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How Coronavirus Is Affecting the Toy Industry
The spread of the novel coronavirus and the disease it causes — COVID-19 — is receiving an unprecedented response. Like the rest of the world, the toy industry is working to adapt and evolve in order to maintain business while practicing social distancing and other measures to curb the spread of the virus. The changes not only affect the toy industry itself, but also adjacent industries such as pop culture and entertainment.
The Toy Book
is closely monitoring the situation and is providing regular updates in this special feature.
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New Lawsuit Alleges Toys “R” Us, Private Equity Execs Committed Fraud During Bankruptcy
The story of the Toys “R” Us (TRU) collapse in the U.S. has entered a new chapter. On March 12, law firm Dovel & Luner filed a lawsuit in the New York Supreme Court on behalf of the TRU Creditor Litigation Trust, a group representing many companies harmed during the largest retail bankruptcy in U.S. history. The 111-page complaint alleges “fraud, misrepresentation, and deceit,” “negligent misrepresentation,” “negligent concealment and negligent omission,” and various other breaches of fiduciary duty by some of the company’s top executives and corporate directors from its private equity owners — including KKR, Bain Capital, and Vornado Realty Trust — in connection with the bankruptcy and liquidation of Toys “R” Us that played out between 2017-2019.
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The Toy Association Goes Remote Amid COVID-19, Social Distancing Recommendation
The Toy Association has temporarily closed its offices in New York City and Washington, D.C. as a precaution to protect the health and safety of its staff and members during the coronavirus pandemic. With staff members working remotely, the organization asks that members and others refrain from sending packages to the offices as they will not be accepted. Normal operations, services, updates to members, and committee meetings, will progress uninterrupted.
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Target’s New Game Room Concept Opens in San Francisco
The future of gaming retail may come from an unexpected source: Target. Following a two-month renovation period, Target Open House reopened as Game Room earlier this month. The spacious store located at 115 4th St. in San Francisco is touted as “A Play Space for Tomorrow’s Gamer.
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Invention Week on the ‘‘Power Kid Podcast’
This week, host Phil Albritton of
Power Kid Design
is joined by Matt Nuccio of Design Edge for a four-part series of mini-episodes in which they delve into the various aspects of inventing including research, prototyping, presentation, and next steps. The series is designed to be an overview for newcomers to the toy industry while serving as a refresher for industry vets.
Listen here...
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Learning Resources, Educational Insights, and hand2mind Offer Free Educational Activities for Families Stuck at Home
Educational toy companies Learning Resources, Educational Insights, and hand2mind launched a range of complimentary, family-friendly online resources and activities to keep kids productive and engaged during school breaks. These engaging activities include advice, do-it-yourself projects, and printable activities for kids of all ages.
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GoNoodle Debuts New Mobile Movement Games for Kids
Movement and mindfulness platform GoNoodle is introducing a new line of interactive games to encourage kids to get active. Its free
GoNoodle Games
iOS app aims to make screen time more active with original games that kids control with their own movements.
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Age of Learning Offers Services Free for Families Impacted by Coronavirus-related School Closures
In order to help the almost 1 million kids in the U.S. whose schools have closed due to COVID-19, Age of Learning is offering its services free of charge to the schools and families that have been impacted. It will also make its online learning available abroad through UNICEF. Schools and school districts that have or will close can complete a form online in order to get more information on how to receive free access to ABCmouse.com, Adventure Academy, and ReadingIQ.
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ChiTAG Young Inventor Challenge Winner “Betcha Can’t” Hits Retail
Pressman Toys‘ latest game is an award-winning title invented by kids. Created by 13-year-old Lily Brown and 12-year-old Tait Hansen, Betcha Can’t was honored as a 2018 winner of the annual Young Inventor Challenge (YIC) hosted by the Chicago Toy and Game Group.
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eOne’s
Ricky Zoom
to Air on CCTV-14 in China
Entertainment One’s (eOne)
Ricky Zoom
continues to grow its audience around the world. For kids and families in China, the preschool series has been a hit since its debut last June, and beginning March 23 audiences will have a new place to watch: CCTV-14. The network will air 10 episodes per day beginning at 11:20 a.m. from March 23-27. In China, the series racked up more than 100 million views in its first 12 days on YouKu last year.
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Call of Duty
Reigns Once More as Video Game Sales Drop 29% in February
According to the NPD Group, overall sales for the entire video game category — including hardware, software, and accessories — was $755 million, a 29% decline versus last year. In terms of overall software sales, this February’s $307 million was a 36% decrease from the same period last year. Year-to-date spending for the video game category is $1.4 billion, a 28% decline over last year.
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Coronavirus Impact: What Independent Toy Stores Should Expect and How to React
A former president of AC Nielsen, Richard Derr left the marketing world in 1996 to open Learning Express Toys in Lake Zurich, Illinois. In a guest post, Derr looks at what data from 9/11 and the global financial crisis can teach us about weathering the COVID-19 storm.
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Working from Home Is One Thing; Running a Business Is Another
No one knows how long it will be until people return to their communal workspaces. With this in mind, Clark Nesselrodt, senior vice president of Brilliant PR & Marketing, shares tips and practices that have helped his agency not just get through the workday, but to grow into a team of more than 25, each working from remote locations.
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Challenge Accepted: ASTRA Members Were Born for This
We are entrepreneurs and out-of-the-box thinkers. When told “no” we hear “challenge accepted.” We have all been told “that’s not possible” a million times — and gone on to deliver against the odds. Amy Saldanha, founder and CEO of kiddywampus offers some thoughts on making it through these challenging times.
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Hasbro Star Wars Designer Mark Boudreaux Retires
Legendary toy designer Mark Boudreaux is retiring after a 43-year career working on some of the most iconic Hasbro Star Wars toys and vehicles. Boudreaux joined Kenner as a University of Cincinnati co-op student in 1977, the year that George Lucas’
Star Wars
first hit theaters.
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WildBrain CPLG Expands German Sales Department
The global licensing agency, which represents properties from Hasbro, Spin Master, and Peanuts in select territories, welcomes Sarah Rosenstock as commercial director and Lisa Gruczek as senior sales manager.
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Group Publisher:
Jackie Breyer
Editor-in-Chief:
Maddie Michalik
Copy Chief:
Sierra McCleary-Harris
Toy Report Editor:
James Zahn
Senior Editors:
Jackie Cucco
Marissa DiBartolo
Ali Mierzejewski
Associate Editor:
Madeleine Buckley
Assistant Editor:
Miranda Siwak
Editorial Assistants:
Josephine Baran
Ben Goren
Art Director:
Joe Ibraham
Director of Sales and Marketing:
James Devin
Sales Executive
Branden Mendez
Production Director:
Bill Reese
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For more toy industry news and features, visit us daily at
www.ToyBook.com
!
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The Toy Book Toy Report is published by Adventure Media and Events LLC, Inc., 307 Seventh Avenue, Room 1601, New York, NY 10001.
Closing is Wednesday at noon EST of the same week's edition.
If you would like to advertise in the Toy Book Toy Report, please email Jackie Breyer:
jackie@toybook.com
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