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This post was written by Leah Rocketto
Nerf Toys Go Technological with Nerf Blaster Challenge
23
Apr
12
Nerf recently announced the launch of the Nerf Blaster Challenge, an app that provides players with premade quests to test precision and speed. After completing the tasks, players unlock new levels, earn stars, and gain access to new artillery, including the N-Strik Rayyen CS-18 and Vortex Lumitron blasters. Anyone with an iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, 3rd or 4th generation iPod touch, or an iPad can download the app for free from the iTunes store.
This post was originally written by Leah Rocketto and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and like The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.
Tags: Apps, Nerf, Nerf Blaster Challenge
Posted in New Products | No Comments »
This post was written by Leah Rocketto
Hape Announces Contest for ASTRA Retailers
23
Apr
12
Hape North America, a leading worldwide toy manufacturer, has announced a contest giving one ASTRA retailer a chance to win a trip for two to China. Hape will select a winner who will travel to Shanghai and Ningbo. During the trip, the winner will stop by Hape’s manufacturing campus, which produced more than 8.6 million toys in 2011.
For a chance to win the trip, ASTRA retailers must submit a photo of their best four-foot section of Hape merchandised product to marketing@hapetoys.com by May 15. One retailer will be announced at Hape’s booth (No. 216) during the Cocktail Reception on Monday, June 11 at ASTRA Marketplace in Baltimore, Md.
This post was originally written by Leah Rocketto and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and like The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.
Tags: ASTRA, ASTRA Marketplace, Baltimore, China, Hape
Posted in News | No Comments »
This post was written by Leah Rocketto
Hot Dots Jr. Gets Your Child Ready For School
23
Apr
12
Photo Credit: itunes.com
Educational Insights recently released a Hot Dots Jr. application based on the company’s card game of the same name. The app, Hot Dots Jr. Let’s Get Ready For School, offers an assortment of activities that teach standard preschool skills. For $0.99, children can play any of the 48 activities that cover the alphabet, beginning phonics, numbers, counting, colors, shapes, patterns, and sequencing. iTunes also offers a free version that contains 12 educational activities.
Tags: Education Insights, Educational Apps, Hot Dots Jr Apps, Hot Dots Jr., Hot Dots Jr. Let's Get Ready For School
Posted in New Products | No Comments »
This post was written by Leah Rocketto
Ubisoft Launches House, M.D. Game For Facebook
20
Apr
12
Ubisoft announces House, M.D.: Critical Cases is now available on Facebook. Based on the TV series House, the game lets fans take on the roles of their favorite doctor-detectives. Players work to diagnose and cure the most critical cases before time runs out. Free to Facebook members, the game can be played with friends and other fans of the show.
House, M.D.: Critical Cases is licensed through Universal Partnerships & Licensing, on behalf of NBCUniversal Television Consumer Products Group.
This post was originally written by Leah Rocketto and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and “like” The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.
Tags: Facebook, House, House M.D., House M.D.: Crtical Cases, NBC Universal, Ubisoft, Universal Partnerships & Licensing
Posted in Articles, Licenses, New Products, News | No Comments »
This post was written by Leah Rocketto
Delta Children’s Products Named TRU’s Vendor of the Year
20
Apr
12
Delta Children’s Products, manufacturer of nursery and children’s furniture, recently received the “Vendor of the Year” award, acknowledging that Delta has helped Toys “R” Us and Babies “R” Us become a worldwide resource for kids and families. The award also recognizes Delta Children’s Products for its achievements in the infant, toddler, and twin furniture categories, and its commitment and dedication to designing and providing quality children’s products.
This post was originally written by Leah Rocketto and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and like The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.
Tags: Awards, Babies R Us, Delta Children's Products, Toys R Us
Posted in News | No Comments »
This post was written by Jazmin Idakaar
Grow it, Eat it—With DuneCraft
20
Apr
12
DuneCraft is releasing new offerings to two of its edible lines, Sprout n’ Grow Greenhouses and Organic Veggies. One of the company’s latest additions to the Sprout ‘n Grow line is Coffee. When matured, each plant can produce up to one pound of coffee. The new Mini Cantaloupes are four-inch fruits that have thin rinds to make a healthy one-person snack. Other additions include Hot Peppers.
All the seeds used in the Organic Veggies line are organic and have not been genetically modified. Some of the new additions include Finger Eggplant, Sweet Peppers, Sunflowers, and Watermelon.
Growing what you eat is catching on. According to the 2009 Edibles Gardening Trends Research Report, conducted by the Garden Writer’s Association Foundation, more than 41 million U.S. households planted a vegetable garden, 19.5 million households grew an herb garden, and 16.5 million households grew fruits in 2009.
