A Season for Sales
By Karyn M. Peterson -- Playthings, 1/1/2008
As holiday shoppers crowded into specialty stores this past December, driven in part by a desire to find toys not made in China, European brands like Playmobil and Haba and a few American-made toys continued to sell alongside hot properties like Transformers and Webkinz. Sales of larger, deluxe and more expensive items also remained strong.
Granger, Ind.Explorations Toys
- PlasmaCar. PlaSmart, Ottawa, Ontario
- Webkinz. Ganz, Cheektowaga, N.Y.
- Play Foam. Educational Insights, Rancho Dominguez, Calif.
- Blokus. Educational Insights
- The Amazing Labyrinth. Ravensburger, Newton, N.H.
- My Little Sandbox playsets. Be Good Company, San Mateo, Calif.
- Romans, hospital, airplane playsets. Playmobil, Cranbury, N.J.
- Lift-off Rocket. International Playthings, Parsippany, N.J.
- Snap Circuits. Elenco, Wheeling, Ill.
- Wooden infant/toddler toys. Plan Toys, Palo Alto, Calif.
- Fashion Design Studio Set. Fashion Angels Enterprises, Milwaukee, Wis.
- The Encyclopedia of Immaturity. Klutz, Palo Alto, Calif.
- Wooden/plush infant toys. Haba USA Skaneateles, N.Y.
- Wooden puzzles, role-play toys, music toys. Melissa & Doug, Newport, Conn.
Business is booming this winter at Explorations, an 8-year-old specialty store, especially since its relocation earlier this year to a pedestrian-friendly space that has brought significantly greater foot traffic, owner Chuck Harper tells Playthings. The store has also had holiday success with its retail website, which offers toys by age, category and brand.
Top movers recently include Plasma Cars—"we've probably been selling three or four a day," he notes—as well as seasonal Webkinz, Playmobil sets, games and Elenco Snap Circuits kits, as expected for the holidays.
Wooden toys for babies and infants from eco-friendly Plan Toys have also seen a boost recently due to customer's concerns about lead paint, Harper says. “They've been doing well. It's nice when people ask for something not made in China that we can point to them. So that's been good.”
San FranciscoAmbassador Toys
- Transformers. Hasbro, Pawtucket, R.I.
- Board games. Briarpatch, Millburn, N.J.; Pressman Toy, Piscataway, N.J.; University Games, San Francisco
- Puzzles. Buffalo Games, Buffalo, N.Y.; Ravensburger; Serendipity, Waukesha, Wis.
- Groovy Girls. Manhattan Toy, Minneapolis
- Wooden toys. Maple Landmark, Middlebury, Vt.; Uncle Goose, Grand Rapids, Mich.
- Star Wars, AquaRaiders, Mission to Mars, Dupo playsets. Lego, Enfield, Conn.
- Wooden/plush infant toys. Haba USA
- Playsets. Playmobil
- Treasure box decorating kits. Alex, Northvale, N.J.; Creativity for Kids, Cleveland
- Mini tea sets. Alex; Creativity for Kids
- Dress-up clothes. Creative Education of Canada, Ontario; Puppet Workshop, Miami
- Building sets. K'Nex, Hatfield, Pa.
- Soft baby toys. Kushies, Ontario
- Science kits. Thames & Kosmos, Portsmouth, R.I.; Norman & Globus, El Sobrante, Calif.
“Everything is moving,” owner Linda Capnick says, adding “sales are up in both locations.” Specifically, games, puzzles, baby items and dress-up clothes have been hits. “The basics always move the best,” she says. She also notes, “there have been lots of requests for things made in the USA” even though supplies (and suppliers) have been limited, and “Lego is huge!”
Freeport, MainePlay and Learn
Geyser Tube. Be Amazing, Salt Lake City
Rock Tumbler Kit. Pel USA, New York Blokus. Educational Insights
Qwirkle. Mind Ware, Roseville, Minn.
Quadrilla Twist & Rail, Twist marble runs. HaPe, Sherwood Park, Alberta
Calico Critters. International Playthings
Romans, hospital playsets. Playmobil
Thomas & Friends. RC2, Oak Brook, Ill.
Wooden puzzles, role-play toys, plush, arts & crafts kits. Melissa & Doug
Pottery wheels. Alex; Action Products
(Curiosity Kits), Orlando, Fla.
Teaching Cash Register. Learning
Resources, Vernon Hills, Ill.
Slinky. Poof-Slinky, Plymouth, Mich.
Big ticket items (Playmobil sets, rock tumblers, marble runs, science kits, pottery wheels, wooden trains) really boosted Q4 sales, owner Tom Purington tells Playthings, adding, “They've been buying the Thomas stuff very strongly. It's terrific.”
Corning, N.Y.Imagine That
- WOW vehicles. Ravensburger
- Playsets. Playmobil
- Building sets, R/C sets, ROK Jr. playsets. Rokenbok, Solana Beach, Calif.
- Calico Critters. International Playthings
- LittleMissMatched girls' accessories. MissMatched Inc., Mamaroneck, N.Y.
- Knight figures, castle playsets. Papo (Hotaling Imports), Sherrill, N.Y.
- Equate. Conceptual Math Media, Richmond, Calif.
- Sixth Sense. Sixth Sense Games, Joplin, Mo. Qwirkle. Mind Ware
- Ruckus. Funstreet, Northfield, Ill.
- Pile It. Funstreet
- Puzzles. Ravensburger
The hottest line at Imagine That has been Ravensburger's WOW vehicles for toddlers, owner Ginny Coon tells Playthings. “Every single one of them has blown out,” she says, including those designed with girls in mind, a unique trait among vehicle playsets. “It's been wonderful to see,” she says. In addition, toys made in the USA and European lines have also been popular. “Playmobil has been extremely strong this year, and I'm certain a part of that is a China reaction,” she says. Games, puzzles and kids' accessories have also been steady movers due to holiday buying.
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