Toy World Magazine August 2024

John Baulch - @Baulchtweet

from thepublisher

An awful lot has happened since I wrote my previous Leader column. For starters, we have a new government, after Labour cruised to victory to bring 14 long years of Conservative rule to an end. Whatever your political persuasion, I think we can all agree that the country can now finally move forward with a clean slate and fresh optimism, and the hope that ‘new manager bounce’ will help to lift the spirits of consumers.

It’s a shame the England football team couldn’t put the icing on the cake by winning the Euros, but even the fact the team made it to the final helped boost the feelgood factor for a few weeks. Victory would have done wonders for the mood of the country, but we’ll have to wait a few more years and try again.

And even without finally seeing football come home, economically, things are already starting to look up. We have seen some positive economic data from May, when the UK economy grew faster than expected at 0.4%. The election result has been given the seal of approval by the City, with UK markets and sterling both trading up. What’s more, impending uncertainly in the US & France could now make the UK more investable.

Inflation – the scourge of consumer confidence – has held steady at 2% for two months’ running, which will potentially lead to a modest cut in the interest rate by the time you are reading this column. Of course, it’s important to keep the inflation numbers in perspective: prices are still rising, and they’re rising from a base which is 20% higher than when inflation was last at target. In the three years prior to this period of inflation, prices had risen by just 5%. So, everything still costs a lot more than it did a few years back, and pressure on consumer budgets remains –just a little less pressure than before.

At the time of writing, kids have just started their summer holidays and parents have six long weeks to keep them amused and occupied. Come rain or shine, toy stores will have something to relieve boredom and keep the kids away from screens – so let’s hope the summer holidays kickstarts trading after a subdued first half of the year. Then when kids go back to school in September, the countdown to Christmas can begin in earnest.

And the good news is that there is a lot of great new product launching in the coming weeks. You’ll see plenty of exciting new lines being showcased in the pages of Toy World and on our website, as embargoes finally begin to lift. The encouraging news is that we have numerous examples of new toys that are already selling well, even at this early stage of the year. It’s turning into quite a year for Wow! Stuff, with the news that its Real FX Disney Stitch

has sold out in many key retailers. Always a phenomenal product from the first time I saw it at the New York Toy Fair last September, it’s great to see consumers embracing an £70 toy in the middle of summer, at a time when prevailing wisdom suggests that money is tight, and high ticket items only sell in November and December when they are discounted. Early reads on Stitch emphatically suggest otherwise. Some of our other most-read online stories recently have featured new launches such as Zuru’s Mini Brands for home and garden, Character Options’ Sticki Rolls, MGA’s new Harry Potter Miniverse introductions, Spin Master’s Disney Bitzee, KAP Toys’ Hello Kitty range, Moose’s Mr Beast collaboration and many more.

This month’s category features are also packed with new lines to help freshen up retail shelves: if the first half of the year didn’t quite live up to expectations, there is growing optimism for the second half. So if you’re looking to bolster your Plush, Wooden Toy or STEM offerings, our extensive round-ups of these sectors will give you plenty of inspiration.

We also talk to AIS’s Rosie Marshall about the upcoming INDX show, preview the toy exhibitors who will be showing at Autumn Fair and bring you a wealth of thoughtprovoking opinion, analysis and observation, penned by our expert roster of contributors from across the toy community.

This August issue marks the end of our 13th year of publishing Toy World – when the September edition lands on your desk in a month’s time, it will mark the start of our 14th year in business. Thankfully, 13 didn’t prove to be unlucky for us at all - despite the many ups and downs we’ve seen in the toy market over the past 12 months, we managed to post our best-ever numbers. Huge credit to the whole Toy World team, and massive thanks to all of our loyal advertisers and readers for your continuing support.

And to kick off year 14, the September issue is going to be an absolute belter. Our second largest issue of the year, it will land just as the summer holidays draw to a close and things start to hot up in the toy market for the run-in to Christmas. There will be a big feature on Pocket Money Toys & Collectibles, plus our legendary Games & Puzzles supplement - the only dedicated standalone publication covering this category you'll find anywhere. And if that wasn't enough, we also have a huge preview of BLE, focusing on the Kids & Family brands that will be on show.

Look out for that bumper edition landing in the first week of September, but in the meantime, enjoy the summer holidays and let’s hope things are finally moving in the right direction.

BTHA presents Lifetime Achievement Award to Padraig Smyth

The British Toy & Hobby Association (BTHA) presented a Lifetime Achievement Award to Padraig Smyth on 26th June 2024, during the Industry Day at Great Fosters Hotel.

The BTHA Lifetime Achievement Award is presented only in exceptional circumstances, being awarded to individuals who have made a ‘truly outstanding and significant contribution to the toy industry’.

Padraig’s career in toys started with the creation of Smyths Toys in 1986, when along with his three brothers – Thomas, Liam and Tony –Padraig launched a stand-alone shop in Galway, Ireland. Since then, Smyths Toys has grown into a multi-store, pan-European, omni-channel specialist with more than 290 stores across the Republic of Ireland, UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Benelux.

Padraig received the award in front of colleagues as he was recognised for his exceptional level of personal commitment, drive, passion and integrity throughout his career, and for facilitating positive and sustained change in the toy industry. Padraig’s nomination received wide support across the toy industry, being described by his peers as someone who is supportive of suppliers as well as humble, courteous and a genuine person.

The BTHA’s chairman, Simon Pilkington, said: “Padraig’s career in toys is exceptional and the BTHA is honoured to present its Lifetime Achievement Award to him for the significant contribution he has made to the toy industry over the long term. He is respected by so many of his peers and his impact has been one of a true game changer, making a lasting imprint on the industry that sustains us all and champions the industry we know and love.”

BTHA president Phil Ratcliffe added: “Padraig Smyth’s story is one of a true entrepreneur, going from small beginnings selling toys in the back of his family shop to the business it is today. Smyths Toys has grown to be the go-to stockist for the majority of UK, European and international suppliers, and Smyths flies the flag for the toy industry as a whole, year in, year out. His hands on approach and commercial acumen puts him way ahead of the majority of his retail peers. Always approachable and always honest, Padraig knows the industry inside out and knows product like no other large scale international toy retailer.”

Geoff Sheffield announced as chairman of Toy Retailers Association

Geoff Sheffield, chief commercial officer at The Entertainer, has been appointed chairman of the Toy Retailers Association (TRA). Alan Simpson, the association’s long-serving former chairman, passed over the office at the TRA Annual General Meeting on 26th June 2024, during the British Toy & Hobby Association’s annual Industry Day at Great Fosters Hotel in Surrey.

Geoff said: “I am honoured to have been selected as the next chairman of the TRA. I have big shoes to fill in following on from Alan, who has dedicated himself to the leadership of the association through some challenging times for toy retailers. I wish Alan every happiness in his retirement. I also look forward to working with the TRA’s members and I am hoping to bring new members onto the board with me to represent their interests over the coming years.”

Alan Simpson joined the TRA board on 25th May 2004 and became chairman at the 2011 AGM. Part of the association’s leadership for just over 20 years, he has overseen changes to the annual DreamToys event and taken an active role in the media discussions surrounding it every year, as well as led the association through some changing times in the retail landscape. He has also frequently promoted toy retail to regulators and the media throughout his tenure. Alan will be at the 2025 Toy Fair to say farewell to his industry colleagues.

Alan said: “I am extremely pleased to hand over the reins to Geoff Sheffield. Geoff comes with years of experience at the commercial front of the toy business and will have great insight into the threats and opportunities the association needs to address to help members in the coming years. I have enjoyed my time as chairman. I want to thank all those that have supported me in the role and encourage you to do the same for Geoff. I am retiring from an industry that continues to strive to be the best, to entertain young minds, that remains creative and agile and brings great customer service – and magic – to our high streets.”

Geoff Sheffield will now head up the TRA, which represents more than 450 retailers with around 2,800 stores throughout the UK.

newsanalysis

NCS launches the ultimate one-stop solution for toy manufacturers

In this exclusive piece, Rob Fort tells Toy World readers how New Centric Solutions is streamlining toy logistics in a way that he says offers companies a ‘breath of fresh air’.

Global reach with local precision

NCS taps into its worldwide logistics reach to ensure toys move efficiently through global trade lanes by ocean, air or road, before reaching its strategically located warehouses. From these hubs, NCS manages the final leg of the journey, delivering products to online and high-street retailers or directly to consumers. This gives toy makers confidence that their products will get to their destination quickly and reliably.

Tailored solutions for maximum impact

What sets NCS apart is its commitment to adding value at every stage. NCS offers custom packaging solutions designed to captivate consumers, flexible logistics options that adapt to market demands, and tailored preparations for individual markets.

With state-of-the-art, sustainably designed warehouses in the UK, NCS can provide scalable solutions located near major consumer hubs.

Boosting market presence

In today's market, visibility is key. NCS’s innovative sales

strategies create new opportunities for toy manufacturers. The company forms strategic partnerships with major online marketplaces such as Amazon and eBay, ensuring toys get the visibility they deserve, whether that be through traditional retail or digital platforms.

A revolutionary approach

NCS is on a mission to become a disruptive force in the toy logistics landscape with an offering that offers a breath of fresh air. By unifying logistics, warehousing and sales support into a single expert team, NCS eliminates the inefficiencies that have long plagued the industry. This joined-up approach starts at the top, where global logistics specialist, Adrian Levett, is joined by toy industry expert of over 20 years, Rob Fort.

Rob told Toy World: “I’m so excited to be a part of the NCS journey. It truly is a unique approach that the toy industry has desperately needed for years.”

To learn more, visit www.newcentricsolutions.com or email info@newcentricsolutions.com.

Basic Fun! files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection

The company behind toy brands including Littlest Pet Shop and Care Bears, Basic Fun! has announced it has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as part of a 'strategic action' to futureproof the business. Basic Fun! made the announcement in early July. The filing, made in the District of Delaware, covers Basic Fun Holdco, LLC, Basic Fun, Inc., TBDUM, LLC, TGS Acquisition, and K’Nex UK Limited.

While the news has taken many by surprise, CEO Jay Foreman was quick to explain the reasons for the move, telling US publication The Toy Book that while the filing was 'humbling', it should be viewed as an opportunity for growth: "Like some old houses, some are for knocking down and some have great bones and just need a new roof and some paint. Basic Fun has great bones! We have a solid foundation, and we have the means to fix our roof and put a new coat of paint on the walls, not to mention a new game room! We have great people and amazing licensing and vendor partners standing with us as we are poised to have an amazing year led by Littlest Pet Shop and anchor classic lines like Care Bears, Tonka, and Lite-Brite."

The company is seeking approval of $50m in debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing from affiliates of Great Rock Capital, as well as a $15m subordinate facility to be provided by RBC and the company’s founders, Jay Foreman and John MacDonald.

In his comments to The Toy Book, Jay added: "The fact that this process is done through a bankruptcy court is unfortunate when you are not bankrupt, and we are not. We are solvent, capitalised, and open for business."

Booghe celebrates successful opening of first ever physical store

The specialist online toy retailer Booghe has opened its first-ever physical location as it sets its sights on shaking up the world of toy retail.

On Friday 28th June, specially selected guests including suppliers, sales agents and Toy World magazine were treated to an advance look at the new store as its hard-working staff put the finishing touches to displays and preparing to start welcoming the public.

Walking into Booghe, shoppers will immediately be struck by its colourful, almost abstract design. Atrio Design and FB Holdings have been brought in to bring the store concept to life, with bold colours and uniquely shaped displays guiding shoppers through the store. Stars and planets on the ceiling are complemented by 3D trees mounted on the walls between shelving units, and selfie zones give kids the opportunity to pose in their favourite section or with their favourite toy. The level of detail and planning that has gone into the creation of the store is plain to see: the aisles are wide enough for wheelchairs or buggies, the shelves are all rounded – no corners for excited kids to bump themselves on – and there’s even a play and climbing area at the back.

The opening marked the soft launch of the store, which ultimately will span two floors offering play zones, demo areas, photo and drawing walls, and a dedicated VR/arcade space. The upper floor of the store, which will also play host to a family-friendly café, is slated to open to the public in August/September, at which point Booghe will host an official opening event. As it was, Friday saw 7-year-old Amber given the honour of cutting the ribbon. In front of a crowd of grownups and to rapturous applause, she announced: “Welcome, everyone, to Booghe Toys. Toys make me happy – I hope Booghe Toys makes you happy too.”

Store colleagues were busy answering questions and pricing up the last of the toys throughout the morning. Kandeel used to work in Harrods’ toy department and told us that while the two stores are naturally quite different, they also have much in common. “Harrods tries to create an experiential approach to toy shopping, and that’s what we’re doing here too,” she said. “There are demonstration areas throughout the store where we’ll be getting kids hands-on with the toys, helping to create memories and generating real excitement for their next trip back to the shop.”

Booghe director Krishna Yadlapalli seemed delighted with the reception to the Booghe Toys shop.

“We’re 70% of the way to full completion and realisation of what we set out to achieve,” Krishna told Toy World’s Rachael Simpson-Jones. “The Toy industry has faced a difficult couple of years, making this an interesting time to open a physical location for the first time, and to be honest, when we told our suppliers that we planned to open this store there was some hesitation. Some people warned me that I was going against the market, but I was undeterred. You can’t hesitate when you’re trying to do something new – if you believe in it, you have to push ahead.”

newsanalysis

EXG Pro - serving up collectability on a plate

Lauren Bath, Marketing director at licensing gaming accessories specialist EXG Pro, tells Toy World all about the company’s highly collectible new Digiplates range, which offers fans a new way to show their love of iconic properties from across the world of entertainment and gaming.

Digiplates marks something of a step change for EXG Pro in terms of products. What was the thinking behind the introduction of this new range? And who is the target audience?

We've been fascinated by digital technology and the phygital world for years, and Digiplates represents our commitment to innovation and evolving collector needs. This range merges the intricacy of a collectible with cutting-edge digital interactivity, providing a unique, multifaceted experience. Our target audience includes traditional collectors who appreciate high-quality, intricately designed items and tech-savvy individuals who enjoy digital technology without the complexities of NFTs.

What licences/properties does the range currently cover?

The initial wave of Digiplate Starter Packs offers three collectible plates and a phone stand, covering eight franchises: Stranger Things, One Piece, Sonic the Hedgehog, Assassin's Creed, Star Trek, Beetlejuice, Rick & Morty and Transformers. This variety is designed to attract a broad audience of fans and collectors. Next year, we plan to launch expansion packs for existing ranges and introduce new IP into the line-up.

How does the digital/online experience users can enjoy bolster the overall appeal of Digiplates?

The digital experience is the USP of the product and really enhances the appeal of Digiplates by offering an extended, interactive dimension to the product. By scanning the QR code and entering the serial number, users unlock a digital twin of their plate, which allows them to engage in online games, access exclusive content and claim additional digital rewards. Our patent protected integration of physical and digital elements not only adds value but also ensures ongoing engagement and excitement by

extending the shelf life of the product and increasing the collectability of it too. What point of difference do Digiplates offer retailers that may already have a substantial collectibles offering?

The digital element of Digiplates sets them apart from traditional collectibles, offering a distinctive edge. We've even patent protected our unique blend of physical and digital features, ensuring retailers have a truly innovative product to offer.

How is EXG Pro supporting Digiplates in terms of marketing and retail activations?

We’ve developed a comprehensive marketing strategy for the Digiplates launch, recognising the need to engage a cutting-edge audience with this innovative, specialist product. Our campaigns are tailored for our savvy online community, featuring an exciting digital launch event, dynamic social media promotions and collaborations with influencers and key media outlets. Additionally, we are implementing targeted retail activations, including eye-catching in-store displays and interactive demonstrations. Our goal is to generate buzz around Digiplates, driving both awareness and brand education at retail.

Is there anything else about Digiplates you think our readers really ought to know?

Digiplates are more than collectibles: they blend fandom, technology, and community, and offer a new level of engagement, making them essential for any collector. And this is just the beginning - we have a robust development programme in place designed to ensure users and partners alike embrace the new technology and remain excited for every new release, both physical and digital.

Playtime PR achieves B Corp certification

Arriving in the agency’s 10th anniversary year, the certification furthers Playtime’s commitment to operating its business as a force for good while delivering stand-out communications for its clients.

The B Corp verification process – administered by the non-profit B Lab – is rigorous, measuring a company’s social and environmental performance. To become a Certified B Corporation, companies undergo a review of the impact of their operations and business model on their team, customers, communities and environment. Businesses must reach a minimum verified score on the B Impact Assessment to ensure they meet the highest standards in social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency.

Lesley Singleton, CEO of Playtime PR, commented: “At Playtime, we strongly believe that play can be a catalyst for positive change. Our mission, ‘Making lives more playful’, is more than just a slogan: it’s a commitment extending from our work with our clients to the very fabric of our company culture. It was only a matter of time before we started on the journey to become a Certified B Corp, as our model aligns with the mission of the B Corp movement so well. We’re committed to continuous improvement – the marker of all B Corps – to forge a path toward a more playful, inclusive and sustainable future.”

Playtime is dedicated to ‘playing nice’ when it comes to its social and environmental impact initiatives. Through its partnerships with schools, libraries and charities, the agency ensures that toys and games reach the hands of children and families in communities where resources are scarce. Since 2016, Playtime’s schools’ campaigns have positively impacted the lives of more than 64,000 UK schoolchildren.

Over the past two years, Playtime has also saved 3.5 tonnes of toys and games from potentially ending up in landfill by ensuring that client surplus stock and ex-demo products are repurposed through charity partners who share its mission to make lives more playful.

Steadfast in its mission to balance profit with purpose, Playtime PR joins a global network of 8,700 B Corps in 101 countries, all of which are committed to people and the planet.

For more information about Playtime PR, visit www.playtimepr.com or email play@playtimepr.com

newsanalysis

Making tracks with Playtrains

Playtrains marked a significant stepchange for Hornby Railway. How has the range been received since it was first announced, and has it performed the way you expected? Since its announcement, the Playtrains range has been positively received by both retailers and consumers. The market has shown a keen interest in the new line, particularly due to its focus on younger audiences, filling a gap in the market for train sets for children aged 4-9 that blend play value and interactivity. Sales have met and (in some areas) exceeded our initial projections given 2024 was considered a soft launch, which indicates strong market acceptance.

This success is a testament to the research and insights that informed the development of Playtrains. By understanding the preferences and behaviours of our target demographic, we were able to create a product that resonates well with children and their parents. Feedback has highlighted the appeal of Playtrains’ accessible and engaging nature, with many customers appreciating the innovative features designed for children.

When developing Playtrains, what did Hornby place the most importance on –play value, features and interactivity?

In developing Playtrains, we placed equal importance on all these aspects. Our primary goal was to create a product that offers high play value and interactive features to captivate children's interests. This product is the result of research into what excites and engages young minds.

We also aimed to nurture a love of railways from a young age, ensuring that

Martyn Weaver, Hornby’s brand MD, spoke with Toy World about the development of the Playtrains range from Hornby Railway, highlighting the feedback from the range, how the new set builds upon the portfolio, what we can anticipate in 2025 and more.

Playtrains is both fun and educational. This holistic approach has been key to the range's success, combining engaging play with an introduction to the world of model railways.

How does the new High Speed Playtrains set, launching this autumn, build upon the current Playtrains portfolio?

The new High Speed Playtrains set expands the existing portfolio by introducing a dynamic and modern train theme. It also builds upon the core values of the range by incorporating more advanced features, such as an easy clip track, rerailing sections and additional interactive elements.

This set aims to elevate the play experience, offering new and exciting possibilities for children to explore and enjoy. It also aligns with contemporary railway trends, making it relevant and appealing to the target audience.

What sort of launches might we expect to see in 2025?

In 2025, we anticipate the introduction of new themes and expanded play sets within the Playtrains range. Future launches will likely include more sophisticated interactive features, diverse locomotive designs and additional accessories to enrich the play experience.

The continuous research and insights gathered from our customer base will guide these innovations, ensuring they resonate with our young customers. The goal is to continuously innovate and provide fresh, engaging options for our customers.

How is Hornby supporting the Playtrains range in terms of marketing and retail support?

Hornby is committed to robust marketing and retail support for the Playtrains range. This includes targeted advertising campaigns across digital and traditional media to reach our young audience as well as parents.

We’re also investing in online content, such as engaging videos and interactive web experiences, to highlight the features and benefits of the Playtrains range. This comprehensive approach will ensure that Playtrains receives the attention and support needed to thrive in the market.

Industry Moves

Darren Scott joins EXG Pro as UK Sales manager

Darren brings over 30 years of experience in consumer electronics, toys and pop culture to his role, having worked for leading global brands such as Sony and Apple. His extensive background and expertise will be invaluable as he steps into this pivotal role at EXG Pro.

Commenting on his new position, Darren said: “I am delighted to join the team to drive the business into the next phase of growth.”

Alan Fenwick, CEO of EXG Pro, added: “We are pleased to welcome Darren to the EXG family. His industry experience and expertise in retail and distribution will be instrumental in achieving our long-term growth strategy for the UK.”

EXG Pro is gearing up for its most dynamic year yet, unveiling its largest SKU count to date that features new product ranges, new licences and an extended distribution and retail network. The arrival of summer marked the debut of Holdems, the original Earbud Holder and Phone Stand inspired by the successful Cable Guys product range. Launching in two waves, the first wave will include this year’s most popular character, Stitch, in four different iterations, followed by fan favourites Sonic the Hedgehog and friends (Tails, Knuckles and Super Sonic), Fall Guys and the company’s first-ever Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles line. The second wave will introduce more newness from beloved franchises such as SpongeBob SquarePants, Squid Game and Nightmare Before Christmas, all set to hit shelves this summer.

EXG Pro’s Digiplates, meanwhile, are innovative metal cards that bring a unique blend of artistry and technology to consumers. Each package includes a versatile Digistand and three interchangeable, licensed Digiplates. Users scan these collectible cards to unlock augmented reality and other exciting digital experiences. Crafted from premium zinc aluminium alloy, each Digiplate features intricate etchings and embossed details, providing a tactile and visually stunning experience.

Readers interested in working with EXG Pro are advised to contact Darren Scott at Darren@exgpro.com.

Mighty Jaxx appoints Wiebe Tinga as special advisor

With a distinguished career spanning over three decades in the toys and gaming industry, Wiebe will bring unparalleled expertise and a proven track record of transformative leadership to his new role at Mighty Jaxx.

Wiebe’s career includes significant achievements at Hasbro, where he is widely recognised for revitalising company operations, improving sales performance and implementing innovative omnichannel strategies that have reshaped consumer engagement in the industry. In his role as executive vice president and chief commercial officer, Hasbro grew its revenue from $4b to $5b in just eight years, while impacting and expanding in over 15 emerging markets.

Under his stewardship, Hasbro achieved record revenues in 44 owned and operated organisations across the US, Canada, Mexico, UK, France, Germany and Australia, and established the company as a leader in the global play and entertainment industry.

Jackson Aw, founder and CEO of Mighty Jaxx, said: “We are beyond thrilled to welcome Wiebe to Mighty Jaxx. His strategic vision and deep industry knowledge will be instrumental as we continue to innovate and expand our presence in the global collectibles market.”

“Bringing Wiebe onboard represents an unprecedented opportunity for us, and with his global experience to drive revenue growth and navigate complex international markets, we gave no second thought to whether or not he was the right guy for us. Tapping into his experience will allow us to continue building on our strategic initiatives and open doors for us globally. I look forward to working with Wiebe and leaning into his collective experience to take Mighty Jaxx to the next level as a global leader in the collectibles space.”

In his role as special advisor, Mighty Jaxx will leverage Wiebe’s ability to forge a strategic vision and inspire teams to drive growth and innovation across the company. With Singaporeheadquartered Mighty Jaxx also operating out of London, North America and China, Wiebe will be a major player in navigating complex mature and emerging markets, with his prior experience in the BRICS group of major emerging economies especially crucial to expanding the company’s global footprint.

David Adams joins Curious Universe

Curious Universe, the multi-award-winning, Bath-based Arts & Crafts, Toy, Stationery and Publishing company, has announced the appointment of David Adams, a seasoned sales professional with a wealth of experience in the toy industry, to the role of Sales director UK & Ireland.

With over 14 years in sales and eight years within the toy sector, David brings with him an extensive background in working with a wide range of retailers, from specialist and grocery stores to online, discounters, independents and high street.

Throughout his career, David has made significant contributions to both the indoor and outdoor toy categories, building strong relationships across the industry. Most recently, he served as Emerging Channel lead at Spin Master, where he played a crucial role in driving financial growth and expanding the team with new and existing retailers.

David said: “I’m very excited to be joining the Curious Universe team. From my first meeting with John Styring and Mark Burge, I could see the passion they have for products, the business and most importantly, the team. The breadth of ranges is unbelievable and a clear indication of how they have managed to achieve such success over the last seven years. The vision they have for the future of the business and how it can all be developed and handled under one roof is staggering, and an opportunity that I just couldn’t miss. I am looking forward to becoming part of the team and adding my experience.”

John Styring, CEO of Curious Universe, added: “We are thrilled to welcome a talented and experienced individual to our team. David’s extensive background and proven track record in the toy industry will undoubtedly contribute to our ongoing success and future growth.”

David and his team will oversee a number of major customers in the UK and Eire. Readers are advised to reach out to sales@curiousunivere.co.uk with any queries.

Industry Moves

Darren Robinson promoted to Finance director at Toymaster

Toymaster has announced that former head of Finance Darren Robinson has been promoted to Finance director and company secretary. Darren’s role will cover the day-to-day accounting and financial reporting at Toymaster. Additionally, his role will also encompass supporting Toymaster members with financial advice including cash flow aid, investment help, local rates and grants and financial communication.

“I am sure our members, suppliers and staff will all join me in congratulating Darren on his promotion,” said Yogi Parmar, MD at Toymaster.

Darren was appointed to the position of head of Finance in November last year. He is a qualified accountant with 30 years of experience heading up finance functions in a variety of different industries and has brought that valuable knowledge to the group.

Yogi added: “I would like to take this opportunity to thank Colin Farrow for his 40 years of hard work and dedication to the group as our previous finance director and company secretary.”

Colin will continue to serve Toymaster as an executive director.

Darren can be contacted on 01604 674 477 or darren.robinson@toymaster.co.uk.

Icecat’s Toys team expands

Icecat’s commitment to serving its toy clients has been further strengthened by two new team members. The Toys team at Icecat, alongside Rene Rozendal, director of Toys and Entertainment, now includes Bertrand Thomas, Toys sales manager for France, and Rody de Vreden, Toys account manager.

Icecat has developed a comprehensive data model specifically for toy brands. In this data model, all toy categories are clearly defined, including specifications and values associated with them. Currently, the data model supports over 70 languages and continues to expand.

“With a good base of brands and retail customers in the toys industry, I am looking forward to further expanding the network of clients and celebrating new partnerships worldwide,” said Rody de Vreden.

“With dedication and enthusiasm, I look forward to cooperating with our current and potential clients in France, thriving together in the eCommerce industry,” added Bertrand Thomas. “Let this online journey begin.”

Icecat is the market leader in product content syndication for the online toy and entertainment industry, and helps brands deliver product content to their retailers. Currently, more than 100 toy brands are working with Icecat. With a dedicated Toys team, Icecat aims to provide the toy industry with the best eCommerce content solutions for easy product content exchange and the best online experience.

Wow! Stuff hires new senior national accounts manager UK

After 18 years in the toy industry, Kaya Leadsford will join Wow! Stuff and take on the role of senior national accounts manager UK. Kaya has been in the toy industry for 18 years, having worked at Worlds Apart as it transitioned to Moose Toys, and rising through the ranks from Sales executive to Channel manager and senior national accounts manager.

Kaya said: “I have such a love for the toy and licensing industry. After my long career with Moose Toys, I like to think that I am well respected within the industry, and I’m excited to bring all that I’ve learned into my new position with Wow! Stuff.”

Wow! Stuff’s managing director, Dawn Lavalette, said: “We have the most incredible product line-up for 2025, leading with the Puppetronics category. Our innovation going into next year is going to blow minds, so more hands-on board are needed and Kaya has a proven track record – and, importantly, the right sense of humour to fit really well into the team.”

Landers Recruitment welcomes Kelly Diver as Recruitment director

Landers Recruitment is delighted to announce the appointment of toy, gift and baby recruitment specialist, Kelly Diver, as its new Recruitment director.

Kelly has previously worked for Landers Recruitment and brings a wealth of 15 years expertise in the toy and baby market. She is set to continue her journey at Landers Recruitment within her specialist sectors.

Landers has specialised in the recruitment of FMCG appointments for over 35 years and feels that this is a new and exciting horizon for the company.

As always, Kelly would like to urge anybody seeking their next employment move to get in touch. To get in contact with Kelly, please reach out via 01204 309 555 or kelly@landersrecruitment.co.uk.

Rene Rozendal

Rody de Vreden

Bertrand Thomas

Marketing World

Ravensburger named official CarFest STEM Zone partner while Brio sponsors Park Fair Toy Box tent

CarFest’s new STEM Zone will be sponsored by GraviTrax. Throughout the three day show, which takes place later this month, visitors will have the chance to try their marble track-building skills in the Build Beyond the Usual Academy. The event will also be the first opportunity for kids to get hands-on with a new addition to the award-winning system, the GraviTrax Action Set: Death Star.

CarFest, presented by bp pulse, is the UK’s largest family fundraising festival, attracting over 30,000 visitors each day. Created by TV and radio personality Chris Evans, it was first launched in 2012 and has since raised over £25m for children’s charities.

“With its focus on family-oriented fun, CarFest is an ideal partner for us,” said Elaine Connell, Ravensburger Product Marketing manager. “We are delighted to be showcasing the endless possibilities of the GraviTrax system as sponsors of the STEM Zone – we know that the opportunity to get hands-on with this incredible system is priceless.”

Back in June, meanwhile, the company’s Brio brand sponsored Park Fair’s Toy Box tent. The three-day, family-focused Park Fair event took place in June in the Cotswolds and welcomed more than 4,000 visitors to the Great Tew Estate, where they celebrated independent artisans, fashion and lifestyle brands, and quintessential family entertainment.

Brio provided a large play area packed with railway tracks and accessories, enabling little ones to explore their imaginations. The event provided a perfect backdrop to showcase the new Brio World Dinosaurs sets and accessories. As part of the fun, families were also invited to take part in a dinosaur egg hunt around the Park Fair site.

“It’s always fantastic for us to see families getting hands-on enjoying our Brio toys and Park Fair was no exception,” said Elaine. “We saw young imaginations being inspired in our play area throughout the three days and the tracks created were incredible. The excitement for our new Dinosaurs range was clear to see, and the magical ‘steam’ effect of our new Erupting Volcano brought some real wow-factor to the fun too.”

Moose Toys retains Highlight for 2024 campaigns

Moose Toys has retained communications agency Highlight to manage UK PR and influencer campaigns for eight of its top tier launches in 2024.

The non-competitive appointment reflects the success of Highlight’s inaugural work for Moose last year, activity which spanned immersive launch events integrated with influencer content and consumer PR.

June of this year saw Highlight promote Moose’s new Despicable Me 4 toy range. This activity was followed by Camp Bestival in Dorset where, for the first time, Moose created an experiential space offering festival families the chance to be among the first to play with the new autumn/winter products within its flagship brands: Bluey, Little Live Pets, Magic Mixies and Cookeez Makery.

Following Bestival, Moose will be rolling out its new MrBeast Lab range, as well as launching Thready Bear – a new special feature plush – both of which Highlight will be promoting alongside ongoing campaigns for Moose’s other top tier brands throughout Q4.

Maddi Tiscoe, head of UK Marketing at Moose Toys, said: “Innovation is always at the forefront of Moose’s approach to new product development and 2024 is no exception. We have a hugely exciting year ahead, not only with some ‘category first’ launches but also with our new range, co-created by one of the world’s biggest YouTubers – MrBeast. With so many major launches this year, it’s terrific to continue to have Highlight’s support. The team devised fun, creative concepts to bring to life our first ever Bestival activation, as well as a series of smart, integrated campaigns to drive reach and engagement for all our autumn launches. Highlight’s work will be invaluable in helping us achieve our ambitious Q4 goals.”

Speaking about the re-appointment, Alison Vellacott, Consumer director at Highlight PR, commented: “We had a huge amount of fun working with the Moose team last year, bringing to life its fantastic range of toys across a range of live, social and digital channels. We’re relishing the chance to build on that this year with more entertaining campaigns designed to capture the imagination of kids and parents alike.”

Bath-based Highlight is a full-service PR agency specialising in the family, lifestyle and food sectors.

FabLab sponsors Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice Awards

The event, which honours the biggest names and titles of the year in television, film, music, social media and sports, aired on Monday 15th July on Nickelodeon UK. PlayMonster’s FabLab sponsorship includes a 360-degree strategy across linear TV, YouTube and PlutoTV, as well as display advertising on the KCAs website, including the voting section.

Co-hosted by SpongeBob SquarePants and Patrick Star, this year’s prestigious Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards featured a host of top celebrities, including Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Miley Cyrus, Halle Bailey, Austin Butler, Sabrina Carpenter, Kai Cenat, Timothée Chalamet, Ryan Gosling and Margot Robbie.

Taking the reins in 2024, FabLab’s star promotion showcased its range of glow in the dark styling sets to the event’s like-minded fashion and entertainment aware audience. Introducing innovative new launches for 2024, including the FabLab Airbrush Styler and FabLab Jelly Glow Jewellery, the range features eco-friendly styling sets with colourful, glowin-the-dark Nail Art, Neon Hairlights and bio-glitter tattoo sets, plus much more. The new FabLab Glow Range was also promoted with a glow-up Nickelodeon YouTube takeover on 22nd July.

Justin Clasby, director, International Marketing, PlayMonster, said: “The Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards sponsorship is a perfect fit for the FabLab brand as we continue to engage kids of 6-12 years across multiple marketing touchpoints. Nickelodeon offers a great platform for our audience to engage in FabLab content across TV, digital and YouTube. The sponsorship will help to amplify the brand values and continue to encourage children to experiment and be playful with their style. We will continue to invest with our always-on marketing approach to maintain

FabLab’s position as the No.1 Fashion Role Play brand.”

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Opinion

The FAST changing world of AV media

Ever find yourself wondering what the latest media acronym means? You’re not alone, particularly when it comes to AV (Audio Visual) media. Here, Jonathan explains all.

