Target Introduces New Features to Aid Holiday Shoppers

November 26, 2012 By

Target, along with Denise Albert and Melissa Gerstein of “The Moms,” have outlined some helpful tips for navigating Target’s toy aisles this holiday season.

  • Target’s Top 20 toys will feature easy and convenient QR codes that can be scanned to purchase the toy directly from a mobile device and ship it for free to anyone, anywhere in the U.S.
  • Shoppers can browse thousands of toys and organize their must-haves into a special Target Digital Wish List that is shareable instantly via email with family and friends.
  • Target stores will feature color-coded aisles to help shoppers save time and make it convenient to shop by gender or age. For instance, some aisles are color-coded pink aisles to point shoppers in the direction of girl products or blue for boy items. Toddler appropriate toys are designated by yellow aisles.
Filed Under: News Tagged With: , , , ,

Pressman Toy Offers Fun Way to Foster Skill Development with Help from a Classic Game

November 15, 2012 By

As part of a larger 2012 Mastermind education initiative, Pressman Toy has announced that teachers and homeschoolers may sign up on their website to receive one of 10,000 free Mastermind board games for their classroom or home. In less than one week’s time, more than 10,000 educators registered for a Mastermind game.

Mastermind is a two-player game that puts the Codemaker against the Codebreaker. The Codemaker secretly places any four Code Pegs in the shielded code area. The Codebreaker puts down a line of color pegs and tries to uncover the secret code. This thought-provoking game fosters development of important skills, including logic, reasoning, deduction, patience, and visual perception.

Along with the Mastermind giveaway, Pressman Toy is also hosting the first Mastermind Braintwister Challenge. From now until December 31, kids ages 7 through 12 can enter their own braintwisters in categories such as puzzles, word problems, riddles, and games with solutions. Two first-place winners will each receive a $1,000 scholarship and a trip to attend the celebration event.  Each of the two first-place winners will also have the opportunity to nominate their most inspirational instructor to receive a $250 award each.  Three other students will have the opportunity to win $100 each. For more information, visit www.MASTERMIND-education.com.

Pressman Toy games, including Mastermind, are available for purchase at Toys “R” Us, Barnes & Noble, and Marbles stores nationwide, as well as online at Amazon.com, Target.com, and PressmanToy.com.

Filed Under: 6-8, 8 and up, 9 and up, Awards, News Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Activision to Sell Limited Edition Dog Tags to Benefit the Call of Duty Endowment

November 2, 2012 By

It’s time to get tagged! Activision Publishing, Inc. has announced the sale of limited edition dog tags that will benefit the Call of Duty Endowment, a non-profit that helps veterans find jobs by assisting organizations that provide job placement and training services for veterans.

The dog tags will be available throughout the holiday season in more than 12,000 stores across the country including GameStop, Walmart, Toys “R” Us, Best Buy, and Target.

Customers will find the dog tags in dedicated Call of Duty sections and counter displays. Activision will be donating proceeds from the sales of the dog tags to the Call of Duty Endowment.

Filed Under: New Products Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Mega Brands Creates a Bridge Between Arts, Crafts, and Toys With Scraps and Goo Hu

October 26, 2012 By

Mega Brands, Inc., is expanding the focus of its RoseArt brand through the introduction of two all-new children’s product lines: Scraps and Goo Hu. These two RoseArt product lines represent a strategic business decision to create a bridge between arts, crafts, and toys, offering products with extensive post-creation playability.

Expanding the interactivity of traditional plush animals, Scraps is a unique new line of 12 original, interchangeable plush characters that kids create by looping and buttoning together multiple pieces and parts onto pom-pom bodies. All Scraps parts can be mixed, matched, and reattached, so kids can collect their favorite characters and even create their own new characters for extended creative play.

Mega Brands has also developed a proprietary product that is part science experiment, part bouncing toy, with the launch of RoseArt’s Goo Hu. Goo Hu features two silicone-based modeling compounds that, when kept apart, remain gooey forever, but once combined create magical matter that turns into a rubbery, bouncy, and flexible form that won’t shrink, crack, break, or lose its bounce.  Goo Hu combines crafting with chemistry, allowing children to use their imagination to create unique toy shapes and forms.

Both products are available at Target, Kmart, and Toys “R” Us. More information about Scraps is available at www.TheOriginalScraps.com. More information about Goo Hu is available at www.MyGooHu.com.

Filed Under: New Products Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Ingenuity Releases First Washable Playard

October 16, 2012 By

Life just got a little easier thanks to the latest innovation from InGenuity. Disney Baby The Lion King Premier Washable Playard is the first full-size playard made of fabrics that easily zip off in approximately a minute for machine washing. This playard provides a hassle-free way to wash away germs, allergens, bacteria and dirt, answering moms’ need for a playard that can be kept as fresh as the rest of baby’s bedding.

Emphasizing cleanliness, convenience, and adjustability, the washable playard, provides the most comfortable environment for baby with modern benefits for mom. Loaded with great features like the One Less Step folding system that allows for easy portability, mom can fold and take this on the go without removing the playard’s bassinet. The elevated changing table  pivots out of the way when not in use. The organizer tray and fabric toy bar with two plush toys are also removable.

