Riddle Me This...
Brainteasers still a strong category at retail
By Karyn M. Peterson -- Playthings, 3/1/2007
Thousands of years in the making, brainteaser games and puzzles—an age-old category of classic toys that began in ancient times—continues to grow and evolve, with new additions designed to intrigue and beguile kids and adults introduced every year. And 2007 is no exception, with dozens of fresh offerings—some original ideas, some inventive new takes on familiar titles—set to hit retail again soon. What makes this typically low-tech category so attractive year after year? Above all, puzzle makers say customers love to challenge—and show off—their mental prowess.
An appealing conundrum“Brainteasers are evergreen in the sense that they are perennial sellers,” says Eric Levin, executive vice president of New York-based Techno Source, whose electronic Rubik's Revolution offers a six-in-one game version of the classic cube. “There's been a real movement over the last five to seven years toward 'geek chic.' It's cool to be smart today. That wasn't always the case, and it's certainly a helpful trend for this category.” It's a perspective that Montreal-based Family Games' Tracey McIlwaine shares. “Brainteasers have gained in popularity, perhaps due to a need to feel and manipulate a puzzle with one's hands, instead of on a computer screen,” she says. “We think people like to touch and feel, to be stimulated manually as well as mentally.” In addition to its strategy titles, Family Games offers 15 brainteasers for the specialty market, including three new ones this year.
“Brainteasers are a mainstay in the game industry, but I do believe that they are becoming more and more popular,” adds Emily Peters, marketing communications manager at Alexandria, Va.-based ThinkFun. ThinkFun's Gordian's Knot was just named Best Puzzle by Games magazine for 2007—and has been a bestseller since its 2005 debut, she notes. “Brainteasers are easy to play with, but difficult to solve,” she adds. “Everyone wants to achieve the thrill of the 'Aha!' moment...making it an irresistible way to keep kids and adults coming back for more.”
“I think the key to the appeal is really not being able to solve it,” agrees Joe Sequino, vice president of marketing for Winning Moves, Danvers, Mass., which makes several versions of the Rubik's Cube, including a 3x3 for specialty. “Why does anybody do a crossword puzzle? Sudoku? Because they like to be challenged. And that still rings true for us with the Rubik's.”
Where the boys are“Most people are competitive by nature and once they are into the game, they enjoy working it through until they have conquered it,” Levin says. According to retailers, this is especially true of boys, making the brainteaser category a great resource to stock for boys and tweens.
“There is a need in the market for boys and men's gift items,” adds McIlwaine, while Sequino notes, “More than 90 percent of Rubik's fans are male.”
At Annie's Toy Chest in Cocoa, Fla., owner Teresa Derry stocks logic and strategy games and puzzles like ThinkFun's Amaze, Gridworks and Rushhour, as well Winning Moves' Rubik's puzzles, all of which are popular with her boy customers. And at Belmont Toys in Belmont, Mass., general manager & buyer Gage Brownell also stocks ThinkFun items and Sudoku products, which are solid sellers, he says.
Up to the challengeProduct innovation has been a key driver keeping the brainteaser category strong, Levin says. In addition to its Rubik's Revolution, Techno Source is also excited about the latest releases in its Electronic Touch Screen Sudoku series, a line Levin calls, “amazing for us.”
For Winning Moves, the newest items are the Brian Racker, a circular, numbered variation on the basic Rubik's; a translucent version of the 2x2, the Rubik's Ice Cube; and Clue Suspects, the first title in the new Puzzlers line, which transforms a classic board game into a brainteaser for one player.
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