The media landscape is ever changing, but sometimes the micro changes that occur are accompanied with new ways to categorise media channels, which from a topline perspective appear incredibly similar to one another. The AV landscape is perhaps most guilty of this, for example:

• VOD – Video On Demand

• AVOD – Advertising-based VOD (i.e. Samsung TV or YouTube)

• BVOD – Broadcaster VOD (i.e. ITVX)

• SVOD – Subscription VOD (i.e. Netflix prior to the introduction of advertising)

• HVOD – Hybrid VOD (platforms that are both funded by subscription and advertising i.e. Disney+).

• FAST – Free Ad-supported Streaming TV

To a viewer, and especially a child, they are all considered TV. Given that children are regularly using multiple methods to access “TV”, for advertisers that means either selecting the most impactful method for their budget, or where budget allows capturing as many as possible to build reach. This is because traditional Linear TV is now limited in the reach it can provide children’s advertisers. With CITV and Tiny Pop no longer airing in the UK, it is difficult for brands to achieve more than 25-30% reach via Linear TV alone.

The decline in reach has been driven by migration of audiences to the newer and emerging methods of accessing “TV”. Of these methods, SVOD (traditionally Netflix and Disney+) has dominated the viewing landscape in the UK. Kids and the Screen (KATS) data from Giraffe Insights highlighted that in October 2023, SVOD accounted for 33% of viewing time (followed by Online Video at 26%, Live TV at 20% and AVOD at 13%). Historically however the problem for marketers, at least those without content placed on these platforms, is that they offered no advertising opportunities. This has of course changed now giving rise to the HVOD acronym, with Disney+, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video becoming hybrid in terms of how they monetise their platforms.

Whilst no official data has been released regards

what percentage of subscribers have ads enabled, estimates place it anywhere up to 15-20% for each of Disney+ and Netflix. Amazon Prime Video is considerably higher, given it made ads mandatory with the option of paying more to remove them.

This does mean, confirmed by testing campaigns run on the platforms, that inventory levels are now sufficient to deliver campaigns of reasonable scale. For toy brands, Disney+ remains the only one of the three which will allow some form of advertising to children’s specific content (excluding pre-school). The good news is that the cost of Disney+ is the most competitive, especially since it introduced discounts for shorter creative lengths, making it comparable to established kids BVOD and AVOD platforms such as ITVX, Sky Media and Kidoodle.

Outside of HVOD, one of the more recent and interesting developments is the explosion of FAST channels available in the UK. These are channels which, whilst served via a digital signal on connected TVs, offer viewers a traditional push style schedule of programming rather than a pull style on demand experience. They are viewed as great content discovery vehicles by content publishers, and why Disney in the US has launched FAST style channels within Disney+ to help the discoverability of lesser watched titles (expect to see this rollout across Europe in 2025 if it proves successful). The FAST market is now well established in the USKantar reported in January 2024 that over half of US households were watching FAST channels. Whilst the “cord-cutting” phenomena in this market means the UK market will likely never reach the same heights, it is a growing market, with the UK leading the way across Europe. Perhaps most prominently for the UK children’s market, Narrative made the decision to transition Tiny Pop, at the time the No.1 commercial Linear TV channel in the UK, to a FAST delivery service only, in March 2024. Whilst it is yet to reach the same level of viewing as it enjoyed on Linear TV, it is growing rapidly and should form a part of AV media plans this Q4 (data reveals that digital viewing minutes for Narrative’s channels increased by +182% YoY in May).

Of the multiple options available to advertisers, AVOD arguably provides the highest reach when you take into consideration that YouTube is technically an AVOD platform (although defined as Online Video

Jonathan Chambers Director of AV Investment

in the KATS data), and more and more inventory is being served on a connected TV set. This is why YouTube now commands the highest share of advertising spend from toy advertisers in the UK, and globally, and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Beyond YouTube, the likes of LG and Samsung TV offer innovative AVOD solutions using ACR (Automatic Content Recognition) technology. These platforms also offer increasing reach, with KATS identifying AVOD as the fastest growing method of viewing content for children aged 2-12 in the UK. Covering more than 50% of UK households between them, LG and Samsung TV not only provide standard pre and mid roll opportunities on their vast array of children and family focused VOD channels. In addition, they can serve static wand video ads on their home screens, using ACR data to inform targeting - for example, serving Paw Patrol toy ads to households which have viewed Paw Patrol content. This data driven evolution of the AV points to an exciting future for AV media and will help maintain its relevancy in a digital dominated world.

With the constant change, navigating the new AV landscape can be daunting. If you would like to learn more, and how they can be best harnessed to meet your marketing objectives, get in touch to set up a free induction into all things AV.

Licensing World

MGA’s Miniverse welcomes Harry Potter and LOTR

The new lines are inspired by some of the most popular films from Warner Bros. Discovery, adding to the existing portfolio of licensed WBDGCP products. Recent lines include collectibles inspired by Elf and Wonka, while the newest are inspired by Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings.

“MGA is proud to announce that the global sensation, MGA’s Miniverse Make It Mini, will now feature all-new collector lines as we extend our partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery Global Consumer Products – and just in time for the holiday gifting season,” said Isaac Larian, founder and CEO, MGA Entertainment. “Miniature lovers, collectors, pop culture enthusiasts and fans of Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings will love to create and display these new additions to their collections.”

MGA’s Miniverse Make It Mini Potions is a collection of hyper-realistic, mini replicas of popular items and artefacts from the Harry Potter films. Series 1 will allow fans to open the mystery ball-shaped capsules and discover wizarding world-inspired contents used to create potions that can be cured in UV or daylight for permanent display. The collection comes in 15 different styles to collect, including 12 core styles and three rare, limited-edition chase items. Popular potions include Polyjuice, Wolfsbane and more.

Fans of Middle-earth, meanwhile, will love the new The Lord of the Rings-inspired mini makes. Each mystery ball-shaped capsule contains The Lord of the Rings-themed ingredients that can be used to craft miniature replica armoury. These hyper-realistic and detailed minis come in 15 collectible styles.

Fans got a sneak peek of the new Harry Potter collection and other new series at VidCon Anaheim 2024 last month. The brand worked alongside popular YouTuber and content creator Cherry Wallis as part of a partnership to support the new product lines, while the experiential booth gave fans the opportunity to engage with MGA’s Miniverse Harry Potter Make It Mini Potions.

Paladone shines a light on Peppa’s 20th birthday with new licensed range

Paladone is synonymous with branded products and pop-culture gifts within the Kidult category, one of the fastest growing within the toy industry, and is further extending its reach by targeting younger fans of the world’s most beloved children’s brands. Sporting a portfolio of acclaimed licences aimed at the 3-6 age group, including Bluey, Care Bears, Crayola, Gabby’s Dollhouse and Spiderman, Paladone’s presence in the pre-school landscape is already strong. The company is set to enjoy rapid growth across all international markets in the coming 36 months, following the recent acquisition of WeCool Toys.

In 2024, Paladone will is celebrating the 20th anniversary of one of the world’s most iconic pre-school characters. Peppa Pig has become a household favourite in over 180 countries, creating incredible demand for unique branded gifts, toys, games and homewares.

Peppa’s YouTube channel has almost 36m subscribers and the TV series was one of Netflix’s most watched kids shows in 2023. It’s therefore unsurprising that licensed consumer products and toy retail sales revenue for the franchise is nearing the $2b mark as the industry rapidly approaches “Pep-tember”, an entire month of campaigns and events celebrating every pre-schooler’s best friend.

At the centre of Paladone’s Peppa Pig range is a soft and squishy silicone light with a pulse mode and two ‘auto-off’ timer settings. The brightness can also be adjusted by tapping anywhere on Peppa’s body. The gentle glow makes this item a perfect addition to any youngster’s bedroom, promoting better sleep while also adding a sense of safety and familiarity. Other illuminated products across the range include an alarm clock, a projector and an icon light, while wall decals and a piggy bank complete the kid’s home décor line-up. All items are available for pre-order now. Paladone is guaranteeing easy access to its Peppa Pig inventory for all types and sizes of retailer: readers are advised to get in touch with an account manager for more details.

Paladone and WeCool Toys will be showcasing the Peppa Pig lines alongside a treasure trove of innovative branded products and toy lines at all major trade shows including Spring Fair, Spielwarenmesse and the New York Toy Fair. For more information, call 01273 230 037, email info@paladone.com or visit one of the company’s websites: www.paladone.com | www.wecool.com.

Wow! Stuff partners with WWE for new collection

Wow! Stuff, in partnership with WWE, has announced the launch of new Thumb Wars toys, alongside other gifts, toys and novelties, in a deal facilitated by WWE’s licensing agency, IMG.

The new collection launches with thumb caps featuring highly detailed sculpted heads of WWE Superstars, elevating Thumb Wars in school playgrounds around the world. The first series of these playable collectibles includes twelve all-sizes patent pending thumb fittings and a Thumb Wrestling Ring. Thumb Wars are packed in blind foil bags with two WWE Superstars in each bag. The collection will be available from autumn 2024 at retailers globally, including a to-be-announced major mass retailer in the USA. Renowned for creating unique toys and products for all ages and genders, Wow! Stuff aims to engage WWE’s loyal fans with a fresh twist on a classic playground game. The partnership will also include additional toys, gifts and collectibles.

“The WWE brand’s always on presence and exciting storylines have kept it at the forefront of family entertainment for years,” said Kenny McAndrew, director of Licensing at Wow! Stuff. “With this new collection, we wanted something on brand and in-universe for WWE, and our research said it’s time that thumb wars became a branded gameplay. We are excited to bring these WWE Superstars closer to fans in a new and engaging way. Our new ranges will be in stores from late autumn and early spring 2025, with price points from approximately $5.00/£5.00 to $25.00/£25.00.”

For all retailer and distributor enquiries, contact: North America – sunny.walia@wowstuff.com, or rest of the world –dawn.lavalette@wowstuff.com.

Licensing World

Moose Toys collaborates with YouTuber MrBeast for MrBeast Lab

Available in the UK and USA now, Moose Toys’ MrBeast Lab range captures the ferocity of the globally recognisable MrBeast logo to deliver incredible innovation.

“This collection is the result of two of the world’s best creators joining forces to develop the most groundbreaking new toy brand,” said Paul Solomon, CEO, Moose Toys. “When we find partners like MrBeast, who share our irreverent spirit and appetite to disrupt, the sky is the limit. This launch is just the beginning of what’s to come for Moose and MrBeast as we continue to take the brand to new heights.”

MrBeast Lab Swarms is a series of more than 100 micro collectibles. Using the included test tube, users add water, cap the tube and shake it to accelerate the fizz action-reaction that reveals Swarms in varying levels of rarity: Common, Rare, Ultra Rare, Hard Heads (Special Editions) and Limited Edition. Kids can also hunt for the Panther Swarms and the 1,000 Limited Edition Hyperchrome Panthers.

MrBeast Lab Mutators gives kids an experiment-based unboxing experience complete with test tube, mutation fluid, mutation chamber and “bio link” fingerprint start. Kids can mutate a cool blue panther into a mega beast Mutator: the Iconic Panther with MrBeast’s signature fuchsia crystal shards, translucent blue Stealth Panther emblazoned with black crystals, or Metallic Panther featuring a metallic armour body and blue crystals.

The MrBeast Lab launch will be supported by a raft of carefully curated marketing activities. For the first time ever, Moose Toys exhibited at San Diego Comic-Con to support the new brand with exclusive MrBeast Lab Swarms and Mutators and attention-grabbing giveaways from 25th-28th July. The enthusiasm for the new MrBeast Lab line will ramp up this autumn/winter with sweepstakes spanning the US, the UK and several international markets.

Adding to the anticipated frenzy, MrBeast will feature the line in new content on YouTube, fuelling fan demand for the products. His YouTube channel is the No. 1 most subscribed channel in the world, with more than 289m subscribers generating over 2b views monthly and amassing an astounding 52b lifetime views.

Panini poised to launch Premier League 202425 Adrenlayn XL Official Trading Cards

The new Premier League season is almost here and football fans can kick things off in style with the highly anticipated new Premier League Adrenalyn XL Official Trading Cards from Panini. The collection is packed with eight all-new Golden Ballers, over 20 supercharged special card categories and new look ultra-rare Limited Edition and Parallel cards to chase and collect.

Fans can get their collection off to a solid start with a starter pack that includes a collector’s binder, game guide, game board, three trading card packets, one Limited Edition card and one Golden Baller card. There are also boosted special card categories for collectors to track down including Model Pros, Breakthroughs, Hypersonic and Relentless, as well as the much-coveted Invincible Card.

Launching 8th August, Panini’s Premier League Adrenalyn Trading Card collection is the UK’s No. 1 selling trading card collection and offers a fantastic opportunity to drive incremental sales. Each line incentivises purchase, whether it’s chasing the guaranteed Golden Baller in the starter pack and classic tin to the extra Limited Edition cards in the multi-sets and multi-packs. The wider lines offer great value, with collectors seeking the opportunity to find a printed signature or real autograph card in each of these ancillary lines.

Panini ‘point of sale’ packs are available to all retailers, featuring an A3 poster, shelf-talker and a full brief on the marketing campaign timings. To get involved, contact Rebecca Smith rsmith@panini.co.uk for more information.

Craft Buddy achieves record sales for Disney

100 Crystal Art stickers

Craft Buddy’s D100 Crystal Art Sticker Album is a collector’s edition that celebrates the legacy of the studio’s storytelling across all its renowned IPs and a century’s worth of iconic characters. From the timeless allure of classic Mickey and Minnie to more recent characters Stitch and Olaf, heroic tales of the Avengers and the epic sagas of Star Wars, this stunning collectible album has enchanted fans across the globe with its interactive Crystal Art stickers.

The volume of sales has exceeded all expectations with multiple print runs having been recommissioned. Final production is currently underway to meet the summer holiday and upcoming Christmas seasons. A market-first combination of arts & crafts and collectible sticker albums, the D100 Sticker Album has been Craft Buddy’s most searched for item since it launched last August and has even been a first-page Google hit for searches of Disney 100.

Gary Wadhwani, director at Craft Buddy, said: “We knew we had a hit on our hands as early as last September, when the album’s first print run sold out within weeks.

Since then, we’ve worked incredibly hard to keep up with demand and are staggered to have achieved more than 1.6m units in sales. It proves the enduring popularity of licensed arts & craft products with consumers of all ages.”

Due to its incredible popularity, outstanding sales and positive feedback from Disney, Craft Buddy can sell-through its Disney 100 Crystal Art line until the end of December 2024 – but is warning retailers that once a product runs out, there will be no more restocking.

To support sales, Craft Buddy invested in a variety of marketing channels including trade shows, consumer events, organic and paid for social media posts and targeted paid print advertisements, resulting in viral engagement and more than 1m views on TikTok, with enthusiastic fans sharing updates of their albums and engaging content across various social media platforms.

Insight

Shopping around

A shift in consumer trends in the toy market over the last few years has seen the potential size of the market reducing, as pressures such as reduced birthrate, inflation and the cost of living have combined to have an impact on consumer spending on kids. Emilie looks at how these trends break down.

During the first half of the year (YTD June), UK toy market sales were down -4% in value, reflecting a challenging start to the year. However, the overall performance improved in both May and June, with unit sales flat, boosted by sales of football cards and stickers related to the UEFA Euro 2024 Tournament, plus the strong performance of licensing overall.

The market has seen a shift in consumer trends over the last few years. With fewer children being born, the potential size of the core target market is shrinking, while spending on kids has reduced due to inflation and the cost of living pressures which consumers have faced in the last couple of years. On average, spending per child under 11 years old was £308 for the UK last year, down -7% YOY – the equivalent of -£22 less per child compared to the previous year. Multiplied by the number of children, that generated a reduction of -£202 million.

Spending for younger kids, less than five years old, experienced the greatest impact across both genders. In addition to the declining birth rate, the second-hand market may also have impacted pre-schoolers’ new toy sales. Circana’s Second-Hand survey (carried out in France) discovered that Infant/Toddler/Pre-school was the third largest category which was bought second-hand.

For older children, Girls’ Toys spending decreased faster than Boys for 6-11 years (-11% versus -6% versus 2021 respectively). This is a concern, as this spend may be moving away from the toy industry. Girls are likely to transfer spending outside of toys earlier than boys: to fashion, beauty products, music and video games. Sites like YouTube, TikTok and Roblox seem particularly popular; according to figures from whatsthebigdata.com, 60% of Roblox users are under 16 years old and 39% of users were female. Video games accounted for 12% of licensed toys sales in YTD June 2024 and Aphmau, Adopt Me! and Animal Crossing were all part of the top 15 gaining licences in total toys this year compared to last year.

Overall, Girls Toys now account for 43% of the total toy market value sales versus 46% in 2021, having decreased -17% versus 2021, driving the market decline.The only toy supercategory growing for Girls aged 6-11 years is Plush, now

To monitor what’s happening in the ever-changing toy market, Circana collects point-of-sale information from all major toy retailers. This information, combined with our analysts’ industry perspectives, delivers a comprehensive view of what’s selling and where. We also field over 12m consumer surveys annually to help industry leaders understand why consumers shop where they shop and why they buy what they buy. For more information visit www.circana.com.

Gender split

accounting for more than 20% of the spend. This is the second largest category after Dolls and it saw its share of girls spend doubling versus 2021. Dolls and Art & Craft were the other two categories over-indexing for Girls 6-11 years old.

Plush has been the top-gaining supercategory in the last few years, generating an additional +£23m since 2021. Its growth was driven by the success of soft toy collectibles such as Squishmallows. In the last six months, newness has been driving the sales increase: Zuru Snackles and Hasbro Furby are in the top five gaining properties in total toys, YTD June 24 compared to last year. For the first half of the year, the top ten best-selling assortments in the total UK toy market were plush, and they generated 19% of total market sales overall.

Girls have also been spending more on “traditionally boys” categories: a quarter of the spend on Building Sets can be allocated to girls, more than 20% for Action Figures and a third of Games & Puzzles and Outdoor Toys in the UK. The Collectibles trend, with sales up +21% versus 2021, and top properties such as Star Wars and Marvel releasing movies with strong female lead characters in the last few years, have

also tapped into girls’ pocket money: as a result, girls’ spend on Star Wars sales and Marvel Universe properties went up +4pt and +7pt respectively compared to 2021. Almost a quarter of the sales of Pokémon is from girls - and Disney Lorcana may have introduced even more of them to the Trading Cards segment.

While much focus has been put on Kidults - toy purchases for consumers aged over 12 years - the industry shouldn’t neglect the importance of its younger consumers. Today’s kids will be the adult buyers of tomorrow, and getting them engaged in the category early is key to driving sales in the future. A sense of nostalgia and tapping into the franchises we loved when we were kids drive a huge part of today’s Kidult appeal for Star Wars, Jurassic World or Harry Potter. For this first half of the year, TMNT was the No.3 gaining licence YTD in June 2024, and Lilo & Stitch is No.5, showing the strong appeal of reviving beloved properties. Some of the most toyetic movies coming in the second half of the year are tapping into this trend, such as Despicable Me 4, Mufasa, Moana 2 and Sonic 3, so the toy market should benefit from further licencing successes this Christmas.

Emilie Erktan Senior account manager, Toys UK, Circana

Licence Progression:

Lion King licensed sales jumped 81 ranks between May and June, even though the Mufasa movie won’t be released until December. New Building Sets and growth in Pre-school Talking and Sound, as well as Plush, generated the uplift. Despicable Me/Minions also saw a big jump in the licence ranking (+61 rank) with the latest movie released in mid-July and new products introduced in Building Sets, Action Figures & Accessories, Plush and Games & Puzzles.

Fastest Growing Properties:

YTD June 2024, a quarter of the subclasses were in growth compared to last year. The subclass that had added the most added value in the UK toy market at the half year mark was Standard Building Sets. This was boosted by the success of Lego Icons, especially the Botanical range, focused on key trading periods such as Valentines’ Day and Mother’s Day. Botanicals has also expanded to mid-range price points and younger age groups this year. Licences also contributed to this growth, with top gaining licences Mercedes-Benz, McLaren and Star Wars. Non-Strategic Trading Cards/Collectibles Stickers was the No.3 gaining subclass, largely boosted by the Euro 2024 Football Tournament and England reaching the final. The UEFA Euro 2024 Sticker Collection Pack from Topps was the No.2 bestselling item in unit sales in the three months to June 2024, generating an additional £1.2m in the toy market in six months and delivering much-

Miscellaneous Toys sales were up +6%, thanks to new launches:

MGA’s Miniverse and the expansion of Zuru 5 Surprise into mini Books and Sneakers, as well as the new 5 Surprise Mini Brands Master Chef Create Mystery.

Robotic/Interactive Playmates and Special Feature Plush continue to gain from 2023 new launches. These were hot properties last Christmas (especially Bitzee and Furby), and this trend is likely to continue with lots of newness coming for Christmas 2024.

Top 10 Fastest Growing Subclasses - UK Toys

Talking Shop Support network

This month, we spoke to members of Associated Independent Stores (AIS) to hear more about their stores, what they value about membership of the group and what they hope to get out of the upcoming INDX show.

Grahame

Hook Morleys Department Store, various locations around the UK

Morleys Group comprises eight stores: Morleys Brixton, Morleys Bexleyheath, Morleys Tooting, Elys Wimbledon, Camp Hopson, Pearsons Enfield, Roomes Fashion & Home and James Selbys and is independently owned. Most recently, the group expanded Camp Hopson with an additional 20,000 sq ft of trading space, which opened at the end of April.

The group’s ultimate aim is to be the leading independent department store group in the UK.

I’ve been with Morleys just shy of three months now and, so far, our AIS membership has been a very useful tool to get in touch with the right people within the supply chain. The FOB lines the AIS team puts forward are great – really strong selections followed by a smooth ordering process. The fantastic head office team is always willing to talk, and they go out of their way to get answers for you.

Thanks to AIS supporting myself and the Morleys toy department through the FOB programme, we've now got a strong selection of products that we would not necessarily have access to or be able to purchase otherwise. Another advantage of AIS membership is that we get better margins, as membership gives us smaller retailers buying power as a group.

The retail market is tough overall, but our toy departments are performing very well. We’re actually seeing sales numbers that are slightly better than last year, which we are very pleased with. Outdoor toys has been up and down due to the weather, but even so this is currently one of our best performing ranges due to the AIS FOB programme, which includes a great outdoor toy selection. Our diecast car range also performs strongly, mainly with the Simba Smoby lines.

I’m excited to visit my first INDX Toy and Gift show this September, as it promises to be a great opportunity to source the latest introductions for autumn/winter and offers us the opportunity to negotiate directly with suppliers. We’ll be looking out for anything that's going to be a top toy for Christmas, as well as volume drivers and ranges where we can offer a point of difference – anything that we can jump on to that the bigger chains maybe haven’t got in stock yet. As an independent, family run business, we're able to react very quickly to trends.

Another reason it's good to be an AIS member is being able to collaborate with the other partners, for example visiting previews from the big suppliers. We have previews lined up with Hasbro, Mattel, MGA, Spin Master and Lego, which I’m really looking forward to.

Talking Shop

Most of our suppliers are very supportive with what we do as a bricks and mortar store and are keen to help us present their products in the best way possible. We've got collaborations this year, for example, with new in store POS support from a selection of suppliers, including Lego, Mattel, Clementoni, Learning Resources and One For Fun.

We’re always looking to develop our toy department; one of the ways we’re currently looking to do this is to build on our kids’ stationery offering, as well as kids’ cosmetics and books. We’re going to extend our Science and STEM offering as well, as this is an area that has proved very popular with customers, We’re in talks with Learning Resources, Clementoni and Thames and Kosmos.

We’re currently focusing on the Paddington brand to support the upcoming movie launch. We're working with Rainbow Designs on licensed toy products, and Paddington will also be found in a mixture of departments throughout the store – we’ll be offering everything from mugs to marmalade! Having a strong theme throughout all departments helps to bring everything in the store together - and also guide people to the toy department. It’s a great way to make the store a fun place to visit, and we also host location-specific events, such as our Wimbledon store getting behind tennis related product.

We're looking at other launches; for example, we’re working with Aardman for a Wallace and Gromit event at Christmas. We work with publishers too to support book releases with in-store events; we’re planning a Tiger Came to Tea theme with HarperCollins. We can also work in conjunction with our in-store restaurants as part of an overall store takeover, offering a special menu to fit the theme. We host amazing store events with complimentary food, drink and activity in-store for every department. We even have Father Christmas attend our Christmas Shopping Party! Our stores are family friendly with the cafes, baby changing areas, dog friendly and have helpful staff.

We’re working hard on the eCommerce side of things, getting emails out and using social media to tell people about our events, activities and product launches. We’re using Instagram and TikTok to highlight trends that will increase footfall in store. We’re making things more exciting on social media with in-store content, as this will attract customers and increase familiarity to mirror their wonderful experience in store – to view their shopping trip more like a day out than a chore. We also have a rewards programme which rewards our customers for every purchase with points they can redeem against a purchase, and we gift them 500 points (£5 equivalent) for their birthday month. People can probably buy 90% of the products we stock online, but what we can offer is in store theatre: activities and events, beautiful displays and personal customer service.

Andrew Addley SMF Toytown, Northern Ireland

Ipersonally find the INDX Toy & Gift Show very beneficial. It’s a once-a-year opportunity to meet all the company principals in one place for a couple of days. Currently, especially post-Covid, interaction mainly happens online over Microsoft

Julie Sharred

Planters Garden Centre, Tamworth

Being an AIS member is a huge benefit, especially being able to attend the INDX Toy Fair and take advantage of offers on products we like. Suppliers we have gained through AIS include Gibsons, and we already carry ranges from several other AIS suppliers, such as plush from Rainbow Designs as well as Lego, Playmobil and Epoch, who we’ll be able to catch up with at the show.

As a garden centre, the majority of our customers are focused on their gardens during the summer and gifts aren’t a priority, so we cut back on bigger ticket items and keep a good stock of pick-up lines and special offers. We offer a range of Lego – mainly the smaller sets up to £30, but the exception to this is the Lego Botanical sets, which are slightly more expensive but very strong sellers. We also carry a collection of plush from Keel Toys, and puzzles continue to sell well – especially Ravensburger’s Disney Fantasia puzzles at the moment.

Outdoor toy sales always pick up when the kids break

Teams or Zoom, so it’s good to have face-to-face meetings as these can’t fully be replaced by technology. While it’s sometimes convenient to have meetings online, face-toface conversations enable toy trade members to discuss important business matters in more depth – and at the INDX show, they can also look at deals that are on offer for AIS members exclusively.

AIS supports its members with plenty of advice, as well as in-store promotional material. The organisation is very skilled at working with suppliers, finding out which items are selling and making sure that members are aware of the top sellers and what’s out there in the market. Here at SMF Toys, we are fortunate to have a good relationship with suppliers directly, and they provide immense support for us that way too.

We are delighted to be trading up on sales from last year, as we’ve noticed from talking to other retailers and suppliers that the current situation for the market is tough. The cost-of-living crisis has affected everybody and had a noticeable impact on lot of businesses. Everybody knows that April is a difficult month. May was a bit better, and we finally saw things picking up in June. We’re hoping that better weather will increase sales and we’re waiting to see what the rest of the summer holds.

Customers are coming to stores looking for bargains and that is where we must make sure that we have the right products on offer, at the right prices. Everybody in the trade is talking about how there isn’t a craze in the toy sector at the minute. However, what we’re finding is that there are a lot of key ranges that have been seeing plenty of success – we’re doing well at keeping up with current trends and meeting consumer demand. Lego Icons, Lego Speed Champions and Lego Flowers are all selling well, while Mattel’s Hot Wheels has also been excellent. Funko has been another great addition to our shelves because it covers the teenage and kidult market, and WWE, along with Squishmallows, is still very strong. Topps’ football cards have been highly popular thanks to the Euros 2024, and we’ve also seen an increase in sales in the TCG category.

We’re also seeing nostalgic ranges such as Bandai’s Littlest Pet Shop and Hello Kitty making a huge comeback with very strong sales. We not only try to make sure that we’ve got stock of what customers are looking for, but we also aim to provide the best value products. In-store promotions are offered whenever possible; whether it’s a gift with a purchase or just making sure that we have good value items on promotion, and this has helped us maximise sales.

up from school: products such as bats and balls, bubbles and footballs are popular year in, year out. We stock an extensive range of cheaper outdoor toys that customers can add to their trolley as they visit us for other things.

Situated on the main pathway of the garden centre, our toy and gift area will always be directly in front of customers – they can’t miss it and we hope to attract customers who came for other things but saw some good deals, or a child who spotted a toy they like. We have engaging displays; mainly created in-house but sometimes with supplier-provided POS solutions. If there is a nice FSDU being offered to show off a promotion, we’ll use that.

The INDX Toy and Gift show is very convenient for us as we’re located close to Cranmore Park where it takes place. It’s always worth attending to check out the offers or extra discounts that you can only get at the show. This year, we just want to see what’s new or what’s different at the show. Our toy area isn’t very large, and we don’t have much flexibility to expand. It’s important therefore for us to source the right mix of products that will make the best use of the space and sell at attractive prices for our customers – ideally with an attractive margin for us too.

Talking Shop

Emma Gray

Toll Clock Toys, Bolt’s Shetland

indie viewpoint

AAn AIS membership offers numerous benefits, with the primary advantage being centralised invoicing. This system simplifies administration, meaning we can manage our time more effectively and ensure quicker payments to suppliers. The AIS Hub is another invaluable resource, providing a comprehensive list of member suppliers, their contact information and invoicing data, allowing us to identify successful suppliers for collaboration.

AIS membership also offers settlement discounts on timely invoice payments and access to supplier promotions. The AIS group is incredibly supportive; following a recent management change, we received a visit from Andrew, an AIS representative, here in the Shetland Islands. His visit demonstrated AIS’ commitment to independent retailers and helped him understand our setup better.

Rosie from AIS helped put us in contact with the suppliers we missed at the Toymaster show in May, enabling us to place orders with them. AIS staff can also recommend suitable suppliers for new product ranges, saving us significant research time.

After a quiet spell in May, the children are now on their summer holidays here, so business is picking up again and we’re seeing an increase in customers. Our store, which is located in a prime spot in Lerwick’s shopping centre, benefits from increased footfall during the tourist season, especially from cruise ship visitors. This is when we can tap into that market and sell souvenirs such as puffins, Shetland ponies and highland cows in large quantities, as well as treats for the kids from our core toy range.

Bolt’s Shetland has been established for over 30 years and Toll Clock Toys moved in five years ago. We use social media and Amazon to engage customers, an approach which is reflected in our increased in-store and online traffic. Having moved into the new premises during covid, we still have customers saying they didn’t know there was a toy shop here, so as well as social media we also rely on word of mouth. Sales figures have increased significantly since last year, which demonstrates that we are fulfilling our customers’ needs, making sure we are well stocked, and keeping up to date with the latest trends. It is really important for us to offer an enjoyable customer experience, giving shoppers a good choice of products when they visit the shop. Offering an extensive range of toys/games, combined with our personal service, gives us the opportunity to compete with any online retailer.

Since taking on this role, I’ve revamped the shop, dedicating a popular area to Lego, which is our top seller, particularly the Harry Potter sets. Within this area, we also created an area solely for affordable sets priced up to £20, which continues to be extremely popular among customers buying birthday presents and children spending their pocket money. Hot Wheels and Squishmallows also dominate sales. In games, Battle Ships, Uno No Mercy and Cluedo are bestsellers, and collectibles such as Pokémon, Putty Pals by Slime Party, Aphmau from Character Options and Eugy from Brainstorm are performing well too.

We have excellent relationships with suppliers, with Mattel, Big Potato Games and Character Options standing out for their exceptional customer service. We look forward to working with new suppliers including Funko. With exciting plans for the shop, we anticipate a busy Halloween and Christmas season which will bring in significant trade.

Mark Buschhaus and Stephen Barnes

Toy Barnhaus

The highs and the lows

WWe sit here writing this column the day after we found out that football was still not coming home! Although in the end this wasn’t really a surprise, the feelgood factor of a run to the final of Euro 2024 did help boost spirits and has certainly helped with sales of football related merchandise over the past month.

Trade has been mixed, although overall we are happy with the past few months. We have fallen into a pattern of having several good weeks of trade, followed by a couple of tough weeks. However, so far, things have balanced out – and we hope that continues. June was a flat month for us, whilst July has been a bit tougher, albeit against strong figures from last year.

That said, there are signs of new lines starting to gain some traction. The 5 Surprise My Mini Baby range has sold extremely well over the past month, and we are waiting for more stock to arrive. The latest Pokémon TCG launch, Twilight Masquerade, has been the best in a while and has boosted sales of trading cards. Some of the latest Lego launch lines have proved extremely popular, including the Lego Star Wars Captain Rex Y-wing Microfighter and Lego Simba the Lion King Cub. Film releases have helped sales this summer; so far, we’ve had Inside Out 2 and then Minions, and early signs on both are strong.

Plush has been a big growth category for us, increasing by 50% over the last five years. Collectability has been one of the major features of this growth, and it’s no surprise that the standout brand is Squishmallows. The collectability factor has greatly increased sales to teenagers and the kidult market. This is the first year where we have seen a decline in plush, although it remains one of our biggest categories, second only to Lego.

Squishmallows has slowed down slightly in the generic options, but the licensed SKUs are proving very popular. Stitch, Harry Potter and Sonic have all been in demand, and there are plenty more exciting new licences being released over the coming months. A new plush range that has proven especially popular recently is Food Bobballs from Keel Toys. These have only been in store for a couple of months, but are very well priced and tapping into the mini food collectible craze this is very on trend at the moment. Ty remains a major supplier, and as prices have come down on many lines, this has really helped sales. We have large Ty branded stands in several of our stores and they really stand out as a feature – and hold a lot of cuddly toys. STEM and Educational toys is another category that has grown for us over the past few years, as parents look to help support their children’s learning in fun ways. We have increased the range of products we carry in this area. The Numberblocks range from Learning Resources is particularly popular – a strong licensed range that is very focused on learning, whilst providing fun at the same time. We carry a range of science and learning kits from suppliers like Galt and Clementoni, along with microscopes, telescopes and globes. These are core evergreen bestseller lines that we keep in all year round.

Let’s see what the school summer holidays bring – hopefully another uplift in footfall and sales.

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TOY & GIFT

INDX toys and gifts galore

This year, INDX Toy & Gift will take place in the autumn for the first time. Is this date change predicted to be permanent?

