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The Toy Book’s 2022 Specialty Toy Issue Is Here!
If you missed grabbing a physical copy of our hot-off-the-presses 2022 Specialty Toy Issue at ASTRA Marketplace & Academy, check out the issue digitally. Packed with new product showcases, an industry roundtable discussion, a deep dive into the metaverse, and more, stay up to date on industry trends with the Toy Book! See the full issue…
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U.S. Toy Industry Sales Grew 1% in the First 4 Months of 2022, NPD Says
The NPD Group has released a fresh batch of public-facing data focused on the U.S. toy industry. The numbers reflect the reality that many in the global toy industry have come to realize in recent weeks: growth is slowing amid a new raft of economic challenges. According to The NPD Group’s Retail Tracking Service, overall U.S. toy industry dollar sales rose 1% in the first four months of 2022. From January to April, unit sales declined 6% while the average selling price (ASP) spiked 7% to $11.17 per toy. Read more…
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Exclusive: Far Out Toys Launches Glo-Up Girls Season 2 Dolls This Summer
The Glo-Up Girls are getting an all-new #GloUp this summer and the Toy Book has your exclusive first look. The six new dolls will come in refreshed packaging and feature glammed-up looks with new styles, hair, and ways to transform — all ready to rock, right out of the box. Read more…
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Funko Acquires Mondo from Alamo Drafthouse
Funko may be best known for its vinyl Pop! figures, but the Washington-based maker of pop-culture toys, games, collectibles, and lifestyle products is about to enter a different vinyl category. Funko announced its acquisition of Mondo, the merchandise arm of the Alamo Drafthouse movie theater chain. The newly acquired merch maker is known for offering limited-edition pressings of movie scores and soundtracks on vinyl records. Read more…
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ASTRA Announces 2022 Best Toys for Kids Winners
The American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA) has unveiled its 2022 Best Toys for Kids winners. ASTRA’s 2022 Marketplace & Academy took place this week in Long Beach, California, and with it came the association’s picks for best kids’ toys. The group picked 12 winning toys in 12 categories. Read more…
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LEGO Set to Build $1 Billion U.S. Factory
For the first time ever, select LEGO products will carry a welcome message on their packaging: Made in USA. The LEGO Group is continuing to streamline its supply chain by investing more than $1 billion to build a new factory in Chesterfield County, Virginia. Construction on the 1.7 million square foot carbon-neutral facility will begin this fall. Read more…
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Mattel, Onchain Studios Strike Deal For Cryptoys NFT Platform
Some iconic toy brands are about to enter the metaverse and Web3 in new ways. Mattel inked a multi-year global partnership deal with OnChain Studios to feature its brands on the Cryptoys NFT platform. Under the new deal, OnChain Studios will bring Mattel brands into a collectible, interactive world of animated, playable digital toys that live on the Flow blockchain. Read more…
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Cassidy Smith Discusses Hape’s Uniche Collective on the ‘Power Kid Podcast’
In this week’s episode of the “Power Kid Podcast,” host Phil Albritton of Power Kid Design welcomes Cassidy Smith, president of the Uniche Collective to the show. For 18 years, Smith — an incoming member of the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA) board of directors — served as vice president of sales and marketing at Hape International. Now, as president of its new specialty division, the Uniche Collective, Smith and his team scour the globe to find and develop products exclusively for savvy specialty customers. Listen now…
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Sing with All the Colors of the Wind with the New Pocahontas Tonies Figure
Pocahontas has traveled “Just Around the Riverbend” to join the Tonies family as the newest Tonies character figure full of iconic songs from Disney’s Pocahontas and an audio story. This Tonie figure will teach kids about bravery, making new friends, and staying true to yourself. Read more…
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Trefl Jumps the Pond to Enter the U.S. Marketplace
Get ready to make the biggest jigsaw puzzle ever. Trefl, a jigsaw puzzle company based out of Europe, is ready to make its U.S. debut. The company plans to launch a collection of the company’s top European best-sellers, including the Trefl Wood Craft Origin line, the Trefl Prime Puzzle, and its original licensed and core puzzles. Read more…
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Pluto TV Launches New Transformers TV Channel
The Transformers are hitting the silver screen with nonstop streaming. Pluto TV launched Transformers TV, the first dedicated Transformers streaming channel. The free service contains more than 200 hours of content, including fan favorites Transformers: Bumblebee Cyberverse Adventures, Transformers: Prime, and Transformers: Robots in Disguise. Read more…
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Maurizio Distefano Launches ‘Bluey’ Toys in Italy
Maurizio Distefano, the Italian licensing agent for BBC Studios’ animated show Bluey and Giochi Preziosi, Italian distributor of Moose Toys, just launched a new collection of Bluey toys in Italy. Inspired by the colorful world of Bluey, the collection includes plush toys of Bluey and sister Bingo and six sets of action figures based on the show. Additionally, there will be two mini playsets and a Heeler 4WD family vehicle. Read more…
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Next-Gen Toy Stores: A New Era of Specialty Retailers Lead Play into the Future
After years of digital retail growth, life during the COVID-19 pandemic sparked a new interest in returning to brick-and-mortar stores. As supply chain issues flipped the script and resulted in better product selection in stores versus online, many people rediscovered that they actually like shopping in person. Across the U.S. and Canada, independent, specialty toy retailers — once expected to be decimated by pandemic-related closures — have found new ways to connect with local families. Read more…
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Connecting Toy Stores Worldwide
Brian Volk-Weiss, founder of The Nacelle Co., launched the Toy Stores of the World Passport Program to support specialty retailers. The initiative, which enlisted around 100 international toy retailers, offers authentic, stitched passport booklets and unique stamps for each store. After purchasing the $10 passport online or at a participating store, consumers can track their journeys in style by securing unique stamps from each store they visit. Read more…
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How Toy Libraries Are Finding Shelf Space in the Industry
Toy libraries are, for the most part, exactly what they sound like. Instead of books, their shelves are stacked with toys that patrons can borrow and play with, then bring back. But, the concept isn’t entirely new. The USA Toy Library Association (USATLA) was founded back in 1984 when 15 toy library locations came together to share ideas. Read more…
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Five Below Sales Spike 7% in Q1 as Guidance Shifts
Five Below has revised its outlook for 2022 as the discount retailer reacts to consumer preference shifts and challenges in the global supply chain and economic factors. The retailer reported a 7% spike in net sales for the first quarter of 2022 — $639.6 million versus $597.8 million last year — fueled by new store openings. Comparable sales declined 3.6% but the company is currently operating 12.6% more locations than it did during Q1 ’21. Read more…
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SDCC: Funko Plans a Literal Town for its Convention Comeback
After two years away from both Comic-Con International: San Diego (SDCC) and New York Comic Con, Funko is coming back in a big way for next month’s SDCC. Today, the ever-growing pop culture merch maker revealed plans for “Funkoville,” a massive and immersive booth experience on the showfloor. Read more…
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In Memoriam: Bill Maisch
A beloved toy industry veteran has passed. Wilhelm K. “Bill” Maisch, a longtime fixture on the buying side of the industry died on June 6, 2022. Maisch was known to many for his work as the buyer for the kids’ category at AC Moore in addition to his time spent at H. Clay Moore & Associates, and Jacent Strategic Merchandising. Last year, Maisch joined Cra-Z-Art as vice president of new business development. Read more…
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Andy Pence Joins Crayola as VP, Experience and Location-Based Entertainment
In his new role, Pence, a former Hallmark executive, will oversee the operations of existing Crayola Experience family entertainment centers, expand the family attraction platform through new licensing partnerships, and develop additional location-based entertainment licensing programs. Read more…
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