDITOR IN CHIEF, JACKIE BREYER, 286 5TH AVE, 3RD FLOOR, NEW YORK, NY 10001. OWNER: ADVENTURE PUBLISHING GROUP, INC., 286 5TH AVE, 3RD FLOOR, NEW YORK, NY 10001.
EXTENT
AND
NATURE
OF
CIRCULATION:
Avg. No. Copies Each Actual No. Copies Single Issue Issue During Preceding Published Nearest to Filing 12 Months (6 issues) Date Total No. Copies Ligitimate Paid and/or requested Distribution 1. Outside Counrty Paid/ Request Mail Subscription 2. Sales Through Dealer and Carriers, Street Vendors, Counter Sales, and other Paid or Requested Distribution outside USPA
11,369
11,864
9,173
8,714
117
112
9,290
8,826
512
533
1,030
1,500
Total Nonrequested Distribution
1,542
2,033
Total Distribution
10,832
10,859
537
1,005
11,369
11,864
86%
81%
Total Percent Paid and/or Requested
Get weekly updates on the latest toy industry news and trends! Available only by email! Sign up at www.adventurepub.com
Place a classified in
Total Paid and/or Requested Circulation 1. Outside Counrty Nonrequested Copies 2. Nonrequested copies Distributed Outside the Mail (include Pickup Stands, Tradeshows, Showroom, and other sources)
Copies Not Distributed
SUBSCRIBE TO
Please contact Anthony Guardiola 212-575-4510 x 2322 aguardiola@adventurepub.com
Advertiser Index ABC Kids Expo.............................................................................63 ASTRA..........................................................................................57 Briarpatch ........................................................................................5 Carrera of America ........................................................................31 Cloud B .........................................................................................37 Family Time Fun.....................................................................12, 13 Folkmanis, Inc...............................................................................S7 Forum Publishing ..........................................................................68 HABA USA...................................................................................S3 Hasbro ...........................................................................................21 Hosung ..........................................................................................S9 Interactive Toy Concepts.................................................................7 ITMA.............................................................................................65 Laser Pegs Ventures, LLC...........................................................S13
Learning Curve Brands .................................................................17 LuvMPetz International LLC......................................................S10 Maisto/Bburago.....................................................................1, 2, 72 Meccano ........................................................................................23 Neat-Oh International....................................................................25 NPD ...............................................................................................71 Ollie’s Bargain Outlet....................................................................68 Playtime Sales & Marketing .........................................................68 Regal Elite.....................................................................................S8 Scratch Art.....................................................................................S2 Silverlit Toys ...........................................................................27, 29 Toy Industry Association...............................................................35 Toy Insider.....................................................................................11 Transmonde Marketing Group LTD..............................................68
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.
MARCH/APRIL 2011
THE TOY BOOK •
69
Flashback: March/April 1991 3.
2.
1. Pro Set offers its Super Stars Mu-
1.
sicards, which include the Yo! MTV Raps license, featuring stars such as MC Hammer. 2. Playmobil debuts its preschool line, Playmobil 1-2-3, featuring figurines and vehicles in rounder shapes with smoothed corners. 3. Milton Bradley premieres Splat, a game that lets children squash bugs they make with their BugO-Matic bug maker. 4. Tyco introduces Magic Bottle Baby, which makes four sounds.
4.
SUITORS LOOK TO BUY FISHER-PRICE BEFORE EXPECTED QUAKER OATS SPIN-OFF Fisher-Price’s parent, the Quaker Oats Co., said it has received offers for the troubled toy maker, which it planned to spin off into an independent company by the end of the month. Ever since Quaker Oats announced the spin-off last April, the company has received inquiries from interested parties, William Smithburg, Quaker’s chairman and CEO, said. Some analysts say that offers had been made up to and during Toy Fair. Mattel has been named as one of the likely parties interested in Fisher-Price, which had sales last year of nearly $600 million, say analysts.
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