The decision to hold the show in September was made in collaboration with the industry and driven by feedback from suppliers and retailers. We will continue forward in this calendar slot: the dates for next year are already confirmed, 2nd to 3rd September 2025. We want to support all year-round trading, and the September show dates will help suppliers and buyers to strategise beyond the Christmas period, maximising on annual sales - not just seasonal ones. As the only dedicated toy trade show taking place in the autumn, the INDX Toy & Gift show will be a unique opportunity to stock up for the Christmas period and preview upcoming products for the year ahead.

This means INDX Toy & Gift will be overlapping with Autumn Fair. What has been the feedback from visitors hoping to attend both shows?

This decision has been seen as a positive move. As Cranmore Park is only a few minutes’ drive from Autumn

The 2024 edition of INDX Toy & Gift will be held at Cranmore Park from the 3rd to 4th September. Rosie Marshall, head of Toys and Children’s Gifts at AIS and leader of the team responsible for curating the show, spoke with Toy World about the upcoming event, revealing what visitors can expect this year.

Fair, which will held at the NEC Birmingham from the 1st to 4th September, visitors will easily be able to attend both events. This will make the trip to the Midlands more meaningful and time-efficient, also reducing travel expenses for retailers.

The INDX Toy & Gift exhibitor line-up is very different from that of the Autumn Fair; we have a range of exhibitors that will suit all kinds of buyers, from garden centres and toy specialists to leisure attractions. These include Character Options, Spin Master, Brainstorm, Ravensburger and The Carat Shop.

AIS is known to be open to feedback, is the team planning to share post-show reactions?

After each show, we send feedback surveys to all exhibitors and visitors. The results from these surveys are collated and published on our INDX website. Our priority is to continue to bring exhibitors and retailers an authentic trade show which meets their business needs, and this feedback is invaluable in ensuring we develop and evolve in line with their requirements.

The theme of the show for 2024 is ‘heritage’. Why was this theme chosen and what will it look like in practice?

Visitors can look forward to taking a nostalgic trip down memory lane, and we will be highlighting key suppliers and beloved branded ranges cherished over generations. These include Gibsons, Galt and Playmobil, to name a few.

Once again, exhibitors and visitors can get involved in the INDX Toy & Gift Quiz Night.

Do you feel after-show events like this are important for a tradeshow?

After a busy first day of the show, it’s important to be able to have time to unwind and relax. The Quiz Night is a great way to bring everyone together. It’s hosted by an award-winning Quiz Master and held at a lovely local pub, only a couple of minutes’ drive from Cranmore Park. The INDX Toy & Gift Quiz Night is an opportunity for exhibitors and visitors to get together informally and have some fun. It’s lively, engaging and of course there’s a great competitive spirit among the teams. It’s something that everyone looks forward to every year.

And finally, what does INDX Toy & Gift offer that other toy tradeshows don’t?

First and foremost, INDX Shows are exclusively organised by Associated Independent Stores (AIS) – one of the UK’s leading buying, services and events groups for independent retail. Furthermore, INDX Shows take place at Cranmore Park, our own exhibition venue which is centrally located, easy to get to and offers unrivalled hospitality. This includes free refreshments and free parking for all visitors and exhibitors. INDX Toy & Gift is buyer approved and curated by a team of inhouse product and retail experts, ensuring visitors enjoy a commercially authentic product showcase, featuring top brands and driven by market trends and insight. INDX Toy & Gift is renowned for its order-writing status and quality attendance. Access to the show is strictly reserved for retailers and buyers, and 100% of visitor registrations are vetted to guarantee a professional, business orientated show. We look forward to seeing you there.

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Opinion How the Learning category got smarter Rick Derr

After 20 years working at A.C. Nielsen/D&B Research Company, Rick opened the first Learning Express Toys franchise in the Chicago area in 1996, and then became a sub-franchiser, opening 10 more stores. Although leaving the corporate environment behind, he has combined his expertise in data and numbers with a passion for the toy retail space. This month, Rick looks at the development of toy products with a science, STEM or learning focus.

Iremember first opening our toy store, where the Science category was made up of just a few items in rather drab packaging, and most were items you saw in schools. This included microscopes, telescopes, metal detectors, rock tumblers and kits that featured basic experiments. Well, this has certainly changed over the years.

The term STEM, an approach to learning and development that integrates the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, was introduced in 2001 by the National Science Foundation and coined by Judith Ramaley, who was a director at the foundation and reordered the words from SMET to STEM. While our economy and work processes were evolving due to the internet, and the systems and skills needed to support this transformation, the education community became more involved in revamping learning by incorporating STEM into curriculums. Job growth in the US for STEM type careers grew three times faster from 2000-2010 than non-STEM jobs. By 2012, toys were becoming more evolved and were called out for helping build the skills of tomorrow. STEM.org is the longest running organization to have products credentialed by the STEM attributes since 2001. Others have also appeared like the The Toy Association, which has broadened the definition to STEAM, including the Arts.

Letter from America

As the movement has edged forward, some say the term STEM has been overused, in terms of defining toy products. In fact, I often comment that customers do not walk in our store and ask for a STEM product. Rather they ask for toys that are fun and teach skills in the fields of maths and science or look for toys to help build a particular skill, like spatial recognition, increasing challenges, biology or creativity. This is where the modern-day parent is and where we need to be as a retailer. No seal on a box will replace an educated associate that can help select the right product for the skills needed in a child. However, packaging, videos and information regarding what a product does is critical, and many manufacturers have stepped up their game in this regard.

A standout for me is Elenco Electronics, which has a rich history of STEM products. As time passed, the company missed the mark in its packaging and explaining to today’s kids how fun and educational its products are. Then came 2022 and a relaunch – with new ideas, new management and more play value added to the company’s products that kids can relate to today. The relaunch of Elenco’s Snap Circuit line in 2023 is on track to once again become a major player in the science and learning world of products. The redesigned Elenco line-up includes new low price kits that kids can use after creating.

Thames & Kosmos also has a rich history, but for us has always been a Q4 brand as the more expensive science sets would mostly be sold at the holiday time. This changed a few years ago as this company transformed ideas into products that kids found more fun. Gumball Machines, Gecko remote controls, Hydraulic Arms and the latest introduction, Gecko Run, a marble run with a no-mess setup and flexible pieces that stick to a wall or surface much like a gecko—hence the name.

The packaging tells the story, with vibrant graphics supported by in store displays as well as social media that is top notch; now this is a year-round range that sells at a high rate at competitive prices. No longer just holiday sales, this is a win-win for suppliers and retailers. In 2019, Thames & Kosmos ranked 47th in yearly sales in my store. Last year it was No.19.

I’ll end with a shoutout to one of the icons in the science field who strives to make learning fun and is a true ambassador for making science cool: Bill Nye, the Science Guy, who has leant his name to products in this sector. Do you know how he got that nickname? His professional career in entertainment began when he had to correct the pronunciation of Almost Live’s show host for the word “gigawatt” pronouncing it “jigowatt.” The host of the local comedy sketch show in Seattle replied, “Who do you think you are—Bill Nye the Science Guy?” which earned him this moniker.

Company Profile

Commotion

Ticking all the boxes

Commotion has been selling educational toys for over 40 years, and the rigorous criteria it imposes on its own design and development, as well as how it chooses new brands and selects specific products, is key to the company’s global success. Toy World’s Caroline Tonks sat down with CEO, James Shepherd, to find out about Commotion’s ranges, its move into the retail sector and more.

ommotion is dedicated to providing the global market with high-quality, educational products that inspire creativity and learning in children. Originally an educational supplier to schools and nurseries, it continuously innovates and improves its products to meet the everchanging needs of children and parents, with product development the highest priority within the company. Now, Commotion is branching out into the retail market, with increasing success.

So far this year, sales have increased, as the brand develops a strong reputation in the industry. According to CEO James Shepherd, there are positives and negatives to being a global business. “Our core business in the UK is performing well, particularly with our key accounts, so we are really pleased,” says James. Commotion is also seeing growth in the US, Canada and Australia, but is

finding it tougher in Europe, where changes in the Italian market have had a significant impact.

“The Italian side of the business has been difficult because last year, the Italian government received funding from the European Union for children in nurseries and schools, which was about €200m,” he explains. Nurseries and schools make up a significant part of Commotion’s core clientele. “When I speak to my colleagues in different businesses, they say the same thing, that Italy has become a major challenge.”

Despite this hurdle, it’s been a strong year for Commotion, albeit a transitional one. The company has invested heavily into organisation and logistics and is starting to see the fruits of its labour, looking at a wide variety of new distribution opportunities in preparation for the next three years.

“There are two parts of our business,” says James. “We have our own Tickit brand and we also distribute other companies’ products, such as PolarB by Viga, with whom we’ve had a relationship for a number of years.” When selecting new distribution ranges to add to its portfolio, Commotion looks for key features such as educational value, durability, safety standards and unique design. “We picked around 35 products to distribute that we think are the best from Viga, and these sit very well within our business and alongside Tickit,” James adds. Commotion is already taking orders for PolarB, which is set to land on 1st September.

The Tickit range offers a wide variety of educational toys that cater to

Company Profile

different age groups and learning needs and is focused on innovative and engaging designs that capture children’s imaginations.

Commotion tests every product in real-life nursery settings. “When you go into a nursery environment, you will often find that kids play with your products in a very different way than you’d anticipated,” adds James. “Whatever we think children will do with our product, they end up doing something different, which is really beautiful and great for us. It’s encouraging to see multiplay, with lots of children using, and in a way abusing, the products.”

To stand up to such robust usage, the quality needed is beyond what would normally be found in a retail store for everyday use in the home, and the team at Commotion want to make sure this level of quality is communicated to consumers. “We don’t price it that way, but we feel it’s important to reinforce the educational components of our products and their high quality,” says James. “We don’t get product sent back to us. I believe when you’re producing toys for children, they have to be at the highest level.”

As Commotion works closely with nurseries and schools to test its products, consumers can be confident they do exactly what they’re supposed to. And although the open play process allows children to use its products how they choose, there are still core educational benefits. “We get lots of product feedback and try and ascertain what people are really looking for,” says James. “We’re constantly looking at what we have that we can extend and what we can move into. We’ve worked on a lot of range extensions and will continue to do so.”

Commotion relaunched Tickit at the back end of last year, and at the next Spielwarenmesse in Nuremberg, the company will unveil a new booth and all new packaging, along with the latest development of its product range, all designed to appeal to the retail customer. “We need more people to have access to our products; that’s been a big push for us this year and will continue to be for the next three years,” emphasises James. “The new packaging we’re introducing will open up our business to additional stores and distribution.” Commotion has taken its old packaging style - a plain carboard box with a simple design on the front - and elevated it with lots of colour and imagery. With a focus on expanding into retail, consumers will soon see more of Commotion’s products on shelves in stores. “We love working with all our partners and there will be lots of branded initiatives with them – we’ve got various campaigns up our sleeves,” adds James. “Fundamentally, we wanted to make sure we were in a position where if somebody wanted to stock the product and put it on the shelf where customers could touch it, feel it and buy it, they could.” By the end of this year, the

majority of Commotion’s key products will be available in the new store-friendly packaging.

James wants to continue the push to increase awareness of Commotion and Tickit, investing in marketing channels including digital advertising, social media campaigns and collaborations with influencers. “We’ve changed our branding, redesigned the website and we’ve started to work much more closely with our key partners, producing partnership brochures and trade brochures; something we’ve never done before to promote Tickit,” he says. James wants to continue this forwards momentum and engage with customers at the source and through trade partners. “Supporting the trade, not just promoting our products on our website, is so important. Our partners have really appreciated that.”

James is keen for the team to focus not just on performance, but improvement. He tells us: “Some businesses have a tendency to sit on what they’ve already done and think that’s enough. We always want to know what we can

do better. How can we give a toy more educational benefits?” To this end, Commotion has extended its team in Europe to gain connections and speak to more people. “We’re at more shows than we’ve ever been before - and not just from a UK, but also a European point of view. From forging these connections, we’re asked to produce new lines, because people have faith in what we do. Sometimes it’s a product that is already available on the market, but the quality isn’t at the right level, so we’re asked to develop it. It’s all about making sure we’re close to the consumer.”

Commotion receives a lot of feedback, not only from nurseries, schools and fellow companies, but also from parents, who say they appreciate the quality of Commotion’s products and the longevity they offer; toys that will be passed down through the generations. “This feedback is something we consider when developing our products and explaining what they do,” explain James. “It’s a valuable resource. The amount of information we get back through our social media platforms is amazing.”

Sustainability is of the utmost importance to Commotion when choosing ranges to add to its portfolio. It strives to work with suppliers who prioritise eco-friendly materials and production processes and is committed to reducing its environmental impact and promoting sustainable practices in the toy industry.

“It is important that all our products are ethically sourced. We know our factories, we know the people who work there, and we know how our products are made,” James explains. Commotion produces most of its product offering in China, and he is not ashamed to admit that. “A lot of people look down on it, but we have worked with these factories for many years and have somebody who works for us who lives in China, visiting the factories on our behalf.”

Commotion believes in its products in terms of quality and sustainability, and its range has just been FSC-certified. “We’re dealing with customers and markets that absolutely require it,” states James. “If you want to trade and do business in France or the Nordics, then the reality is that you have to show that your products are ethically sourced and you are an ethical business, and we most definitely are.”

The company is also on the acquisition trail at the moment, so is looking for more businesses that align with its core values that it can bring into the Commotion family. “We’re excited to see what we’re going to do there,” James concludes, “but suppliers we work with have to tick all of our boxes, including sustainability and all the things we’ve been working so hard to achieve.”

Feature Plush it Let’southug

The Plush supercategory is outperforming the overall Toys & Games market, driven by innovative new launches, a strong focus on collectability and the introduction of standout themes and trends that have consumers lining up to get their hands on (or arms around) the latest cute and cuddly companions. Rachael Simpson-Jones speaks to a selection of leading Plush suppliers about how they’re keeping their ranges at the forefront of consumer minds as well as how they’re supporting retailers with display solutions and more.

Plush is lush, according to Circana. In an otherwise challenging year, it’s a major growth category and one that retailers of all sizes are enjoying success with. In fact, it’s been the top-gaining supercategory for several years, generating an additional +£23m since 2021. Traditional Plush is the hero subclass, coming in second only to Construction Toys in terms of speed of growth, adding +£2.76m in value since June 2023 YTD. Circana’s Emilie Erktan reveals in this month’s column (pages 32-33) that for the first half of 2024, the Top 10 best-selling assortments in the total UK toy market were plushgenerating an impressive 19% of total market sales overall. Squishmallows remains at the forefront of the Plush revolution, in large part thanks to its huge, extremely passionate fanbase. Holly Oldham, managing director UK & European Distributors at Jazwares, explains that the emotional connection fans have to Squishmallows, and the community the brand has built, play a crucial role in maintaining strong sales despite reduced consumer spending. Frequent ‘Squish Drops’ - new waves of product - and strategic collaborations are keeping the brand

fresh and exciting as demand for the cute and cuddly characters shows no sign of slowing down.

“The Squishmallows brand is committed to continuously innovating and expanding our product lines to ensure we surprise fans and keep them engaged,” says Holly. “Additionally, we are expanding our licensing partnerships to include more beloved franchises and emerging trends, both to remain fresh and allow us to appeal to a broad audience. Q3/Q4 will welcome two very exciting new launches: Squish-a-longs and Micromallows. Squish-a-longs offers kids a range of 1” scale Squishmallows made from a new squishy material, while Micromallows is a 2.5” Blind and Multipack plush range. This will launch with substantial marketing support behind it, targeted primarily at the younger Squishmallows fan as well as our dedicated squad of Squishmallows collectors.”

While Squishmallows is now an established plush player, new brands are fuelling sales in a major way, with Zuru’s Snackles range of adorable plush characters that come holding their favourite licensed foods making its way into Circana’s Top 5 Gaining Properties (YTD June

2023/24). Will Collinson, who was recently promoted to general manager, Zuru UK & Europe following the company’s significant UK success, tells us that Snackles has become the No. 1 new property in the UK market thanks to two main factors: Zuru’s strategic partnerships with on-trend licences and the expansion of its character assortment to include unique and whimsical creatures. He says: “Unconventional characters such as axolotls, once obscure, are now trending and are set to dominate the toy market in 2025.”

Indeed, hot licences and on-trend characters are arguably the two most important elements of any topperforming Plush range out there in the marketplace, and consumers also can’t seem to get enough of anything that could be deemed kawaii (a Japanese term encompassing objects that are especially cute, childlike and happinessinducing) or food-themed. Keel Toys new Snackies range comprises snack-size collectible characters, while PMS International’s Softlings Foodies line offers kids more than 50 delicious styles in a range of sizes, as well as seasonal and themed sub-collections.

Seeking to answer the growing calls for new anime

Feature

Plush

product, Posh Paws has developed a brand-new plush IP called Kawaii Kuties. Kawaii Kuties plush bag clips launched in April and have already sold over 75,000 units, with repeat retailer orders coming in weekly. Posh Paws is understandably very excited to now be rolling out its larger 10” characters. Posh Paws isn’t the only supplier making the most of kawaii fever this year either. KAP Toys is celebrating Hello Kitty’s 50th anniversary year with the launch of its Hello Kitty Squishii plush range. Each of the eight squishy, slow-rise characters is scented, dressed in a themed outfit, and comes in a cute box with a collectible sticker.

Rainbow Designs, meanwhile, is eagerly awaiting the big-screen release of Paddington in Peru. The company’s Paddington plush range will play straight into the hands of fans seeking new ways to show their love for the little brown bear, who enjoys a prominent position among Rainbow’s suite of classic characters. While the company’s collections are based on some of the most well-known and muchloved characters from children’s literature, such as Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit, Disney’s Winnie the Pooh and, of course, Paddington, Rainbow regularly adds complementary licences or sub-licences to its portfolio. For this year, the company is launching its new Disney Baby Lion King and Harry Potter Wizarding World ranges, both of which inject fresh, contemporary product designs and new formats to the range, which nonetheless remains firmly traditional.

to offer their customers, but an age-old issue remains –how best to display them in store. While many Interactive & Feature Plush come in boxes (which while neat, can still be bulky), loose plush can pose something of a challenge, becoming easily disorganised once kids have had a rummage and leaving shelves looking dishevelled.

Happily, many suppliers are coming up with innovative POS solutions that help retailers keep their plush assortments looking their best, such as Ty with its branded stands (as highlighted by Stephen Barnes in this month’s Indie Viewpoint on page 38).

effectively. The company offers its retailers a range of both permanent and semi-permanent FSDUs, some of which are single character branded and some of which support multi brands. Many of Posh Paws’ ranges also come in CDU or display boxes, while its plush bag clips are also supported by clip-strip solutions. Key ranges such as Kawaii Kuties or the company’s anime plush range are also available with FSDUs, so retailers have the option to display them off-shelf, turning them into a stand-out feature in-store.

Posh Paws is going even further to ramp up the excitement for Kawaii Kuties by running one of its biggest ever marketing campaigns in partnership with influential family and teen content creators to bring the brand to life across TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.

On the flip side, there are several new introductions in the Interactive & Feature Plush sub-category. Animals continue to dominate here, offering kids an array of fun and functional pets. Golden Bear’s Curlimals brand expands with the addition of Mummy & Mimi, a mumand-baby hedgehog duo that introduces new patterns to the best-selling IP. Ideal for more nurturing play, Character Options is also undertaking a brand expansion with its new Fingerlings Care ‘N’ Cuddles Monkey, which features over 150 sounds and reactions, while IMC Toys welcomes the Love & Care Labradoodle to its Baby Paws range. The Labradoodle will react to commands and makes over 15 sounds and puppy noises for added realism. Eolo is introducing a new pet pal for kids with its Pixel Hugs range, which combines the cuddly comfort of plush with the world of video games and pixel aesthetics, and Just Play’s FurReal brand welcomes Daisy the Yoga Goat, who assumes yoga poses and farts when she’s relaxed. And if relaxation isn’t your thing, try Screamerz from Simba Smoby – they scream at you when you squeeze them.

All these new launches offer retailers plenty of newness

Jazwares provides a variety of POS solutions to help retailers effectively display Squishmallows. According to Holly Oldham, smaller ranges are merchandised in branded CDUs while a huge out of aisle programme sees core, seasonal and licensed Squishmallows displayed in more creative ways to drive excitement and sell through. She adds: “FSDUs and dump bins allow for increased, off fixture brand presence, highlighting new Squish Drops to customers in a space efficient way. This programme continues to grow in 2024 due to the great success we are seeing at retail.”

Will Collinson explains that Zuru understands the importance of maintaining a clean and organised shopping environment, an understanding that has inspired its best-selling Coco Cones pocket money plush range. Each cute character is nestled inside a cardboard cone (think of an ice-cream cone, only the ice-cream is furry) with two extra surprises to discover inside. “Coco Cones not only offers aesthetic and giftable qualities but also minimises store clutter typically associated with bulk plush items,” he says. “By considering the retailer’s perspective, we’re able to enhance the on-shelf presence and improve the overall shopping experience.”

Rainbow Designs recommends using its CDUs or FSDUs to display its plush ranges both neatly and

“We are working with some of the most popular and creative influencers on fun and engaging Kawaii Kuties content,” explains Lauren Shipman, Brand & Marketing director, Posh Paws. “Their fanbases are the perfect fit for the brand and will engage with the content they produce and further increase the reach of the campaign. Aligned with the influencer activity, we’ll also be running paid Instagram, Facebook and TikTok adverts across feeds and stories, to further amplify the influencercreated content created as well as our own Kawaii Kuties product branded content. The latter will be available for retailers to use, increasing the reach of our marketing activity and creating more buzz for the brand.”

Following a May half-term retail activation that visited seven locations around the UK and saw visitors lining up for their chance to take part in the interactive games, giveaways, selfie moments and memorable mascot meet & greets, Jazwares is placing substantial marketing and retail support behind Squishmallows as it heads into Q3/4.

“This includes robust advertising campaigns across digital and social, with a significant focus on our top tier TikTok influencer collaborations,” details Holly. “We are also investing in exciting experiential marketing events and strategic collaborations to amplify our reach and engagement. Organic social media content remains a crucial driver of sales, as it fosters authentic links within our passionate community. Squishmallows is a collectible phenomenon - a plush and lifestyle brand which has forged a connection with people of all ages. Each plush in the range is designed with fans in mind, ensuring we are delivering the styles and licences that customers really want to see.”

Over the following pages, Toy World brings readers the latest cute, cuddly and comforting plush toys to hit the market.

Plush

Bandai UK

020 8324 6160 | www.bandai.co.uk | sales@bandai.co.uk

As master toy licensee for popular pre-school property Pip and Posy, Bandai’s collection of plush lines is inspired by the best friends’ colourful world and brings their many imaginative adventures to life via its Clip-On Plush, Plush Friends and Talking Plush. The Pip and Posy Talking Plush, a hero line, offers fans of the show 35cm versions of the characters in soft, high-quality velboa, each with their own instantly recognisable soft toys. The Talking Plush toys feature sounds, phrases and a clip of the theme from the series.

With a sub-£10 price-point, Plush Friends depicts Pip, Posy, Zak, Jamilla and Frankie in their everyday outfits, making them perfect as soft cuddle companions for younger children. Clip-On Plush is proving a successful format for Bandai: its Pip and Posy range includes five 13cm plush characters complete with a bag clip for accessorising and on the go play.

The Sonic Prime plush lines surpassed forecast targets for the autumn/ winter 2023 launch period. With the third installment of Sonic Prime launching later this year, and the Sonic the Hedgehog 3 theatrical movie planned for the end of the year, the range continues with a refreshed look and additional character introductions. The 13cm Clip On Plush line includes six favourite Sonic Prime characters, perfect for attaching to backpacks and school bags, while the Sonic 30cm Plush Backpack comes with a soft, velboa body and zip for storing must-have items.

Pudgy Penguins is brought to life with Bandai’s plush ranges. Originating from NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens), the cute penguin designs are available as blind-boxed Clip-On soft toys, Plush Buddies and Huggable Plush. The 13cm Clip On plush range includes six different Pudgy Penguin characters to collect, while the 20cm Plush Buddies assortment comprises four popular designs and the 30cm Huggable Plush line offers a further four characters to collect. Each of the lines includes a QR code that lets kids unlock traits and create their characters at pudgyworld.com.

Two new plush lines have been added to Bandai’s Miraculous cross-category portfolio. Ladybug’s Miraculous is brought to life with the Talking Tiki. This 25cm cuddly, squishy plush makes the positive and happy sounds and phrases the character makes in the show: kids can simply cuddle or squeeze the Talking Tiki to hear her ‘speak’.

Tapping into the collectible expanding plush trend, the new Miraball range features collectible character surprise capsules that reveal squishy Miraculous character plushies once opened. The Miraball licensed collection will also include ranges for Paw Patrol, Peppa Pig, My Little Pony, SpongeBob and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, with plans for additional popular licences to follow.

Character Options

0161 633 9800 | www.character-online.com | sales@charactergroup.plc.uk

Character Options’ 2024 plush portfolio is full of cuddly animals, including a new addition to the Fingerlings range and a new Peppa Pig plush line.

The Fingerlings Care ‘N’ Cuddles Monkey is a super-sized feature plush joining the line-up for autumn/winter. This new plush pal comes with innovation and added huggability, but also stays true to the ‘Friendship @ Your Fingertips’ promise of the original toy that won the 2018 Toy of the Year Award. This large-scale interactive Fingerlings Monkey soft toy features over 150 sounds and reactions and comes in an eye-catching purple colour. Unlike many other interactive pets, the Fingerlings Care ‘N’ Cuddles Monkey is ultra soft and squishy, just like any other soft toy, but has all the added play value of an interactive friend. His heart lights up and beats when users play with him. Kids can rock, tickle, feed and burp their baby monkey. He comes with games to play together, such as banana freeze dance and DJ mode, as well as a bedtime lullaby mode, and includes fun accessories: a banana-themed bottle and dummy.

Pre-schoolers can join Peppa in making music with Sing with Me Peppa. This feature plush version of Peppa wears a sparkly red party dress and sings three songs: Big Balloon, The Wheels on the Bus and The Bing Bong Song. There are two modes of play: to sing separately, users can select Karaoke style and bring the microphone to Peppa’s mouth to hear her sing along to the tune. Users can also take the microphone away from Peppa’s mouth and she will magically stop singing to allow them to sing alone. Alternatively, users can sing along with Peppa, duet style.

Basic Fun!

One For Fun

www.oneforfun.com | sales@oneforfun.com

Joining Basic Fun! UK’s Plush portfolio this year is Cotton Candykins. These fluffy, cotton candy-inspired plush come in cotton candy machine packaging that invites kids to spin, reveal and play. When the top of the pack is popped off, kids can create their Cotton Candykins by spinning the capsule and unwrapping the cotton candy tail to reveal the plush inside. From there, kids can make use of the brush and fun accessories to style and customise the cotton candy-scented character. Cotton Candykins is supported with a multiplatform always-on campaign that kicked off on 1st August.

From the world of Misfittens comes Gemstone Misfittens, an all-new theme in the core collection. Each new character is adorned with sparkly embellishments. The new Mini Misfitten Kitten Fishbowls: Mer-Kittens will continue to promote deeper collectability at a lower price. Like the larger versions, these 6” kitties are made of soft, squishable plush. Fans can discover eight mermaid tail designs. Cutetitos Candyitos come at a pocket money price point of sub-£5, driving the collection into yet more hands. There are six to collect, all wrapped up in a pouch-style, holographic wrap pack that delivers the all-important surprise reveal.

There are three new besties to discover in the Care Bears 35cm assortment, each made from 100% recycled materials. True Friend is a uniquely designed Bear with multi-coloured accents and script wording around his belly. Good Wishes Bear has mesmerising fur in swirls of blues, greens and purples, while the eye-catching Be Me Bear is a bright shade of fuchsia. Additionally, a collaboration with Universal’s Monsters sees Basic Fun! produce five Care Bears featuring spooky designs, with Grumpy as Frankenstein, Tenderheart as Dracula, and more.

New this year from One for Fun is Dino Collecto. These adorable soft plush come in a variety of forms. The Dino Collecto Surprise Egg is a glittery egg that hatches to reveal a dinosaur. The soft plush come with a matching surprise sticker and a collector’s guide containing its nickname, birthday, favourite food and more. There are eight to collect and all have sparkly, glittery bodies. There are a further eight Dino Collecto Medium Plush dinosaurs to collect. Each stand 8” tall and has its own personality and characteristics, plus lots of sparkle and glitter. The top of the range is Dino Collecto Hairassic Fantastic. These fashionista dinos feature long hair to style, and each of the six characters comes with their own hairbrush.

The Animigos World of Nature range from Tobar has won acclaim and awards for its lifelike depiction of the world’s animals in plush. This year, even more exotic beasts have joined the range, along with some more familiar animals. Nearly every animal is represented in Animigos World of Nature, which has constant appeal. One animal that is especially on trend is the Axolotl. This endangered aquatic species is now immortalised in plush, with lots of information about them included. Also joining the Axolotl is the Naked Mole Rat. Educational information about each creature is always included in the Animigos World of Nature range, making them more than just a soft toy. There are animated Animigos too, spanning everything from a Flipping Panda or fancy French Bulldog to a Ginger Kitten or Rainbow Unicorn. All have animated features to delight young children.

Dream Beams are plush, glow in the dark characters. Dream Beams have added collectability thanks to their imaginative back stories from the Dream Beams World and an interactive website. Each Dream Beam character has its own personality. They are designed to be cuddly companions with their unique glow in the dark capabilities. These bedtime buddies even glow differently. All Dream Beams characters come in the standard 18cm size, and some are also available in a special 30cm size.

Plush

Zuru

www.zurutoys.com | sales@zuru.com

Zuru’s licensed plush brand, Snackles, is a 24-strong collection of cute, collectible and squishy velour animal characters combined with some of the world’s biggest licensed snack brands.

Tapping into the expanding plush trend, Snackles are available in small blind capsules or as super-sized versions. Each features a mini replica snack and includes a backstory and comic strip to show how they fell in love with their snack. Three new characters and their paired snacks joined the existing line-up earlier this year, while an all-new selection of combinations has been introduced more recently. The latest pairings include Seth the Hershey’s Shark, Whitney the Subway Penguin and Abbie the Krispy Kreme Axolotl.

The popular Rainbocorns universe continues to grow with the introduction of Rainbocorns Adopt-A-Corn Surprise and Rainbocorns Eggzania Fairy Mania. Now in its seventh year, the award-winning Rainbocorns brand has become an evergreen plush staple within Zuru’s portfolio and remains a best-seller within the UK’s Traditional Plush subclass. Currently the No. 3 property in Traditional Plush, and the No. 4 gaining property in this sub-class, demand for the brand continues to be driven by unrivalled play value combined with classic, nurturing themes, favourite animals, fantasy characters and an exciting unboxing experience. As with all Rainbocorns ranges, the new lines are packaged in themed, eye-catching eggs to create immediate impact and appeal on-shelf and feed into the anticipation of a surprise unboxing experience.

Adopt-A-Corns introduces seven cute Rainbocorns babies to collect and care for. Each includes 15 surprises to discover, such as a dummy and adoption certificate. Children can unclip the Adopt-A-Corn out of its nappy packaging and then clip it back in for extended nurturing play. The rare Stella Sloth Adopt-A-Corn provides a chase element for increased collectability appeal and repeat purchase options. Following the success of the Rainbocorns Eggzania range, the Rainbow Eggzania Fairy Mania comprises three large-sized characters to collect, each including 50 surprises such as dress-up fairy wings (so children can match their Rainbocorn), hair bands, bracelets, bubbles and miniature collectible yolkies. In addition, the recently introduced new Rainbocorns in-game, available at Raise A Rainbocorn on Roblox, is proving a huge success, becoming a Top 10 Branded game in May with over 6m plays to date.

Driving a new plush sub-category, Zuru recently launched its Hug-A-Lumps weighted plush companions. Already proving a hit, Hug-A-Lumps combine the comfort of a weighted blanket with the emotional connection forged by a favourite soft toy and are designed to help ease anxieties, assist with calm and focus, and promote relaxation. This affordable line of eight cute and collectible characters, each weighing 1.5kg and made from super soft velour, has tactile features for added sensory benefits.

Robust marketing campaigns, to include digital entertainment partnerships, an always-on YouTube presence, content streaming and influencer collaborations, are in place to support

Eolo Toys is further expanding its interactive plush range with the launch of Pixel Hugs. With a proven track record in the development of innovative toys, the company is confident that the brand will set new standards in the category.

Pixel Hugs is the latest innovation from Eolo, offering an unprecedented blend of interactive and plush features. This new line of robot-inspired interactive pets is designed to provide endless entertainment, fun and companionship for children. With various modes and more than 50 unique interactions and sounds, Pixel Hugs is sure to stand out.

The brand is inspired by the latest trends for kids, merging the world of video games and pixel aesthetics with the timeless appeal of interactive plush toys, targeting a higher age group. This unique combination ensures that Pixel Hugs resonates with contemporary children, blending modern trends with evergreen features. What makes the product stand out from the crowd is its ultra-soft plush material, making it perfectly huggable. Unlike traditional robotic pets with hard plastic materials, Pixel Hugs ensures that children can enjoy the warmth of a plush toy mixed with the excitement of an interactive pet. Combined with unique LED technology, Pixel Hugs’ pets express their feelings and reactions through their eyes, giving them a USP within the market.

Eolo Toys is dedicated to ensuring Pixel Hugs' successful launch and sustained popularity through a comprehensive marketing strategy. Efforts will include engaging social media content, influencer partnerships and interactive videos to generate brand awareness. The PR strategy includes press releases, editorial features and media collaborations to build awareness and credibility for Pixel Hugs. Eolo will also provide TV commercials and other supporting content, enabling customers to leverage the full potential of the toy.

Just Play

www.justplayproducts.com | uksales@justplayproducts.com

The newest interactive pet in Just Play’s FurReal collection is FurReal Daisy the Yoga Goat. Licensed from Hasbro, the latest lifelike animal continues the legacy of the range by providing magical interactions. Inspired by the goat yoga trend, FurReal Daisy the Yoga Goat shakes her tail, blinks her eyes and flows into real yoga poses. This humorous pet has been designed to delight children with her fun goat sounds and make them giggle when she toots. She comes with her own accessories, including a sweat band and water bottle.

Just Play is keeping its Disney Stitch line fresh with new toys inspired by the beloved Disney property. Tipped to be a Christmas best-seller, Crack Me Up Stitch will giggle when kids tickle this feature plush version of the beloved space invader.

