Here you'll find news on trends, toy fair itself, awards, the Century of Toys list, the toy fair split and more.

The Nostalgia Trend:  Old Characters Are New Again: Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears

There is a definite nostalgia//back to basics trend for dolls and toys in 2003.  Of course, electronic beeping, talking and walking toys were at Toy Fair this year, but the buzz surrounded old favorites and new, solid, imaginative play toys.  A good place to see this trend was in licensed products.  Everything from Strawberry Shortcake dolls (from Bandai) to Care Bears (from American Greeting, Playmates, Cadaco) to Cat in the Hat to My Little Pony (Hasbro) licensed product were being updated and were again popular.  Some old perennials, like the Cat In The Hat, will be tied into new media projects this year, such as the upcoming Cat In The Hat movie staring Mike Myers as the Cat.  For Strawberry Shortcake, and there will be 4 television specials on Fox Kids featuring Strawberry and her friends.  These specials will also be released on DVD.  Other very popular dolls and toys didn't beep, buzz or think, and those included board games, Bratz and My Scene Barbie dolls, building sets for girls and miniature cars of all types.  In fact, Barbie sales were up over 6 percent in 2002.

Toy Industry Association Announces Its Century Of Toys List

The Toy Industry Association ("TIA") has released a list of one hundred of the industry's most memorable and creative toys from the past century.  This "Century Of Toys List" was announced as part of the American Toy Fair Centennial Celebration, and has been fashioned to highlight momentous toys from the past 100 years. TIA has owned and managed the American International TOY FAIR since 1932 and has chosen only a small fraction of successful and innovative products that have been introduced during the last 100 years including unforgettable activity sets, board games, dolls, ride-on toys, action figures and more.

"As we celebrate the 100th anniversary of TOY FAIR, this list allows us to pay tribute to the toys that have brought joy and happiness to children for decades. By looking through the Century of Toys list, people of all ages will be reminded of the thrill that toys have contributed to their lives," said Neil Friedman, Chairman of TIA and President of Mattel's Fisher-Price Brands. "By looking at this list, we'll all be wondering which toys previewed during TOY FAIR 2003 this February will be honored throughout the next century," he continued.

Selecting toys for the Century of Toys List involved a very stringent review process, which began with a list of criteria to establish the benchmark. With an initial list in hand, a variety of veterans throughout the industry, including members of the Toy Industry Hall of Fame, toy design professionals, and the TIA Executive Committee were involved to narrow down the list of 100, and helping to ensure the integrity of the list.

"The 100th anniversary of TOY FAIR in New York City affords us the perfect opportunity to honor our industry's vast contributions through the many toys and playthings introduced over the past century," said Thomas Conley, President, TIA. "Because TOY FAIR is known as the premier toy show in the world, we can't help but experience a sense of wonder and excitement as we anticipate the many ways the toy industry will captivate the imagination of children in the years ahead," he concluded.

You may view the entire list at TIA's web site: www.toy-tia.org.  Dolls  and other notable related toys included on the list, in chronological order, are:  Teddy Bears, Raggedy Ann, Madame Alexander Collectible Dolls, Mickey and Minnie plush dolls, Betsy Wetsy dolls, Ginny Dolls, Barbie, Troll Dolls, the Easy Bake Oven, GI Joe, Strawberry Shortcake, Cabbage Patch Dolls, Care Bears, My Little Pony, Teddy Ruxpin, Pound Puppies, Barney The Dinosaur Plush, Beanie Babies, Tickle Me Elmo, Furby, and Groovy Girls,

A list of criteria used in the selection process is also available for viewing at the TIA web site..

Toy Fair Splits In Two:  The New Fall Mass Market Toy Expo Is Announced

"Fall Mass Market Toy Expo, The Show for Early Buyers," is the official name of the new early mass market toy industry show to take place October 21-23, 2003 in New York City, it was announced today by Thomas Conley, president, Toy Industry Association, Inc. ("TIA"), the owner and sponsor of the new event.  This new show has been created to service mass market toy buyers, such as Wal Mart, Target, and K-Mart, who require a longer timetable for making buying decisions.  The American International TOY FAIR™, held annually in Manhattan's Javits Convention Center and at showrooms in the Toy District, will continue in February as in past years, with an additional emphasis on small retailers and specialty products.

According to Mr. Conley: "The Fall Mass Market Toy Expo will fulfill the need for a modified buying timetable that many mass market toy retailers have asked us to support. Attending this new fall show will provide these customers with a venue to meet with the vendors who serve this specific market, and by completing a majority of their buying decisions prior to arriving in New York in February, will allow them to focus on the smaller manufacturers at the American International TOY FAIR."

Buyers from small toy and specialty retailers are not sure of what these changes will mean to the February Toy Fair, if anything.  Certain manufacturers, such as Hasbro, are considering attending only the Fall Mass Market Fair.

TOTY Award Winners Announced at Third Annual Awards

The third annual T.O.T.Y. (Toy Of The Year) Awards were announced at Toy Fair 2003.  These awards pay tribute to the year's greatest and most creative achievements in toys and play.  The T.O.T.Y. Awards (pronounced Toh-Tee) are designed to salute the creativity, success and spirit of the toy industry by honoring the best toys developed by the international toy industry for U.S. consumers. 