This post was originally written by Jazmin Idakaar and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and like The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.
Tags: coffee, Dune Craft, gardening, gardens, organic, plants
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
This post was written by Leah Rocketto
Viz Kids Release Graphic Novels Featuring Mr. Men and Little Miss
20
Apr
12
Viz Media, LLC, distributor and licensor of anime and manga in North America, will release a pair of new graphic novels featuring characters from the Mr. Men and Little Miss series of children’s books. Titled Mr. Bump: Light, Camera, Bump! and Little Miss Sunshine: Here Comes the Sun!, the two novels debuted earlier this week.
In Mr. Bump: Light, Camera, Bump!, Mr. Bump gets trapped in his TV and tries to find his way home. On the journey, he stops at an array of channels and partakes in some crazy adventures. In Little Miss Sunshine: Here Comes the Sun, Little Miss Sunshine takes a musical tour through Dillydale and shows off her many skills. Both books are rated “A for all ages” and can be purchased for $6.99 in the U.S.
This post was originally written by Leah Rocketto and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and like The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.
Tags: Graphic Novels, Little Miss Sunshine, Little Misses, Mr. Bump, Mr. Men, VIZ Media, VIZ Media LLC
Posted in 0-2, 3-5, 6-8, 9 and up, New Products | 1 Comment »
This post was written by Leah Rocketto
Children at Colorado Air Force Bases Gifted with Toys and Games
20
Apr
12
Toy Industry Foundation (TIF) partnered with Boys and Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) Military Services to spread joy to military children. To celebrate the Month of the Military Child, which honors courageousness and the unique challenges faced by children of our nation’s troops, the companies brought toys and games to nearly 3,000 children at Air Force bases throughout Colorado Springs. This event marked the first of many slated for this year under the TIF/BGCA Play Comforts partnership, a national toy distribution program to serve every branch of the military.
This post was originally written by Leah Rocketto and published by ToyBook.com. For more news, visit www.toybook.com, follow The Toy Book on Twitter, and “like” The Toy Book on Facebook. The Toy Book is a bimonthly trade magazine covering the toy industry, published by Adventure Publishing Group.
Tags: Boys and Girls Club, Boys and Girls Clubs, Play Comforts, Toy Industry Foundation
Posted in News | No Comments »
This post was written by Ericka Johnson
DC Direct Re-Launches as DC Collectibles
19
Apr
12
DC Entertainment’s collectibles product line, DC Direct, has been re-launched as a new brand: DC Collectibles. Next month, DC Collectibles will expand its online store to offer its entire product line for sale on the web, in addition to the line’s primary availability in comic book retail locations. To purchase a product in-store, the website will provide information for the closest retail location that carries a particular DC Collectibles product.
As part of the DC Collectibles online sales expansion, two online-exclusive products will be offered and a new line of custom prints will only be available online. First is a Flashpoint Action Figure Box Set including Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, and a previously unreleased Emperor Aquaman. The set also include a $500 Wayne Casino Poker Chip. The second is a Heroes of the DC Universe: Blackest Night Green Lantern and Sinestro Bust. The new online prints will represent different graphical and artistic themes, branching out beyond comic book artwork.
Tags: DC Comics, DC Entertainment
Posted in News | No Comments »
This post was written by Guest Blogger
GUEST BLOG: ‘Showrooming’ and Other Shopping Trends for 2012
19
Apr
12
Andrea Woroch
The Internet constantly changes the way we shop and the way merchants offer their merchandise—it’s difficult for both sides to keep up. Trends pop up only to disappear almost as quickly as they came. Before this latest crop of trends ducks back into their respective holes, let’s examine just how they’re impacting the great American past times of shopping and selling.
1. Showrooming
There are some things you just don’t want to buy without physically seeing them. You can’t determine the clarity of a big screen TV on the Internet, and you just have to hop on a bicycle to know how it’s going to suit your needs. That’s why more stores are seeing customers pop in for a test drive, then whipping out their smartphones to order online—a method dubbed “showrooming.” The Wall Street Journal discusses how retailers can circumvent this trend, and cites Target’s push to have suppliers provide them with exclusive products.
2. In-Store Pickup
Free shipping is so 10 minutes ago. The hot, new trend for major merchants is to provide in-store pickup of orders placed online. You save shipping and they lure you into their brick-and-mortar locations to, hopefully, spend more money.
Tags: Andrea Woroch
Posted in Guest blog, News | No Comments »