Another new addition for autumn/winter 2024 is the highly anticipated Disney Munchlings, which combines delicious treats with beloved Disney characters. Munchlings characters have already amassed millions of views on TikTok. As a key collaborator with Disney for Munchlings, Just Play will serve up a generous helping of collectible feature plush to UK fans.

Just Play’s Disney Junior’s SuperKitties collection includes the 12” Su-Purr Charged Ginny to the Rescue interactive soft toy. Ginny wears a super-charged version of her bright pink superhero suit and there is a light-up heart charm on her chest. Kids can press Ginny’s paw to activate lights and hear SuperKitties phrases.

The Sesame Street Tickle Me Elmo plush toy returns this summer. When kids press Elmo's belly or squeeze either foot, Elmo will giggle and laugh while he wiggles with excitement. Made with super-soft plush fabrics and recycled filling, Tickle Me Elmo is a timeless toy that is perfect for both snuggling and playtime.

IMC Toys’ hit plush pets brand, Baby Paws, welcomes a selection of new introductions as part of the brand’s expansion in 2024. Leading the new additions is the Christmas 2024 must-have, the Baby Paws Love & Care Labradoodle. This charming toy is a larger version of the core Baby Paws puppies and offers a whole host of features.

Just like a real puppy, the Labradoodle will react to commands and makes over 15 sounds and puppy noises for added realism. After being fed with his bottle, he will burp when patted on the back, and when it’s time for bed, children can pop in his dummy, see his eyes close and watch his tummy move up and down while he is sleeping. The Love & Care Labradoodle comes with its own blanket that transforms into a backpack, so children can take their new pup with them when they’re on the go.

Autumn/winter 2024 will also see the core Baby Paws range extend with new Labrador and Kitten characters joining the collection, sitting alongside the popular Cocker Spaniel. As well as being soft and cuddly, each classic Baby Paws character makes five sounds and comes with its own dummy and unique blanket for on-the-go play.

Baby Paws toys are ideal for teaching children about the responsibilities that come with having a pet. Guided by a vet, the Baby Paws app contains a series of mini games that help teach kids how to care for their new puppy or kitten. There are also exclusive accessories within the app that can only be unlocked by owning a Baby Paws pet.

Plush

Simba Smoby

01620 674 778 | sales@simbasmoby.com

Simba’s plush range is varied, with lines inspired by characters from film and TV as well as a wild new collection designed to alarm and entertain.

ScreamerZ prank plush toys open their mouths and scream when squeezed. Users can squeeze them hard for a big shriek and to hear them make silly noises. The collection includes a monkey, a rabbit and a bear.

Simba Smoby Toys is the UK distributor of the Disney Plush range and offers an adorable selection of beloved Disney characters. Perfect for gifting, the latest additions to the range are based on The Lion King. 2024 marks 30 years since the film’s debut, and with the new Mufasa: The Lion King movie coming this December, Simba is marking the occasion with its nostalgic 30th anniversary line. There are four 25cm Lion King characters to collect: Simba, Mufasa, Timon and Pumba. Each has a distinctive anniversary hangtag.

As well as characters from The Lion King, Simba’s plush collection comprises many other Disney properties. Bolstered by excitement for the new Disney Stitch movie, the 25cm Classic Stitch Plush will be in high demand thanks to its squishy feet, cuddly body and cute face. Disney's Lilo and Stitch characters Angel and Leroy are also available as 25cm soft toys, with Scrump joining the collection this season. There are plenty of other plushies to collect, inspired by Star Wars and its pre-school spin-off, Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures, as well as Dumbo, Classics, and so much more.

Simba also offers Super Mario plush, which has seen a strong brand resurgence in recent years.

John Adams

01480 414 361 | www.johnadams.co.uk | sales@johnadams.co.uk

This spring, the award-winning legacy toy range, Zhu Zhu Pets, returned with the all-new Zhu Zhu Aquarium range. The Mini Plush Fish are perfect for collecting and bringing play to life, swimming and interacting on land without the need for water. The first series features six vibrantly coloured plush tropical fish, including an adorable clown fish, a tang, a shark and a whale. These imaginative toys are designed to bring nostalgia to fans of the original collection and attract a whole new fanbase. Fun, sea-themed accessories and play sets are also on offer so children can grow their oceanic playground.

Pat Avenue

01604 678 780 | www.patavenue.co.uk | enquiries@patavenue.co.uk

The Ecoplush collection is a sustainable plush line made from 100% recycled materials. Dog lovers can collect and cuddle up to six 25cm Ecoplush Fashion Dogs: a Cocker Spaniel, Dalmatian, Husky, Pomeranian, Poodle and Yorkshire Terrier. All Ecoplush characters are made of high-quality fabrics and the softest stuffing, which is composed of plastic PET bottles reclaimed from the sea.

Mascutties is an adorable range of feature plush. Kami counts as one of the unmissable characters in the collection. When it’s dinnertime, kids can press his stomach and watch him catch plushie flies with his Velcro tongue. Come bedtime, this soft toy is ready for snuggles.

Plush Rainbow Designs

01329 227 300 | www.rainbowdesigns.co.uk

sales@rainbowdesigns.co.uk

With the third movie in the Paddington franchise, Paddington in Peru, set to hit the big screen in the UK on 8th November, toys based upon the marmalade-loving bear are going to be on many wish lists this festive season and retailers will be keen to capitalise on the demand.

Rainbow’s best-selling Classic Paddington collection of high-quality plush toys, as well as the ever popular The Adventures of Paddington pre-school range and the adorable Paddington for Baby collection, are already performing strongly in the marketplace.

Perfect for all ages, Rainbow’s extensive Classic Paddington Collection, inspired by the iconic Peggy Fortnum illustrations, has been created from the highest quality fabrics with exceptional attention to detail. Each Paddington sports his distinctive and famous accessories, including his soft lined duffle coat, his battered red felt bush hat, and a suedette ‘Please look after this bear. Thank you’ tag. With sitting and standing options available, and some toys sporting Paddington’s iconic red wellington boots and suitcase, fans will be spoilt for choice.

Ideal for younger Paddington fans, The Adventures of Paddington best-selling pre-school toy range of plush toys and play sets, based on the award-winning TV show, captures Paddington’s spirit and charm. This range includes the best-selling Talking Paddington Soft Toy and the Adventures of Paddington Dress Me Soft Toy. In addition to his traditional blue duffle coat and red bush hat, this fun-packed Dress Me soft toy includes changeable outfits so kids can dress up Paddington as a doctor, baker or magician.

Flying in this autumn is the enchanting, adorable Wizarding World collection of cuddly nursery toys. Featuring Harry Potter, Hedwig and Dobby, this licensed plush line includes My First Soft Toys, Rattles and Activity Toys. The magical range also features Hogwarts house comfort blankets for Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. All toys will make a perfect gift for fans of the franchise who want to share their love of the Wizarding World with their new arrivals. There are further Wizarding World additions planned for 2025.

The new Disney Baby Lion King range is now available. Created in celebration of the 30th anniversary of Disney’s The Lion King, this adorable collection includes the super cuddly My First Simba Activity Soft Toy as well as a Comfort Blanket, Ring Rattle, and the Simba Sensory Play Mat.

Other classic characters ranges found at Rainbow Designs include Peter Rabbit, Disney’s Winnie the Pooh, Guess How Much I Love You, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and The Snowman and The Snowdog.

020 3598 5119 | www.jazwares.com

Squishmallows enters 2024 following a phenomenally successful 2023 which witnessed A+ licensed collaborations with the world’s biggest properties, cross-category consumer product launches and over 500 new Squishmallows styles launching in

Squishmallows welcomes more exciting new styles in Q3/4 along with further brand extensions and exciting collaborations. A strong autumn/winter 2024 line up sees fan-favourite characters such as Benny the Bigfoot wrapped in his winter scarf and Prince the Pug showing off his new flannel shirt. Brand new styles include Gasten the Strawberry Crepe, Marcia the Capybara and Jagger the Tiger Shark. Available across all core scales - 7.5”, 12” 16” and 20” - many unique Squishmallows styles are also available in 3.5” Clips and 5” Flip-a-Mallows.  Best-in-class licensed partnerships continue, with refreshes on Pokémon, Harry Potter, Stitch and Nightmare Before Christmas Squishmallows, as well as new styles from Hello Kitty and The Muppets. The long awaited Squishmallows x Stranger Things range hits shelves in Q3 with more refreshes to arrive in early 2025.

Micromallows - tiny but mighty 2.5” micro plush by Original Squishmallows - will launch on-shelf for the first time in the UK in Q3 2024. Bringing the micro world of Squishmallows to life and delighting fans by adding yet another collectible scale to the range, Micromallows will be available in Blinds, 4- and 6-piece Multipacks and cute Accessory Sets. The range, aimed at the younger Squishmallows audience, will range from pocket money to gifting RRPs.

Peppa Pig is also joining the Squishmallows Squad in 10” HugMees plush form.

Since Squishmallows’ debut in 2017, the brand has become known for its ultra-soft feel and adorable designs. Now sold in over 60 countries, Squishmallows’ vast audience and multi-generational appeal have fuelled sales of 400m+ plush YTD. Winning the Toy of the Year (TOTY) Award three years in a row and DreamToys two years in a row, Squishmallows is the No. 1 plush brand globally, the No. 1 toy in UK, US and Canada, the No. 1 girls’ property and fastest growing property in the UK, and the best-selling plush brand in Germany and Australia.

Squishmallows has an immense social media influence, garnering over 13.7b organic social impressions to date while @squishmallows (and related hashtags) have been tagged in more than 1m Instagram posts. In the metaverse, Squishmallows is the No. 1 game on Roblox with 18m registered unique users.

Adopt Me, meanwhile, brings the highly desirable and sought-after pets from the popular game Adopt Me to life. For autumn/winter 2024, kids can adopt six new Series 4 characters from the Collector Plush range, varying in rarity from uncommon to legendary, all perfect for play, display and cuddling. Newness will keep fans of the popular 5” Surprise plush pets engaged: each comes with clues about the pet within the package and an exclusive Virtual Item Code.

Vivid Goliath

01483 449 944 | www.vividtoysandgames.co.uk

Garfield, the lazy, lasagne-loving orange cat, has been a pop-culture icon for decades. Thanks to a new licensing agreement, Garfield is now available in adorable plush form from Vivid Goliath.

The company’s Garfield plush toys are inspired by the characters from The Garfield Movie. The cute 8'' Baby Garfield, Classic Garfield and Odie assortment makes for an ideal offering for all Garfield fans.

Baby Garfield also features as an animatronic plush standing at 25cm. Kids can press Baby Garfield’s lasagne to his mouth to hear him eat and burp, then place the mask over his eyes for nap time. Lifting the mask wakes him up. Like most cats, he’ll be hungry again. Spring/summer sees the launch of a cute 8” Baby Garfield suction plush that clings to any window.

Innov8 Academy

01268 505 050 | dbeverley@pmsinternational.com

PMS international is now taking orders for Innov8 Academy’s highly anticipated Deddy Bears Series 2.

Fans have been waiting patiently for the second drop of Deddy Bears characters following the success of Series 1. Retailers are now being invited to get their orders in quickly for the latest release, which introduces six fun new characters to collect: Dolli, Frankenbear, Twofur, Zombat, Frostbite and Muertobear. Each adorable character is available in the same format as Series 1 – a large 12” bear in BodyBag (this time in white) - while medium bears are available complete with personalised coffins. A third option, keychain mini bears in blind bags, bolsters the collectability of the new range.

Fans are keen to get their hands on the next instalment, with TikTok views of Series 2 already over 2m and climbing fast. To be sure of stock allocation and to avoid disappointment, retailers are advised to get their orders in early.

Also available via PMS International is Innov8’s fun and edgy Kreepy Katz collection. These adorable plush cats are described as the ‘purrfect’ addition to this spooky, collectible range. Available in three sizes (large cats in cages, medium cats in litter trays and cats in blind bags), there is plenty of choice for retailers looking to make the most of this dark yet appealing line. Each of the six collectible cats - Kitty & Katty (super rare), Oscuro, Fungus, Mc Scratcherson, Kandy and Frankenkitty - has a unique design.

For enquiries, contact David Beverley at PMS International on the details above.

ToyTopic

sales@toytopicgroup.com | www.toytopic.com

ToyTopic’s plush ranges continue to expand across new formats while also welcoming new licences. On offer now is plush in a variety of sizes, from 8cm up to a whopping 100cm and everything in between. Perfect for playing and cuddling, these soft toys are a must-have addition for any collection. These super soft plush toys are highly detailed and are proving a hit after launching recently across retail.

In addition to the core plush range, ToyTopic is also offering a range of plush keychains, plush snap bracelets, plush backpacks and plush 2D cushions with price points ranging from £2.99 up to £39.99.

New licences include Sonic the Hedgehog, Minecraft and Swizzles, in addition to existing brands such as Hello Kitty, Paw Patrol and Peppa Pig.

Posh Paws

01268 567 317

www.poshpawsinternational.co.uk

sales@poshpawsinternational.co.uk

Kawaii Kuties is a new range of soft and squishy plush toys and bag clips, inspired by the growing demand for Japanese-inspired kawaii products among tweens, teens and adults. The first series of adorable, squishy Kawaii Kuties plush includes an Axolotl, Lucky Cat, Shiba Dog, Dinosaur, Unicorn, Tanuki Dog, Panda and many more. These characters have been specifically chosen due to their huge popularity among fans of Japanese pop-culture and are already trending across social media. The plush have been brought to life with adorable kawaii features and cute detailing: kids will instantly want to pick them up and squeeze them.

To kick-off the launch of its Kawaii Kuties plush collection, Posh Paws is launching a heavyweight influencer and social media marketing campaign that will run throughout August to create a buzz around the brand. Fun, engaging content will capture the attention of consumers and make Kawaii Kuties a must-have plush range.

Posh Paws’ Gabby’s Dollhouse plush range continues to be the company’s must-have licensed range of the year. Fans will be eager to get their hands on the new 10” DJ Cat Nip and Hamster Kitty. Both will be available for Christmas. New plush cats have also been added to the popular 7” CDU assortment to increase the collectability of the range and let fans expand their Gabby’s Dollhouse collections.

Batwheels is the newest pre-school licensed property that Posh Paws is launching. Its range of 10” and 7” plush toys, arriving this month, brings to life the key characters from the hit animation - Bam the Batmobile, Redbird and Batman - in both sizes. Catering for older DC Batman fans and timed to coincide with the release of the new Joker: Folie à Deux movie, which lands in cinemas this October, Posh Paws will be releasing 10” classic Joker, Harley Quinn and Batman plush.

Harry Potter fans will be delighted by Posh Paw’s magical new plush range. Arriving this September, the assortment features Harry, Ron, Hermione and Hedwig the Owl in trending anime-inspired plush designs, offering something new for fans.

The demand for pop-culture and anime themed plush toys is continuously growing, in line with the new content being pumped out to wide audiences by the most popular streaming services. Posh Paws boasts some of the most highly sought after and collectible licences in this category, including Wednesday, One Piece, Demon Slayer, Dragon Ball Z, and new licence Chainsaw Man.

Noodelz are a new, trendy collectible plush toy collection with plenty of personality. These colourful, fluffy plush, with their long, posable wiggly arms and legs, are perfect for toddlers to carry, swing around and play with before they snuggle up with them at bedtime.

Ideal for tween, teen and adult gifting, Swizzels Love Hearts soft toys offer a variety of fun and trending plush characters with fun, cute and sentimental messages suitable for everyday and special occasions. The company’s new plush pairs comprise two cute characters joined together by a Love Heart sweet. The range includes the Zest Friends Lemon & Lime, You Are Amazing Rainbow & Cloud, and Friend-Chip Goals Burger & Fries. All are already a hit with collectors.

01423 368 888 | www.kaptoys.com orders@kaptoys.com

KAP Toys introduces the Hello Kitty Squishii plush range. 2024 marks Hello Kitty’s 50th birthday year, making now the time to start supporting a globally beloved character set to continue growing in popularity for another 50 years and beyond.

With their adorable bow-themed gift boxes and easy-to-merchandise CDU, KAP Toys’ Hello Kitty Squishii plush are eye-catching and offer strong on-shelf presence. These highly tactile toys slowly return to their original size after being squished and are available in variety of cute designs.

The range introduces eight collectible Squishiis. Each box contains a scented, supersoft mini plush and collectible sticker. Available in looks such as Mermaid, Unicorn, Koala and Tiger, or in a number of stylish outfits, this pocket-money range of collectibles is suitable for Hello Kitty fans of all ages.

Stock is in high demand, so readers are advised to speak to KAP Toys ASAP to get their order placed.

PMS International

01268 505 050 | www.pmsb2b.com sales@pmsplc.com

Softlings Foodies, a delightful plush toy collection from PMS International, has captured the hearts and imaginations of toy enthusiasts and gift-givers alike. Since its debut, Softlings Foodies has swiftly risen to prominence, earning its place as a top-performing brand in the market. The collection boasts a diverse and irresistible array of high-quality, food-inspired plush toys that appeal to customers of all ages, embodying the perfect blend of desirability and affordability.

Recognising the growing demand for food-inspired plush toys in the UK, PMS International aims to set a new standard with the Softlings Foodies range. Each plush toy is meticulously crafted with intricate and adorable designs, using soft, high-quality fabrics that are not only durable but also long-lasting. The company’s commitment to providing premium quality at affordable prices is at the heart of Softlings Foodies, making it stand out as a high-end collectible toy that is accessible to everyone.

With over 50 styles to choose from, the range appeals to anyone either seeking a fun addition to their plush toy collection, looking for a unique gift, or wanting to put a quirky twist on their home decor. Available in various sizes and pack quantities, the plush range includes a convenient 16cm size for on-the-go enjoyment, a larger 27cm size for snuggling, and 12cm clip-on options to add flair to backpacks or keys.

Softlings Foodies caters to all plush tastes, whether consumers are craving fruity delights, fast food fun, café cuddle buddies or veggie adventures. The brand’s charming subcollections, meanwhile, feature the Bakery, Christmas Friends, Fridge Foodies, and Salad & Vegi Mates ranges.

PMS International says the success of the company’s recent Christmas Foodies range is testament to the appeal of Softlings Foodies. This festive collection has swiftly become a seasonal favourite, selling out rapidly and solidifying its status as an essential for the festive season.

Following this success, PMS has teased the development of new Softlings Foodies product ranges that will take the collection to even greater heights. Readers are advised to stay tuned for the upcoming unveiling of these new collections, which promise fresh adventures and surprises to elevate plush toy sales.

GP Flair

020 8643 0320 | www.flairplc.co.uk sales@flairplc.co.uk

Flair is inviting kids to the wild, wacky and wonderfully cubeshaped world of Cubeez. In the busy and competitive plush category, Cubeez stands out as the next big thing and is poised to shake things up ‘one squish at a time’. This hugely collectible new range will see kids embark on a journey filled with smiles, swaps and shared excitement as they hunt for the ultimate Cubeez crew.

Cubeez come in two fun, stackable sizes – 10cm and 20cm – that are perfect for building a towering collection. The thrill of stacking Cubeez lies in their versatility and the endless combinations that can be created. Whether kids arrange them by colour, character or size, each stack tells a unique story and each plush has its own place and purpose. The fun doesn’t stop at stacking though, as the tactile feel of Cubeez adds a new dimension to the play.

What sets Cubeez apart is each toy’s memory foam squishiness, which has been designed to leave kids grinning from ear to ear. The soft, comforting texture of Cubeez provides a sensory experience that is both relaxing and addictive.

Cubeez also offers kids a new collectible craze. With a wide range of characters and designs available, there’s always a new Cubeez to discover, and each character has its own unique personality, making the collecting process a journey of discovery. The hunt for the next Cubeez adds excitement and anticipation to the experience, while swapping Cubeez with friends adds a social element and turns the play into a shared adventure. Whether they’re a seasoned collector or a newcomer, Cubeez promises a fun-filled journey of squishy delight.

To learn more about this latest introduction from Flair, get in touch via the details above.

Plush Golden Bear

01952 608 308 | www.goldenbeartoys.com customerservices@goldenbeartoys.co.uk

For more than 45 years, Golden Bear has continued its tradition of bringing quality, unique plush toys to the market. Building on a legacy of innovation, new launches with licensed partners and expansions to its own IP ranges will take centre stage in autumn/winter 2024.

Following the first two years of global success with its popular own IP brand, Curlimals – a one-of-a-kind animatronic plush range – Golden Bear is set to launch its newest addition to the Curlimals clan, Mummy & Mimi – an adorable hedgehog duo with eight brand-new play patterns. Children can play hide & seek, rock them gently or place the baby on Mummy’s tummy to hear them interact with words, lullabies and kisses. A new feature of Curlimals, Mummy’s cheeks light up and Mimi’s tummy glows when they’re both happy.

Another a big focus for Golden Bear in autumn/winter 2024 is its new own IP range, Tattoomeez. Children can create their very own personalised plush pals using specially designed transfer tattoos to decorate their plush and themselves. Promoting self-expression and creativity through play, the three cuddly characters each have their own personality. With the packaging leading to a big reveal at the end, the unboxing appeal is a huge part of the Tattoomeez journey.

There’s substantial growth in licensed plush launches for 2024 too, with new lines coming to the market from the likes of Hey Duggee, In The Night Garden and Supertato.

Continuing its successful partnership with the BBC, Golden Bear will introduce new hero lines for both Hey Duggee and Supertato, starting with Tickly Giggly Duggee. Children can tickle Duggee's tummy to activate his infectious giggles and iconic woofs.

With the squishy and huggable Talking Supertato, children can press the ‘S’ on his belt to hear seven iconic phrases and the theme tune from the popular animated series. Also in the lineup are the Supertato and Evil Pea Soft Toys, two classic plushies that will ignite imaginative play for all Supertato fans. Working in partnership with WildBrain, Golden Bear offers new additions to its iconic In The Night Garden range. Introducing Goodnight Igglepiggle; by simply pressing Igglepiggle’s hand, children will hear relaxing lullabies from the hit show. Featuring soft glowing lights and volume control, Goodnight Igglepiggle is the ideal toy for a soothing nighttime routine.

All autumn/winter 2024 plush lines are made from 100% recycled fabrics and materials as part of Golden Bear’s committed and continued sustainability plan.

Golden Bear is using multi-channel marketing strategies, new TVC creatives and a significant media & digital push to back these lines.

Keel Toys

01233 506 363 | www.keeltoys.com | sales@keeltoys.com

Keel Toys is the proud home of Keeleco, a plush range crafted from 100% recycled materials. With over 480 products and counting, Keel Toys remains committed to expanding this sustainable collection throughout the year.

Kids can get ready to embark on an eco-friendly culinary adventure with the cute and collectible Snackies range of food themed plush. This collection comprises 12 assorted characters in two sizes - Franco Fries, Pablo Pizza, Dottie Donut and even Harry Hot Sauce, to name but a fewand all are made from an exclusive new recycled tousled fabric. Snackies Love Bites versions hold hearts with sentiment-based slogans such as ‘Bun In A Million’ on Baz Burger, and ‘Love You a Latte’ on Carlos Coffee.

The best-selling Plant Bobballs have been a resounding favourite with buyers and customers alike, and the new addition, Flower Bobballs, is tipped to be just as successful. Flowers given an adorable Bobball style makeover include a daisy, sunflower, tulips and even bluebells, making these a wonderful year-round gift.

Keeleco Baby launched in 2021 to huge acclaim. This year, Fuzzy Duck and Percy Penguin join Marcel Monkey and Huggy Giraffe. To convey the eco credentials of the Keeleco brand, all ranges are clearly labelled with the sustainability message and offered with a variety of retail and POS solutions.

Each and every Keeleco soft toy is manufactured and filled with 100% recycled polyester made from plastic waste. This process gives plastic a second life and uses less energy to produce than virgin polyester: for example, 10 water bottles (500ml) will produce enough fibre to make an 18cm toy. Since launching Keeleco four years ago, the company has recycled more than 400m water bottles in the manufacture of the range. The phenomenal success of the Keeleco Mini Adoptables has significantly increased this impressive figure.

The Keel logo and hangtag are now formed from FSC-certified card and attached to the toy with cotton and even the shipping cartons are recycled and sealed with paper tape. All toys are manufactured in an ESCP audited factory to the highest social and environmental standards.

Keel Toys is constantly evolving and improving its market leading Keeleco ranges by using newly developed recycled fabrics with innovative finishing techniques, keeping the Keeleco Wild, Farm and Sealife collections fresh and exciting going into 2025. Keel Toys will be showcasing its latest ranges

Special Feature

Bringing marketing to the masses

Mayur Pattni, European Marketing manager at Funrise UK, tells Toy World what’s behind the company’s reinvigorated marketing strategy and why a multi-channel approach should spell success for new brand Furlings.

Since you joined the company in February 2023, Funrise seems to be placing far more emphasis on its marketing efforts. What’s behind this?

A US-based company, Funrise’s focus has been on American retailers such as Walmart and Target, whereas in Europe and the UK, the pathways and timings to retail are different. We’ve also been under-indexing on marketing in this region: before I joined, we’d never done an above-theline campaign in the UK and most marketing took the form of instore retail activations and catalogue pages. I was keen to level up the marketing function.

In 2023, we ran a TV campaign for our Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles range as well as cinema and YouTube pre-roll, working with media buyers on the latter to improve our ROI and click-through rates, alongside a successful out-of-home campaign for Fart Ninjas. And this year, we’ve run a linear TV campaign for Gazillion Bubbles in France and Spain, followed by Disney+ advertising in France and our summer Gazillion Bubbles Premier League LED campaign.

The Premier League campaign saw us marry up a premium bubble brand – Circana data shows it’s the No. 2 bubble brand in the UK - with top class sporting entertainment. It provided an opportunity to piggyback off the credibility and trust of the Premier League and placed Gazillion in front of fans across nine games in April. In May, we then bolstered this with sales promotions which saw Funrise up +22% in the marketplace despite the overall picture being growth of only 1% or 2%. Our 2-Litre solution is also the No.1 bubble item on Amazon and ranks in the Top 10 Total Toys on Amazon as well. This strategy worked really well and we’re already looking at doing something similar next year.

How is Funrise planning to apply its recent marketing learnings to the launch of Furlings later this year?

Our goal is to establish Furlings as a Top 50 toy for the months of October and November, following our marketing launch in September. To do so, we’ve invested in a massive TV campaign (starting from October payday) as well as Disney+ advertising. Compared to the likes of YouTube, where there’s so much advertising you run the risk of getting lost in the noise, Disney+ puts us in front of kids

and families right as new content is released and demand for holiday films soars. Our timing means we can ride the wave created by Moana 2: the film is slated for release on November 27th and will doubtless encourage viewers to seek out other animated movies in the days that follow. Then, until the end of the year, viewers will be seeing our ads run in front of a raft of classic Christmas movies.

For the first time, we’re also partnering with the team at KidsKnowBest on a huge influencer campaign for Furlings, starting the last week of September. KidsKnowBest oversaw the Bitzee campaign for Spin Master and has a lot of knowledge it can bring to bear on Furlings. Some big ideas have already been flying around.

On top of all this, we’re running an out-of-home campaign

billboards, bus stops and much more across shopping centres and train stations up and down the country. Consumers will see Furlings on TV and Disney+, on Instagram and TikTok, and then on the street, including on the massive billboard near Hammersmith dual carriageway. That repeat exposure across multiple touchpoints will convert into sales. It would have been easy to put all our eggs in one basket with a massive TV campaign on its own, but the marketing landscape is fragmented, and our aim is to reach consumers across more channels. I want Furlings to be like the Turbo Man action figure in Jingle All the Way: absolutely everywhere.

What about 2025 – after your big autumn/ winter campaign for the brand, what comes

In 2025 we’ll be unveiling some exciting new additions to the Furlings brand. This year, it’s all about the launch and (hopefully) obtaining that Top 50 slot, whereas next year, it’ll be all about expanding the range and building brand loyalty among kids with new price points, deluxe versions and much more.

Partnerships and relationships are so important to us and we want to be seen to be working hard for our retailers as well as our brands. It should be apparent how seriously we’re taking the Furlings launch as well as our efforts to expand within the UK and Europe. Sales and marketing go hand in hand, and we’ve got some very talented people in both teams. Our retail providers are set to benefit from all the investment we’re ploughing into becoming a marketing-led business.

Is it fair to say, then, that moving forward, this kind of marketing approach will become the norm for Funrise?

100%. My background is in growing brands and companies through marketing. The business has also attracted talent to help it achieve its growth goals, such as Mandeep Sira, our EMEA Sales manager, and James Xuereb, European account manager for Funrise’s eCommerce team. We want to create exciting brands, products and concepts that are supported with first-class marketing activations everywhere kids are. And the more successful we are at that, the more we can continue levelling up and investing in that marketing.

Viewpoint Getting your digital shop in order

I've had more eCommerce discussions with clients this year than any other and it’s no surprise with what’s going on in the market. Whether it’s optimising direct to consumer sites, scoping out TikTok Shop or needing to tidy up and grow the Amazon brand store, eCommerce has certainly been THE conversation. In challenging times, it makes sense for brands to focus on where they can take greater control over ROI, drive incremental growth and open new revenue streams - especially when high street retail has been slow for many.

There’s also growing noise from analysts speculating that we’re now entering a new era, with Chinese digital marketplaces like Temu and TikTok stealing share from the established platforms like Amazon, eBay and Google. Whilst it’s easy to get fixated on what’s shiny and new, toy companies perhaps need to take a more pragmatic approach, even in the fast-paced world of online retail where the evolution of marketplace and social commerce platforms, whilst inevitable, isn’t going to happen overnight.

The growing noise around TikTok Shop is a great example. TikTok has been very active marketing itself to the category, reaching out directly to toy companies with TikTok Shop being a core part of its evolving proposition.

So how should an advertisers approach TikTok and its eCommerce offering? TikTok and its fully integrated eCommerce offering is well worthy of exploration due to its scale and engagement. Firstly, marketers need to consider the platform itself, how have

campaigns performed on TikTok to date, are the products right and on trend, or do they need to try something different and new? What are other brands doing in this space – both well and not so well?

The way TikTok has set up its offering, brands need to focus on three key pillars to launch a shop: creating and managing the store itself, media spend to pay for advertising to drive customer traffic to the store and an ongoing commitment to creating content tailored to TikTok to build momentum. Without media and creative working as one, the traffic needed to make this a success will simply not happen. It’s not something that can be hastily switched on either, needing a fully scoped out end-to-end plan. There are a lot of other factors to consider too; could launching a new commerce channel put strain on current retailer deals, and how will orders be fulfilled? Direct from the company warehouse or via TikTok’s fulfilment?

The reality is that TikTok Shop is in its infancy and may only work at present for the few who have relevant brands and deep enough pockets to dip their toes in to test.

TikTok Shop should not be a distraction from continuing to grow other established eCommerce channels like Amazon. We’d advise that funding for this should not be at Amazon’s expense, but should be seen as incremental. As Q4 fast approaches, we’d suggest a renewed focus on getting your Amazon stores in order as a priority.

Advertisers that have recognised the opportunity in Amazon through taking greater ownership of their content and

advertising have thrived compared to their competition, stealing category share, while the more reserved have been slower to embrace change. Havas Market undertook a cursory audit of the category and found 9 out of 10 leading toy brands have significant opportunities to optimise their Amazon content and advertising, so there’s much to do (although there’s still time to make those changes in time for Q4). Many brands are yet to lean into Amazon Marketing Cloud, as well as data and tech available through Amazon to allow advertisers to increase performance. Amazon Prime Video now offers access to the size of audiences we were used to accessing on linear TV years ago, powered by in-market data to minimise wastage.

In summary, change is inevitable in the eCommerce world. It’s not only TikTok that’s bringing something fresh, but Amazon is evolving too. I would advise being wary of the hype and keeping your eye on what matters. Stay curious and where relevant, work with specialists who bring new expertise and thinking through their experience, talent, tools and technology to advise and help support your growth. Be prepared to embrace change, but make sure you underpin any strategy with a well thought through approach. There’s more data available than ever before, which can feel overwhelming. Often the best way forward is to lean into the experts to provide you with a clear path to growth.

If you need support or advice on any of the above topics, please do get in contact. tristan.brooks@havasmn.com.

Tristan Brooks

Tristan Brooks, managing partner at Havas Entertainment, looks at how toy companies need to embrace changes in the eCommerce world, and how they can access detailed data and sound advice.

Feature Wooden Toys

Branching from the traditional

The Wooden Toys category is a staple within the industry with long-established and sentimental products that are now receiving a modern spin. Toy World’s Caroline Tonks spoke with a selection of leading suppliers about the impact of aesthetic, the importance of play value, how sustainability is shaping the category and more.

WWooden Toys have been around for centuries. Some of the oldest Wooden Toys date back to Ancient Egypt, Greece and China, with archaeological evidence of children having played with carved dolls, animals and board games. As time progressed, so did the craftsmanship of Wooden Toys, with dolls houses and rocking horses coming to the forefront of toys within the playroom. Eventually, mass production made Wooden Toys available to children across all backgrounds, evolving in design, but retaining their timeless charm. It is a category that remains popular with parents due to its nostalgic appeal, but also for the products’ durability, alongside educational value and the promotion of creativity and imagination.

There is a plethora of classic Wooden Toys, including puzzles, shape sorters and building blocks currently on the market. One For Fun’s Tobar range offers a classic pre-school collection that focuses on the wonder of wood. The collection is packed full of wooden games and puzzles, including dominoes and shape sorters, and wooden building blocks and stack and play safari animals add a new dimension to the range. At Petit Collage, from Chronicle Books, a highlight is the new Multi-Language Solar System Wooden Tray Puzzle, designed for ages three and above. This 9-piece puzzle of the sun and the eight major planets comes with a guide sheet to position the pieces in order and for children to learn the planets’ names in six languages.

With a long history, Wooden Toys are often thought of as traditional and sometimes even old fashioned, but suppliers have added a modern twist to make their products appeal to present-day children and adults.

Melissa & Doug is breaking the mould of traditional products with its Sort, Stock, Select Wooden Vending Machine Play Set, which will be launching this autumn/ winter. Children can sort food items, stock the vending machine, insert coins and press buttons to make selections. Children can mimic the actions of their parents, a common play trend for young imaginations.

At Ravensburger, the Brio team is dedicated to bringing innovation to the category in a variety of ways. “The introduction of Smart Tech Sound to the Brio World system recognises that technology plays a part in all our lives today,” says Elaine Connell, product marketing manager at Ravensburger UK. “We only use it where it genuinely adds something to the play and discovery experience and complements the traditional railway track play that will always be a part of playtime.”

