Feature
Arts & Crafts
Crafty ideas With families spending more time at home than ever before during the past year, there has been a boom in arts & crafts as children and adults alike find their inner creativity. But can this be sustained now we are easing out of lockdown restrictions? Sam Giltrow speaks to some of the leading manufacturers in the sector.
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hether it’s painting, sticking, colouring, or constructing, the arts & crafts category has seen a huge surge in popularity in the past year as we seek to while away the hours stuck at home during lockdown restrictions. With many parents working from home and kids off school, there has been a turn towards activities which keep youngsters off their screens and busy with minimal supervision, while recognising the importance of quiet time and encouraging learning through play. Sales of such products have skyrocketed, and toy companies and retailers alike are now hoping the momentum can be maintained as we head towards the summer holidays with the likelihood that many families will opt for a staycation. Damien Collett, head of sales UK & Ireland at SES Creative, which offers a range of over 350 arts & crafts products, believes that with the high uptake in crafting amongst families, especially in the pre-school age group, a mixture of good communication across the various social media channels combined with new and exciting products is the best way to sustain the current crave for crafting. “By using social media, we are able engage directly with our end users, allowing them to share their
creations, and it allows us to demonstrate the benefits, different activities and introduce our new products,” he explains. “New products are vital for this age range as it is important that there is always something new and interesting for children to do and discover. That is why we have introduced over 70 new arts & crafts products this year to ensure there is variety in choice and interests, to offer children fun-filled activities that are not only a good group activity, but also teach them key skills along the way.” SES Creative’s most popular products during the pandemic have represented a varied selection of categories, but activities such as casting and painting with themes of dinosaurs, unicorns and animals have been especially popular. Woodwork sets have also proved a big hit, along with paint, particularly fingerpaint, textile and poster paint, and pre-school products that have educational and sensory benefits or assist with key skills. Jade Childs, Crayola brand manager at Vivid Toy Group, agrees that maintaining a strong relationship with consumers is absolutely critical, even more so at this time: “As people seek more and more creative inspiration, we continue to post relevant content to all of our digital platforms and are making sure our consumer careline remains open to assist consumers
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directly, on everything from hints and tips to where to buy Crayola at this crucial time,” she says. In addition, Crayola has worked with healthcare professionals and education and community groups to deliver supplies to those who can benefit from being able to express themselves creatively but without the means to access them. During the lockdowns, Crayola also produced a series of videos with fun and easy craft ideas for families, which gained great traction on social media and YouTube. The biggest volume demand was for Crayola’s core stationery range across coloured pencils, Twistables and Markers, as well as paint. Jade believes the growth will continue in the core, travel-friendly Crayola range as families take road trips this summer: “Almost as soon as children break for the summer holidays, retailers reset for Back to School, so the awareness of the range is always front of mind as well as front of store in many retailers over the summer. We will be continuing to create summer themed arts and crafts videos to help inspire parents and entertain budding artists over the summer months.” She also expects the new Crayola products to become popular, including the recently launched new Colour‘n’Style Dolls range and the Colour‘n’Style
