Playing to Learn

Though all eyes are on the impending approach of summer, lots of American kids are still indoors these days, learning up a storm. Sales of developmental and educational toys, puzzles and science kits have been strong in recent weeks, according to the specialty retailers who spoke to Playthings, with a handful of key outdoor toys climbing the charts.

Whiz Kid Toys

• Skip ball. Toysmith, Auburn, Wash.
• Jump ropes. Just Jump It, Chico, Calif.
• Play balls. Crocodile Creek, Durham, N.C., and Schylling, Rowley, Mass.
• RoomMates wall appliques. York Wall Coverings, York, Pa.
• Boxed puzzles. Ravensburger, Newton, N.H., and Gamewright, Watertown, Mass.
• First Puzzles. Mudpuppy, New York
• Lab-in-a-Bag science kits (Test Tube Adventures and Shaker Slime). Be Amazing Toys, Salt Lake City
• Good Manners Flash Cards and Polite Pigs Playing Cards. Eeboo, New York
• Sprinkle N Spout Garden bath toy. Alex, Northvale, N.J.
• Usborne Kid Kits activity book sets. EDC Publishing, Tulsa, Okla.
• My First RC GoGo Garbage & Fire trucks. Kid Galaxy, Manchester, N.H.

At Whiz Kid Toys, outdoor play items have been steady movers this spring, according to owner Lesa Smith. Other hot categories include puzzles, science kits and kids' books.

“I just started carrying the Usborne line—fabulous books!” Smith tells Playthings. “They've done a great job this year...they're a sleeper for a lot of people and they just have so many [titles].” Each book kit includes toys or play materials tailored to a book's theme, such as a magic set or a model car that kids can assemble. “They're just really great,” Smith says.

Crawdaddy's Toys

• Stomp Walkers and Surefire Compound Bow. Monkey Business Sports, New York
• Wooden play swords and shields. Wooden Ideas (Bartl GmbH), Germany
• Knight figures. Papo (Hotaling Imports), Sherrill, N.Y.
• Rush Hour. ThinkFun, Alexandria, Va.
• Small figure sets and larger playsets. Playmobil, Cranbury, N.J.
• Terrace dollhouse, garages and rooms. Plan Toys, Palo Alto, Calif.
• Breyer Classic horses and Traditional foals. Reeves Int'l, Pequannock, N.J.
• Thomas the Tank Engine wooden railway sets. RC2, Oak Brook, Ill.
• Superstructs building sets. Waba Fun, Erie, Colo.
• Lab-in-a-Bag and Yuck! science kits. Be Amazing Toys
• Science kits. Norman & Globus, El Sobrante, Calif.; Scientific Explorer, Seattle; and Elenco, Wheeling, Ill.

Top movers span a wide spectrum of inventory at Crawdaddy's Toys, owner Jerome Crawford tells Playthings. Outdoor toys are popular this time of year, he says, while the Playmobil, Plan Toys, ThinkFun and Thomas lines continue to be key drivers. Lego is also a staple line for him, though he must compete with big box stores for customers, Crawford says.

Beading kits from Alex and Bead Bazaar are also hot. “I like beads a lot because we basically have a 10-and-under crowd,” Crawford says.

Stellabella Toys

• Infant toys. Haba, Skaneateles, N.Y.; Int'l Playthings, Parsippany, N.J.; and RC2 (Lamaze)
• Rumblies, Whoozits, Skwish. Manhattan Toy, Minneapolis
• WOW vehicle playsets. Ravensburger
• Tot Towers, Matching Games. Eeboo
• Infant toys, Monster Bowling, Chomp & Clack Alligator Push Toy. Melissa & Doug, Westport, Conn.
• Figure sets and playsets. Playmobil
• Playsets. Lego, Enfield, Conn.
• Doinkit Set (Badminton), Doinkit Darts. Marky Sparky, Carlsbad, Calif.
• Snapsuits, Toddler Tees, Wheel of Responsibility, Proud Parent Pins. Wry Baby, Mooresville, N.C.

“We do extraordinarily well with new baby and infant toys,” Rick Henry, owner of both Stellabella locations in Cambridge, tells Playthings. “Whether it's from Haba or International Playthings, or even the Lamaze stuff from RC2, which is great—these are lines that I reorder every two weeks because they sell so well.” From IP, Henry's top picks are bath toys, Baby Basketball and Baby Farm Friends Bowling. For WOW, “particularly good is the Dudley Dump Truck, Mary's Medical Rescue ambulence and the Flip 'n' Tip Fred recycling truck,” Henry says.

In puzzles and games, Haba is also a steady mover, Henry says, especially because of his stores' international customers. “European is good here, and German especially. We've got tons of people here from Germany...they know we carry a lot of these products.” He also sees interest in outdoor toys—gardening, bug-catching kits and bubble products.

Cornerstone Learning

• Wooden/floor puzzles. Melissa & Doug
• Set, Quiddler card games. Set Enterprises, Fountain Hills, Ariz.
• Early learning games, BINGO games. Carson-Dellosa, Greensboro, N.C.
• Apples to Apples. Out of the Box, Richland Center, Wis.
• Decorate-Your-Own craft kits and bead sets. Melissa & Doug
• Hand puppets. Folkmanis, Emeryville, Calif., and Melissa & Doug
• Finger puppets. Timeless Toys, Hayward, Calif.
• Stickers. Sandylion, Ontario
• Pencil Grips. The Pencil Grip, Los Angeles
• Do-A-Dot activity books, markers. Do-A-Dot Art, Westlake Village, Calif.
• JINGO games. Gary Grimm & Associates, Carthage, Ill.
• Wooden toys. Melissa & Doug

“We have a lot of games,” says Beth Ellen Nash, manager of Cornerstone Learning Connections, although she notes, “unless it's a birthday gift or a Christmas gift,” they don't sell nearly as well. Set card games and some learning titles are the exceptions, she says. “We rarely carry more than six of anything, but we'll take 36 [of Set] because they'll sell,” she tells Playthings. “It's a no-brainer for an inexpensive price point birthday gift....I love Apples to Apples, of course, but sales have slowed because the big boxes are carrying it now and discounting it significantly. That kind of put a damper on it.”

“If I had to pick a top category, it would be Melissa & Doug products in general. They are huge for us....The Pizza Party is very popular, the vehicles and street signs, the Cutting Food, the Birthday Party. All of those are hot, continuously.” The large plush toys from Melissa & Doug have also been popular recently, Nash adds, “especially their dogs and penguins!”