Emma Damerell, Hape EU brand manager for Toynamics, believes that Wooden Toys evoke a sense of nostalgia and quality, appealing to parents and grandparents who remember similar toys from their own childhoods. “Customers are drawn to the natural, timeless beauty of wood,” says Emma. “Vibrant colours, unique shapes and interactive features engages today’s children, and incorporating these with fresh and on-trend aesthetics appeals to the modern parent.”

When considering purchasing decisions, it seems aesthetic is very important. “The classics never go out of style and that’s what makes Wooden Toys so timeless,” says David Lubliner, head of Customer Marketing Europe, Melissa & Doug. “From an aesthetic standpoint, Wooden Toys are attractive for a number of sensory reasons — the feel

of smooth edges, the look of the clean lines, the heft the toy has in your hand, the sound it makes during play. Visually engaging Wooden Toys can work in many kinds of home decor and are well suited for stylish playrooms.”

“Wooden toys are not just visually appealing,” adds A.B.Gee’s sales manager, Andrew Hardwidge. Their simple designs often pack big learning opportunities while they blend well with home décor, making them a stylish choice for any household. “With their classic, natural look, they’re an instant hit with parents who appreciate timeless beauty.”

The emerging generation of parents is the target audience for BTL Diffusion’s latest offering, Speedy Monkey. These parents are highly interior-focused and “they seek products that complement their home’s aesthetic,” says Graeme Hargreaves, UK managing director for BTL Diffusion. “Our collection blends modern lifestyle with traditional toy concepts, resulting in products and packaging that are both on-trend and beautiful. The use of pastels and muted tones ensures these toys can easily integrate into modern homes without looking out of place.”

There is often a perception that Wooden Toys are more expensive compared to their plastic counterparts. In turn, suppliers have placed an emphasis on the long-term value and benefits that justify the price point.

“Often being passed down through the generations, we receive a lot of customer feedback on social media and other community channels of older siblings having passed down their Hape toys to their younger siblings,” says Emma. This creates sentimental heritage pieces that families cherish. “Wooden Toys are built to last, providing a safe and reliable option for children.”

Feature Wooden Toys

Andrew states that Wooden Toys can be perceived as being a bit pricier, but that’s not always the case, as companies strive to offer something to suit every budget.

“At A.B.Gee, we highlight Wooden Toys’ long-lasting fun, showing that they are made to last for generations,” he explains. “For most modern families, the eco-friendly nature of Wooden Toys is a big draw, and their durability means they actually save money in the long run.”

Sustainability is an important feature of the category, with suppliers making strides to become ever more ecofriendly. FSC wood, which is sustainably sourced lumber and certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, is used by many companies, as well as other natural alternatives.

Introduced this year as an expansion to its Pre-School portfolio, Mattel’s Fisher-Price Wood is made from responsibly sourced materials that are safe for children and incorporate playful, colourful elements that are both fun and engaging, inspiring creativity and promoting healthy development. Affordably priced, the new range offers a wide variety of play patterns, from puzzles and blocks to role play, music-making and more, so children can explore the world at their own pace. Fisher-Price Wood toys are built to last and be passed down to future generations, with FSC-certified packaging that meets the highest safety standards globally. Fully play tested in the Fisher-Price Play Lab, the collection offers a contemporary take on long-lasting and accessible play, and features playful designs and on-trend themes

According to Emma, Hape’s toys are now FSC-certified and utilise unique eco-friendly materials such as bamboo from its 65-acre Hape-owned Bamboo Forest. The company

also uses rice husk and Green PE as an alternative to plastic. “Hape is committed to plastic-free packaging and uses plant-based synthesised straw and sugarcane extracts for the plastic components, which have a lower carbon footprint,” says Emma. Hape is continuing to improve its sustainability efforts and is currently working towards all its toy production being carbon neutral by 2030.

Ravensburger UK is also working towards becoming even more carbon neutral. “Our dedicated sustainability team continues to set ambitious targets, with our internal operations already carbon neutral and even more goals in place,” says Elaine. “Quality materials are of the utmost importance in our product development. All wood is FSCcertified, and our other materials are always of the highest quality, which means an end product that is designed to last.”

BTL Diffusion recognises that sustainability holds significant importance in today's market. Prior to incorporating any brand into its portfolio, sustainability is considered as a key criterion. “Speedy Monkey shares our commitment to environmental responsibility,” Graeme tells us. The brand adheres to BTL Diffusion's principles by using FSC-approved materials in both its products and packaging. “When consumers purchase a Speedy Monkey toy, they will discover that even the packaging reflects our dedication to sustainability. Paper envelopes replace plastic bags for screws and components, ensuring that every aspect of the toy's packaging can be recycled.”

As readers flip through the following pages, they will find the latest products in Wooden Toys that are hitting the shelves throughout the rest of the year.

Wooden Toys

Hippychick

01278 434 440 | www.hippychick.com | sales@hippychick.com

Accounting for 55% of its sales volume, Hippychick’s toy portfolio is continuing to grow. The company has hand selected wooden toys from highly esteemed brands that parents will want to hand down through the generations, priding itself on choosing toys that are not only fun but offer key developmental benefits too.

For 2024, BS Toys joins the portfolio. Offering wooden indoor and outdoor toys that are designed to encourage active play, the brand’s products are fun and educational and kind to the planet, using FSC-certified wood and eco-friendly materials in the production process and packaging. The award-winning Wobbly Lilly Path challenges children to step across the wobbly lily pads and pick up the frogs en route, developing co-ordination and mastering the art of balance.

Classic World is renowned for its crafted wooden toys, which offer a host of educational benefits and are built to withstand the roughest of playtimes. Classic World uses wood from sustainable sources and processes that are ecologically friendly, providing hours of fun and protecting the planet at the same time. New to the range this year are the colourful pull along toys Pull Jungle and Pull Ocean. Each comes with stacking blocks so children can decide which animals they want to come along for the ride. They are also designed in pastel colours, making them a stylish addition to any home.

Moover, another of Hippychick’s wooden toy brands, combines classic Danish design with functionality to create toys that are as beautiful as they are practical. From ride-on bikes to push-along wooden prams and play sets, Moover toys are built to last. One of its standout toys of 2024 so far is the wooden Cleaning Set. Children love to imitate their parents, so this provides a way for children to engage with their parents whilst they are cleaning the house. It comes fully equipped with a dustpan and brush, sweeping brush, cloth and mop, all of which hang neatly on a tidy rack.

Toynamics

01164 785 230 | www.toynamics.com | sales@toynamics.co.uk

Toynamics UK & Ireland distributes Hape, a leader in high-quality wooden baby and children’s toys. Hape’s range features over 20 categories, spanning STEAM toys, music, role play, outdoor, infant, railway and more, targeting a mix of ages and price points, providing an array of choices for free play and learning. Over the past two years, all the new products produced have been made with FSC wood, as well as transitioning the current product range to be made from more sustainable materials, working towards all products made by Hape being fully sustainable.

The Toddler Toy category is one of the most popular categories for the brand. One of this year’s best-sellers is the Melody Mansion Ball Run. Designed for ages 12 months and up, this two-in-one toy lets little hands use the hammer to push the two wooden balls into the ball run and land on a musical xylophone that can also be removed and played with separately. Another popular launch for 2024 has been the Wooden Wonder Shape Sorter, designed to teach children ages 12 months and up colour association and fine motor skills as they try to place one of the six shaped blocks into the correct colour coded hole.

This year, Hape launched eight new products in its railway category, offering three new themes. Available in September, the brand-new Dino Railway Adventure Set, for ages three and above, is expected to be a top seller this Christmas. The 61-piece set brings the prehistoric world to life with glow-in-the-dark dinosaur bones and track pieces that make dinosaur roars when trains drive over them. Packed with accessories like wooden trees and a dinosaur egg floor mat, children will enjoy transporting precious stones through the prehistoric world, avoiding the wooden dinosaurs.

The new 48-piece Mars Launch Rail Set lets children engage in space missions with astronaut figures and an array of vehicles, including a space train with foldable wings. The multiple features of the space station include a parking garage, launch pad and refuelling station. The set also has landing pad lights, which gradually light up when the train passes by, releasing a detailed laboratory inside an alcove storage area.

Under Hape’s sub-brand Green Planet Explorers, nine new sets have been added for 2024. A predicted top seller is the Bio Juice Shop, where children can role play with Clio the toy jaguar, serving up smoothies and teaching children the benefit of growing your own fruit and vegetables to create delicious drinks. The Green Planet Explorers range is made from fully sustainable materials such as FSC wood, bamboo, Green PE and no unnecessary plastics. These products are not only made from eco-friendly materials and a minimum of 80% recycled materials, but also have a dedicated YouTube channel, with each toy supported by an educational video. The toys, with additional video support, teach children how to care for the environment through play and will help them learn how to look after the planet in their day-to-day lives.

All of the Hape range is supported by a host of marketing materials, from colouring sheets to bespoke window displays and influencer campaigns to in-store POS. A unique and bespoke marketing plan can be made to suit any retailer.

Wooden Toys

Melissa & Doug

Ravensburger

01869 363 830 | www.ravensburger.com

Ravensburger’s Brio brand introduces prehistoric fun to the Brio World railway system this year. The new Dinosaurs range captures the spirit of this evergreen theme and adds the innovative touches that fans of the brand have come to enjoy. The Dinosaurs range is compatible with other Brio World items and track pieces and includes railway sets and accessories. Launching in spring, the Dinosaur Circle Set features 12 pieces, while the second half of the year welcomes the 21-piece Dinosaur Adventure Set, which comes with chunky dinosaur figures and themed accessories.

Pre-schoolers from the age of three can explore their creativity and early construction skills with the Brio Builder range. The sets, which range in piece counts starting from around 40 components, include a variety of pieces to enable freestyle building. Alternatively, children can follow the included design ideas. The bumper Brio Builder Activity Set includes over 200 pieces that invite budding engineers to let their imaginations go wild.

Wooden items also feature in the forthcoming Play+ infant and toddler line from Ravensburger. Adding layers of play and developmental value to classic wooden puzzle play, the 2-in-1 Wooden Touch & Play Puzzle celebrates jungle animals. Hiding behind each chunky animal piece is a new texture to discover. The chunky animals can also be used to play a fun balancing game. Handy magnets hold the animals in place for easy storage. Also from Play+, the Magnetic Wooden Maze is a fun game for pre-schoolers that fosters fine motor skills as they use the attached wand to guide the enclosed marbles through the channels to the right spot.

Marketing support across both Brio and Play+ brands will include year-round PR, print and digital marketing, and events.

0800 731 0578 | www.melissaanddoug.com | service@melissaanddoug.com

Melissa & Doug continues to captivate children and parents with its classic wooden toys. Each toy is designed to inspire creativity, foster learning and encourage interactive play.

Launching in autumn/winter 2024, the Daily Routines Chart is a fun and engaging tool designed to foster independence and establish good habits in children. The dual-sided chart covers both morning and bedtime routines, helping children with tasks such as brushing their teeth and getting dressed. It features a built-in handle and stand for versatile use, while interactive bungee flaps add a playful element to daily responsibilities, making routine tasks more exciting and enjoyable.

Another standout play set launching this autumn/winter is the Sort, Stock, Select Wooden Vending Machine Play Set. Children can sort food items, stock the vending machine, insert coins and press buttons to make selections. Watching as their chosen items fall into the collection drawer is both fun and educational, promoting letter, number and colour recognition, as well as sorting, matching, counting and fine motor skills. The open-ended nature of this play set offers endless opportunities for imaginative fun and developmental growth.

One of Melissa & Doug's best-selling products, the Ice Cream Counter, continues to be a favourite among children year after year. This set includes a sturdy wooden tabletop counter, eight wooden scoops of various ice cream flavours and numerous accessories to bring playtime to life. Children can lift, stack and release the scoops with the realistic scooper, creating their own delicious treats. This set enhances fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination while sparking imaginative play. The high-quality wooden design ensures durability, making it a toy that can be passed down through generations.

The refreshed Old MacDonald Farm Puzzle is perfect for children aged two and above, playing parts of the classic Old MacDonald song when pieces are correctly placed on the board. This puzzle helps develop hand-eye coordination, problem-solving and auditory processing skills, making it a wonderful gift for toddlers and pre-schoolers. The updated design enhances its appeal to families, blending music and play to support developmental milestones.

Wooden Toys Mattel

01628 500 000 | www.mattel.com

Fisher-Price Wood offers long-lasting and accessible play that’s designed to inspire creativity and promote healthy development in younger kids. Featuring contemporary designs and on-trend themes, the new wooden toys offer a wide range of play patterns, from puzzles and blocks to role-play, music-making and more.

As wooden toys continue to grow in popularity, Fisher-Price Wood prioritises modern designs, with a focus on simplicity and authenticity that speak to consumers looking for back-to-basics play experiences for their young children. These new wooden toys are also built to last, allowing families to pass them down from generation to generation. Fisher-Price Wood is made from responsibly sourced materials that are safe for children and incorporate playful, colourful elements that are both fun and engaging. All toys and packaging are FSC-certified and crafted with care to meet the highest safety standards globally.

The range includes the Wooden Musical Table, which combines three percussion instruments into one fun toddler music toy. Kids can find their rhythm and exercise their fine motor skills using the mallets to play the xylophone, cymbal and guiro. This toy can inspire creativity and introduce music to children in a fun and exciting way.

The Wooden Ring Stacker is a fresh take on the brand’s classic stacking toy. Toddlers can sort, stack and spin the easy-to-grasp colourful scalloped shaped rings on the wooden stacking base. This toy will help kids develop fine motor skills as they play.

The Wooden Shape Stacker features colourful wooden triangles, circles, rectangles and squares for toddlers to sort and stack on to the base. The Wooden Stack & Sort Animals toy lets kids stack the pieces on the base to make an alligator, lion, koala, or any creature they can imagine, while the Wooden Balance Tree features nine blocks that kids can stack up on each other or balance on the branches of the tree.

The range also includes Wooden Jigsaw Puzzles. Each 9-piece puzzle features a toddler-friendly theme such as the solar system, deep sea animals, musical instruments and jungle safari. Toddlers will be inspired to explore sounds and tap out tunes on the Wooden Xylophone musical toy. Each brightly coloured metal key plays a different note and encourages kids to express their creativity while developing their fine motor skills. The Musical Gift Set includes a maraca, a xylophone with a mallet, a tambourine, a recorder and a castanet decorated with bright colours and friendly animal faces.

JuraToys

020 8878 2133 | www.janod.com | sales@juratoys.co.uk

French toy brand Janod has unveiled its latest launch. The Farm, bursting with colour and farmyard characters, is perfect for any budding farmer. Featuring more than 10 engaging toys within the range for children aged 12 months and above, there is something for everyone to enjoy.

The collection includes the Farmer’s Market, Pull-Along Tractor, Threading Beads – Vegetable Garden, My First Farm – Chicken Coop, and the interactive Magnetic Pets & Magnetic Farm Animals.

The Farmer’s Market is decorated in bright colours and illustrations, featuring 58 accessories including all the fruit and vegetables, packaged goods and lots of shop equipment needed for little ones to immerse themselves in hours of make-believe fun.

The Pull-Along Tractor is a farm-themed early learning toy that will help young farmers develop their imagination. The classic red tractor features a removable trailer and six accessories that are sure to encourage lots of adventures and stories.

Encouraging young minds further, children will discover different types of fresh produce as they navigate threading and making fruit and vegetable chains. Illustrated with characters, children aged two years and above will enjoy hours of play whilst enhancing motor skills with the Threading Beads – Vegetable Garden.

The My First Farm – Chicken Coop, suitable for 18 months and above, is perfect for developing imagination and motor skills. The wooden coop includes six hens, one rooster, one nest with hatching eggs and one nest with a chick. Featuring various openings to discover, just like a shapesorting box, little ones will be able to take care of their new feathered friends as they go in and out of their cosy home and check the eggs daily.

The Magnetic Pets & Magnetic Farm Animals features characters ready for a race. Designed for developing logic in children aged 18 months and above, kids can pair each animal with the perfect ride, inspired by the food they would eat. Whether it's the sweetcorn or the aubergine, they can either race or line up one behind the other by using the magnets.

Wooden Toys BTL Diffusion

contact@btl-diffusion.co.uk

Speedy Monkey is a premium wooden toy brand that combines contemporary lifestyle designs with traditional toys. The brand creates high-quality, entertaining and educational toys for children that will stand the test of time. Each piece of the collection has been designed inhouse and is made with FSC-certified wood to adhere to sustainability values.

Offering a collection of Musical Toys, Early Learning, Role-Play, Dolls, and Magnetic Puzzles and Games, Speedy Monkey offers an array of toys suitable for babies and beyond. Each piece is designed to aid children as they discover the world and enhance their developmental skills. The brand will be distributed by BTL Diffusion in the UK.

Designed to engage young minds and foster essential skills, Speed Monkey’s early learning toys combine fun with learning, promoting cognitive development, fine motor skills and imaginative play. With a focus on safety, quality and educational value, the collection includes the hero Rainbow Abacus, Stacking Train, Multi-Activity Walker and House Shape Sorter. Parents can now support their children's growth with toys that inspire curiosity and learning at every stage.

The musical toys collection features a range of instruments, including the Piano Keyboard, Maracas, Drum and Xylophones, all crafted with environmentally friendly materials and vibrant designs. Each instrument is carefully engineered to promote auditory development, rhythm recognition and fine motor skills, making music both fun and educational. With an emphasis on safety, durability and interactive play, Speedy Monkey’s musical instrument toys are perfect for nurturing creativity and a lifelong love of music.

Speedy Monkey’s role-play collection includes a variety of play sets such as the Kitchen Party, Ice Cream Shop, Coffee Machine, Toolbox Workbench and My First Camera. These toys encourage children to understand the world around them, develop empathy and enhance communication skills through imaginative play. By providing realistic and interactive experiences, Speedy Monkey aims to support cognitive and emotional development whilst building confidence, making learning both enjoyable and impactful.

The dolls range features the Rabbit Family dolls, Birthday Tea Set, Flowers Cottage and detailed furniture sets complete with a character for each room, all crafted to inspire hours of imaginative play. Each piece is designed with a focus on creativity, encouraging children to build narratives and develop social skills. The dollhouses come with customisable rooms and accessories, allowing children to create their own miniature worlds. The Dolls collection promises to captivate young minds and provide a rich, engaging play experience that nurtures creativity and cognitive development.

The magnetic puzzles offer a variety of vibrant, interactive character puzzles, such as Pirate, Unicorn and Dinosaur, plus a Pinball Game that utilises the power of magnetism to enhance learning. These products are meticulously crafted to promote problem-solving skills, spatial awareness and fine motor development. Each magnetic piece is easy for little hands to manipulate, making playtime both fun and educational.

Commotion

01732 225 821 | www.commotion.co.uk info@commotion.co.uk

Wooden toys continue to hold their appeal with parents and children alike, encouraging holistic development and providing a sustainable option. Commotion’s distribution range of wooden toys includes its own brand Tickit educational toys, the newly launched PolarB early years toys and Viga toys made from FSC-certified wood.

Toys such as the Tickit Woodland Trail Treehouse encourage children to invent their own games and stories, enhancing creative thinking and problem-solving skills. The simplicity of wooden toys promotes focus and concentration, as children are not distracted by visual or auditory features such as flashing lights or electronic sounds.

The Tickit Wooden Building Gem Blocks or PolarB Wooden Train Set help to develop motor skills. Activities such as stacking blocks, fitting shapes into spaces or manipulating trains and tracks require precision and coordination, which helps in strengthening hand-eye coordination and dexterity. The tactile experience of handling wooden toys also enhances sensory development, providing a different texture and weight compared to plastic.

Toys like the Tickit Rainbow Wooden Vehicle sets and the Wooden Adventure Camper are designed for robust and repeated use, providing longevity and teaching children to value and care for their belongings.

All toys in the Tickit range are certified non-toxic, meaning they do not contain phthalates, lead or cadmium – and all paints or stains used on the products are water-based, providing a natural looking finish.

The educational value of wooden toys is clear in products such as the Tickit Wooden Animal Blocks - Minibeast, Reptiles & Amphibians, Domestic Animals, Sea Life and Dinosaurs - or Viga’s Activity Wall Panels, which have been designed with educational purposes in mind. They can teach basic and complex concepts through engaging and hands-on play. The durability of wooden toys ensures that they can be used repeatedly for educational activities, making them a valuable resource for early childhood learning and development.

Wooden Toys

Abrams & Chronicle

020 7713 2060 | www.petitcollage.com info@abramsandchronicle.co.uk

As an eco-conscious brand, Petit Collage is always looking for ways to reduce its impact on the planet. It uses FSC-certified wood as standard and recycled materials wherever possible. As part of its autumn 2024 range, Petit Collage has gone a step further and created products using FSC MDF, leftover wood fibres that could otherwise go to waste.

Beyond materials, Petit Collage is focusing on how the play patterns of its products contribute to children’s physical, cognitive and emotional development. With these updated features comes an updated style guide. The colourful new look showcases the eco credentials and developmental benefits of each item in the Early Years range through clear iconography and will be applied across the brand through reprints.

The first autumn/winter 2024 release is Hugo Hamster, a FSC MDF wooden play set for ages three and above. With peek-a-boo windows and a slide-away roof, the box packaging doubles up as the pet’s house during play. When the day’s adventures are over, it becomes the ideal storage for Hugo’s exercise wheel, water bottle, flower, salad leaf and favourite food: a blackberry. Designed to encourage independent play, this play set develops fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, as well as emotional awareness and empathy.

When mixed with resin, MDF is a tough, stable material ideal for making durable toys and games. In the new Animal Acrobats Balance Game, players must connect the pieces any which way without them all tumbling down. For an even greater challenge, they can try and stack the pieces as high as possible. Ideal for kids aged three and above, and fun for the whole family, this game teaches kids about patience, focus and how to play with others. The bright, chunky pieces offer endless hours of play: it’s hard to believe they’re made using waste FSC wood.

As well as encouraging development through play, Petit Collage aims to make toys that can grow with children too. The new Multi-Language Solar System Wooden Tray Puzzle, designed for ages three and above, helps kids commence their journey into space by completing the 9-piece puzzle of the sun and the eight major planets, before using the guide sheet to position them in order and learn their names in six languages. Seamlessly blending STEAM and MESH frameworks, this puzzle furthers problem solving, perseverance and cognition skills. The puzzle pieces are FSC MDF, so kids can look after the planet as they learn about it.

Visit the Petit Collage website to see the complete autumn range, which launches this month.

Vivid Goliath

01483 449 944 | www.vividtoysandgames.co.uk

Vivid Goliath’s Wood Worx is an FCA-compliant range of wooden kits, giving younger DIY fans the opportunity to build and paint their own wooden vehicles, animals or jewellery boxes. With a 17-year track record in Australia and over 2m packs sold worldwide, Wood Worx targets kids ages 5-12. Each kit comes with everything they will need to assemble, glue and paint their masterpieces.

Vivid Goliath’s Wood Worx kits are easy to assemble and perfect for an afternoon of creative fun. The kit includes wooden pieces, paint pots, glue, a paint brush, sticker sheet and step-by-step instructions. Wood Worx craft kits provide hours of entertainment while encouraging imagination and creativity, as well as improving painting and detailing skills. The impulse range, starting at pocket money pricing, offers a great pick-up gift option and includes a Stationery Holder, Racing Car or Mini Jet Plane project for budding construction fans to complete. Ideal for construction masters, the higherpriced range includes more wooden pieces. Kids can build a Jewellery Box or Jet Fighter, as well as other vehicles.

Wooden Toys

A.B.Gee

01773 570 444 | www.abgee.co.uk

One For Fun

01416 132 525 | www.oneforfun.com sales@oneforfun.com

One for Fun’s Tobar range of wooden toys encompasses everything from traditional push puppets to squeaky push-andpull unicorns and dragons. The range is designed simply for maximum appeal among pre-school and nursery aged children, especially the Wiggly Worm. This toy comes in the primary colours and has a naïve, Scandi-style design that has real eye and play appeal. The Wiggly Worm is also cost effective and sustainable. One for Fun uses FSC approved materials and now has FSC accreditation for all products and packaging.

Tobar also offers a timeless, classic pre-school range which also focuses on the wonder of wood. The range is full of wooden games and puzzles, including dominoes and shape sorters. Wooden building blocks and stack and play safari animals add a new dimension, along with the wooden play and sound Fire Engine, Ambulance and Police Car. There are also wooden play sets packed full of pieces, including a Farm, Noah’s Ark and a Pirate Ship. The contemporary design and bright colours attract the eye and the brand-new clean packaging has been designed to maximise shelf space and eye appeal.

An evergreen classic is the multi award winning Wooden Stack and Sounds Train. This all-purpose product comprises a shape sorter, a pullalong and an interactive play train, and comes in Try Me packaging which has proved irresistible to customers.

A.B.Gee is bringing a refreshing change to the wooden toy aisle with its beautifully crafted Tooky Toy range.

A standout in the collection is the Forest Activity Table, a vibrantly coloured multi-activity table that promises to captivate and educate young minds. This innovative toy is not just a piece of furniture, but promises to aid learning and development in children. The Forest Activity Table is designed with five distinct areas, each aimed at developing different skills through engaging play. The table’s vibrant colours and enchanting forest theme instantly attract children, inviting them to explore its myriad of activities.

Also new for autumn/winter 2024, the 9-piece wooden pirate ship is ready for imaginative play and timeless fun. Children can set sail with this meticulously crafted toy, which is billed as a vessel for creativity, exploration and learning. The pirate ship even comes with hidden compartments and secret passages. The trapdoor and rear opening stern provide elements of surprise and discovery, whilst the spring-loaded canon adds a thrilling element to play.

With 80+ lines in the Tooky Toy range, each piece is crafted with care and a commitment to responsible forest management, ensuring that children's playtime is both enriching and eco-friendly. To see the full range, visit the A.B.Gee website.

Special Feature

The Toy Association

New Toy Association president says “Bring it on!”

In late May 2024, Greg Ahearn was named president & CEO of The Toy Association, the US trade organisation representing the toy industry. Bringing to the role significant experience from both the supply and retail sides of the fence, his appointment has been widely hailed as a wise choice for the association, which is now preparing to move forward and evolve with the ever-changing market. Toy World’s John Baulch and Rachael Simpson-Jones caught up with Greg to find out his strategy for the months and years ahead, and why he feels identifying opportunities, not issues, is crucial to the success of the industry.

WWhen we spoke to Greg, he’d been president & CEO of The Toy Association for just 30 days. Although he’s very new to the role (he tells us that so far, he’s worked out where in NYC is best for a quick lunch and which office webcam is the correct one to look in for calls), he’s hit the ground running, engaging in significant outreach with the association’s members and partners and beginning to formulate his vision for the future.

‘Raised in the toy industry’, Greg is an experienced and highly respected figure. Following a number of executive positions at companies including Mattel, Hasbro and LeapFrog, he then spent 12 years with Toys R Us. Unlike some previous Toy Association presidents, Greg has a background that gives him enviable insight into the inner workings of the toy industry; to use his golfing term, he has course knowledge. He possesses a strong understanding of what drives the toy industry, which avenues of exploration could be opened up by technology and what the individuals within it both need and want. And while this is clearly a huge advantage for someone coming into the role of president & CEO, he’s not the only one at the association that knows a thing or two.

“The team here is fabulous,” he tells us, highlighting how impressed he has been to discover the wealth of existing knowledge and experience already present within the association. “The Toy Association covers a huge amount of ground globally - from the regulatory work we do in DC and other states (such as bringing about recycled materials legislative change in Pennsylvania) to our Communications and Events teams. The work we do, the amount of people we have here, and the scale and magnitude of the sectors we’re involved in – honestly, it’s pretty mind boggling.”

The Toy Association does a lot of different things, and it does a lot of them very well. Greg says its global regulatory and advocacy work, which takes place at state, federal and international levels to try and create a consistent level of standardisation, is ‘second to none’ (though naturally very challenging). On the Events side, he highlights the association’s ability to bring people together for networking and B2B opportunities such as the New York

Toy Fair, which, after a hiatus, returns to the Jacob K. Javits Convention Centre in 2025 from 1st-4th March.

All this being said, Greg is not blind to the fact certain elements of the association’s work could be improved. The LA Fall Preview, for example, stands to benefit from enhancements that could make it more valuable for retailers, licensors and other partners, as well as more efficient for visiting manufacturers and buyers. To this end, the Toy Association will be in LA for the first time ever this year, spread across four floors of a building situated right in the heart of the toy district, from which it can learn from the event and its visitors – what works, what doesn’t, and what needs to change.

“I know from my time on the manufacturing side how important it is that the Toy Association works to serve its members and partners, whether that’s via the information we disseminate, our partnerships with bodies such as Circana, or by helping emerging companies access crucial resources such as information on licensing or breaking into international markets,” Greg explains, noting that he dislikes the term ‘small’ to describe businesses. (Side note: Greg worked at an emerging company called OddzOn, which made Koosh Balls, and keeps one in his office as a reminder of where he came from.) “In this role, I have the chance to sit down with emerging and midsize company leads, as well as the large ones, and find out what they value about their membership as well as which areas we could improve upon. There’s nothing like talking with people one-on-one.”

Thanks to his time in the toy industry, Greg already has a good relationship with many of the people he’s speaking to, which is helping him accrue honest feedback with which

Starter Sets:

Designed with beginners in mind, tanks, cars, or planes, Airfix Starter Sets are the perfect start to any modelling journey. Each kit includes paints, glue, and a brush.

Special Feature

he can action meaningful change. Early on, he’s already come to realise that what people really want is for the Toy Association to be a ‘unifying force’ that offers a collaborative environment in which the industry can come together.

“This is an industry based upon relationships,” he says. “When I was considering this job, before I was lucky enough to actually land it, someone told me: ‘You have to understand – associations are a little bit different to the corporate world you’re used to’. The corporate world is very hierarchical, but associations are much flatter: you have a board of directors and a number of members, over 850 in our case, of all different shapes and sizes. You have to think and act in a way that takes into account everyone’s voice and point of view.”

When it comes to leadership style, Greg is all about managing through influence. He wants to foster connections based upon shared industry goals – no mean feat, considering the huge disparity in the size of some of the Toy Association’s members and the number of conflicting views inherent in a membership that large. For Greg, though, what some might see as a hurdle is just another opportunity.

He says: “You want to have all the voices in the room with you, and we do. We’re a conduit for all sizes of members and I want people to know that through us, they have a voice. Sure, you can’t make everyone happy, and I am definitely going to have to get used to that fact, but people should know they have a line into me and into the association, and we will continue to improve on this moving forward.”

We asked Greg what challenges the US toy industry is facing at the moment that he feels the association can mitigate. Events/trade shows is one – or rather, the number of them across the globe, which can leave some companies scratching their heads about where best to

The Toy Association

invest in a presence. To overcome this, the Toy Association is keen to help members understand which events offer the best opportunities for deal-making and networking while simultaneously raising awareness of the value of community and industry celebration. Greg tips his hat at the London Toy Fair, organised by the British Toy & Hobby Association, and Spielwarenmesse, organised by Spielwarenmesse eG, as examples of trade events done right – ones that move the dial, as he puts it, from ‘Should I go?’ to ‘I need to go!’

He also wants the association to further tackle regulation, legislation and standards across the US and beyond. This can currently be extremely cumbersome for companies to get to grips with, particularly the emerging companies of whom Greg is so fond. He wants to simplify and streamline regulation for the association’s members, which he believes will enhance the proposition and value it offers.

“I like to keep things simple, distil things to the most basic common denominator,” he adds. “In this role that’s: what’s happening? What can we impact on as an association within an industry? And how do we then home in on those things to bring about tangible benefits for our members? Of course, it’s not actually simple. It says easy and does hard. We’re going to be spending time together as a leadership team here at the association to work out our priorities for the months and years ahead, from the basics we’re already good at to the other areas of the industry where we could bring about change. When you walk out of a room, that’s when the real work begins. The chance to have a lasting, positive impact on an industry I love so much was a huge draw to me coming into this role.”

Greg was also drawn by the opportunity to contribute towards the vital work of The Toy Foundation, the Toy Association’s industry charity. The Toy Foundation (TTF) supports children’s hospital programmes and engages

in international crisis outreach. Through its annual Toy of the Year (TOTY) Awards, it also raises hundreds of thousands of dollars which go to good causes and oversees the distribution of toys through The Toy Bank. Working alongside Pamela Mastrota, executive director of The Toy Foundation, Greg wants to bring the full force of the US industry to bear behind TTF and propel its philanthropic efforts to even greater heights. He’s not a newcomer to charitable work of this nature. Previously, he was involved in Toys R Us’ Childrens’ Fund, something he’s enormously proud to have been a part of.

“I got to see first-hand the positive impact we could have on the lives of children because of who we were and the access we had to consumers so we could raise awareness and generate funds,” he says. “I see the same opportunity at The Toy Foundation. We just need to rally the toy industry behind it, build out those relationships with manufacturers and licensors and get them involved in the charitable aspect of what we do. Then I think we’ll see both the association and TTF having an even greater impact than they do today.”

It's clear from speaking with Greg that he’s got a lot to do: a lot of challenges to face, a lot of new avenues to explore, a lot of good, positive change to oversee. But he’s not daunted by it; again and again, he reframes the situation to highlight the opportunities within, the possibilities he sees. He’s both an optimist and a pragmatist - and the US toy industry arguably needs both.

“There’s a lot still for me to learn and there are so many great things the association is involved with, but there is always more to do as well, on behalf of both the industry and its members,” he finishes. “I can’t change the world in 30 days, but we’re definitely thinking big while tackling the day-to-day minutiae. I’m excited to see what the Toy Association will undertake next.”

Feature Autumn’s faring well

1-4 September 2024 NEC Birmingham

Autumn Fair returns on the 1st to 4th September at NEC Birmingham. Event director, Soraya Gadelrab, tells Toy World what’s new at the fair this year, as toy exhibitor stands are mixed back in with gift exhibitors for the first time in many years.

This was a result of feedback from both exhibitors and buyers from previous Spring and Autumn Fairs. “Over that last few years, especially post-pandemic, we have seen significant changes in the industry that have shaped the high street and the way that consumers and buyers shop,” says Soraya Gadelrab, event director of both Spring and Autumn Fair. “The feedback that we’ve received has told us that product ranges are having to be more diverse to reach a wider range of customers.

the general gift aisles is one tangible change which toy companies will be happy with.

