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Article Archive: Collectibles
PLAYMONSTER’S SPIROGRAPH ANIMATOR SPINS INTO THE HOLIDAYS WITH PRESTIGIOUS AWARDS AND NOTABLE TOY LI
Reimagined Craft Activity Receives Glowing Industry Recognition in First Year of Sales    BELOIT, Wis. (November 3, 2021)  — Spirograph Animator, a new spin on the classic Spirograph set, celebrates BIG wins after earning multiple prestigious toy industry accolades.  In only a few months since launching this innovative new...

11/1/2021



InventHelp Inventor Develops Unique Collectible Figurines for Children (FGC-203)
PITTSBURGH, Sept. 1, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- "My daughter is a young person with high-functioning autism and she wanted to create a series of figurines that she and other children could collect and enjoy over time," said the parent of the inventor, from Avon, Ohio, "so she invented the GUFFLING COLLECTIBLES...

9/1/2021



Mattel Creations Announces Latest Product Drop Featuring Reimagined Collectible Toy-Inspired Art
Mattel Creations, the company’s collaboration and direct-to-consumer platform, is further evolving its toys as art collection to include a Non-Fungible Token (“NFT”) series from the super-charged Hot Wheels brand. Breaking into this new market allows Mattel to expand across this emerging art space and advance the collector offering starting with three unique NFTs from the Hot Wheels NFT Garage™ Series. The series features three vehicles from “The First Editions” vehicle collection and are available for auction...

7/1/2021



Toys in the News 6/04/2021
are more_vert Vintage toys main draw at Happy Pappy’s Action Figure Extravaganza When Clifton Boggs' two children asked for toys, he didn't just buy some — he opened an entire store. “My kids wanted a toy shop,” he explained. The result is...

6/1/2021



Top-10 Most-Wanted Collectible Toys
TDmonthly magazine interviewed retailers to find out which collectibles were flying off their shelves...

9/1/2015



Interview with Alexandre Pariente, CEO of Safari Ltd®
Alexandre Pariente recently took over as CEO of Safari Ltd®, a third-generation educational toy company...

11/1/2014



Top-10 Most-Wanted Collectible Toys
When TDmonthly Magazine interviewed retailers in August 2014 about their best-selling collectibles, we learned that licensed toys featuring Star Wars, Frozen, and Thomas the Tank Engine were all popular...

9/1/2014



Top-5 Most-Wanted Action Figures
Action figures aren't huge sellers in specialty, according to half the retailers TDmonthly Magazine interviewed in August 2014. However, for some, these toys do generate sales...

9/1/2014



Will American Kids Want Some Tsum-Tsum?
If there's one thing Disney's great at, it's integrating experience (whether digital or physical) with merchandise - and they just might have another hit on their hands...

9/1/2014



TDmonthly 2014 Top Toy Debut Award Winners: Dolls, Plush and Collectibles
The following outstanding toys have been nominated for Top Toy Debut Awards based on editorial review and retailer feedback...

5/1/2014



Top-5 Most-Wanted Collectibles
In an August 2013 survey, TDmonthly discovered that many specialty retailers just aren't that interested in selling collectible items...

9/1/2013



Safari Ltd® Introduces More than 100 Educational Toys
Safari Ltd®, family-owned manufacturer and worldwide distributor of museum-quality, educational toys, expanded its collections with more than 100 new hand-painted products for 2013...

1/1/2013



Safari Ltd® Supports Miami Children’s Hospital Foundation’s Holiday Toy Drive
PRESS RELEASESafari Ltd®, a worldwide distributor of quality, hand painted animal replicas, donated more than 2,000 of its toys to Miami Children’s Hospital Foundation’s annual Holiday Toy Drive last week.The Holiday Toy Drive benefits children spending their holidays in the hospital. On Christmas morning, patients will wake up to a...

12/1/2012



Safari Ltd® Announces New Glow-in-the-Dark Collection
Safari Ltd®, manufacturer and worldwide distributor of museumquality, educational toy collections, will be releasing 15 new glow-in-the-dark replicas due to popular demand in January 2013...

