Selling Infant & Preschool Toys:
Licensing Abounds, but Safety Rules

By David Miller

Check out the aisles of any toy or baby specialty shop, whether it is a large chain or an independent retailer, and you'll see some brand-new faces-Teletubbies, Mulan, and Arthur, to name a few. But they'll be sitting right next to some familiar ones, depending on your generation, from your own childhood, too-Winnie the Pooh, Beatrix Potter, Mickey Mouse and Sesame Street.

Licensing is an $8 billion industry in toyland, according to 1997 sales figures posted in The Licensing Letter, an industry trade publication. More than 40% of all toys sold bear images that are either based on characters from books, movies or television, or are specifically designed as toys and developed to be licensed themselves. And whether the licensed image is one that children clamor for or one that adults remember and cherish, licensing translates into big business in the sales of products marketed to the birth to preschool audience; it is an important ingredient in the success of plush ($1.3 billion in shipments in 1997); infant toys ($424 million); mobiles ($25 million); rattles/teethers ($36 million); and preschool toys ($893 million). Total shipments for the U.S. toy industry in 1997, excluding video, were $15.24 billion, which translates into an estimated $22.58 billion in retail sales.

Trends in the infant and preschool toy categories go beyond licensing, however:
No matter how attractive, popular or desirable a certain character is at any moment, licensed-as well as non-licensed -- toys must have value and worth on their own to succeed with discriminating consumers. And that means toymakers must keep their new product introductions fresh and exciting in the eyes of children and adults alike. For example, angels and sports are two of the newest themes to appear on infant items, but new for 1998 toys are also attachable and portable (from crib to stroller to playpen to walker to car seat), multi-use (grow with a child) and incorporate new technology. Some new rattles, for example, employ microchips, permanently sealed within the unit, to supply lights, sounds and music. One new item actually replicates the sound of an electronic car alarm remote control. Kids today are constantly on the move, so toys that go from crib to car seat to stroller to walker are practical for modern parents and care givers. Taking that favorite rattle with you is easy; one manufacturer produces socks with built-in rattles in the toes. Infant toy "stroller" bars with Velcro® attachments connect to any or all types of juvenile furniture. Detach the toys from some of the latest-style mobiles and you have a new infant item, some of which can also attach to car seats, etc. Also new in mobiles are interchangeable graphic images, to alter the view as a newborn's sight develops. And how do you quiet a crying infant without entering the nursery? By a remote control that activates a music center which plays soft lullabies.

Stuffed toys, that infant staple, have some new twists, too. Plush refrigerator magnets keep a toddler busy attaching and moving these toys around. Some of today's stuffed items are teaching tools, with zippers, snaps, buttons and Velcro® that teach a child how to manipulate these closures. Sensory input is doubled when toys mix materials, such as the new teething rings, rattles, and balls that combine plush and chewable plastic. And today, more and more stuffed toys are also designed with Velcro® straps for "attach-ability."

As infants grow, their play needs change. Toys that grow with a child offer great value for the toy-buying dollar. A floor gym that converts to an activity center that becomes a walker stays with a child from birth to age 2. A walker that turns into an activity center for toddlers and then for older kids will keep a child occupied from age 4 months to 6 years. A baby's floor playmat becomes, with the addition of an enclosed inflatable unit, a stand-up rocking toy. Juvenile furniture has also become part of the "converted." A toddler-sized bed is also a car on wheels. When a youngster is ready to graduate from three wheels to two, a tricycle turns into a scooter. A rocker/bouncer for infants converts into a rocking horse for the toddler. These new items can also be enjoyed by siblings in the same age ranges, increasing their play value.

But before purchasing a toy, whether for an infant, toddler or child of any age, consumers must take another, most important, first step-safety.
Toy manufacturers follow stringent government regulations and also employ their own voluntary safety standards to ensure that toys are hazard-free. To help your customers make safe toy purchases and buy the right toy for the right child, here are some helpful hints:

Educate your employees and yourself about the latest in product safety information, and pass it along to your customers
. Check regularly with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the federal agency that oversees the toy and juvenile products industries at 800-638-CPSC or visit their website at www.cpsc.gov for safety updates.

. Attend toy testing seminars. The next TMA International Toy Testing Seminar, which is open to retailers, will be held in Los Angeles November 8-10; for more information contact TMA at 212-675-1141 ext. 204. Another seminar will be held during the 1999 American International Toy Fair®, the largest toy trade show in the U.S. (show dates are February 8-15); more information on this seminar will be available on TMA's website --
www.toy-tma.com -- closer to the event.

. Join the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA), a trade group, to network and keep informed on safety and other retailer issues. ASTRA can be reached at 515-282-8192; fax: 515-282-9117; website: www.astratoy.org. Hold in-store safetydemonstrations (offer door prizes), especially during the slower sales periods.

. Obtain a free planning kit from the CPSC on how to hold "Baby Safety Showers" to inform consumers about vital safety information.

. Contact a sales rep from one of your manufacturer-vendors about holding a toy or juvenile product safety demonstration. Give out free safety materials (see below). Distribute safety information to your customers all year long

. The TMA Guide to Toys & Play, a toy safety and selection booklet (English and Spanish editions), is available free to retailers. Contact TMA's Communications Department for sample copies and an order form: 212-675-1141; fax: 212-633-1429. Display on store checkout counters.

. Safe & Sound for Baby, a brochure on juvenile product safety (cribs, strollers, playpens, car seats, etc.) is available free to retailers (up to 1,000 copies, in English and Spanish) from the Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association's Public Relations Department: 609-231-8500; fax: 609-231-4664; website: www.jpma.org.

. Bag stuffers can be great safety as well as marketing tools. Insert a flyer listing your store name, hours, phone/fax/website information attached to a copy of the Toys & Play guide; or provide tips excerpted from the guide, along with the toll-free number where customers can obtain a free copy: 1-800-951-9955. Toy and juvenile product manufacturers make sure that their products are the safest in the world. By keeping up-to-date with the latest safety information and educating your customers, you can help ensure that this factory built-in safety continues in the home.

David Miller has been president of Toy Manufacturers of America, Inc. (TMA®), the New York City-based trade association for the U.S. toy industry, since 1989. Mr. Miller is also president of the International Council of Toy Industries (ICTI), and a member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Manufacturers, and lectures in the Toy Design Department of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. Previously, he was owner and chairman of stuffed toy manufacturer Eden Toys, Inc. for over 20 years. For more information on TMA's activities, including buyer registration information for the American International Toy Fair, visit the association's website at www.toy-tma.com.