“Toy exhibitors are seeing Gift buyers sourcing more children’s products than ever before. Our re-edit to integrate children’s gifts and toys into the Gift section at Autumn Fair makes sense to keep our events relevant and drive a better ROI for our customers,” says Soraya, who adds that these changes have been welcomed within the industry. “We are attracting more new and lapsed customers, and we can offer fantastic locations amongst Gift brands at the show.”

AAs one of the key events ahead of retail’s peak season, Autum Fair gives over 12,000 visitors the opportunity to place orders with over 800 exhibitors. Buyers can not only discover the latest in the Kids, Toys and Play sector, newly housed within the wider Gift destination, but also explore other categories such as gifts and stationery, with which they can potentially supplement their toy offering. This year, the decision has been made for Autumn Fair Toy exhibitor stands to be mixed in with Gift exhibitors.

“The exhibitors are our customers, and without them there is no show,” continues Soraya. “Exhibitor feedback is important so that we can continue to improve the ROI of the show for those customers.” Autumn Fair welcomes feedback, as its goal is to continually evolve the fair in order to maintain its position as a leading retail event in the UK.”

There was certainly no shortage of exhibitor feedback at the 2023 event, which saw a large group of exhibitors gather to protest on the last day of the show. Chief among the grievances was the concern over declining visitor numbers, and a feeling that the show needed to be freshened up. The integration of toy exhibitors within

The move is intended to increase the amount of footfall to Toy stands. Toy exhibitors in the heart of the Gift section are now situated in Autumn Fair’s largest sector for attracting buyers to the show. “Exhibitors will see a far wider range of cross over buyers, especially from independents looking to source brand new children’s lines for their stores, as well as their next best-sellers,” explains Soraya. “Over half of the buyers attending Autumn Fair are Gift buyers, so the re-edit makes sense to give exhibitors the ideal opportunity to meet new retailers.”

Feature Autumn Fair

Approximately 70% of Autumn Fair’s Toy exhibitors this year are repeat exhibitors, including Cheatwell Games, University Games and Winning Moves UK. According to Soraya, they keep returning to the show because of the

unique opportunities Autumn Fair provides. “Our existing customers already see a good number of crossover Gift buyers, and we are attracting more and more new and lapsed customers back to the show, thanks to our re-edit and rich line up.”

As registration went live for the show at the end of May, it was announced that the 2024 show will see a renewed focus on new and original products, local Best of British suppliers and products, and sustainable suppliers.

“Newness is a theme that runs through every one of our shows,” says Soraya. “New product and suppliers are what buyers are always looking for. They want to see the best of what is available and are always looking for something different and unique. Newness keeps the shows fresh, exciting and relevant.” Best of British and sustainability are key selling points, as sustainability and locally made/ designed products have become important purchase drivers for consumers, making them attractive to retailers as well.

This year, Autum Fair will be collaborating with online marketplace, Faire, to help hundreds of exhibiting brands take on orders from retailers attending the show. Retailers at Autumn Fair will gain access to Faire’s platform and extensive global network of brands and will be featured in a special collection on the website. This will help retailers to discover thousands of unique products and take advantage of the 50% discount for new retailers on their first order, making for easy shopping at the show and beyond.

1-4 September 2024 NEC Birmingham

First time visitors who want to make the most of their time at Autumn Fair can register now to attend on the show’s website, www.autumnfair.com. The show is free to attend, and it only takes a few moments to register. Once signed up, visitors will be updated on show news and will also be able to access the Autumn Fair exhibitor lists to begin planning a successful trip this September. Over the following pages, we curate a selection of the new products which toy exhibitors will be highlighting at the show.

Autumn Fair

Hippychick

01278 434 440 | www.hippychick.com sales@hippychick.com

Stand 6L30-M31

Hippychick will be returning to Autumn Fair 2024, where it will unveil a collection of highly sought after toys and gifts from toy brands, such as Classic World, Vilac and Crocodile Creek. Hippychick will be showcasing its most popular products, along with lots of new, must-have items.

Hippychick has seen a big rise in demand for its key toy brands, which currently account for more than 55% of its total sales, and this is only set to continue growing. Many retailers are now looking for toys that are £25 and under, which is what makes Crocodile Creek popular: all its Puzzles, Arts & Crafts sets and Playballs come in under this price point. Hippychick has seen sales of the brand go from strength to strength and due to this high demand is always adding new lines to the range. The Playballs are one of Hippychick’s strongest performers. The company has recently added new designs as well as Soft Footballs into the range. Hippychick has also introduced the Garden Friends range, which includes Garden Tools, Gardening Gloves, a Watering Can, Binoculars and a trendy Bucket Hat, all of which are perfect for getting kids outside and exploring nature.

One of Hippychick’s new, stand-out brands, and the latest addition to its portfolio, is BS Toys. A fast growing educational and sustainable brand from the Netherlands, BS Toys offers a unique range of indoor and outdoor toys to inspire creativity and active play, giving children a much-needed break from technology. Hippychick was attracted to this brand due to its retro element, which parents and grandparents will be able to relate to, making it fun for all the family. One of the early stars of the range is the Lacrosse Kit, which is made from innovative, recycled wheat straw plastic, making it not only fun for kids but also kind to the planet. Bounce Rackets are proving an excellent seller. Taking inspiration from tennis, kids simply bounce the fluffy rubber ball between the two rackets.

Hippychick is also continuing to grow its wooden toy range, introducing brand new lines to the Classic World collection. One of the latest additions is the FSC-certified Magic Ball. The ball offers a host of developmental benefits, from co-ordination and dexterity to colour and shape recognition.

Interested parties can see all of this and much more on Hippychick’s stand at Autumn Fair, where they’ll also be able to discover exclusive, incremental show offers that can’t be found anywhere else.

Winning Moves UK

020 7298 9515 | www.winningmoves.co.uk | sales@winningmoves.co.uk

Stand 6L52-M53

Winning Moves will be showcasing a multitude of licensed and unlicensed ranges from across its whole card and board games line-up. First up will be the company’s Hello Kitty range, featuring a Hello Kitty Monopoly, Hello Kitty Top Trumps Match and a Hello Kitty Top Trumps Specials pack. To celebrate everyone’s favourite Kitty and her 50th anniversary, the products will be launching in October 2024, with Top Trumps arriving a few months earlier in August.

Dr Seuss’ The Grinch will also be on show. This Christmas-themed licence will be launched in autumn/winter, as Winning Moves believes that this will be a massive hit with lovers of the cult-classic movie. Winning Moves is launching three items under the licence: Cluedo, Whot!, and Waddingtons Number 1 Playing Cards. The three games will be hitting shelves at the same time as the Hello Kitty range, just in time for the festive season.

Winning Moves’ existing portfolio for one of the biggest properties on the market, Disney’s Stitch, will be bolstered this October with the addition of Stitch Top Trumps Match. The game sees players aged four and above attempt to match five cubes in a row, while battling against their opponent. Players can steal their opponent’s point by flipping over their Top Trumps cards: if the characters match, then the point is theirs.

Winning Moves will also be turning its focus towards an exciting spring/summer 2025 range comprising Stranger Things Risk, Top Trumps Limited Editions and Top Trumps Quiz. With the hotly anticipated final season of Stranger Things slated for a potential 2025 release, these products will be launching within the peak hype window. In addition, Winning Moves will be unveiling more Hello Kitty licensed product as well as more anime and manga licensed products. With the anime and kidult markets continuing to grow, these products will be perfect for that audience.

Winning Moves will be offering a show deal of 5% off £500 orders and 10% off £1,000 orders, with delivery at the end of October, on available lines only. Further terms and conditions apply.

Autumn Fair

VR Distribution

0330 088 0941 | www.vrdist.co.uk

Stand 20A50-B51

VR Distribution is known for bringing some of the biggest selling games titles to the UK with its extensive range of party and family games and will be demonstrating this range at the NEC Autumn Fair on the Asmodee Stand.

Spots recently received accolades from both the judges and the public at Games Expo, which speaks volumes about Spots’ quality and entertainment value. Spots has a broad appeal and strong game design, demonstrated by winning both the Judges’ Choice and People’s Choice awards for Best Dice Game. Spots is a game about rolling dice, pushing players’ luck and dogs. Designed for one to four players aged 10+, they’ll roll and reroll, trying to place dice on the matching spots on their dogs.

The Sosig Game has had a great start. For ages 10+, each player in this strategyfocused game works to create the tastiest Sosig using different head and body cards. There are eighty head and body cards for building the most impressive Sosig. There are also 17 Mystery Meat cards to sabotage other players.

Also new for VR Distribution is the Do You Really Know Your Family? game. Players will see who really knows their family best as they answer fun trivia questions about each other. They will create hilarious family memories as they perform and complete silly challenges together to be the first player to collect 15 game cards.

From the Lucky Egg range, Get Wet Family has done great numbers during spring/ summer 2024 since its launch, with great distribution. With a family friendly twist, Trivia: Get Wet Family Edition brings the whole family together for hilarious trivia action, where wrong answers get players wet from a water sprayer. With 250 cards, there’s lots of gameplay for ages eight and above.

Sorry What?! is the lip-reading adult party game where players have to make the headphone wearer guess the sentence by lip-reading. Players slip on the loud headphones and attempt to lip-read x-rated phrases. With 400 random word cards and over 40,000 combinations, each round is filled with unexpected and hilarious phrases. This adult party game promises laughter and unforgettable moments.

Big Potato Games

020 3620 9495 | www.bigpotato.co.uk | trade@bigpotato.co.uk Stand 20B40-C41

Big Potato Games is heading to Autumn Fair with a range of products for visitors to enjoy.

Dumb Questions To Ask Your Friends is a millennial party game that does exactly what it says on the tin. The round starts with a dumb question. Players shout out their answers before dealing out five question cards, including the one answered. The mission is to work out which question the other players were answering.

This is a game where players rummage around in their friends’ brains to find out things that they didn’t know. It’s a fun, super-social game packed with 400 dumb questions that garner lots of laughs and point scoring on the way to eventually declaring just one winner.

The next game is the Tilt ‘n’ Shout. This game is an homage to retro classics like Downfall and Kerplunk, with a bit of Scattergories thrown in.

The star of the show in this game is the bright yellow and orange seesaw timer. Once a category card is flipped over, a team shouts out an answer and tips the seesaw their way. The ball bearing starts to travel down the track towards their winning zone. The other team quickly shouts out a new answer and tilts the seesaw back to them, making the ball go towards their winning zone.

Eventually, one team goes blank and they lose the round. In the next round, a penalty block is placed under the seesaw, giving the winning team less time to think. The back-and-forth battle continues until one team has won five rounds. These games fit the Big Potato mantra of ‘easy to learn, quick to play’, with everyone involved all the time. They are perfect for families and friends and can even be converted into drinking games.

To find out more about Big Potato’s upcoming ranges, visit its stand at Autumn Fair or get in touch via the details above.

Autumn Fair

Cheatwell Games

023 9252 4098 | www.cheatwell.com | sales@cheatwell.com

Stand 6L50-M51

Visitors to the NEC this year will note that Cheatwell Games has an impressive new range that will appeal to all interests this Christmas. New games and puzzles complement its old favourites and cover every popular category. There are additions to both family and adult games, brainteasers and jigsaws.

The arrival of the extensive Cobble Hill range of jigsaws is a strong addition to the Cheatwell puzzles portfolio. The jigsaws are of the highest quality, with eye-catching images, blue-board puzzle pieces and sturdy puzzles boxes with linen print finishes. There are over 150 styles to choose from covering every interest and preference. Roll-away mats, sorting trays, glues and other puzzle paraphernalia are also available. Brambly Hedge and The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady are the standout offerings in wthis range.

Six new images have also been added to the World’s Smallest Jigsaws range. Each puzzle comprises 1,000 pieces but is just A3 in size. They are highly challenging and hugely collectible.

In the Inter-Galactic Plumber game, the galaxy has become full of hazardous asteroids. Players are tasked with de-clogging the space lanes. As they jaunt from rock to rock using their plungers to remove asteroids, they gain points along the way.

Word Stars is a rapid race to solve a mystery word before the timer runs out. Players must crack the clues from the clever cues and the mystery word will start to emerge. The faster it’s solved, the more stars are won. With hundreds of hidden words to guess and plenty of creative clues to solve, Word Stars is a must-have for all quick-witted word-lovers.

It Fits… is a game in which players create answers to given statements. The aim is for players to choose an answer that fits their card and as many face-up cards as possible, convincing their opponents that their answer truly fits.

Skullduggery, one of Cheatwell’s new family card games, won the coveted 2024 People’s Choice Award for Best Card Game at the UK Games Expo. Skullduggery has innovative, engaging gameplay and is set to become an all-time favourite with gamers of all ages.

Trivia is another area where Cheatwell excels, offering a wide range of quiz games covering many popular categories. Complementing the ever-popular Top Trivia Ultimate game5,000 trivia questions on a wealth of general knowledge topics – the new Decades Edition will cover fads, fashion and facts from the 1960s to the 2010s.

Pub Quiz Local Editions, a range of stand-alone pint-sized quiz challenges, has been a best-seller since its launch last year. The Red Lion, Crown, White Hart and The Kings Arms editions are joined by The Ship and The Star for 2024.

The Quiz Cubes contain over 700 questions for trivia fiends. Pick ‘n’ Mix, Music and Quick Quiz are joined by the popular category of Food and Drink this year.

IQ Busters are classic 3D wooden puzzles that pose a perplexing problem. With two challenges in just one puzzle, each series comes as an assortment of four different puzzles in a free, straight-to-shelf wooden display.

Cheatwell is reducing its box sizes and removing single use plastics in its continuing efforts to reduce its carbon footprint.

University Games UK

0207 254 0100 | www.university-games.co.uk

Stand 6L40-M41

University Games and Lagoon will be showcasing 700 games, puzzles and gifts at Autumn Fair this year. From early pre-school through to adult party games, and for the whole family in between, University Games has something for everyone.

University Games will have its ever-popular family games range on display, including best-sellers Who’s in the Bag, Pointless, 20 Questions and Prometheus, as well as the strategic liar dice game, Perudo. In addition, new arrivals Art Gallery, Blurt and the Rocky Horror Show board game will be showcased, alongside the iconic Subbuteo range of Main Games, Player team sets and accessories that include the new electronic Timer and Scoreboard.

New additions to the 3D Model range, arriving this summer, will include Darth Vader, Spider-Man and Deadpool characters, alongside Wizarding World favourites Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley.

Oh No! The Dog Ate My Homework! is a further new addition to University Games’ children’s range. Once the dog has chewed and pooped out the drawn or chosen homework, players will race to place the jumbled pieces back together and guess what the image was. The artwork is crowdsourced from children all over the world.

The nation’s favourite bear, Paddington, is set to be a hot favourite this festive season with the third movie, Paddington in Peru. University Games’ range of children’s games, including the Paddington Find it Fast challenge and Paddington Sight Seeing Adventures board game, will offer fun, on-trend gifts this Christmas. Lagoon’s Project Genius brainteaser puzzle range has new lines in the True Genius collection. Available now, these include the Sorcerer’s Box, Message in a Bottle and the Greek Anchor and Chain puzzles. Lagoon also offers an extensive range of Games in a Tin, including the bestselling Couples Quiz and True or False, with new titles Well, Duh! and The Cosmos Quiz, arriving soon. Lagoon’s extended seasonal range offers gifts and stocking fillers for the holidays, including tabletop games and Christmas brainteasers.

The 40-strong Learning Journey range focuses on games, puzzles and toys for the key learning ages and stages, from baby and pre-school through to 12-years-old. The range includes a selection of high-quality electronic, sensory and construction toys, as well as a complete series of eco-friendly educational games and puzzles, made with recycled paper and soya-based inks.

It all starts with a really dumb question that only your friends can see. They give their answers, then you have to work out what the question was.

How dark do you like your toast?

0 = bread

10 = cremated

NUMBERS

What food would you most like to bathe in?

FOOD

isWhichplayer mostlikely tobecomea shepherd?

PLAYERS

“So much fun!”

- Amazon reviewer

“Ridiculous discussions and belly-aching laughter”

- Amazon reviewer

To find out more about Dumb Questions or any of our other games, ping us a message at trade@bigpotato.co.uk or visit us at Autumn Fair. We’ll be in Hall 20 at stand B40-C41.

Special Feature

Letter from Australia

No worries down under?

The Australian toy market is markedly different to other global markets during June and July each year. Since the early 1990s, we have witnessed the mid-year toy promotional sale cycle. Originally launched by Target Australia, other retailers such as Kmart, Big W, Myer, David Jones and more followed suit. But, as the years have rolled on and the toy landscape has changed, Big W is the only mass retailer which still offers this activation. The sale commences in late June and concludes on July 20th each year and has developed into a key window for toy companies to launch and showcase new product to consumers.

This year, one of the major focuses was on the launch of game show board game Deal or No Deal. The game has been launched by Imagination Gaming and includes the opportunity for a consumer who purchases the game to win a cash prize of Aus$1m. The item is located prominently at the entrance to all Big W stores with a special pallet display and by all accounts has proved to be a huge success. Shane Yeend, the founder of Imagination Games has been developing game show board games for 40 years and is extremely experienced in brokering highly successful activations to promote his games.

Target Australia recently launched an online toy sale where it was interesting to see a raft of impressive new releases from Zuru, including Mini Brands Home/Garden, Robo Alive Shark, Dino Escape and Smashers Horror.

The Australian Toy Association hosted its annual Mid-Year Toy Fair in Sydney from 27th- 28th of June. This year’s show saw 40 exhibitors on the floor. Buyers and visitors attended the show to see the latest releases for the

second half of 2024 and 2025. New products creating a buzz included Cubeez from Headstart, Emma Memma accessories from Pink Poppy, Wicked by Zimbler Toys, Nationary family card game, Harlington/Thomas Kinkade premium puzzle range and the Uno No Mercy card game. In terms of licences, Disney’s Stitch and Universal’s Despicable Me 4 toys were very prominent.

An exciting new partnership between Brave Toys, parent company of Connetix, and My Creative Box was announced at the show. Connetix is already active in 83 countries where it offers global award-winning, STEAM accredited magnetic tiles. Moving forward, the company is looking to introduce new play patterns and new products via distribution networks.

Tony Bugg is publisher of The Toy Universe - a B2B toy industry publication which features toy news covering Australia and New Zealand. Having held senior Sales and Marketing roles for over 30 years, in 2008 Tony founded The Bugg Report to produce news on brands and licensing. He has held the positions of director of the Australian Toy Association and MD of Licensing International in Australia & New Zealand. Here he shares the latest toy market news from down under with Toy World readers.

The market in Australia has become more challenging for toy suppliers as a result of Kmart continuing to ramp up its in-house brand, Anko. The toy department is now dominated by Anko product in most categories. Kmart has recently entered into a partnership with Mattel, whereby it will offer Mattel brands within its wooden toy ranges in Anko packaging. This has created a situation where suppliers need to be more mindful than ever before to launch product that offers a point of difference and something that Kmart can’t do itself, such as high-profile licensed product and bespoke developments.

As a market, Australia has always punched well above its weight. As the toy business has evolved there have been several Australian companies who have stepped up and become successful on the world stage, such as Moose Toys, Headstart, Connetix, Toy Monster with Jurassic Park, Eezy Peezy, Crystal Gaze and more recently Jellystone Designs.

A notable recent development from Moose Toys has been its collaboration with Mr Beast, a phenomenon in the influencer space. Moose’s Mr Beast Lab collection launched here in July. Another ongoing and emerging trend which is fuelling growth in the toy business is Kidults. This older age group with disposable income is buying up collectibles, board games and nostalgic toys in large quantities.

Amazon is continuing to evaluate the market here in Australia and will soon open its eighth warehouse. As the online retailer continues to refine its offer, which includes Prime, there is no doubt that offering same day delivery, and perhaps even delivery within a couple of hours, will mean that Amazon is likely to become a dominant retailer in this market sooner rather than later.

Pink Poppy

Julie@kidkreations.co.uk

www.kidkreations.co.uk

Wooden Sensory Toys Lifelike Reborn Dolls

18” Stylish Fashion Dolls

Smooshzees CharacterOptions

0161 633 9800 • sales@charactergroup.plc.uk

Smooshzees, from Character Options, is a brand-new range of squeezable, stretchy and soft characters that are both cute and highly collectible.

The Smooshzees characters come in a range of trending styles, such as an axolotl, a unicow and more, each with its own colourful personality to stimulate kids’ imagination through play. The combination of super-soft filling covered with a velvety stretchy outer skin make them a perfect cuddle companion for children.

Wave one will include 24 characters to collect, the smallest of which are the 3.5” Cutezees.

Priced for pocket money sales, there are 10 Cutezees to collect, including two Chasezee characters.

All Smooshzees come housed in stackable try-me packaging so kids can feel the softness before leaving the store.

MonopolyGo!

Hasbro

0208 569 1234 • www.hasbro.co.uk

Hasbro has launched a brand-new, official version of the world’s most popular family board game – Monopoly Go! Edition, in collaboration with Scopely, the global interactive entertainment and mobile-first video game company. This special edition game transforms the popular digital gaming version of Monopoly into tabletop form, giving fans of the app a new, exciting way to experience and enjoy with friends and family.

Created for 2-4 players, ages eight and up, Monopoly Go! Edition is a great choice for anytime play, family game nights and makes a cool gift for those who love Monopoly board games.

The Monopoly Go! game is a quick-playing board game version of the Monopoly Go! digital game. In this family board game, the first player to build a landmark wins. To get started, each player chooses a mini gameboard with a favourite location, plus a matching-coloured die. Then players take turns, each rolling all the die at once and moving their token around their board. If a player lands on a colour space, they take a landmark block from the tray and add it to their board. Bank Heists, Shut Downs and Mega Shut Downs can be used to sabotage rivals, and the first to stack four matching-coloured landmark blocks on their board wins.

Each month Fresh sets out to find the latest products that will have toy retailers reaching for the phone.

Here are new releases from: Character Options, Funrise, Vivid, Hasbro, Hornby, IMC, KAP, Lego, Reydon Sports, Sambro & Zimpli Kids.

PowerSaber

VividGoliathGroup

01483 449 944 • www.vividtoysandgames.co.uk

Goliath has unveiled the long-awaited Power Saber, the first of its kind to automatically fully extend and retract. Power Saber launched globally at retailers on 21st July and made its debut to fans ahead of San Diego Comic Con at an exclusive party hosted by Den of Geeks on 25th July.

Available in red or green, this action-packed toy saber features a strong light source and motion-based SFX, including a flash-on clash feature and an in-hilt LED. Fans can easily extend the Power Saber to 35” and get ready for battle. Between play, the saber can be carried in the belt clip for easy transport or displayed on the included stand. Designed with durability in mind, and able to withstand duelling and active play, its premium feel and smooth, reliable extension and retraction make it the perfect choice for fans aged six and over.

2024 has been a year of steady growth for Goliath. Earlier this year, the company announced its worldwide licence and distribution agreement with Funko Games, as well as its expansive category launch into toys. The launch of Power Saber marks another pivotal milestone for the company as it further cements its position as a predominant player in the global toys and game industry.

Furlings

Surpported by a comprehensive marketing campaign from next month, Furlings interactive plush toys will captivate children with its cute design and lovability.

There will be three different versions to choose from: Aspen, the loving dragon; Finley, the adventurous Yeti; and Cleo, the mischievous jackalope. With their long whimsical tails, animated eyes and fluffy fur, Furlings are both adorable friends and treasured companions. Packed with over 80 interactive features that include grins and growls, each Furlings character reacts to a child’s play patterns.

The more a child interacts with their Furling, the more the Furling toy will interact with the child. Children can tickle their Furling’s belly and watch as giggles turn into uncontrollable laughter. Pressing the Furling’s nose will make its eyes go red, and it will display its annoyance with a growl. If kids continuing to press the nose, the Furling’s eyes will turn bright red and the angry creature will let out a loud, grumbling roar. Marketing promises to be a major pillar in the launch. Funrise’s heavyweight marketing campaign is comprised of four-levels to create major demand for Furlings. This will include TV, streaming, influencers and an out-of-home campaign.

Bingarts &crafts

An award-winning global supplier of licensed and own-brand toys, Sambro International offers unrivalled expertise in the licensed pre-school sector. Bing is one of several licensed franchises which has been brought to life via a series of exclusive arts & crafts products, following a collaborative partnership with licensor Acamar Films. The range comprises a selection of products to stimulate learning and educational play patterns amongst children and is available in the UK, Netherlands and CEE territories. The range includes a variety of products designed to stimulate early learning, focusing on developing new life skills such as handeye coordination and motor skills. My First Work of Art supports children's development in these areas. With features such as finger painting and cardboard cut-outs, children can explore colours and enhance their creativity whilst having fun and learning.

The Bing Doodle Plush allows kids to doodle, play and wash away with their favourite characters from Bing. Each plush comes with three washable markers. Featuring beloved characters Bing, Flop, Sula and Pando, the Create Your Own Craft Character range let little ones make a new best friend from scratch. Children can stuff the plush toy and place the paper heart inside before zipping it up.

The range also includes the Creative Apron Set, which comes with colourful paints, a paper roll, shaped sponges, a paintbrush and a washable apron. This set encourages children to get creative with colours and embrace their artistic side. Affordably priced within the pocket money bracket, this product is perfect for painting without limits.

Sambro has continued to demonstrate its commitment to ESG and sustainability with the Bing range, with all plush items using 100% recycled polyester stuffing. Receiving full accreditation from Global Recycling Standards, Sambro also uses FSC-certified packaging across the product range following its successful transition from plastic, to further reduce waste.

0115 938 6444 • www.reydonsports.com • sales@reydonsports.com

Working alongside Franklin Sports, Reydon is the exclusive B2B European distributor for Nerf Sports and enjoys the full support of Hasbro UK. The deal includes the exclusive distribution rights to the Nerf Vortex Howler range. A best-seller in toy shops across the globe, Howlers are foam balls that can be thrown long distances due to their flight optimising tails. The collection is now in stock and ready to be distributed.

The entire 30+ SKU Nerf collection comprises a set of sporting product lines which fit perfectly into any Toy, Sport, Leisure and Multiple retailer. The premium quality, over-the-door Nerf Pro Hoop basketball set transforms any bedroom or living room into a personal basketball court. It fits most standard bedroom doors and assembles quickly so kids can start dunking almost immediately. Other products include ball, basketball, golf and tennis sets plus many more.

Combining sports with toys, Nerf’s innovative ranges are distributed via Reydon’s Nottingham-based distribution centre. The company’s B2B model allows Reydon to supply and service the world of retail across many sectors, while also making a huge splash in Europe for both Franklin and Nerf with its array of marketing support materials.

LegoBotanicalCollectionChrysanthemumandPlum Blossom

TheLegoGroup

01753 495 000 • www.lego.com

The Lego Group has announced two new additions to its Lego Botanical Collection, consisting of the Lego Plum Blossom and the Lego Chrysanthemum. Timeless gifts for a plant lover or perfect for creating an elegant floral display for the home, both new sets are designed to provide an immersive building experience for adults.

The Lego Chrysanthemum comes with posable leaves and petals depicting the vivid-orange flower in various stages of growth, including one in full bloom, one blossoming and two in bud. The plant is nestled in a pastel green flowerpot with a golden band and wood-effect plinth.

The Lego Plum Blossom is an interpretation that depicts the iconic winter flora with its elegant stem and vivid red and magenta flowers. This 327-piece set comes in a pastel-blue flowerpot with a golden band and wood-effect plinth and is easy to assemble. Delivering a rewarding building experience, this set makes a beautiful, easy-care flower display for the home and office.

Glowy ZimpliKids

sales@zimplikids.com

Zimpli Kids has announced the launch of its latest product, Glowy, a glow-in-the-dark slime jellyfish. Glowy lights up kids' imaginations and provides endless hours of fun, making it a must-have toy for every child.

This cute and functional container transforms into a magical night light, offering a comforting glow that helps kids feel safe as they sleep. Each Glowy set includes two sachets of glow-in-the-dark slime, providing double the fun. The slime is easy to mix and play with, stimulating creativity and imagination, while the unique glow effect makes playtime even more exciting, especially in the dark. Glowy is designed with both fun and practicality in mind. The jellyfish container is durable and easy to clean, making it perfect for repeated use. Parents will appreciate the convenience of having a toy that doubles as a night light, while kids will love the engaging and interactive play that Glowy offers.

Zimpli Kids prioritises safety and environmental responsibility. All its products undergo dermatological testing by Dermatest, ensuring they are safe for skin use. Additionally, its slime powder is certified biodegradable by Intertek, in accordance with the OECD301B standard.

Zimpli Kids’ mission is to create fun 'just add water' products that enhance both children’s and parents' experiences of bath time and sensory play. Its textures, colours, sounds and scents make its products perfect for multi-sensory and messy play at home or in educational settings. Zimpli’s Gelli and Slime Baff are the first toys ever to receive skin safe accreditation from the British Skin Foundation (BSF), the UK’s leading skin disease research charity.

Glowy aligns with Zimpli Kids' commitment to creating safe, high-quality toys that promote imaginative play and sensory exploration.

HelloKittycollectibles KAPToys

01423 368 888 • www.kaptoys.com orders@kaptoys.com

To celebrate Hello Kitty’s 50th birthday year, KAP Toys is extending its Hello Kitty collectible range. Created by Yuko Shimizu 50 years ago, the iconic kitty has become a symbol of all things kawaii. With billions of dollars in sales already under its belt, Hello Kitty is one of the biggest IPs in the world and appeals to fans of all ages.

KAP Toys joins a number of top brands collaborating with Sanrio, all producing Hello Kitty ranges this year across Clothing, Accessories, Homeware, Food & Drink and Events. Hello Kitty episodes air on Tiny Pop TV, Amazon kids+ and YouTube every day. Alongside the highly rated Roblox My Hello Kitty Café, this licence is very visible to potential customers and Japanese culture is booming in the UK.

The KAP Toys collectible range consists of Hello Kitty Little Bags, Hello Kitty Purses, Hello Kitty Squishii Plush and Hello Kitty Cappuccino. With limited stock available, this range will launch in full from July for autumn/winter 2024. All items retail at an affordable pocket-money price point and combine Hello Kitty’s stylish cuteness with ultra collectible designs. There are six Hello Kitty Little Bags to collect in themes including Mermaids, Unicorns and Rock. Each bag contains a stationery surprise and can be decorated and personalised. The Hello Kitty & Friends Purses range comprises six bright and cute purses made of tactile, versatile material. Each contains four surprises, and every purse is fun and unique.

In addition to Hello Kitty Squishii Plush, the collectible range also includes Hello Kitty Cappuccino. With eight to collect, each individual cappuccino cup simply needs a splash of water to reveal the Hello Kitty squishy character within.

CryBabies IMCToys

01904 720 908 www.imctoys.com info.uk@imctoys.com

IMC Toys’ popular Cry Babies range sees significant developments this year with new introductions joining the collection. Building on its position in the special feature nurture dolls market, autumn/winter 2024 will see new additions to its best-selling core Cry Babies line. Combining its ages and stages strategy with its content first approach, the latest launches link in with the new Day Care theme, the setting of the new animated Cry Babies Playtime series currently streaming on the Kitoons YouTube channel.

Following the success of the Interactive Newborn Coney doll last year, new lines continue to focus on key nurturing moments, strong role-play and storytelling for children aged 18+ months under the Let’s Grow Together banner. This season, the core range focuses on bath time play as a central theme with the launch of the Cry Babies Newborn Bath Time Dolls. The Zoe and Dana dolls react when they get wet in the bath, making interactive baby sounds such as babbling and giggling. Both wear personalised animal swimsuits and come with a towel and matching dummy. Plus, as with all Cry Babies, they cry real tears when their heads are pressed. Also launching this autumn are the Cry Babies Day Care Babies. There are three characters to choose from - Dreamy, Blake and Jenna - all of whom come dressed and ready for day care in their unique personalised hoodies, nappies, shoes, dummies and bottle accessories. When their dummy is removed, the doll will cry real tears and make realistic baby sounds, and heart shapes will light up in its eyes. Replacing the dummy will stop the crying.

The Tiny Cuddles Day Care Dolls also join the new collection and come dressed in personalised pyjamas with matching dummy, ready for a day at Happy Heart Day Care. With soft plastic heads and a cuddly body, they cry real tears when children fill them with water and press their heads. There are five different characters to collect: Hannah, Millie, Muffy, Ellie and Ashley. All make comforting companions for kids aged 18+ months at home or away.

Airfix has launched its latest addition to the Starter Set series, the iconic P-51D Mustang, which aims to provide enthusiasts and newcomers alike with an immersive and accessible introduction to model building. The P-51D Mustang is celebrated as one of the most definitive variants of the North American Mustang, an aircraft renowned for its pivotal role in securing Allied air superiority during World War II. The P-51D Mustang Starter Set encapsulates the aircraft's historical significance and technical advancements. This variant introduced several key enhancements that cemented its status as a gamechanger in aerial combat. Among these improvements was the innovative bubble canopy, which granted pilots unparalleled visibility, crucial for dogfighting and situational awareness. Additionally, the P-51D featured the cutting-edge K-14 gunsight, which significantly increased targeting accuracy and combat effectiveness.

The aircraft's firepower was another standout feature, with upgraded weaponry and an improved ammunition feed system that minimised the risk of jamming, ensuring pilots could rely on consistent performance in the heat of battle. Furthermore, the introduction of lightweight external fuel tanks extended the Mustang's range, enabling it to escort bombers deep into enemy territory and maintain air superiority over vast distances.

Airfix's new Starter Set meticulously recreates these historical and technical aspects, offering a detailed and authentic build experience. The set includes everything needed to assemble the model, making it an ideal entry point for novice modelers while still providing a rewarding challenge for seasoned hobbyists. This launch is particularly timely, as interest in World War II history and aviation remains strong among modelers and collectors. The P-51D Mustang's storied past, combined with Airfix's commitment to quality and accuracy, ensures that this Starter Set will be a highly sought-after addition to any collection.

Company Profile

Getting to know Kid Kreations

For many years, Kid Kreations has been the company behind several Argos exclusive ranges, including Tiny Treasures, DesignaBear and DesignaFriend. Now though, the Staffordshire-based traditional play specialist is changing with the times by offering its toy lines to other retailers, both in the UK and across the globe. Toy World’s John Baulch and Rachael Simpson-Jones paid Kid Kreations a visit at its HQ in Staffordshire, to find out more about the company’s history, what its current and upcoming toy ranges offer retailers of all sizes, and why the time is right for the company to forge its own path ahead.