11/1/2012



Safari Ltd® Supports Neighborhood Toy Store Day
Safari Ltd®, manufacturer and worldwide distributor of award-winning replica collections, is providing free giveaway items throughout October to support local toy stores in honor of Neighborhood Toy Store Day...

10/1/2012



Top-10 Most-Wanted Collectibles
When TDmonthly Magazine surveyed retailers about their best selling collectible toys in a Summer 2012 survey, their answers were varied...

9/1/2012



Diamond Announces Top Comic Book Product Sales For May 2012
The battle between Marvel Comics' top teams reaches the surface of the moon in the publisher's Avengers Vs. X-Men #4, the best-selling comic book to specialty retailers in May 2012, according to information provided by Diamond Comic Distributors...

6/1/2012



Safari Ltd.® Honored by Creative Child Awards Program
Safari Ltd.®, manufacturer and worldwide distributor of authentic handpainted replica collections, received three awards from Creative Child Magazine’s Creative Child Awards Program...

6/1/2012



Obituary: Richard O'Brien, Toy Expert and Author
Richard O'Brien, author and expert on collectible toys, died in a North Carolina hospice today at age 78...

5/1/2012



Q&A With Dax Logue, Creator of Sqwishland LLC
Entering or leaving a toy store can provide an unbearable temptation for children - there, at the entrance, several small machines dispense candy, stickers, and even small toys, all at kid-friendly prices...

2/1/2012



Realism and Altruism Fuel Safari Ltd.®
Safari Ltd. creates astonishing replicas of Nature’s most fascinating and beautiful creatures by hiring expert sculptors with acute observational powers...

2/1/2012



Collectibles
Collectibles are hot and getting hotter. See these recently added mass-market and specialty collectibles...

12/1/2011



Top-7 Most-Wanted Keepsake and Personalized Items
TDmonthly recently interviewed 12 retailers about their best selling personalized and keepsake items...

11/1/2011



Collectibles
See these recently added specialty and mass-market Collectibles...

10/1/2011



Top-7 Most-Wanted Action Figures
When TDmonthly Magazine interviewed retailers for a Summer 2011 survey about best-selling action figures, four out of the 14 said that figurines from Papo were their best-sellers...

9/1/2011



Top-10 Most-Wanted Collectibles
When TDmonthly interviewed 14 retailers about their best-selling collectibles in Summer 2011 five named dolls from Alexander Doll Co. (Madame Alexander) as their best-sellers...

9/1/2011



Solving the Mystery of Composition Soldiers, Part II
The composition of Playwood’s soldiers consisted of triple zero wood flour from Wisconsin (very fine-ground, almost like talc), 20 Mule Team Borax, unbleached white flour (condemned by food inspectors who had marked the inedible flour with chicken blood), and water...

9/1/2011



Solving the Mystery of Composition Soldiers, Part I
Tracking down the composition soldiers made in the United States during World War II had been next to impossible...

8/1/2011



Top-10 Most-Wanted Dolls
When TDmonthly interviewed 14 retailers in early Summer 2011 about their best-selling doll, a whopping 71% of them named Corolle Dolls as their best-selling brand...

7/1/2011



The Women Behind Toy Soldiers: Part II
Margaret Cloninger was an actress who took up sculpting when hard times hit the theater...

4/1/2011



The Women Behind Toy Soldiers: Part I
Virtually everything about toy soldiers is cloaked in masculinity...

3/1/2011



Trademarks and Viral Marketing
Just as viral marketing can make a brand—it can just as easily damage or destroy one...

12/1/2010



Our Best Sellers: 26 Nationwide Retailers
In the autumn of 2010, TDmonthly Magazine interviewed 26 retailers across the nation about their three top sellers...

12/1/2010



Top-10 Most-Wanted Collectibles
In July 2010, we spoke with 38 specialty retailers about their best-selling collectible toys and gifts. Their responses crowned BC USA’s Iwako novelty erasers an overwhelming favorite...

