Fall Toy Show: Day 3 – All Smiles

By Staff -- Playthings, 10/11/2007 9:15:00 AM

Dallas—It’s day three of the Toy Industry Association’s Fall Toy Preview at the Dallas Market Center, and manufacturers and sales reps who spoke to Playthings said it’s been another good morning for meeting and greeting buyers, both through scheduled appointments and a smattering of drop-ins. All have been very interested to see what’s on the horizon for 2008, companies said.

For Northvale, N.J.-based Alex, the show was primarily a chance to showcase for those buyers outside of the specialty realm some of its bestselling items from the latter half of 2007, according to president Richard Amdur. However, many 2008 items are in the works, and Amdur offered us a sneak peak at the early selection, which includes expansive new additions to its popular line of bath toys. Alex will debut more than 100 SKUS overall at next year’s Toy Fair, he added.

Rowley, Mass.-based Schylling is having a similar experience in Dallas, according to Mark Slusarz, vice president of sales. Mass-market buyers have been drawn to the company’s classic-looking tin toys, including tea sets and jack-in-the-boxes, and its new sock monkey items (a plush doll and a monkey-in-the-box), ahead of a related film release next year. The company also offers licensed products ranging from Thomas to Curious George to Madeline, though the more generic items have been the most popular at this particular show, Slusarz noted. A much wider selection of the company’s 2008 items will be unveiled in February, he said.

New York-based Dakin was also using the show to get its footing ahead of February’s Toy Fair, according to sales and marketing manager Nancy Jordan, who is spearheading the 50-year-old company’s re-launch into the market after its acquisition by Big Lots, which sold off Dakin’s back inventory in its own stores. “Let’s get it back out into the marketplace,” is the goal now for the brand, Jordon told Playthings. Leading the way, particularly in the specialty market, is the Cuddlekins contemporary collection of baby items, which includes jungle animal themed blankets and plush rattles sold separately or in gift sets; and the Snuggle Safari, a similarly themed collection of 13-inch plush animals, pull-musicals, ring rattles and mini blankets. The Canoodles are an assortment of bears, bunnies, frogs and jungle animals that come in three sizes; and the Swirlies are a vibrant soft plush animal collection that features embroidered swirls. Despite its parent company, Dakin won’t be available to deep discounters or grocery chains, as the company’s new focus will be on specialty stores and select mid-tier retailers, Jordan noted.

At Hong Kong-based game firm Basic Concepts, which has had success abroad but hopes to expand its reach in the U.S. market, the focus was on a range of recent titles that feature unique action-play patterns, according to the company’s Dean Tzembelikos. Interactive, 3-D games include Street Ball Challenge, Wet Head, Balloon Blast, Bee Line and Slammers, which have interested both mass-market and specialty chain buyers at this show, Tzembelikos said. Tzembelikos also showed us some patented new board game prototypes and other interactive toy concepts, which he hopes will debut at Toy Fair in February and hit retail later in the year.

Indianapolis-based Fundex will release numerous new titles in the spring and summer of 2008, everything from outdoor activities to family games to magic sets. Among the products in the company’s Recreation Games line is Jarts, a lawn darts game that redesigns the classic backyard game for safer play, and the new Chalk Line Express, a portable line marker for all sorts of sports that includes a guide of official field measurements. New licensed NASCAR versions of Chuck-O, Top Toss and Bulls-Eye Washers will also debut.

For adults with little free time, a new line of Play Now Games (including Double Talk, Mumbo Jumbo and Sketchy), offer complete, play in 20 minutes and come packed into tidy, $9.99 boxes designed modularly so that the three games fit in the space of one traditional game box for a more striking and space efficient display on shelf.

In the family game arena, look for Phase 10 Twist, a variation on the company’s popular rummy-like game, plus a handheld electronic version and titles for the PC and Xbox. For younger kids, a new group of Lunchbox Games, like Jellybean Jumble, come packed for travel, while a new Munch Bunch group of card games—like Flippin’ Flapjacks, Super Scooper and Pizza To Go—feature simple game play, marketer Katie Hemlock told Playthings. When Pigs Fly is the newest title in the company’s Rule Breakers line, home to 2007’s Gassy Gus. Also for kids, Fundex is premiering a new B Active line of indoor/outdoor games that get kids up and moving around. The first two titles are Hip Hop Scotch, which lets kids position hop scotch squares however they wish, and Whoops, a unique balancing game. A new Trunk ‘O Tricks magic set, which features directions in comic book form, will also debut next year, Hemlock said.

Bannockburn, Ill.-based Zizzle is expanding on many of its core lines in 2008, CMO Mark Rosenberg told Playthings. The Spotz line of collectible buttons that kids make themselves will get several new SKUs (such as a universal Spotz holder and accessory kit) and cross promotions on its site, including those for Disney properties Hannah Montana and High School Musical. The line “is doing really well, and we have 40 million kids on the site,” Rosenberg said, adding, “We’re moving forward with a lot of jewelry and lower price points. The business is building very, very well, and buyers are excited because it’s becoming a brand.”

Other HSM-themed products include electronics targeted to tween girls, such as the dance mat, Music-To-Go bag, Basketball Jambox, Hip Clip (which senses when you start and stop dancing), a Secret Journal, the Beatnix (which play music together when you have all the pieces) and Screen Scenes (which hang in a doorway and play music when someone enters.) “We think we took the best part of the license,” Rosenberg said. Other Disney products include a new exaggerated style, anime-inspired collection of action figures and role-play products tied to Pirates of the Caribbean, due out in March. New handhelds will include a Speed Racer virtual racing game, which allows two players to connect their cars and race, and the interactive Digitanz, which features a transparent screen and allows users to zoom in on the ants world.

Zizzle is also bringing over from the U.K. products tied to the PBS Sprout import Fifi & the Flowertots, from the creators of Bob the Builder, although one of the company’s biggest new initiatives for kids is a massive expansion of electronics in its licensed Hooked on Phonics line.

And for kids of all ages, Zizzle is partnering with ESPN. “We’re looking to take a major position on this,” Rosenberg said, noting that it will help the company combat age compression by appealing both to younger and older kids. “The reality is, we’re always looking for alternative licenses that make sense, to keep kids longer. It’s a huge opportunity,” he told Playthings. “We are making it relevant to an older audience, but with plenty of toy play.” New electronics in the line, debuting in the fall, will include a series of electronic sports trivia games and a motion-sensor sports action game that aims to offer “all the fun and excitement of a Nintendo Wii controller.” And according to Rick Ruskin, vice president of product development, the hottest new item for fall will be the Flex Cam digital sports camera, which will retail for around $99 and offer both still and video images at 1.3 megapixels. Its unique flexible viewfinder design allows kids (and adults) to take pictures above the crowd and behind them as well.

Also in fall 2008, look for a new item that brings the fun of digital pets specifically to boys. The X-Games licensed products will let kids “train” a digital athlete as motocross racers, snowboarders or skateboarders. It features a pedometer and about 10 hours of full game plays.

For highlights of other companies we saw at the show, watch your email box for a final report from Dallas.

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