LLinda Osborne, the owner of Kid Kreations, has been in the toy industry for a long time. After working as a buyer for Mothercare and Debenhams, she then moved to Golden Bear as director of Product Development. (Of the six women in the room with us, three have actually worked at Golden Bear: Debbie Jackson was formerly the company’s Product Development manager and Julie Taylor was its Sales director.) Having reached a ‘milestone’ birthday, she decided to go it alone, starting up a jewellery design business before ultimately being drawn back into the world of toys, undertaking product development consultancy work for various well-known toy companies. Four months later, Debbie joined her, and a couple of years after that, having already undertaken some own-brand work for Hamleys, the pair were approached by Tesco’s senior buyer, who was looking to relaunch the retailer’s pre-school toy range across plush, dolls and wood and wanted them to pitch some designs. The result was a $1.5m order for the new Chubby Chums range.

A couple of years after that, what turned out to be a fortuitous encounter with the Argos’ Toy controller, while out in Hong Kong, saw Linda and Debbie develop and

pitch DesignaBear. In just three days, functioning on next to no sleep, they devised and presented an entire brand: a logo, the packaging and toy designs. Having initially been told they weren’t successful due to the tight turnaround required, Linda and Debbie were subsequently asked to provide samples at breakneck speed, with even less time to go until the requested on-shelf date. They got on a plane, headed out to Hong Kong (right before Chinese New Year) and set about getting samples made any way they could. With the factories already at full capacity, street tailors were drafted in to make outfits for the cuddly animals. Landing back at Heathrow, they headed straight to Argos’ selection event and the rest, as they say, is history.

Julie Taylor shared with us Kid Kreations’ revised business strategy, which will see the company now step into the spotlight. Firstly, the company is launching a range of high-quality new toy brands with global potential, such as FOB plush line Swapsies, which is being exclusively distributed in the UK & Ireland by Click Distribution. Unveiled to the trade at 2024’s London Toy Fair, Swapsies is a new collection of soft and squishy plush characters with interchangeable ears and tails. There are eight large Swapsies and six blind-boxed Lil’ Swapsies to

collect: large Swapsies come with two extra swappable ears, while Lil’ Swapsies come with one.

Secondly, Kid Kreations is planning to increase its visibility with marketing efforts across a variety of media and platforms. Having spent so long designing ownbrand ranges for big-name retailers, they now need to step out from behind the curtain and show people what

Company Profile Kid Kreations

the company is capable of. For the first time ever, Kid Kreations is heading to Los Angeles to showcase its ranges to the wider trade at its showroom on Pacific Coast Highway between 9th-20th September. (To book a meeting, contact Julie on julie@kidkreations.co.uk).

Thirdly, Kid Kreations’ has set its sights on expanding its distribution and market penetration with new partners. It currently operates under an FOB model, but there’s nothing stopping it from one day having its own third-party warehouse.

Whatever it’s been developing on behalf of others, the company has always taken a wide-angle view when it comes to product development, creating a whole toy concept spanning design, POS and marketing. Its biggest success to date, with £107m in retail sales and numerous award wins behind it at Argos alone, Kid Kreations’ 18” doll range DesignaFriend launched at Argos the year after DesignaBear. Hero doll Connie, now the beloved face of Argos’ marketing campaigns, is just one of the diverse range’s characters, all of which come with long, stylable hair, outfits and accessories, and 100% recyclable, plastic-free gift box packaging complete with tissue paper lining. Kids can also choose from an assortment of complementary outfits and accessories sets, including a glamping festival tent, a horse and horse-riding outfit, a car and a bunk bed. The seasonal DesignaFriend dolls, meanwhile, come dressed in appropriately Christmassy outfits and have gone down a storm with older collectors.

“DesignaFriend averages 4.5 out of 5 stars across hundreds of authentic consumer reviews,” enthuses Julie. “The whole team is laser focused on quality and detailing. The dolls’ hair is so soft and silky, and the shoes and clothes are made from real fashion fabrics. Parents and grandparents want toys they know will last and can be passed down through the generations, such as Our Little World, Kid Kreations’ Argos-exclusive wooden and plush range. Interestingly, Our Little World best-sellers are the £60 and £100 items. It just goes to show that gifters might not be driving volume, but they’re certainly willing to spend on quality.”

Sticking with dolls, there’s Tiny Treasures and My First Tiny Treasures. Both were born (if you’ll excuse the pun) seven years ago out of the growing market for ‘reborn’ baby dolls, landing first with Argos and now available at Smyths since autumn/winter 2023. These particularly realistic dolls are highly sought after by adult doll fans, but they tend to be expensive. Base models start at a couple of hundred pounds, up to £1,000 or more for custom orders. At £40 RRP, Tiny Treasures are ideal for kids aged 3-7 seeking true immersion into the world of nurturing play and have proved very popular with parent and grandparent gifters. Each doll comes dressed in a cute outfit in car-seat-style box packaging, accompanied by a birth certificate and wearing a hospital bracelet that lends extra realism to the experience of bringing a baby home from the maternity ward. The real joy of Tiny Treasures, though, is discovered when you pick one up: they weigh 2lb 10oz and smell like a newborn baby, lending an added level of authenticity to the play pattern. My First Tiny Treasures is a smaller and lighter option for children aged 18+ months, coming in at 1lb 7oz and an RRP of £25.

For 2024, Kid Kreations is doubling its Tiny Treasures SKUs. Having seen success in a range of global markets already, it’s now launching in France. The brand is also arriving in the states this year, online via an eCommerce platform and Amazon to build the fanbase and brand awareness.

“It’s nice to offer a range of toys that promote genuinely traditional, wholesome play,” says Linda, observing that modern-day living can lead to kids spending much of their time on phones and tablets, or glued to screens elsewhere in the house. “It’s so important to me, and indeed to the whole Kid Kreations team, that our toys provide kids with the opportunity to enjoy evergreen, classic play patterns that aid development and foster life skills.”

On top of these existing brands, Kid Kreations will

be launching three new ranges in Los Angeles. Heartfuls is a doll range that equips kids with the tools needed to navigate and overcome everyday challenges related to a lack of selfconfidence and self-belief. Parents will be invited into the play pattern, which focuses very much on positive yet subtle messaging to help support and guide kids aged six and over. Heartfuls is joined by OneSea, a line of all-in-one UPF swimsuits with head protection and floatation aids, and BedHedz, foodthemed, kawaii-style dolls with wild and colourful hair (and cheeky bare bottoms) that will be just as much at home in gifting specialists as they will be in toy stores.

As it transitions from an own-brand design specialist to a toy supplier in its own right, Kid Kreations clearly has a lot to look forward to. As a small company, numbering less than 20 people across both its Staffordshire and Hong Kong offices, it is agile and reactive, just as Linda and Debbie were back when the company was still in its infancy. Kid Kreations’ Hong Kong office is led by Joshua Craddock, who heads up a loyal team of experienced product developers and production experts. Throughout the years, the company has also remained steadfastly loyal to its Chinese factories, going so far as to host in-person presentations of awards and certificates in recognition of their long service.

“The world is fast paced and changing all the time, but we’re always looking for solutions to market problems and ways to fill gaps,” says Linda, as our meeting draws to a close. “The main thing people need to know is that while we may be a relatively unknown company, we’ve been producing first-class toys for a long time, and we know what we’re doing. We stay abreast of consumer trends and economic pressures, and our ranges offer retailers superb, attractively priced toys with a point of difference in a marketplace in which brands need to cut through the noise. Ours do just that – and have been doing so for years. It’s now time for the industry to find out just who Kid Kreations is.”

Brand Profile

A transformational year

2024 - the year after Transformers: Rise of the Beasts hit the big screen and the same year the animated origin-story Transformers One rolls out - marks Transformers’ 40th anniversary. With both the landmark anniversary and new content alike providing fans with new ways to showcase their love for this enduring franchise, Toy World spoke to Alyse D’Antuono, vice president, Global Brand Strategy & Management, Action Brands at Hasbro and Marianne James, senior vice president Global Licensing, Hasbro Licensed Consumer Products about how the company is celebrating the occasion, what Transformers One adds to the story, and how, moving forwards, the franchise will continue to be more than meets the eye.

As we celebrate the 40th anniversary of Transformers this year, how important is the brand’s heritage to its ongoing success?

The ability to innovate and adapt are some of the key driving forces that have made the Transformers franchise a household name for 40 years. Since the brand’s debut in 1984, fans of all ages have watched, read and played out the battle

between good and evil with iconic Autobot and Decepticon characters such as Optimus Prime, Megatron, Bumblebee, Starscream and many more.

Transformers toys are constantly being reinvented as new technologies are introduced. We continue to look for new innovative ways of play while staying true to the brand’s core concept: robots converting into different forms. For example, 1-Step Flip Changers from the Transformers: Earthspark line can easily be converted by simply flipping the toy in the air. This collection is inspired by the hit animated series, Transformers: Earthspark, which centers around two human kids as they forge a connection with Transformers bots like never before. The show recently premiered season two exclusively on Paramount+.

Fans looking for more in-depth classic conversions, such as our latest successful HasLab crowdfunding project, can combine a 5” Optimus Prime and an 11.5” Ultra Magnus to form a 13.75”-tall Omega Prime action figure. Collectors can also look forward to over 40 distinct Hasbro Transformers anniversary figures to commemorate the milestone across the celebration period.

The possibilities are endless when you have a talented group of people who are as passionate about the brand as its fanbase is. A strong licensee programme established during the 1984 Toy Fair toy debut, along with captivating entertainment projects, have enabled the brand to overcome a continuously changing landscape across the decades.

What can you tell us about the new Transformers One movie? How will it differ from previous film iterations and what is the movie’s target audience?

Our partners at Paramount surpassed expectations in creating an unforgettable movie experience that we hope all fans will enjoy. This is the first fully CG-animated Transformers movie. Audiences will discover the untold origin story of Optimus Prime and Megatron, who were once friends before they became sworn enemies. We also have a star-studded voice cast that includes Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry, Scarlett Johansson, Keegan-Michael Key and Steve Buscemi, with Laurence Fishburne and Jon Hamm.

Earlier this year, a work-in-progress version of the movie was screened to a jam-packed audience at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in France. We were beyond thrilled to witness the positive reception it received throughout the screening, as well as the enthusiastic standing ovation once it concluded. This movie has been made with all audiences in mind. Whether you’re a fan of Transformers, animation, science-fiction, robots, action, comedy or something else, there is something for everyone to enjoy. Transformers One arrives in theatres this autumn

and we cannot wait for all viewers to experience this special trip to Cybertron.

Fans can look forward to a variety of Transformers One related toys that will be available at participating retailers soon. The Transformers One Power Flip Optimus Prime (Orion Pax) action figure converts between four different modes and has lights, sounds and phrases activated with the push of a button. Other film-based products arriving at retailers include 2-in-1 mask action figures, COG Changers, Robot Battlers, Studio Series additions and many more.

Looking ahead to 2025 and beyond, what’s next for the Transformers franchise?

Transformers is currently celebrating its 40th anniversary and we have more plans in the works to honour this special milestone. These will be announced soon. We look forward to bringing something new and fresh to Transformers fans of all ages over the next 40 years. We are committed to delivering joyful play experiences based on the beloved Autobots and Decepticons, as well as creating a community for all people around the world through various touch points spanning consumer products, digital games and services, and entertainment.

Hasbro follows a ‘Franchise-First’ strategy which sees our teams work closely with world-class partners to fuel growth of our franchise brands. With shared objectives across regions, this is an important evolution in the philosophy of how we operate as a global team. We’re also dedicated to making sure that every franchise touchpoint delivers a little bit of magic – because as a company, we’re focused more than ever on ensuring that we are creating magic moments for our consumers every day.

Alyse D’Antuono

Brand Profile

Hasbro

Who are the brand’s main targets in terms of Consumer Products?

Hasbro works with innovative partners to create a wide range of licensed Transformers products that cater to various age groups, interests and more. Perfect for our die-hard fans, the world’s first auto-converting Megatron robot by Robosen features over 270 lines of dialogue by the original Megatron voice actor, Frank Welker.

Thanks to our work with Skybound Entertainment, comic fans can look forward to a steady drumbeat of action and adventure with the Transformers series and Void Rivals, which introduced an all-new shared universe with G.I. Joe. Released in 2023, Transformers No. 1 began an all-new era for the iconic ‘Robots in Disguise’ with a reimagining of the franchise’s beloved characters for a new generation. The series debut made its mark as the best-selling Hasbro comic book launch of all time and is considered by many to be the biggest new comic book launch of 2023.

Following the first successful Lego collaboration based on Optimus Prime, we have released a new set focused on the iconic Autobot, Bumblebee. Additionally, Funko’s Transformers Pop! figures continue to be popular among fans of all ages. A new line of Pop! figures celebrating the brand’s 40th anniversary is being released this summer as well. Music fans will be able to pick up the newly remastered Transformers: Music from the Original

Animated Series on vinyl very soon. Manufactured by Memphis Record Pressing, the high-quality coloured vinyl features 42 tracks, including the full soundtrack from the original 1984 animated series.

What are the key new toy and Consumer Product launches coming through in support of the movie?

There will be a wide variety of products to support the new Transformers One movie, including 2-in-1 Mask action figures of Optimus Prime/Orion Pax and Bumblebee/B-127, plus additions to our popular Studios Series line and many more.

As for our licensed consumer products tied to the film in the UK, we’re offering an exclusive kids’ apparel collection from Character.com, along with the Transformers One Movie Novelization by Simon Spotlight, an action-packed 8x8 storybook featuring stills from the film and a fun sheet of stickers. Fans can expect even more licensed movie merch to drop throughout the year. From Publishing and Toys & Games to Hardlines, Softlines and more categories, we’re giving families numerous ways to show off their Transformers fandom. Through our comprehensive LCP offerings for Transformers One, we’re truly showcasing our Franchise-First strategy by delivering premium products with industry-leading partners that are surely... More Than Meets the Eye.

Hasbro is celebrating 40 years of Transformers this year with an array of new products sure to please fans worldwide. With the highly anticipated Transformers One movie dropping in autumn, Hasbro has developed a range of products suitable for both kid and adult Transformers collectors. Young fans can experience the epic origins of legendary Transformers robots with the Transformers One Power Flip Optimus Prime action figure, inspired by the iconic character in the Transformers One movie. This Optimus Prime toy converts between four different modes: Orion Pax, Cybertronian Truck, Optimus Prime, and Ultimate Optimus Prime. Kids can help power up the Optimus Prime robot toy by initiating the Power Flip feature: simply flip the figure to gear up with battle armour that attaches automatically. Users can also attach the included movie-inspired accessories, activate special effects such as lights, sounds and phrases at the push of a button and easily convert between modes.

The Transformers Studio Series Deluxe Transformers: One 112 Optimus Prime brings the epic action of the Transformers movies from the big screen into adult fan collections. Transformers Studio Series toys are collectible action figures that feature movieinspired details and accessories. Fans can convert the Studio Series Transformers action figure from robot to Cybertronian truck mode in 25 steps and pose the Optimus Prime toy in the included Metropolis of Iacon removable backdrop scene.

Marianne James

Brand Profile

Aykroyds TDP

www.aykroyds.co.uk

As a longstanding licensing partner of Hasbro’s, and one that was recently awarded Apparel Partner of the Year 2024, Aykroyds TDP is pleased to continue collaborating with Hasbro on its current Transformers content.

The iconic Transformers franchise has captivated audiences for decades. Aykroyds is able to create engaging in-home moments for the brand with its range of licensed nightwear. Offering something of a sweet spot within the marketplace thanks to its nostalgic, intergenerational appeal, strong resonance with boys and action-led content, the range has enjoyed a very positive initial response from retailers. Aykroyds is therefore predicting strong

Due to the broad appeal of the brand, the company is also planning on drawing in fans using a robust marketing strategy which includes targeted online campaigns, engaging social media content, and collaborations with influencers in the family and entertainment

By leveraging the power of nostalgia, Aykroyds is able to target not only children but also adults who grew up with Transformers. This dual approach broadens the company’s reach and helps harnesses the emotional connection fans have with the Transformer franchise.

Blokees

07585 400 586 | markashurst@blokees.com

Ancory

07772 482 255 jeremy@ancory.co.uk

Ancory continues to build its presence and distribution in the UK, offering a product range driven by a portfolio of proven licences.

As the exclusive UK distributor for Yolopark and its highly regarded figurines range, support for the Transformers product offering continues to grow.

All the classic and key characters, such as Optimus Prime, Megatron and Bumblebee, are featured within the range which is available in two size options of 10cm and 20cm.

The assembled, fully poseable figures offer multiple points of articulation, a variety of hand/ weapon combinations and a highlevel of detail. This makes them ideal for collectors and fans of all ages.

For further details on Yolopark’s Transformers product offering, get in contact via the details above.

Blokees’ global mission is to ‘Pass on the Fun of Building’. The company firmly believes in the power of building to inspire unlimited creativity, which it has been doing since 2014.

Blokees Figures let kids create highly detailed, fully articulated, delicate model figures in different sizes, suitable for all age groups. These collectible, snap-fix models are based on major licensed franchises, including famous brands from Hasbro and Disney, and properties such as Pokémon, Transformers and Minions.

Now launching in the UK & Ireland, Blokees Figures will introduce the Hasbro Transformers Galaxy Version and Classic Class ranges in the franchise’s 40th anniversary year.

Blokees Figures allow consumers to build their favourite Transformers characters and join the war for Cybertron using Blokees’ detailed building bricks, as legendary characters including Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Megatron and more come to life as Blokees Figures.

Blokees Figures Transformers Galaxy Version characters are sold in a randomly assorted 9-piece CDU and stand 10cm tall when fully assembled. Each detailed character is made up of between 45 to 50 snap-fix pieces, including a signature weapon and a base for action poses. Within this range, there is a chase programme: in the first wave roll out, there is a 1:36 chance of finding the secret Optimus Prime with metallic paint texture.

Transformers Classic Class allows collectors to build feature-enhanced Blokees Figures, standing 13cm tall when fully assembled. Each highly detailed character is made up of between 60 to 80 snap-fix pieces and comes with light-up eyes, while some have additional light-up features. These characters come in their own detailed packaging with a full character bio. Exclusive weapons and accessories, along with 20 moveable joints, allow for character-faithful action poses.

Feature STEM & Educational Fun Facts

Science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) are core subjects in schools as they not only teach about the world around us and how everything functions, but also help develop critical thinking and technical skills. Throw in arts, and you have STEAM. Toy World explores the current panorama of STEM and educational toys supporting kids’ learning.

Toy companies investing in STEM related and educational products continually strive to find creative ways to make learning fun for different ages. No parent wants their child to be struggling at school or lacking important skills for their future, and the STEM & Educational category is invaluable in helping kids live up to their full potential in ways they enjoy. Parents can be satisfied knowing their little ones are enjoying learning– even if the kids don’t realise it.

At LeapFrog, the creative team reference guidelines including the US Toy Association’s STEAM Toy framework and cross reference this with the UK national curriculum requirements during the initial design stage. Then, LeapFrog’s designers work collaboratively with the company’s in-house Kid and Family Lab and invite families to provide feedback on ideas, designs and prototypes. Hours of recorded observations are conducted for each of the STEAM products, and the team asks preand post-session questions to find out what children learn through playing with the prototypes.

“Within the STEM or STEAM area, children need both

content knowledge as well as opportunities to develop their scientific thinking and problem-solving skills,” says Clement Chau, VP of Learning and Sophie Taylor, assistant Brand manager. “LeapFrog’s Magic Adventures line focuses on introducing young children to ‘the world around us,’ from microorganisms to outer space. These products take kids on magical adventures to see things that they normally cannot.”

Halilit also gathers valuable feedback from testing its educational toys. Rigorous testing is conducted by Halilit’s suppliers during the research and development phases including reactions from educators, parents and children. “Additionally, many of our products receive endorsements from educational experts or are developed in collaboration with them to meet high standards of learning effectiveness,” added Amy Wildman, Sales and Marketing director.

Trends UK has found that children feel motivated when they play with their educational toys with family members. The company often receives feedback from parents and grandparents who say they enjoy playing with the toys and conducting experiments just as much as the kids.

Lindsay Hardy, Marketing director at Trends UK, explains: “Children really enjoy participating in a joint activity with a relative, especially when it produces some end results to be proud of, such as a crystal they have grown, an electronic circuit or an engine model.”

Meanwhile at Clementoni, a focus on the maths, engineering and robotics side of education, forms a major part of the company’s overall toy offering. Most recently, the business has expanded its STEM range by merging it with the arts & crafts/creative play category, bringing beauty-based creation kits into the Idea! range. Clementoni’s Idea! brand is all about creating, using techniques such as drawing, painting, decoration, scent creation and clay-making. Introducing scientific elements to the range gives kids yet more ways to get involved in STEM or STEAM, with the inclusion of art proving the importance of all types of creativity and skills in a child’s development – as well as making it more fun.

“Creating real things from a bunch of components has always been the key to success with our Science and Build products and so offering products within the Idea! range that include creation and personalisation was a vital

Feature STEM & Educational

part of the strategy. The added play pattern of making or sharing with friends fits really well with our audience too,” says Paul Fogarty, country manager.

He adds: “Pen Creator Studio did really well in Q4 of 2023, and this has continued across the first half of this year, so the development of the range seemed a natural progression. We have strong marketing plans for Q4 for Idea! highlighting the STEM appeal of the new introductions, so we are confident they will prove popular. In addition, we have a full POS programme across all ranges to help retailers optimise display and communication. We will also have a dedicated FSDU for Idea!.”

Halilit also embodies the arts component of STEAM, with music. Halilit Musical Instruments, like baby maracas and tambourines, are popular as they’re not just about introducing kids to music, but also helping them develop their fine motor skills and understanding of sounds through hands-on play.

Amy tells us: “The high-quality materials and thoughtful design of these products ensure they are not only effective educational tools, but also beloved toys that children return to time and time again, sparking curiosity and fostering learning in every play session”. Halilit works closely with its retailers to develop marketing strategies which work for them, whether that be digital support, specific display options or getting involved with store hosted events.

Another benefit to offering a wide selection of educational products and merging categories is to bridge the gender gap in STEM. In 2021, women represented only 35% of adults working in STEM jobs, so toys can provide

an accessible way for parents, teachers and guardians to slowly inspire girls to take up technical and scientific work in the future. Through toys, they can explore what they’re capable of and how fun STEM can be.

Companies like Connetix, Magna-Tiles, Toynamics and Halilit incorporate engineering techniques, even for smaller children, to develop building and fine motor skills as they progress from simple shapes to more complicated structures.

Halilit’s Rainbow Stacker from Jellystone Designs is a great introduction to building. Amy from Halilit says: “The Rainbow Stacker encourages younger children to build in any sequence they choose, celebrating their achievements rather than focusing on mistakes. They thrive on handson, interactive play that sparks imagination and problemsolving skills. Whether it's open-ended exploration or structured tasks with clear goals, children are drawn to activities that balance freedom with guidance, keeping them engaged and learning joyfully.”

For older kids and young teens, Trends UK’s Machine Works engine kits demonstrate several principles of how an engine turns energy into movement, which are explained and demonstrated in the finished model. Meanwhile, companies like Battat offer early years educational products to help little ones with number and word recognition.

When it comes to science, many areas are covered. Even biology, chemistry and physics encompass a wide variety of smaller sectors which we continue to learn about throughout our entire lives, meaning science is a subject matter that toy companies can get behind in countless ways.

Bandai incorporates a well-respected licence into its range with the National Geographic Kit collection, which includes Build Your Own Volcano and Cool Reactions Chemistry Kit. The recognisable brand increases consumer appeal and lends endorsement to the learning outcomes of the products in the range.

Trends UK’s science kits include titles like the Science Mad! Crime Lab which helps young detectives become forensic experts analysing vital clues and fingerprints. The company’s science kits are multi-award winning thanks to the range of suitable chemicals and in-depth instructions included. Trends UK also offers child-friendly scientific equipment for more independent experiments, such as microscopes, telescopes, metal detectors and globes.

LeapFrog’s science offering is backed up by reputable organisations like the BBC and NASA. The Magic Adventure line features a library of real-life photos and videos to expose children to a variety of science topics, from microbes and minerals to animals and geology, to planets and space. Magic Adventures products also include games and quizzes that challenge young learners’ logic skills such as making comparisons and deductive reasoning, and explore concepts like cultures, history and taking perspectives. The LeapFrog Magic Adventures range will have full media campaigns throughout autumn/winter, and a PR campaign will take place to spotlight the new Magic Adventures Binocular Camera.

To learn more about this extensive category, keep turning the pages to explore a wide variety of STEM and educational toy offerings for all ages.

Explosive Experimentation!

www.thamesandkosmos.co.uk

Another great idea from

Company Profile

All a learning curve Science Museum

The Science Museum Group has recently unveiled its official new STEM badge and packaging style guide, marking the next phase of the Licensing team’s efforts to reach more kids than ever before. Laura Southall, head of Learning at Science Museum Group, and Amy Harbour, head of Licensing and Commercial Partnerships, tell Toy World’s Rachael Simpson-Jones what the new guide means for licensees and consumers as the museum ramps up its efforts to inspire the scientists of tomorrow.

Outside her office, Laura informs me, is a large number of excited schoolchildren: so many, headphones and a microphone are required for our Zoom call, to ensure we can actually hear each other speak. As we approach the end of term time and the start of the summer holidays, school visits to the museum go up a gear with thousands of schoolchildren coming through the doors every day (the museum receives around 350-400,000 visits from educational groups each year). That number rises to 1m children a year when you factor in visiting families. And every single one of these children comes to the museum to learn: to learn about physics, gravity, maths, space, the oceans, the human body, AI, aviation and much more. That’s where Laura comes in.

One of her team’s three core pillars - alongside Community Partnerships, and Events such as Astronights sleepovers and adapted visits for those with additional needs - is Schools and Families, ensuring the museum’s exhibits, interactive galleries and explainer shows are educational and engaging for visitors of all ages. Laura has been Head of Learning for four years, though the museum has catered its learning towards children since 1931, when its first Children’s Gallery opened. Over those nearly 100 years, it’s safe to say Science Museum has become rather good at it.

“Our approach is to get kids learning through play, often via the simplest scientific principles using what are essentially big toys,” Laura explains. “Technicians: The David Sainsbury Gallery, our popular interactive gallery, gives kids insight into what it’s like to be a technician within a whole range of different industries, including medical

and manufacturing. Elsewhere in the museum, numerous interactive exhibits get visitors hands-on with science. For example, we have a water installation that asks young scientists to consider which toy boat might be the fastest, and construction tasks that get builders pondering what they need to do to make something capable of remaining standing.”

All of this is supported by skilled Explainers with varied backgrounds and differing scientific interests. This enthusiastic bunch make it their mission to help visitors to Science Museum truly understand the wonders of science: how much of it is involved in the most seemingly mundane everyday events, the career opportunities it offers. Crucially, they’re also there to help kids learn the why behind the wow – which is exactly what the museum’s Licensing team is setting out to do with its new STEM badge and packaging style guide, which are being rolled out this year.

“The new badge and guide mark the first time the Licensing team here at Science Museum has actually taken some time to sit back and pay attention to exactly how the Learning team does what it does,” explains Amy Harbour, Head of Licensing and Commercial Partnerships. “We’ve all been utterly inspired by Laura and her team, and the amazing impact they have on our visitors. What we’ve learned is that everyone has a certain amount of science knowledge, as minimal as it may be, and we’re trying to find new ways to increase that knowledge by partnering with toy companies to identify and tease out the STEM principles in their products.”

Ultimately, the aim of the badge and new packaging is to help guide consumers towards the most educational toys with the biggest learning outcomes. As part of the roll-out, Amy’s Licensing team is working with licensees to assess how a toy, whether one that already exists in the marketplace or a brand-new concept, can be enhanced and elevated with clearer on-pack messaging and consistent Science Museum branding that appeals to a wide consumer age-range. According to Amy, the reality is that there are many STEM toys out there that are flying under the radar for want of more

obvious on-pack wording or photography, or packaging that reflects the excitement contained within. The Science Museum wants to find these toys and shine a light on them by collaborating with their creators on a licensing agreement that benefits both parties. Such partnerships mean the museum can inspire and educate even more children, while licensees can enjoy working with one of the UK’s most trusted educational institutions.

“Consumers know they want an educational slant to the toy they are buying, but when faced with too many choices and not enough support, it can be overwhelming and confusing,” Amy notes. “By working with us, our licensees can provide much-needed clarity for those consumers.”

She continues: “Within the STEM toys category, boring packaging can be a challenge. Our design team has done an amazing job, working with our eye-catching colours and brand aesthetic to create packaging that massively appeals to gift buyers – be that family or friends – as well as the child the toy is destined for.”

Reassuringly, Amy is clear that the roll-out leaves no room for so-called ‘brand slapping’: the museum’s new STEM badge will not be given to any product, toy or otherwise, that doesn’t reflect STEM principles. To Laura’s amusement, Amy jokes that her team looks at each product up for consideration and asks: “What would Laura think of this?” If Laura or her team wouldn’t consider it educational, it doesn’t make the cut.

“A lot of people grow up thinking science isn’t for them, but it is actually, science is for absolutely everyone – and learning is in our DNA here at Science Museum, the UK’s premiere attraction for school groups,” Laura enthuses. “We’re at the forefront of informal science learning seven days a week and we take such pride in our jobs, and in our responsibility to kids and families. I’m delighted to see the next chapter of our mission – ‘Inspiring futures’ – come to life via the Licensing team’s latest initiative. Any area we can extend this mission into has to be fully explored, and I think the new STEM badge and packaging guide will really help us forge that path ahead.”

Laura Southall

STEM & Educational

Clementoni

020 3206 1397 | www.clementoni.com clemuk@clementoni.com

Clementoni is enhancing its extensive range of Science Museum Mechanics sets and Science kits, covering a huge variety of topics, with new launches that merge arts & crafts with STEM.

Following the success of Pen Creator Studio in 2023 and the launch of the Idea! brand, the range expands for 2024 into beauty-based STEM creation kits, allowing children to get creative and understand the science behind popular trends.

Fragrant Flower Creator enables children to make paper flowers and decorate them to create an original scented arrangement. The kit includes everything needed to create different and colourful flowers, and by spraying a few drops of personalised perfume on the petals, the flower will give off the desired fragrance.

Kids can also create perfume and fragrances with Perfume Lab and discover the history of the development of the perfume industry. The kit contains 15 fun fragrant activities including base scents, moulds, pipettes, stirrer, spatula, mixing jars and funnel. Once complete, children can display their creations in the atomiser with stickers to decorate.

Deluxe Cosmetics Maker Studio is a complete studio lab to create a wide variety of fragrant soaps, perfumes and creams. The set includes a full workstation, plunger, test tubes, flexible tubes to easily mix and create the many different scents and comes with a suspended mixing sphere and well organised, easy to use compartments.

Finally, kids and teens can discover the creative art of soaps and the science of bath bombs with the Soaps and Bath Bombs kit which includes a mould with four different shapes and all the ingredients and tools to create a fun, scented bath time. To enhance the spa-like experience, the Beauty Masks Kit has all the necessary ingredients including green clay, volcanic clay and many fragrances to choose from.

Click Europe

020 8761 4421 | www.clickeurope.com hello@clickeurope.com

Click Europe’s Boppi brand, already well known for STEM/ Educational toys such as the bamboo and recycled plastic Marble Runs, is soon to add the Deutschland Landkarte theme to its already best-selling Boppi 150-piece Round Puzzles, which were featured on ITV This Morning’s Christmas Gift list last year. The new jigsaw will come with a puzzle key, providing names of German landmarks, historical figures and traditional food.

Jigsaw puzzles are a great tool for developing STEM skills such as spatial reasoning, problem-solving, logic and deduction and improving concentration, which is helpful for studying STEM subjects that require sustained attention. Click has built strong relationships with influencers over the years and encourages extended play and learning. @ ourdreamplayroom enjoyed using the Boppi Dinosaurs Round Puzzle to go on an archeological dig, covering half of the puzzle with oats, using a brush to reveal the dinosaur bones, and adding additional elements like fossils, twigs and dinosaur figures to the board.

All Boppi Round Puzzles are 58cm in diameter, made from three-layered, 100% recycled card, and offer a great gift idea for children aged 5yrs+. The puzzles are available in nine popular themes from Animals Around the World, Dinosaurs, World Map and Space. All jigsaws contain cute, colourful and whimsical illustrations, wonderfully created by Laura Watson, and are presented in round gift box style packaging.

STEM & Educational

Mattel

01628 500 000 www.mattel.com

Fisher-Price continues to showcase an impressive range of educational toys, including innovative new launches that enable little ones to experience hours of fun through learning, from musical fun to the alphabet and counting.

In autumn/winter, Fisher-Price launches the new Fisher-Price Link Squad range. These toys foster early learning skills by helping kids make important connections through educational interactive play using phrases, songs and sounds. The range includes the Bop & Learn Tiger, which teaches parts of the body, the alphabet and colours; the A-to-Z Yak, which teaches alphabet, first words and more; the Jam & Count Panda, which helps kids with counting; the Crawl 'n Colours Chameleon, which teaches kids about colours whilst encouraging little ones to crawl; and the Opposites Fox, which teaches kids all about opposites. When the Link Squad gets together, they light-up to sing and play together for more learning fun.

The Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn range helps develop fine motor skills and encourages role-play for infants and toddlers. New to the range is the Laugh & Learn Sit & Steer Driver, an electric car-themed play centre packed with activities plus exciting lights, music and sounds that encourage babies to crawl and explore. Also in the range is the Laugh & Learn Going Places Learning Purse, an interactive toy bag featuring multi-colour lights, fun songs and phrases that introduce colours, shapes, counting and more. Toddlers can brew up endless cups of fresh pretend play with the Laugh & Learn Learn & Serve Coffee Cafe play set. Styled like a real espresso machine, this interactive Laugh & Learn barista station comes with 10 role-play accessories and features 100+ songs, sounds and phrases that introduce the alphabet, colours, shapes and more.

Toynamics

0116 478 5230 | www.toynamics.com sales@toynamics.co.uk

Toynamics UK & Ireland offers retailers a vast range of STEM/Educational toys for a mix of ages and price points across a variety of different brands within its portfolio.