Other key features include a unique bassinet design with adjustable mattress and range of incline for baby’s comfort; sleek fabric styling designed to complement modern home décor; and the Soothing Sounds Station that plays melodies and nature sounds to calm and comfort baby.

The Lion King Premier Washable Playard is available now at Babies”R”Us. Other Ingenuity products, including the Java Jungle Collection, Coco Cafe Collection, Sumner Collection, and the Shiloh Collection, are available at Target, Walmart, and Buy Buy Baby. To learn more, visit www.ingenuitybaby.com.

Filed Under: 0-2, New Products Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

VTech To Launch Educational Online Games

October 1, 2012 By

VTech Electronics North America LLC will launch an online program that combines gaming technology with VTech’s learning products for children ages 3 to 9 years. VTech University is a curriculum that will help children with their reading, math, and science skills. Upon completion of the curriculum, children can be entered for a chance to win a $25,000 college bond by May 31. In order to register for the curriculum, a child must have one of VTech’s learning products, such as Inno Tab, Inno Tab 2, MobiGo2, or the Inno Tab 2S. The Tab can be purchased at Amazon, Target, Toys “R” Us, Walmart, and VTech Kids. Enrollment in the program will allow for a free download of the curriculum. An Honors program is also available for purchase. For download information, visit www.TechKids.com/download.

Filed Under: New Products Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

The World of Eric Carle Expands at Babies “R” Us, Target, and Kohl’s

September 27, 2012 By

The  Joester Loria Group is working with licensees and retailers to expand the World of Eric Carle product collection.

Babies “R” Us has added new infant developmental toys from Kids Preferred and play and nap mats from Venture Products to its existing program. Target’s See Spot Save program launched 20 World of Eric Carle products this month, including stationery and tote bags from Innovative Designs, socks from PS Brands, and feeding utensils and containers from Zak Designs. Following the success of their World of Eric Carle infant developmental toy inline program, Kohl’s selected the brand for its semi-annual Kohl’s Baby Event, which kicks off in September and offers consumers great deals on the latest baby products.

Momentum for the brand will continue to build as all partners gear up for the 45th Anniversary of Carle’s most famous title, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, in 2014.

Filed Under: 0-2, 3-5, 5-8, 6-8, 8 and up, 9 and up, Licenses Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

memBrain Licensing, Evy of California Partner for Exclusive Target Collection

September 19, 2012 By

Evy of California, manufacturer of girls and juniors apparel, has joined memBrain Licensing to manufacture Emily the Strange apparel for girls ages 4 to 16. The apparel will be sold exclusively at Target stores. Artist Rob Reger created Emily the Strange in 1993 at his design studio in Berkeley. The character has been used for a Nintendo DS videogame, iPhone app, and a series of HarperCollins novels popular among kids and tweens. Emily the Strange is known for empowering individualism. The first appearance of the apparel, which coincides with the icon’s 20th birthday, will include graphic T-shirts sold online and in stores. A pin and a hand tag that reads “Be Yourself” will be given out with the T-shirt purchase as a gift.

Filed Under: New Products Tagged With: , , ,

TIA Hosts Summer Credit Conference

August 1, 2012 By

As a chief educational component of its Credit Interchange Program, each year the Toy Industry Association hosts the National Summer Credit Conference that brings eligible TIA member companies together to share and discuss vital credit-related information to help protect their bottom line. This year, the conference was held from July 16-17 at The Depot Renaissance Hotel in Minneapolis.

At the day-and-a-half event, attendees from across the country participated in a problem-solving workshop and sessions that tackled the challenges facing credit and collection professionals working within the toy industry.  Retail partner Target Corporation, industry analysts, and legal counsel who led discussions covered a wide range of practical topics  including trends in vendor fraud and counterfeiting, the dynamics of cargo theft, insurance options, reducing credit card processing fees, and credit risk analyses for key retail accounts.

For more information about the TIA Credit Interchange Program or the EZCredit system, contact Dina Gittings, program manager, TIA Credit Interchange, or Paul Vitale, vice president of finance and administration.

This post was originally written by Lindsay Gordon 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.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: , , ,

Meet Hexapillar: Target’s Robotic Gift Card

July 9, 2012 By

Innovation First and Target teamed up to create the Hexapillar gift card. The newest addition to Target’s 2,000-plus gift card archive, the Hexapillar gift card is a robotic caterpillar that flies. The gift card/bug is a collaboration between the design teams at Target and Hexbug, which specializes in micro robotic creatures.

Derived from the Hexbug Nano—the  autonomous robotic critter that behaves like a real bug—the Hexapillar features a caterpillar that transforms into a butterfly. The gift card launched in stores last week and can be found in the stationery, toys, and electronics departments until the end of the year.

This post was originally written by Ali Mierzejewski 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.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: , , , ,
« Older Posts
Newer Posts »