9/1/2010



Sizzling Videos From Comic-Con 2010
This year's Comic-Con was filled with offbeat toys and games to catch the interest of tweens and beyond...

8/1/2010



TDmonthly’s 2010 Award Winners: Top-Selling Toys & Games
When it comes down to the bottom line in the toy industry, we have to ask: Which products do kids LOVE? and Which items help retailers’ businesses THRIVE? The answers are one and the same...

8/1/2010



My Best Sellers: Dancing Bear Toys Ltd.
At Dancing Bear Toys Ltd. in North Carolina’s Asheville and Hendersonville, the Evers family imagines that customers are guests in their living room...

7/1/2010



My Best Sellers: Key West Toy Factory
At Key West Toy Factory in Key West, Fla., shoppers are seeking fun vacation toys that are easy to take on a cruise ship and then on a plane back home...

6/1/2010



February's Toy Videos Are All Heart
While kids are scribbling their Valentine's cards, they can take a look at these new toys, which are sure to set off a spark of love...

2/1/2010



A Safari Into the Imagination
What do dragons, dinosaurs and pirates have in common? Along with dozens of other intricately detailed plastic figures from Safari Ltd., they’re the stars of collections designed to promote education and imagination...

2/1/2010



Retailer Spotlight: RoundTable Toys
After 10 years of success with selling toys in cyberspace, Owner David Davis of RoundTable Toys decided to branch out into the brick-and-mortar space, opening a retail store in Winterville, N.C., just last October...

2/1/2010



Schleich Worlds of Play Capture the Globe
Schleich produces realistic, high-quality animal, historical and fantasy toys. The fun and beautiful figurines appeal to both children and collectors...

1/1/2010



Innovations of 2010
Coins jump into bracelets, a dollhouse goes super modern, pacifiers take a new shape, and baby food benefits from a safe storage solution in stylish silicone...

1/1/2010



Top-10 Most-Wanted Items for Tween Girls
These days, if it’s not a craft to be made, an accessory to be worn or a cute animal to be admired, it’s probably not at the top of tween girls’ want lists...

11/1/2009



Top-10 Most-Wanted Novelties
If your specialty toy or gift store doesn’t carry Iwako erasers from BC Industries, you should take a second look at the sales of these tiny, collectible, puzzle erasers...

11/1/2009



Top-10 Most-Wanted Collectibles
Based on a TDmonthly Magazine survey of 49 specialty retailers regarding sales of collectibles, the wide range of products catching customers’ acquisitive fancy goes from cute Japanese erasers from BC Industries to familiar collectors’ items including Steiff plush and Breyer horses...

9/1/2009



TDmonthly Goes Inside ... Sideshow Collectibles
Unlike other manufacturers who rely exclusively on laser scans and digital-wax outputs to create character likenesses, Sideshow Collectibles still hires artists to individually sculpt 90 percent of the faces and bodies for its action figures and collectibles...

8/1/2009



Reviving Doll Collecting Amid a Fading Generation
Old friends were reunited and new friends made over a mutual love for dolls during the 60th annual meeting of The United Federation of Doll Clubs and the Original Doll Artist Council of America convention held in Atlanta, Ga., the week of July 12...

8/1/2009



Holiday Preview - Action Figures
Elves and crocodiles ready for battle could be the perfect addition to a child’s toy box this year. TDmonthly’s Holiday Preview of Action Figures also boasts other non-traditional collectible figurines, including tween characters tied to a virtual world, critters that place emphasis on diversity, and designer figurines that can spruce...

6/1/2009



Holiday Preview - Collectibles
Decorative change banks, handmade ornaments and pins with personality give children (and adults!) lots to keep around for the long-term. See card collections, jewelry sets and more in TDmonthly’s Holiday Preview of Collectibles...

6/1/2009



13-Year-Old Shares Secrets of Snap Caps Success
M3 Girl Designs hit New York City for its first Toy Fair ever in February 2009, showing off Snap Caps, the interchangeable, magnetic bottlecap necklaces that have taken off in well over 400 stores nationwide since their introduction...

