The Chicago Toy & Game Group revealed the finalists for its 2018 Toy & Game Innovation Awards (TAGIEs). The TAGIEs, now in its 11th year, recognizes innovators, designers, and marketers in the toy and game industry.
Following a public voting period, winners will be revealed on November 16, 2018 at the TAGIEs ceremony and gala, held annually during Chicago Toy & Game Week (ChiTAG), the night before the start of the ChiTAG’s consumer fair at Navy Pier.
Finalists in the following categories were selected by their industry peers. The public is now invited to place their votes to determine the 2018 winners. Voting is open online from now until October 31st. Click here to vote, and see the finalists below.
Toy Innovator of the Year
- Bang Zoom for Lil’ Gleemerz by Mattel
- David Fuhrer, Richard Kimbrough, DiscoNifty for Twisty Petz by Spin Master
- Latham Gaines – Power Dough by Canal Toys
- Shoot The Moon for NERF Laser Ops by Hasbro
- Sydney Wiseman for Fingerlings by WowWee
Game Innovator of the Year
- Bang Zoom for Chow Crown from Hasbro
- Don Ullman and Bob Driscoll for Don’t Step In It by Hasbro
- Jeff Foxworthy for Relative Insanity from PlayMonster
- Rob Daviau and Justin D. Jacobson for Fireball Island: The Curse of Vul-Kar by Restoration Games
Seven Towns for Greedy Granny by Goliath Games
Young Inventor of the Year
- Ethan Klein for House Architecture Set by 3duxdesign
- Harper Miller for The Dream Pillow by Architec® Brands
- Michael Nixon for The Amazing Annoyatron by EduKits International
Rising Star Innovator of the Year
- Adam Borton for Flushin’ Frenzy by Mattel
- Art, Joe & Jim Seymour for Circuit Blox, Power Blox and Story Blox by eblox
- Daryl Andrews for The Oregon Trail by Pressman Toy/Goliath Games
- Jeff Lai for Maki Stack by Blue Orange
- Jillian Lakritz for Yoee Baby Original Line: Puppy, Kitty, Fox, Lion, Monkey, Bunny
- Krissa Watry for playPORTAL by Dynepic
- Nick Metzler Hail Hydra for Spin Master
- Marissa Louie for Animoodles: Iris Unicorn, Hazel Sloth, Randy Orangutan, Brady Lion, Miguel Frog, Sophie Elephant
Innovative Art and Visuals of the Year
- Elan Lee and Matt Inman of Exploding Kittens for Bears vs Babies
- Geizi Guevara, Mike Freeth, Patrick Murray, Chris Wickman of Spin Master for The Cat Game
- Jakks Pacific for Fan Heads
- Prospero Hall for Disney Villainous by WonderForge
- Sabrina Miramon (Illustration), Chris D’Angelo, Greg Stata, Kelly Miele (Graphic/Packaging Design) and Kathy Beyerle (Product Design) of ThinkFun for Shadows in the Forest
Innovative Marketing Team of the Year
- JMP Creative’s Social Media Team for Orbeez Wow World Campaign with Maya Toys
- PlayMonster 5 Second Rule Marketing Team for 5 Second Rule
- Lee Parkhurst, Jennifer Jens, Sunny Choi, Nicole Younger of Educational Insights for Sculptapalooza’s Online Campaign
- Hasbro Marketing and Rhett and Link for their online Influencer video campaign
- Sydney Wiseman for Fingerlings by WowWee
In addition to the winners determined through nominations and public voting, a panel of industry experts selected these accomplished honorees for the evening:
- Start-Up Award, Thijmen de Schipper and Jochem van Rijn, YULU Toys
- Inventor Advocacy Award, Mike Meyers, Retired as Senior VP Hasbro Games
- Lifetime Achievement, David Small and Paul Rago, Shoot the Moon
