Advertisement
Subscribe to Playthings

RSS   Up Close Profiles

Because there's often more that we want to say than our pages will allow, Up Close is where you'll find stories "carried over" from Playthings, our monthly print magazine.

  • Up Close: Dark Horse Comics’ David Scroggy
    By Karyn M. Peterson - 01/01/2008
    Dark Horse Comics is bringing Domo, the fuzzy Japanese cave-dweller, to the specialty market in 2008, along with toys for new licenses Dilbert and Will Eisner’s The Spirit. As the company prepared for Toy Fair, we spoke with David Scroggy, vice president of product development, about his plans for these and Dark Horse’s other core brands. (An abbreviated version of this story appeared in the January 2008 issue of Playthings magazine.) More

  • Tips for the Trade: Rev up holiday sales with “Best Toys” lists
    By Kathleen McHugh - 11/03/2009
    PLAYTHINGS.COM EXCLUSIVE — In a year when all toy retailers need to deploy all the traffic-generating, revenue-enhancing strategies they have available, American Specialty Toy Retailing Association president Kathleen McHugh advises adding the appropriate “best toys” lists to your store’s “best tools” list for the upcoming holiday season. More
  • Up Close: TIA's Carter Keithley on industry's toy safety efforts
    By Staff - 10/14/2009
    In this exclusive Q&A, Toy Industry Association president Carter Keithley discusses the status of industry efforts at safety standards harmonization at home and abroad on the eve of presenting its Toy Safety Certification Program to the federal government. More
  • Up Close: Merchandising Puzzles
    By Karyn M. Peterson - 06/01/2009
    Puzzles and brain teasers, mainstays of the toy industry, continue to be relevant and reliable to customers through manufacturers' commitment to innovative design and clever marketing. But what can retailers do to enhance their sales of the category?  More
  • Up Close: Manufacturers' Forecast 2009
    By Karyn M. Peterson - 02/03/2009
    Just ahead of the New Year, Playthings spoke with dozens of toy manufacturers about their plans for 2009. Here's what they told us was highest on their agendas. [Editor's note: An abbreviated version of this story appeared in the January 2009 issue of Playthings magazine.] More
  • When 'Regular’ Is Just Right
    By Jane Kitchen - 02/01/2009
    When the Holcomb family bought Toys & Co. back in 1987, it was a small, 10-year-old specialty business located in a high-end mall, with more than half its sales coming from collectible dolls. The Greensboro, N.C., business also carried juvenile products like strollers and car seats, and the Holcombs soon saw that with big box competitors like Babies “R” Us moving in, they’... More
  • Up Close: Scholastic's The 39 Clues
    By Karyn M. Peterson - 10/01/2008
    Move over, Nancy Drew! Today’s young super sleuths are about to be drawn into an even more intriguing mystery series, one that combines chapter books, online gaming and card collecting into an expansive two-year treasure hunt with real-life rewards. More
  • Up Close: Jill Wilfert on Lego's licensing efforts
    By Staff - 04/04/2008
    For 2008, Lego grows its licensed toy assortment with additions like Lucasfilm’s Indiana Jones franchise and Warner Bros.’ update of Speed Racer. Playthings spoke recently with Jill Wilfert, Lego’s vice president of global licensing and entertainment, about the toymaker's efforts to tap into entertainment properties. More
  • Next »

News from the Web

» MORE

Advertisement

Reed Business Information Resource Center

Featured Company


Most Recent Resources


Sponsored Links

  • Blogs
  • Talkback
  • Photos

Richard Gottlieb
Out of the Toy Box

January 4, 2008
Hong Kong Day 1
There are certain rituals that are reassuring. Just as the birds (and the retire...
More

Richard Gottlieb
Out of the Toy Box

January 3, 2008
“When everybody knows that something is so, it means that nobody knows nothin’”
Those words were spoken by Andrew S. Grove, one of the co-founders of Intel. I r...
More

Richard Gottlieb
Out of the Toy Box

January 2, 2008
Things to watch for in 2008
I leave tomorrow for Hong Kong and am looking forward to working with my clients and ...
More

Richard Gottlieb
Out of the Toy Box

December 28, 2007
Grown Up's Toy of the Week
The Grown Up's toy of the week is a set of these Russian nesting dolls that g...
More

» VIEW ALL BLOGS RSS


Sorry, no photos are active for this topic.




What do you think?

Sales of web-enabled toys in my store:
have continued to increase
have peaked and begun to decline
have been steady
have fallen rapidly
We don't carry web-enabled toys



View Previous Poll Results

MOST POPULAR PAGES


Upcoming Events

Advertisements




NEWSLETTERS

Playthings Extra
Furniture Today eDaily
Furniture Today eClassifieds
Bedding Today
Furniture Today Green
Home Accents Today eWeekly
Home Accents Today Product Line
Casual Living eWeekly
Kids Today eWeekly
Gifts & Dec Direct
Gifts & Dec Product Wire
Home Textiles Today Extra
Hospitality Furnishings Today
Please read our Privacy Policy


About Us   |   Advertise   |   Site Map   |   Contact Us   |   Subscription   |   Affiliate Links   |   RSS
© 2009 Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Use of this Web site is subject to its Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
Please visit these other Reed Business sites