5/1/2009



My Best Sellers: Twirl Toystore & Playspace
Fun, impulse toys are staples at Twirl Toystore & Playspace in Taos, N.M. Following are the items Operations Manager Molly McMullin told TDmonthly Magazine are best sellers at her store...

4/1/2009



IDEX 2009: Dolls Draw Attention Despite Economy
Warm Florida weather greeted enthusiastic attendees as exhibitors displayed one of a kind dolls, play dolls, reborn babies, limited editions, and doll clothing and accessories alongside many celebrity artists at the 2009 Idex Premiere Jan. 30-Feb. 1 in Orlando...

3/1/2009



TDmonthly's Top-10 Most-Wanted Toys: March 2009
Yep, kids are still cuddling with Ganz's Webkinz, battling with Bakugan from Spin Master, and collecting Iwako Japanese erasers...

3/1/2009



Munipals Puts Fay Graphic on Track
Incentive to get the wheels in motion for a line of wooden toy trains modeled after the New York subway came from a son’s question at the dinner table...

12/1/2008



TDmonthly’s Top-10 Most-Wanted Collectible Toys
TDmonthly Magazine recent surveyed 64 retailers across the country about collectibles sales in their stores...

10/1/2008



Webkinz Speaks
At Toy Fair 2008, George Kacic, vice president of sales and marketing for Ganz, said he felt TDmonthly Magazine hadn’t covered his company’s point of view about the Webkinz shortage last year...

4/1/2008



Uglydolls Sit Pretty in 3,000 Stores
Uglydoll plush toys are so ugly they’re cute. The first Uglydoll was handmade by Sun-Min Kim as a present for David Horvath in 2001...

10/1/2007



Kids Eager to "Adopt" Collectibles
According to a survey of 32 retailers, kids are eagerly building collections...

10/1/2007



TDmonthly's Top-10 Most-Wanted Collectible Toys
Not surprisingly, Webkinz leads the pack in yet another toy category...

10/1/2007



Sports Action Figures Cast a Spell
Sports fanatics don’t just go out and wear their favorite team jerseys or add to their baseball card collection anymore. Sports action figures are becoming a popular way for fans to support their local teams on and off season, sources told PlayZak, and just as kids are with Pokémon, many have to collect them all...

9/1/2007



Collect Them All
Why settle for one when you can have a slew...

7/1/2007



Toy Sleuth — Inner Eye to Outer Limits
June’s Toy Sleuth takes you from the smallest particle/wave of light to the biggest thing there is: the cosmos...

6/1/2007



Webkinz: Boom, Bust or Both?
Now that the Webkinz boom has made the mainstream press, and rumors of a mass-market sellout are flying, specialty retailers who built the brand are telling TDmonthly Magazine they’re frustrated with shortages and angered by Ganz’s silence...

5/1/2007



My Best Sellers: All Things Fun!
Every day is full of adventure for Ed and Dina Evans, owners of West Berlin, N.J.'s All Things Fun, where action toys, games and comics are the focus...

5/1/2007



Dolls: Move Over PlayStation!
Being a doll just isn't enough anymore...

2/1/2007



Holiday Sales Mounting With Horses and More
This year, Papo Knights from Hotaling Imports are facing off...

12/1/2006



Trains Keep Hobbies Chugging
Models are out, electronics are in, and RC trains, planes and automobiles are keeping the hobby industry hobbling along, retailers told TDmonthly...

10/1/2006



Kids Snatch Up Adult Collectibles
A little punk rabbit has sneaked into a market where PVC knights usually reign supreme .....

10/1/2006



Adults Grab Kids’ Toys
Adults are the biggest collectors "because they have the disposable income and come from a generation that’s very self-centered," .....

10/1/2006



Get Collectors Collecting Again
Competition for adults' diminishing disposable income has collectibles manufacturers scrambling for new sales strategies...

