Zoobies, LLC and New Day Christian Distribution, a media and gift distributor to Christian bookstores, have partnered to release a Zoobie toy exclusive to the Christian bookstore market. The introduction of Lyric the Lamb will be followed by the distribution of other Zoobie items to Christian bookstores.
According to 2010 sales forecasts, retailers should expect an increase in back-to-school season sales. The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) has predicted a sales increase of 5.4 percent for mid-July through mid-September, as opposed to the decline by .4 percent and 2.8 percent in 2008 and 2009, respectively. ICSC predicts that family clothing will have the strongest increase, at 6.5 percent, followed by electronics at 5 percent.
Additionally, the National Retail Federation’s 2010 Consumer Intentions and Actions Back to School survey, conducted by BIGresearch, found that the average American family will spend $606.40 on clothes, shoes, supplies, and electronics, compared to $548.72 last year and $594.24 in 2008. Total spending on school-aged children is expected to reach $21.35 billion.
The survey also found that spending on clothing, shoes, and electronics will take up the majority of consumer’s budgets, with 44.3 percent of consumers planning to spend more on store or generic brands. Additionally, the survey reported that teenagers are expected to spend slightly more of their own money on back to school items, $31.74 this year compared to $30.88 last year.
The Toy Industry Foundation (TIF) has launched a charity auction featuring the Star Wars AT-AT (All Terrain Armored Transport) before it arrives in stores next month; proceeds will benefit TIF programs that support charities for at-risk, abused, abandoned, or ill children. The auction began July 14 and will run through July 19 at noon.
The auction features two of the new Star Wars AT-AT vehicles, donated by Hasbro. The multi-level vehicle is two feet tall, 28 inches long, and 12 inches wide, and can hold up to 20 Star Wars figures. Winners of the auction will have exclusive ownership for two weeks before the collector’s item is available for sale.
The auction is the latest in a series of initiatives to promote individual giving in support of the TIF’s philanthropic activities. The second annual “TIF Birthday Bids” auction, celebrating the anniversaries of characters and toys, will kick off in September.
Marshmallow Fun Company introduces new products to complement its line of original Marshmallow Shooters, Blasters, Bow and Mallow, and Blower. Each new products can shoot mini marshmallows or regular-sized marshmallows approximately 25-30 feet.
The MForcer is a quarter of the size of the company’s flagship Marshmallow Shooter and perfect for the sneak attack. The compact toy is the first rapid-fire marshmallow shooter, able to shoot 15 consecutive mini-marshmallows after one quick pump.
The Marshmallow Stryker is also a compact shooter that is able to hold up to 15 mini-marshmallows at one time, and can shoot them up to 20 feet.
Users can set their target, draw back the bow string, and let marshmallows fly with the Marshmallow Cross Bow. The high-powered bow shoots large marshmallow, one at a time, up to 30 feet.
The Marshmallow Mazooka is the first battery-controlled launcher from the company. Aimers pull the trigger and the Mazooka launches regular-sized marshmallows approximately 30 feet. The Mazooka sits comfortably on a shoulder, and features a drop-down, illuminated cross-hair site to help users hit their target.
The Stryker, Cross Bow, and Mazooka is available in classic blue and red, or in camo styles.
Last week, a federal jury awarded British-based Celador International, Ltd. $269.4 million in damages after unanimously finding that Disney subsidiaries ABC Television, Buena Vista Television, and Valleycrest Productions, Ltd., had breached their contract with the company to share profits from the game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
The lawsuit (Celador International, Ltd. v. Walt Disney Co.) was filed in 2004 after The Walt Disney Co. reported that Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, created by Celador, never made a profit and generated more than $70 million in losses for the company, although the game show took ABC from No. 4 to No. 1 in network rankings. Celador licensed rights to the game show to ABC Television and Buena Vista Television as part of a deal in which Celador would get 50 percent of the profits from the show.
The nine-member jury, after deliberating for two and a half days, found that the defendants breached the implied “covenant of good faith and fair dealing” they owed to Celador.
According to Plastic & Rubber Weekly (PWR), the European Union’s (EU) Scientific Committee on Health and Environmental Risks has advised the European Commission that safety assessments of plastic toys should consider overall risk and take account of their likely uses, rather than just focus on the toxicity of substances in the products. The advisory was issued following a request from the commission for guidance on the toys safety directive.
Twentieth Century Fox Consumer Products UK has announced the first partnerships for its Glee licensing program. Fox Consumer Products has partnered with Konami Digital Entertainment for a new Nintendo Wii game, Karaoke Revolution Glee. In the video game, players sing alongside their favorite Glee characters and perform memorable scenes from season one.
Other new partners include GB Eye for a Glee-inspired range of postcards, posters, badges, and tattoo lines; Danila for calendars and diaries; Pyramid International for college stationery and bags; UK Greetings, Ltd. for a range of innovative greetings cards, gift wrap, and gift bags; Headline Publishing Group for a series of Glee novels and an official Glee annual; as well as new partners for mobile and computer accessories, gifts, health and beauty, bedding, confectionery, and apparel.
Ceaco has secured an exclusive license to produce jigsaw puzzles using paintings by Ellen Eilers, a 93-year-old country artist from Alexandria, Minn. Eilers creates her artwork at her kitchen table, painting for eight to 10 hours everyday by using household materials like drinking straws and toothpicks. Her inspiration is “simple country living.”
Ceaco is offering three different 550-piece puzzles featuring Eilers’ paintings. The puzzle series, titled Life in Calico Country, is available now.
American Greetings Properties is teaming up with Malaysia Airlines for a one-year Care Bears promotion. On every international flight, each child ages 2-3 years old will receive a Care Bears hard cover book, provided by Paragon Premiums in Malaysia.
Care Bears re-launched in 2002 and has generated more than $2.6 billion in global sales.
A high-energy, bluegrass/folk album for both kids and parents, Take It Outside is the newest CD from The Okee Dokee Brothers duo Justin Lansing and Joe Mailander. Distributed by Okee Dokee Music, the CD features 13 songs such as the quirky “The Naked Truth,” about a boy who only wears clothes in the shower, and “Neighbors,” a song about social diversity and acceptance.
While the Brothers say they wrote the songs to get kids and parents outside, the CD––due the beginning of August––can also be enjoyed indoors, with or without children.