Award-winning educational brand Beleduc offers a range of STEM and educational toys from puzzles to board games and magnetic boards. Board game Torreta has two difficulty levels depending on the age of the children playing. For 2-4 players aged four and over, using colours and numbers, children build corresponding towers out of the blocks, encouraging the development of children's strategic thinking, engineering and mathematic skills. The Beleduc portfolio also features a range of Magnetic Drawing Boards: the original red board uses a magnetic pen and little metal balls to form cool pictures that can easily be removed for hours of entertainment, also available in a travel-sized version for on-the-go fun. The Bright Colours version has five different colours included and inspiration cards for colourful picture creations, with the Letters version bringing more of an educational aspect, teaching kids how to structure their letters when learning to write.

Beleduc also boasts a range of educational puzzles, Cognito and Nawito. Cognito’s aim is to get children thinking logically and recognising similarities or opposites in a series of images. This wooden puzzle has nine different puzzles in each themed box, such as numbers, shapes, activities and more, with a clever self-check design to encourage independent learning. Nawito is one difficulty level up from Cognito and focuses more on natural sciences and processes. These round wooden puzzles have themes such as animal habitats, evolution and production. With between 30-45 pieces, each puzzle piece has unique contours, allowing for easy self-checking while playing.

Hape’s product range is full of STEM/STEAM educational products, with best-sellers including the Monster Maths Scale teaching different aspects of maths such as addition, subtraction, weights, measurements and balance with the help of the fun monster family. Another staple in Hape’s best-sellers is the Air Stacker. Air-powered magic allows the ball to move to the top of the tube stack, then kids pop the lid on and the ball floats back down to the bottom. With its numbered tubes, this rocket stacker is perfect for the development of a range of essential skills for children. New for 2024, the Quadrilla Coding Set features over 100 elements. This classic marble run toy for ages six and over offers a coding twist to teach children the basics from a young age. This set includes 50 challenge cards and integrates with the free Quadrilla App, teaching children to build the towers according to the instructions and find out which building blocks guide the marbles in the right direction: mastering the challenge cards helps get those marbles rolling.

All Toynamics UK & Ireland brands and products have full marketing support available, including shop-in-shop solutions.

STEM & Educational

Ravensburger

01869 363 830 | www.ravensburger.com

Ravensburger continues to welcome new fans to the GraviTrax universe, inviting them to 'build beyond the usual' to design and construct exciting layouts with this innovative marble run track system. The brand is supported year-round with an extensive marketing programme including TV, digital, PR and experiential activity. A key highlight in the 2024 GraviTrax marketing calendar, the brand is the inaugural sponsor of the STEM Zone at Chris Evans' forthcoming CarFest festival. At the event, which welcomes over 100,000 visitors across three days, Ravensburger will showcase the awardwinning marble run system's educational credentials through a series of hands-on activities for families. The setting will also provide a high-profile platform to launch the first licensed introduction to the range the GraviTrax Action Set: Death Star.

The GraviTrax Action Set: Death Star includes over 200 components enabling players to construct unique, intergalactic adventures however they choose, combining track pieces, tiles and action elements as well as exciting flourishes such as TIE Fighter and X-Wing Fighter spaceships. Instead of the familiar white and green of the GraviTrax system, black base plates are pieced together to form a huge Death Star space station of over 80cm in diameter, upon which the marble run action can play out. The action can reach new heights with levels inspired by the Star Destroyer and Millennium Falcon ships. The marbles have been etched with favourite characters, such as Darth Vader. Like all sets, GraviTrax Action Set: Death Star is compatible with other sets in the GraviTrax system, enabling fans to build and expand their tracks however they choose. Recent additions to the system include GraviTrax Go sets. These compact sets, with around 35 components, provide a self-contained introduction to the world of GraviTrax. They also include a selection of mini challenges to inspire children to use their growing track construction skills. Two GraviTrax Go editions are available: GraviTrax Go Flexible and GraviTrax Go Explosive. Also under the Ravensburger umbrella, ThinkFun has recently introduced the Flip n Play series of take-along brainteaser games. Each self-contained game includes a series of 40 fun, logic challenges increasing in difficulty and can be played solo. There are three in the collection -Leapin’ Llamas, Chameleon Crossing and Topsy Turtles – and all are suitable for kids aged eight and over.

LeapFrog

01235 555 545 | www.leapfrog.co.uk | marketing.uk@vtecheu.com

As a pioneer in cognitive developmental toys, education and research are integral to LeapFrog’s identity, with 96% of teachers endorsing LeapFrog toys to parents.

London Toy Fair Hero winner and new to the scientific Magic Adventures range is the Magic Adventures Binocular Camera. Budding nature enthusiasts can explore the wonders of animals and plant life right in their own back garden using these real interactive binoculars. Users unveil the secrets of the natural world with the flip-up screen, showcasing over 340 real-life images and videos provided by the BBC, introducing a diverse array of animal and plant features and habitats from around the globe. It reveals more than 720 fascinating facts across nine categories, including Flowering Plants, Land Mammals, Reptiles and more. A thrilling adventure game allows users to search for animals, explore new environments and capture unforgettable moments. Discoveries can also be shared with up to 100 photos using the built-in camera, both in daylight and at night, thanks to the impressive 10x optical zoom feature, and memories can be stored using a micro SD card (not included).

Kids can travel the world with the 10-inch interactive Magic Adventures Globe. Using the stylus, children can tap to explore new places, languages, cultures, animals, geography, habitats and more through high-quality BBC videos. The vibrant colour screen, animations and live-action videos fully immerse kids in over five hours of captivating content, offering a deeper understanding of our world. Kids can dive into three interactive games: Around the World, where they can explore different countries; Quiz Show, where they can challenge a friend in a global trivia battle; and Where in the World, where they solve mysteries and uncover secrets of the globe.

The Magic Adventures Telescope features built in NASA content, a real telescope and adventure games. Kids can capture and share up to 100 photos and take thousands more using the memory SD Card slot. Budding astronomer knowledge can then be tested with quiz mode.

LeapStart is an interactive learning system designed for curious minds. Aligned with the national curriculum, LeapStart covers phonics, problem-solving, STEM and social skills. The magic behind LeapStart is a small camera in the stylus that reads tiny dots on the book pages. Anywhere in the book can be tapped for games, jokes and songs to come to life as kids hunt for letters, identify animal tracks, design a robot and so much more. With its extensive library of replayable activity books (sold separately), there's always something new to discover and learn with LeapStart.

The above products will all be supported by media.

STEM & Educational

Trends UK

01295 768 078 | www.trendsuk.co.uk

salesadmin@trendsuk.co.uk

Trends UK’s STEM range continues to be as popular as ever with exciting new launches. Whether they’re delving into forensic science with Science Mad or learning how engines work, autumn 2024 will be full of inquisitive fun for young science investigators.

Since 2002, Trends UK has built a reputation as one of the UK’s leading suppliers of science toys, aiming to inspire future generations to develop their knowledge of (and interest in) science further. The new Science Mad! Crime Lab helps young detectives become forensic experts by analysing vital clues and fingerprints. With 67 activities, kids can acquire the techniques and reveal the science behind them to nail the guilty culprits.

Machine Works’ build-your-own-engine kit range offers an assortment of comprehensive yet manageable kits that let kids construct replica working engines. Once completed, each battery-powered engine model can be turned on to reveal moving parts, lights and sounds. Transparent housing enables builders to see how a machine works from the inside out, while the step-by-step manuals and videos (on selected lines) guide construction. Machine Works kits include the V8, 4 Cylinder, Hybrid, V-Twin Motorcycle, Jet and a Porsche 911 Flat-Six Boxer engines, as well as a Build Your Own Robotic Arm kit.

020 8324 6160 | www.bandai.co.uk | sales@bandai.co.uk

Continuing its long-term licensed partnership with one of the world’s most recognised and trusted science brands, Bandai UK’s explorative National Geographic Kits provide hands-on learning for children aged 8+ who enjoy discovering the world around them.

This focused range of Dig, Crystal, Sand, Science and Chemistry Kits offers children aged 8+ the opportunity to engage and experiment with real-life specimens while learning through hands-on edutainment. With a commitment to give back 27% of all licensing proceeds to the National Geographic Trust, manufacturer Blue Marble and Bandai are committed to supporting work within the areas of Science, Exploration, Conservation and Education. Core lines include best-sellers such as the Shark Dig Kit, Gemstone Dig Kit, Volcano Science Kit, and the award-winning Cool Reactions Chemistry Kit, which brings fun to the world of ph. science and chemical reactions at an affordable price point. More extensive sets include the Rock Tumbler Starter Kit. This offers the perfect introduction to rock tumbling for youngsters fascinated by geology and transforming rough rocks into polished and wearable gemstones.

Regular waves of new product launches ensure that the range remains fresh and exciting, while eco-friendly and impactful packaging clearly displays kit contents for immediate and informed consumer consideration.

Positioned as the No. 1 top science item for its Ocean Zoo, and the No. 2 top property in Explorative Toys, the Original Sea Monkeys remains an evergreen staple within Bandai UK’s STEM and Educational Toys portfolio. Igniting a passion for (and an interest in) nature and the planet, children can hatch, grow and nurture their very own minuscule hybrid brine shrimp ‘pets’. Encouraging responsibility for other living organisms, the Sea Monkeys bring a taste of the ocean directly into the home. Each of the themed tanks includes everything needed to hatch and grow the Sea Monkeys. From entry price point items such as the sub-£10 Ocean Zoo and impulse/treat purchase Mystery Eggs, through to the lightup, colour-changing Ocean Treasure Tank, this streamlined range offers year-round gifting appeal and benefits from a strong, proven sales performance.

Bandai’s new line of constructible Plannosaurus dinosaur kits is based on actual scientific research. Suitable for ages 8+, children can build each dinosaur from the skeleton up, learning about the anatomy of each species while assembling the model. Current lines include iconic favourites such as the Tyrannosaurus Rex, Triceratops, Ankylosaurus and Giganotosaurus.

STEM & Educational

Connetix Tiles

07718 091 489 (global) | 07803 877 158 (Europe & UK) www.connetixtiles.com | wholesale@connetixtiles.com

Connetix magnetic tiles offer endless opportunities for exploration and discovery, nurturing children’s developmental skills and broadening their knowledge of a wide range of STEAM learning concepts. From magnetism to gravity and motion, shape, colours, light refractions, construction and engineering, they also encourage children’s cognitive development, spatial awareness, hand-eye coordination, and fine and gross motor skills.

This immersive and educational range champions play-based learning, sparking hours of creative play and supporting children as they discover their unique abilities and interests. The versatile Connetix tiles provide a blank canvas for children to create their own 2D and 3D masterpieces, from castles to racetracks, rainbows, animals and elaborate ball runs. The award-winning Connetix tiles showcase a uniquely bevelled design with strong magnets and enhanced safety features to enable children to create bigger builds with beautiful clear refractions. All the packs are compatible with each other, so it’s easy to expand a child’s Connetix collection.

The Connetix catalogue boasts a selection of packs, including Starter, Mini, Creative, Mega, Ball Run and Transport. Many are available in the three signature colourways: earthy Pastel, vibrant Rainbow and dazzling Clear.

The Connetix Road range launches this month with a 48-Piece Roads Creative Pack and a 16-Piece Roads, Ramps & Intersections Pack. The larger pack debuts a sleek black shade tile and an exciting selection of shapes including quarter circles, arches, intersections and ramps, to fuel endless 3D building adventures. The versatile black tile enhances the visuals for roads, ramps and runways, while the exclusion of white lines and road markings maintains the open-ended nature intended by Connetix products, allowing children to reimagine pieces into their own creative builds. The Connetix 16 Piece Roads Ramps & Intersections Pack features sturdy short and long ramps to expand the possibilities of building, from skateparks to rollercoasters.

The Connetix 120 Piece Pastel Creative Pack is a brilliant pack for building bigger Connetix creations, encouraging children to stretch their imaginations. It features eight beautiful earthy pastel colours and comes with a huge variety of shapes including squares, triangles, window and hollow square pieces. This pack will grow with children as their play and learning develops, great for repeat play and offering parents real value for money. It is also available as a 102-Piece Rainbow Creative Pack.

The Connetix 92-Piece Rainbow Ball Run Pack stars unique clear fluted tubes so children can watch the wooden balls zoom through. Children and parents will love the limitless open-ended STEAM learning opportunities this pack inspires. The pack comes with Connetix’s unique exclusively designed clear fluted tubes, rainbow wooden balls, special effect stair soundscape tubes, S-bend tubes and a split tube for racing fun. Ball run fun also comes as a Connetix 106-Piece Pastel Ball Run Pack and Connetix Ball Run Expansion Packs.

Brainstorm

01200 445 113 | www.brainstormltd.co.uk

Brainstorm Toys is recognised for its unique take on educational toys, offering products that help children learn about science and other subjects in fun and engaging ways.

The new Erupting Volcano Lab teaches children about the fascinating science of volcanos. By combining two safe chemicals with water, children can create realistic red lava that will ooze down their volcano. It also comes with secret code featuring more explosive facts about the natural phenomenon. The kit contains the chemicals needed to carry out the experiment, a volcano base, safety goggles, measuring cup, spoon and syringe.

Aqua Dragons help children to understand about life cycles. These unique creatures are a great first pet for little ones, teaching them to care for and feed their Aqua Dragons. The award-winning Aqua Dragons Underwater World set includes a decorated tank, bubbler, spoon, food and eggs that can be hatched into real Aqua Dragons. Kids simply add water to the tank and watch as the creatures miraculously hatch in just 2-3 days, growing up to 2cm long. The new Aqua Dragons Hatch ‘n’ Grow features a new smaller clear tank kit. Aqua Dragons is media advertised in regular bursts throughout the year on TV, YouTube and other digital channels.

My Very Own Moon remains one of Brainstorm’s evergreen and most popular lines. The authentically detailed 3D model hangs flush to walls. Using the remote control, kids can scroll through the 12 lunar phases of the moon or set their own preference. It acts as the perfect nightlight with an auto-shut off to preserve battery. Another favourite product, My Very Own Solar System enables children to learn more about the universe. Each of the planets circle the illuminated sun in this educational toy, which also serves as an innovative night light for fans of all things space.

My Very Own Rainbow brings nature’s light show into a child’s bedroom. As well as acting as a unique and innovative nightlight, it also comes with a crystal that can be used during the day to refract light in rainbows across walls and ceilings. All My Very Own products come with a secret code to unlock fun educational facts online. In addition, the three My Very Own lines mentioned are media advertised on TV and digital channels from September onwards.

Brainstorm supports its ranges with social media, traditional marketing and PR campaigns.

STEM & Educational

Melissa & Doug

0800 731 0578 | www.melissaanddoug.com service@melissaanddoug.com

Melissa & Doug is dedicated to creating toys that nurture developmental skills and inspire a love for learning. This season, the brand introduces an exciting new addition to its STEM toy line-up, alongside classics that continue to promote developmental milestones and open-ended play.

Launching in autumn 2024, the Match & Push Spinning Tops allow children aged two and over to enjoy the classic fun of spinning tops. The set includes three colourful tops and an easy-to-grasp plunger, allowing kids to drop the tops into matching wells and push to make them spin on the sturdy wooden base. This innovative toy helps teach cause-and-effect, colour recognition and matching skills, while developing fine motor skills. The special plunger hangs conveniently on the top of the tower, ensuring it’s always within reach.

The Latches Board is a classic activity play board designed to build dexterity and fine and gross motor skills. Made from solid wood, it features six different latches that children can hook, snap, click and slide. Behind each numbered door and window, vibrant colours, numbers and animal friends await discovery. This board not only helps little ones learn about colours, shapes and numbers but also provides endless play possibilities with its interactive elements. Retailers can highlight its durability and educational value to appeal to parents and educators.

Spanish See & Spell introduces a fun and educational way to learn spelling and vocabulary. Children place letters into the puzzle boards to spell words that match the illustrations, developing their sight-reading vocabulary, letter recognition and fine motor skills. Perfect for native Spanish speakers or those learning the language, this set is a valuable educational tool. The English version, See & Spell, offers the same benefits, helping children improve their spelling and vocabulary in English.

A classic toy with a twist, the Deluxe Pounding Bench features a ‘peekaboo’ design that delights children as they hammer away. The bench has eight brightly coloured pegs that pop up and down, providing hours of hands-on, screen-free play for toddlers and pre-schoolers. The wooden hammer is perfect for little hands, helping to develop hand-eye coordination, causeand-effect understanding, and fine motor skills.

Battat

www.battateducation.com | allysyn.gordon@battatco.com

Battat is diversifying its current brand portfolio with a new award-winning educational toy line: Battat Education. This line was created in collaboration with parents and childcare professionals to build the most engaging educational toys in the market. Every item comes with a play guide, highlighting the key educational skills they help develop: STEM, speech and language, cognitive, fine motor, gross motor, creativity and imagination. Battat Education is a 5-star reviewed line and has won awards from across the globe from The Toy Insider, Good Housekeeping, The National Parenting Centre and Play On Words.

Available in the UK this summer, the range includes Penguin Math Balance, Locbloc Counting Blocks and My Ice Cream Shop, all of which have been STEM-certified, as well as Bright Explorer and EggXpress Yourself.

The Bright Explorer is a colour-changing light box set for shape learning and sensory play. The 79-piece set comes with translucent shapes and bugs to explore. The light highlights the size, colour and texture of each piece, which can help kids build their visual perception and observation skills. The sensory bin can be filled with shredded paper, water, sand or rice. This play set is also excellent for teaching math skills: kids can use the illustrated transparency sheets, shapes and pattern cards to learn basic geometry and practice pattern matching. The light box also comes with a scissor scooper, eye dropper and a pair of tongs, which are great for building fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. The Bright Explorer comes with a play guide for fun and educational activity ideas.

Penguin Math Balance is a math scale toy that comes with 30 sea creatures to weigh: 19 small fish, nine big fish, and a squid and starfish with mystery weights. Kids place them on the penguin’s trays, trying to keep them balanced.

The My Ice Cream Shop play set offers a blend of pretend play and STEM skill learning with realistic play food pieces and educational accessories. With nine colourful flavours of ice cream scoops and three toppings, little ones can assemble cones to match the cards and practice their counting and pattern matching skills at the same time.

Recommended for toddlers, the EggXpress Yourself play set comes with 12 eggs in a bus which can be matched by the shapes and colours inside. The 29-piece set also comes with expression cards to help kids with emotion recognition and a mirror card to encourage selfreflection.

Engage, stimulate and regulate.

Our constantly moving world can sometimes be too busy and noisy for little ones.

Help them to stay focused, calm and engaged with our range of sensory products, educational toys and expressive musical intruments.

For all your early education and sensory play needs.

t: 01254 872454

e: sales@halilit.co.uk

STEM & Educational

Orchard Toys

01953 859 539 | www.orchardtoys.com | sales@orchardtoys.com (UK sales) orders@kayes.co.uk (independent sales)

Buzz Words is aimed at children aged five and over, who will love putting their spelling to the test against the timer and shouting out “buzz word”. New for 2024, this fun and fast-paced literacy game has four exciting ways to play: race to spell the most words against the timer, grab the word before opponents, pick the most pairs, and make a match. As well as the fun of brushing up on word recognition, spelling and literacy skills, there are extra activities to extend learning too. With so much packed into one game, Buzz Words offers consumers great value for money and retailers a great sales opportunity.

Hailed a Hero Toy at London Toy Fair, Peter Rabbit Fish and Count is an educational number and counting game for children aged three years plus. With its simple gameplay, children will have great fun learning to count with Peter Rabbit and friends Jeremy Fisher, Benjamin and Flopsy Bunny. Players must catch as many fish as possible while watching out for the sneaky stickleback who will steal the catch, making this a brilliant game for encouraging number recognition and putting counting skills to the test. Peter Rabbit Fish and Count is one of six products in The World under licence from Penguin Ventures. The games blend the fun, educational and engaging gameplay of Orchard Toys with the iconic characters from one of the world’s most beloved brands, to bring Peter Rabbit to life.

Match and Spell is an Orchard Toys best-selling language and literacy game aimed at children aged four and over. This fun first reading and spelling activity encourages children’s letter recognition and word building and features two ways to play, making it great for both guided and independent word building. This fun and educational game encourages letter recognition, teaches phonetic word building and promotes matching of pictures and words, from simple words like 'cat' to more complex four-letter words. Match and Spell Next Steps is an excellent follow-on for children aged five and over.

Just Play

www.justplayproducts.com | uksales@justplayproducts.com

Thames and Kosmos

01580 713 000 | www.thamesandkosmos.co.uk

Thames and Kosmos works tirelessly to position itself at the intersection where education meets entertainment. With themes in its portfolio ranging from fairground rides and marble-runs to chemistry and climate study, the Thames and Kosmos brand has something to offer just about everyone. There is plenty of inspiration amongst the latest arrivals to entice gift-givers and anyone building their Christmas wish lists. Strong marketing and PR support will underpin the company’s offering as it works hard to ensure its brand portfolio is front and centre coming into the all-important second half of 2024.

The runaway success of the newly launched Gecko Run marble run system, with starter sets flying off the shelves and returning customers adding to the fun with the array of accessories on offer, has led to the creation of the new Deluxe Gecko set. This larger starter set comes complete with some of the most popular accessories including everything for vertical wall-based fun. From just one box, kids can zip, zag, bounce, skip and hurdle as they enjoy a superb engineering adventure.

Packed away inside the premium Chem C2000chemistry set are over 250 experiments designed with safe use in mind. The set is a highly educational collection and includes an informative, insightful and fun 128-page manual included to assist in learning. The classroom-quality kit covers an array of subject matter. There will also be a Science Advent Calendar available from this month.

With the weather and climate one of the top subjects of conversation across the UK, the 5-in-1 Weather and Climate centre allows kids to undertake simple studies of the STEM subject.

Anyone who has ever considered that their skills might lie in creating rollercoasters can put their theory to the test with the Rollercoaster Engineering set. There are dozens of builds to attempt inside as kids use physics principles and engineering skills to create the best loops, longest straight-line runs and more. Users simply put the modular pieces in place and set the mini coaster in motion.

Just Play’s Sesame Street and CoComelon ranges include educational items designed to help kids practise their ABCs, colours, shapes and more. Pre-schoolers can learn and sing along with the Sesame Street Learn with Elmo Phone. This interactive toy phone has 12 buttons that represent 12 Sesame Street characters. Kids can press any button to hear phrases related to that character. They can also count numbers with the Count, practice Spanish with Rosita, learn about recycling with Oscar, sing Wheels on the Bus with Elmo and more.

With Sesame Street Elmo’s Learning Letters, kids can practice their ABCs and spelling. This bus-shaped activity board features an Elmo button that plays Sesame Street phrases to teach kids the alphabet. There’s a different phrase for every letter. Pressing the button also plays the Alphabet Song. Kids can open the board to discover 26 removable letters that reveal Sesame Street characters and use the colourful letters to practice spelling words out.

Just Play’s CoComelon range will keep fans learning while having fun. Kids can go on an upbeat bus ride with the CoComelon Musical Learning Bus, pressing JJ to play songs and nursery rhymes and make the shapes light up to the music. Little ones can also select one of four educational modes by sliding the melon. Letters mode aids letter recognition, while in Sounds mode children press a letter to hear its phonetic pronunciation, and in Words mode kids press the letter to hear a word starting with that letter. Numbers mode helps with number recognition and counting.

The CoComelon My First Learning Phone will spark children’s creativity as they foster core learning and developmental skills through play. The phone features JJ and other characters from the series on each of the light-up buttons.

STEM & Educational

Basic Fun!

0118 925 3270 | www.basicfun.com | bfuk@basicfun.com

Basic Fun! UK’s Uncle Milton and K’Nex ranges provide kids with fun STEM learning opportunities.

Uncle Milton has been creating inventive science and nature toys for almost 70 years. The brand is perhaps best known for its Ant Farm collection, which lets children see inside the subterranean world of ants and observe how they live. Kids can choose between the entry level Original Ant Farm or the Giant Ant Farm. The latter is over twice the size of the original, with giant viewing areas making it the perfect centrepiece to connect with other Ant Farm worlds. Developed for curious minds, the Anteater Bug Vacuum is tipped to be another hit. This anteater-shaped device safely captures creepy crawlies so they can be observed using the window located in its belly before being released back into the wild.

Moon in My Room can be hung on a wall, where kids can watch it shine with 12 different light-up lunar phases or match the light-up moon to the real one in the night sky. Rainbow in My Room 2.0 allows observers to see a rainstorm settle into a beautiful rainbow.

K’Nex has been carefully aligned to national education standards and each set comes with hands-on lesson plans that teach STEAM topics. The Kid K’Nex Education Group Set and Kid K’Nex Education Classroom Collection are a perfect introduction into the range and suitable for groups of children aged three years and over.

Ideal for children aged eight and over, the K’Nex Education STEM Explorations range has been designed to help children better understand physics concepts. With these sets, kids will learn the science behind gears, lever and pulley systems, and much more.

Magna-Tiles

www.magnatiles.com | international@magnatiles.com

Character Options

0161 633 9800 | www.character-online.com | sales@charactergroup.plc.uk

Kids can learn in a fun way with Character Options’ Booksy and Orboot Earth brands. Fun, interactive lessons are in store with Orboot Earth, a 10” interactive AR globe that offers kids a fun and immersive way to explore the world in 3D. This multi-award-winning toy transforms tablets and smartphones into a gateway to explore a world beyond borders. Kids simply scan and interact with the globe, enjoying story-based challenges and quizzes along the way. Kids will be able to visualise hundreds of highlights and over 1,000 cool facts across six categories: cultures, cuisines, monuments, inventions, animals and maps. As they scan and interact with the globe, kids aged four and over will develop their world knowledge and understanding of environment science and cultural sensitivity. Orboot Earth comes with a passport, stamps, flag stickers and a guide to support learning.

Booksy Monster Tales is a range of collectible figurines with miniature storybooks inside. The collection brings together the joy of reading and character figures, empowering kids’ imagination through storytelling and play. Booksy Monster Tales are perfect for early readers, with lovable, funny characters that come to life in their own picture books. There are six Booksy Monster Tales to collect; each tells a spooky rhyming story, packed with comedy and heart, with stunning visuals to bring them to life. They teach kid-relatable life lessons along the way.

The Magna-Tiles MicroMags line features magnetic building tiles that are 75% smaller than the company’s traditional tiles, specifically designed to be 100% backwards and forwards compatible. The end result provides new and exciting ways to build.

Like all pieces in the Magna-Tiles play system, these pint-sized pieces are appropriate for builders ages 3-99 and are a great way to keep older kids and adults engaged in meaningful play. Magna-Tiles’ kid testers have unanimously agreed that these smaller pieces are easy to use while remaining a whole lot of fun, adding details that enhance creativity and the building experience.

The hero product is the MicroMags Travel Set, perfect for playing on-the-go. The metal tin packaging not only offers convenient storage but also serves as a baseplate for building, proving that good things come in small packages. The travel set is both an ultimate stocking filler and holiday travel essential for young builders.

The Magna-Tiles MicroMags line, including the Travel Set, is available this month.

Discover the latest educational range Battat Education, bringing toys that build key skills and celebrate the joy of play!

For enquiries, please contact

STEM & Educational

01254 872 454 | www.halilit.co.uk | sales@halilit.co.uk

As a leading distributor of early years and educational brands, Halilit is offering an updated range of innovative sensory and STEAM focused products that stimulate young minds and nurture essential developmental skills.

The latest addition to Halilit's sensory play range includes light up Sensory Play Jars from Glo Pals. Activated by adding water and easily changing colours with a tap, these jars are ideal for sensory play on-the-go, supporting the development of sensory processing skills in a calming and enjoyable manner.

Also new for 2024, the Jellystone Tray Play and Peek-A-Boo Bags are designed with toddlers' curiosity in mind. The Tray Play sets provide a controlled environment for messy play, enhancing fine motor skills and creativity, while the Peek-A-Boo Bags, filled with various sensory elements, promote quiet play and encourage sensory awareness through tactile exploration. Toddlers 18 months and upwards can explore within the beads to find hidden figurines, ticking them off on the included chart as they go.

Edushape's vast array of educational toys includes STEM and sensory focused products that enhance fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination and cognitive development. The vibrant Snap Beads engage children's senses as they line up and connect the beads, colourful Sensory Puzzle Blocks challenge critical and creative thinking with the dense yet lightweight foam pieces. Thread A Ball promotes hand-eye coordination and concentration, encouraging interactive play.

With toys suitable from as young as three months, the ever-popular Halilit range of Musical Instruments is recognised and trusted amongst parents for its high quality and robust nature. Best-selling items such as baby maracas, ocean drums and tambourines foster auditory exploration and rhythm development, cultivating an early appreciation for music. The prevalence of Halilit’s instruments in educational settings proves testament to the many benefits of this range.

Finally, for young scientists, the Buki Mini Sciences range offers a perfect introduction to scientific exploration. Featuring hands-on learning with the Chemistry Set and Microscope, these kits spark curiosity and inspire a passion for scientific discovery, laying a strong foundation for future learning in STEM subjects.

Halilit UK offers comprehensive retail and marketing support. Working closely with retailers, Halilit ensures products are presented in engaging displays with informative product literature and targeted promotional campaigns, maximising visibility and sales.

Tomy

01392 281 927 | www.tomy.com

Following unprecedented sales success in the US during autumn 2023, Tomy launched the award-winning innovation Air Toobz from Fat Brain Toys in July in the UK.

Air Toobz is all about air-powered play and experimentation. Kids arrange the tubes and connectors in any way they can imagine, creating loops and swirls. They can also weave them under tables and over desks. Then, users switch on the turbine and let the experimentation begin. With the Air Toobz, kids can make the foam balls leap from one tube to the next, hover in mid-air or go around and around in an endless cycle. There are different speeds to power the turbine to test out different ways of making the balls move. With hours of runtime and loads of balls, tubes, connectors and accessories included, kids can exploring for hours.

This unique toy has already started making waves, winning numerous awards including a Play Award for best science product from ASTRA, Influencers Choice and Primary School Kids Choice at the BlogOn awards, and most recently the Gold Award for Innovation from Dadsnet. The line will be showcased at The Big Christmas Press Show in September to media and influencers, and Tomy will be running a dedicated media campaign with Dadsnet to reach parents in the run-up to Christmas.

Allegedly

Was it just me who was surprised to see Alipay sponsoring ITV’s Euros coverage? Someone was recently bemoaning the fact that a visit to China these days is almost impossible without having Alipay on your phone, with all the attendant concerns over data mining and privacy that entails – and now they’re just advertising in plain sight to UK consumers as if it was beer or washing powder. The world sure is moving at one heck of a pace…

Although sometimes, things move a little too quickly, and a pause is needed. Such is the case at Asda, where the trial of a four-day working week at 20 stores has been kicked into the long grass. It turns out that working four consecutive eleven hour days was leaving staff so exhausted that the fifth day off became a day for simply crashing rather than enjoying. I am sure that many business owners and senior employees are only too aware of the dangers of continuously working extended hours – and it was never realistically feasible for most jobs to simply be done in four days rather than five, without working extra hours to compensate. Mind you, given how few calls and emails we receive on the average Friday, I think a lot of toy companies are working a de facto four day week already (in the summer at least) …

Analysts continue to pile in to Sainsbury’s over its Argos business, as Argos sales fell by -6.2% during the same 16-week period that food sales rose by +4.8%. One described Argos as an “albatross around Sainsbury’s neck”, and an “unwelcome distraction”, while another opined that “the non-food operations have been letting the side down for a long time and causing unwelcome distractions for management when they could be doing even more to capitalise on the new-found strength in food.” Some might say it’s a good thing that analysts don’t have the same clout and influence that they can have in the USA. Toy suppliers would undoubtedly love Argos to return to being the force it once was (or even somewhere in the same ballpark), but it does seem that there is an awful lot of work to be done for that to materialise…

The UK toy trade has its very first MP – Clive Jones was elected as Liberal Democrat member of parliament for Wokingham. Clive has had a long and distinguished toy trade career, but now has a whole new challenge ahead of him. I like to think his time in the toy trade will have prepared him well for what he is about to face…

Amazon has quietly upped the minimum spend for shoppers to qualify for free delivery from £25 to £35, which equates to a rather substantial 40% increase. Amazon is blaming ‘external factors influencing shipping costs,’ although I suspect that is only part of the equation…

Last month’s BTHA Industry Day saw Geoff Sheffield appointed as the new chairman of the Toy Retailers Association, with his long-serving predecessor Alan Simpson handing over the badge of office after being part of the association leadership team for twenty years. Alan has made an enormous contribution to the association, and Geoff seems to me to be the perfect person to build on that legacy. The Industry Day also saw Padraig Smyth presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Padraig has always kept a low profile and shuns personal publicity, but this was a fitting tribute to someone who has built an incredibly successful specialist toy business which is renowned across the world. It was also great to hear that Padraig mentioned the contribution of brothers Tony and Liam, the latter of whom sadly passed away last year. As Padraig pointed out, the success of Smyths is “testament to what can happen when a family pulls together”, something the whole “toy family” should perhaps bear in mind when the going gets tough…

One major concern for toy companies is the ongoing rise in shipping rates. It’s undoubtedly disappointing to see that the cost of containers is going through the roof again. And just to add insult to injury, a variety of surcharges are also now being introduced: Emergency Space Surcharge (ESS), Peak Season Surcharge (PSS) and General Rate Increases (GRI) are all being applied, with a widespread belief in the shipping community that rates will rise even higher in the coming months. Give it a few weeks and there will no doubt be a few more acronyms added to that list – they really are taking the PSS. Unfortunately, as far as shipping is concerned, we’re being buffeted by the perfect storm: space remains tight, demand outstrips capacity, the Houthi rebel attacks are continuing, and the number of void sailings is increasing. Perhaps worst of all, shipping companies – not known for their loyalty to customers – are reneging on long-term deals that were agreed months ago, knowing they can get more for that space now. I have some sympathy over the prevailing challenges, but cancelling existing agreements is wholly unacceptable and will undoubtedly lead to accusations of greed and excessive profiteering. Not that shipping companies seem to be too bothered about their collective reputation – although in my experience, they do get very tetchy when people accuse them of being a cartel. But can you blame suppliers for thinking that when they are on the receiving end of this sort of behaviour…

Data company Kantar’s latest research makes interesting reading: last month’s survey recorded a rise in people feeling better about their finances, with over one-third of the 10,500 people surveyed describing their financial position as “comfortable.” However almost 25% admitted that they were still “struggling.” And there, in a nutshell, is the conundrum for retailers: a percentage of their prospective customers are feeling more optimistic about their finances, while a similar number are still finding things tricky. Let’s hope that the balance continues to tip in favour of people feeling more optimistic as we head towards the festive season.