10/1/2006



TDmonthly's Top-10 Most-Wanted Mini-Toys
Manhattan Toy's Groovy Girl Minis are tied with Papo Knights as the best-selling teeny toy, each getting a top-selling nod from 10 of 45 specialty toy-store owners surveyed...

9/1/2006



Don’t Throw Out Those Baseball Cards
David Brown, president of Serious U.S.A. Inc., believes sports trading cards can still be profitable; he just thinks manufacturers “need to demand innovation to keep their product relevant.”...

9/1/2006



What Kids Want ... and Want and Want
Cooler than cool collectors might be distressed to find their urban vinyl in the hands of innocent babes...

8/1/2006



Top-10 Most Wanted Toys for Little Girls
Arts, crafts and collectibles are still going strong with little girls...

6/1/2006



Merrick Mint Moves From Coins to Candy
The Merrick Mint has earned status as a licensed sports coin company...

5/1/2006



The World in a Pocket
Though not always small in price, tiny collectibles are big with little kids, a TDmonthly Magazine survey of 40 specialty retailers revealed...

12/1/2005



Guys Grab Dolls for the Holidays
Tonner, Integrity Toys and Mattel have the gals of the moment, and smart retailers have ordered extra Tyler Wentworths, Jason Wu-designed Fashion Royals and I Love Lucies for well-behaved adults this Christmas...

12/1/2005



Become Enchanted With Dervish Toys
After six years in development, the husband and wife founders of Dervish Toys, Charles Erdman and Tatiana Romanov, are finally ready to bring their old world fantasy to life...

9/1/2005



One-of-a-Kind Merchandise Creates “Urgency to Buy”
Most independent toy retailers create a merchandise niche by selecting products not sold by mass merchants. Some go further, and stock only toys that cannot be found elsewhere...

7/1/2005



New & Notable Toys: Collectibles

7/1/2005



Collectible Trading Card Games Go Deck to Deck
Since Pokémon reached billion dollar success, soon followed by Yu-Gi-Oh!, every collectible card game publisher has been turning his or her eyes to anime licenses, looking for an equally winning hand...

4/1/2005



GAMA Trade Show Unveils Collectible Card Games to Watch
This year’s Game Manufacturers’ Association (GAMA) Trade Show in Las Vegas, Nev. attracted the top hobby game retailers from across the world...

4/1/2005



Taking Heroes Home: Licensing trends
Licensed products currently account for over one third of the toy industry, and the market segment keeps growing. Superhero products are one of the larger players in this field, especially as more feature films continue to be based on comic books...

2/1/2005



Grown Up Fun: New Adult Licensed Products
Article Synopsis Toy manufacturers reach out to adults with nostalgic products like Star Wars branded game controllers, Archie Comics Entertainment...

1/1/2005



Getting the Word Out: Advice from MouseShoppe
MouseShoppe is an Internet-based store that carries low-end licensed Disney mechandise, while its physical counterpart, CharmingShoppe, is a brick and mortar store that sells high-end Disney collectibles. Strategically located near Disneyland in Anaheim, Calif., Adrienne Vincent-Phoenix may have an edge on her competitors, but even this experienced retailer must advertise to draw sales...

1/1/2005



Monogram International: Batman Begins to the Future
Monogram International is known for movie collectibles; everything from items based on animated tales to their newest licensing contract with Warner Brothers for the live action film “Batman Begins.”...

1/1/2005



Collectibles: Gotta Get Another Set
The term collectibles has always referred to a broad category of products, with collectors on the hunt for everything from out of date, limited edition items to ubiquitous, must-have toys. This year, toy makers are rapidly developing precious new sets of collectible items and introducing older collectibles to an expanding...

1/1/2005



Novelties: Simply Uncommon Delights
These fanciful, whimsical products take off this year in intriguing designs, shapes and styles. Whether the goal is to draw a silly reaction or merely light up someone’s day, modern novelties take on a range of ingenious forms. Take a look at the following one-of-a-kind samples of novelty inspirations...