The 2002 T.O.T.Y. Awards recognized the industry's innovation during the year by recognizing products introduced in 2002. Here is a list of the winners:

• People's Choice Toy of the Year, representing the best toy of the year as voted by thousands of consumers across the country - Bratz ™ Stylin' Salon 'N' Spa ™, MGA Entertainment

• Most Innovative Toy of the Year, for the most outstanding, unique and creative toy - Musini™, Neurosmith

• Infant/Preschool Toy of the Year, for toys designed for infant and/or preschool children - Chicken Dance Elmo™, Fisher-Price®

• Educational Toy of the Year, recognizing a toy that, through play, helps children develop special skills and/or knowledge - Quantum Pad™ Learning System, LeapFrog

• =Activity Toy of the Year, recognizing a toy that inspires creative play through various forms of activity -- The Screamin' Serpent Roller Coaster®, K'NEX Industries, Inc.

• Game of the Year, including board, CD-ROM, electronic and card game formats - Cranium® Cadoo®, Cranium, Inc.

• Specialty Toy of the Year, for toys distributed primarily through specialty retailers - Groovy Girls® T-Series, Manhattan Toy®

• Outdoor Toy of the Year, focused on toys designed for outdoor play- CATCH-A-BUBBLE™ The Bubble You Can Catch, Spin Master Ltd.

• Girl Toy of the Year, for toys developed specifically for girls of any age - Groovy Girls® T-Series-- Manhattan Toy®

• Boy Toy of the Year, for toys developed for boys of any age - Spider-man® Dual Action Web Blaster™ -- Toy Biz

• Licensed Toy of the Year, for the most successful marriage between a property and a toy - LEGO® Harry Potter™ Chamber of Secrets™-- LEGO Systems, Inc./ Warner Bros. Consumer Products

• Retailer of the Year / Under 25 locations, for the most innovative retailer, offering diverse merchandise presentation that give specialty brands and product categories clear focus and value-added appeal - FAO Schwarz

• Retailer of the Year / 25+ locations, for the most innovative retailer with extensive locations offering a wide variety of popular merchandise with creative in-store marketing and merchandising - Toys 'R' Us
•  
• Marketing Campaign of the Year, recognizing the highest level of creativity and implementation in developing a unified marketing, advertising, public relations or promotional campaign for a toy or children's entertainment product - Barbie ™ as Rapunzel - Mattel, Inc. and Madame Alexander® and McDonald's® Happy Meal® - Alexander Doll Company

• Caring For Children, for the company with a public service program that makes the most profound impact on the lives of children in its community or beyond, bringing credit to the toy industry - Toys 'R' Us Child Safety Program

• Inducted into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame, Eddy Goldfarb, toy inventor and the late Antonio Pasin, founder of Radio Flyer, Inc.

The Blizzard of 2003

Toy Fair 2003 will remain a legend in the toy industry thanks to the Blizzard of 2003--the fourth largest snowstorm EVER to fall in New York City (19.5 inches of snow).  The city virtually shut down on Monday, February 16th...and Monday is usually the busiest Toy Fair day.  Toy Fair was open for business, however, despite hour-long bus waits and 15-block trudges in the snow being common for Toy Fair attendees.  Not everyone made it to the Javitz Center, though, and it made for a very different type of Toy Fair day, with conversation being as much about the snow as the toys, and with certain booths having very high ratios of representatives to buyers.  The Blizzard definitively came as a shock to most out-of-town attendees, since the last few years of Toy Fair have been abnormally warm and snow-free.

Fun Facts About Toy Fair

If you've never been to Toy Fair, then its hard to grasp the size and scope of the whole thing.  Reporters usually can only cover a miniscule percentage of the new toys,  dolls, bears and other playthings showcased each year.  In a typical year, there are about 1,350 companies exhibiting at New York's cavernous Javitz Center and 250 "official" exhibitors in the Toy District showrooms.  Over  20,000 buyers from around the world come to see the wares.

2003 was the 100th anniversary of Toy Fair.  To kick off the celebration, TIA hosted the world's largest (ever) ribbon cutting to kick things off at the Javitz Center on Sunday morning.

At Toy Fair, much of the "floor talk" this year focused on the dismal economy, worries of a possible U.S. war with Iraq, and price wars with major retailers.  Sales of toys are down after many years of growth, with consumers spending $20.3 billion on toys in 2002, down from $20.5 billion in 2001.

Dolls and Saudi Arabia

On a personal note:  I shared a cab on the last day of Toy Fair with a woman attending Toy Fair who owns a shop in Saudi Arabia.  She told me about her difficulties getting dolls into her country for her shop (which sells other goods besides dolls and toys, exclusively to other women).  To get dolls into her country, she generally has to sneak the dolls in as personal items.  One time, Madame Alexander inadvertently sent her a Cissy doll (grown female body, fashion doll) which completely baffled Saudi Arabian customs and delayed an entire shipment of other dolls.  The ironic thing is that this shop owner was as fashionably dressed and sophisticated (at least while in New York City) as any Cissy doll.  The whole thing really makes you think!

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