1/1/2005



TDmonthly´s Top 10 Most Wanted Action Figures for Collectors
Collecting is an established sub-culture within the 1.2 billion dollar toy industry...

12/1/2004



TDmonthly´s Top 10 Most Wanted Political Playthings
Get out to the polls and, while you’re at it, vote with your dollars for your favorite political toys. The presidential contest has been on everyone’s mind this year and will continue to generate interest as the election draws closer...

10/1/2004



Mini Doll Collections: The Market’s Tiny Trendsetters
When it comes to toys, mini is “in.” Pocket-sized dolls and animals less than 9 inches tall that can be carried in a little girl’s purse or bag remain super-popular these days...

9/1/2004



Magic Mini´s: Mini Doll Phenomenon
According to a report "What to Watch in 2004" by the NPD Group, “another area of strength in 2003 that will continue this year is the mini doll category.”...

9/1/2004



TDmonthly´s Top 10 Most Wanted - Mini Dolls for the Holiday Season
Strawberry Shortcake: Berry Best Friends 5.5 ” ($8.99, 4+) by Bandai. Yum! Each girl is back with her little signature scent...

9/1/2004



TDmonthly´s Top 10 Most Wanted - Action Figures for the Holiday Season
There isn´t a kid alive who hasn´t dreamt of the scene in the Two Towers when Legolas...

9/1/2004



Toys Inspired By the U.S. Troops
Dusty Trails Toys has come out with a set of action figures which remarkably commemorate the heroic efforts of America’s troops abroad...

8/1/2004



Snoop Dogg Collectible
Among the hippest of stylish new collectibles is the Snoop Dogg Vinyl Figure: Series 1 (ages 3+) by Sota Toys...

8/1/2004



NOVELTY & IMPULSE
Hog Wild Toys The Desk Top Punching Bag is a glutton for punishment. Simply lick and stick the aggressive rubber suction cup to any flat surface and you´re ready to thump, flick and pop Bop-Oh! The bounce-back spring keeps him coming back for more. ($7.99) Jumping Beans “Jumping...

8/1/2004



Dark Horse Comics: The Independent Giant
The people from Dark Horse Comics have created some of the most noteworthy comic book characters of all time...

7/1/2004



Collectors Bid Top Dollar for Film Based Action Figures
NPD Funworld Senior Industry Analyst Mike Redmond watches the annual summer movie market closely – especially those that involve licensed characters...

7/1/2004



Not Your Mother´s Barbie, Anymore
Barbie has remained a penultimate collectible for those who cherish each Barbie transformation. And the rest of the Adult Collectibles category is morphing, too, along generational and economic lines of the new century...

7/1/2004



Comic-Con International 2004
Comic-Con International 2004 is the largest comic related merchandise show in the Western hemisphere...

7/1/2004



What A Geek!
There is a new super hero action figure hitting the toy markets. He doesn’t have a cape, doesn’t carry a gun or a light saber, isn’t the subject of some popular show or cartoon, and he doesn’t transform into something...

7/1/2004



Action Figures Of Quality Not Quantity
Quality is a hallmark of collectible gifts and toys...

7/1/2004



Eclectic Collectibles
The field of popular collectibles has exploded thanks to auction websites...

7/1/2004



Wheeling and Dealing
Among the hottest in new collectible toys, Hubz Thumb-Racerz (2 pack $2.99; 4-pack $5.99 to $6.99) by Uni Toys are in tune with the latest trends on the street...

7/1/2004



COLLECTIBLES
Bennett Scopes Inc. The newest signature scope from Carolyn Bennett is called The Barry. The Barry is 9” tall and has an interchangeable chamber. It is elegantly made of brass and is operated by a two mirror system with a seven point star interior. This classic kaleidoscope is signed and...

7/1/2004



Retro Revival
From Care Bears to He-Man, many of this year´s “new” toys were actually born two decades ago...

5/1/2004



Lights, Cameras, Action Figures
What makes a particular line of action figures successful?...

5/1/2004




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