July 2009 New Specialty Toys — Play Sets

The Parking Garage has three floors of parking space, a working elevator tower, attendant's booth and helipad. The set also includes a figure, car, gas station and car wash. It measures 19.3" x 13.8" x 13".

This 6" plush castle with a front door that opens from the top includes prince and princess finger puppets as well as a dragon and a white unicorn with sound effects.

With 20+ felt pieces, this story board includes a sturdy handle and back pocket for storage of the pieces. This particular theme highlights sea life and various other characters for play. Launch date: 2009.

This colorful, themed set includes a carry handle and a storage pouch on the back for toting the various pieces included. It features felt fairies, flowers, insects and more. Launch date: 2009.

Outfitted with 19+ pieces, this felt storyboard set measures 12" x 15" and has a sturdy, attached handle. Pieces include pirates, weapons, treasure and other accessories. Launch date: 2009.

Shaped like a giant gumball machine, this house has two levels of fun. Sweetie Belle, from the Newborn Cuties line, can have her friends over for a snack in the first floor kitchen, take the musical elevator up, and check out the view over the giant lollipop balcony. It comes with Sweetie Belle, and a house full of accessories like a kitchen set shaped like candies. Launch date: Fall 2009.

This colorful stack and play puzzle combines together to form Noah's Ark. The Ark breaks up into 13 layers, 12 of the layers acting as different levels of storage for the different plastic animal figures residing within them. Each layer of the ark have special spaces to hold each individual animal figure in place. 21 pairs of animals as well as two human figurines are included. Animals include giraffes, pigs, birds, horses, rhinos, and dogs. This product received a 2009 Tillywig Brain Child Award and Sterling Fun Award, as well as a 2009 Seal of Approval from The National Parenting Center.

Past Videos:
Product Demonstration

In this ready-to-play set from International Playthings, children help 4-year-old Olivia's older sister Ashley set up a birthday party for the special girl. Designed in detail to fit in with International Playthings' extensive Calico Critters line, the kit includes a cake, drinks, presents and party hats to enrich the fantasy-play and include all of a child's favorite Calico Critters characters.
— The Calico Critters line from International Playthings accounted for the top licensed toy sales in three of 49 stores surveyed in April 2009.

ZipBin Street Racer is a backpack that looks like and is shaped like a race car. Unzipped, it becomes a city street with drivable roadways. When play is done, the Playscape™ becomes a backpack in a zip, capturing the toys inside for easy cleanup. This set includes two die-cast cars. It received a 2008 Seal of Excellence award from Creative Child Magazine. Launch date: 2009.

Bright colored and super-chunky for little hands, Polly's Pony Adventure includes six pieces to accompany a child on a horse-riding adventure. The car and horse trailer attach easily with magnets, getting the two characters and their two horses ready to go on the road.  Other arena-side accessories, as well as the push-button tailgate and shape-sorting roof of the trailer, add to the fun.
— “Wow toys are my best seller, bar none,” said Ron Kutchik, owner of Grand Slam Toys in Kodiak, Alaska. Kutchik listed Wow Toys as not only his best-selling playset in an April 2009 survey, but also as a long-time top seller in his entire inventory.

Cloverleaf Corners is a busy little town, complete with a ballet studio. With this playset from International Playthings, children can tell the story of aspiring ballerina Britney Bunny. The set includes three tiny dresses that fit the poseable, flocked bunny character, a mirror, and a ballet bar. Britney Bunny's Ballet Set integrates fully with the wide variety of other Calico Critters sets.
— “Calico Critters is fabulous, for the fantasy. All girls love those,” said Sheryl Guidera, owner of Kaleidoscope: The Parent Teacher Store in Capitola, Calif., in April 2009. 
— “[We] sell a ton of them,” Becca Bramhall, owner of Dandelion Toys in Fort Collins, Colo., told TDmonthly when she listed Calico Critters as her best-selling playset line in spring 2009.

Kids can take their imaginations to the high seas with the rough-and-tumble Red Corsair. Crimson sails are emblazoned with the Jolly Roger, and the Red Corsair comes with three pirates, a cannon and other assorted accessories to dress up the deck. The boat floats and will accommodate the Playmobil motor, available as an add-on. Launch date: August 2009.
— “Playmobil is our best seller. Everything in that line is strong,” said Peggy Sebert, owner of Becky & Me Toys in Glenview, Ill., of her best-selling playsets in spring 2009.
— “Playmobil as a line. The pirate ship is probably the best in that line,” Dean Nelson, owner of Wizard Kids Toys in Toledo, Ohio, told TDmonthly during an April 2009 survey on playsets. 
— “As a brand, Playmobil is our No. 1 selling brand in store. All day long, everyday,” remarked Casey Sartain, buyer at Tutoring Toy in Salt Lake City, Utah. Eleven of 49 retailers surveyed in April 2009 named Playmobil as a best seller.

This Domo is not too small and not too big... he's just right. Confide in him, play with him, listen to him - he's the perfect everyday companion.

Made of treated rubber wood and painted with non-toxic, lead-free paints, these teaching aids are designed for use in the home and at Montessori schools. Launch date: February 2, 1973.

So Small Pets moms and dads can take their tiny, posable progeny to the amusement park for fun. There's a ferris wheel, merry-go-round, and a train set for tiny tots. All of the So Small Pets are posable and can stand on their own. Launch date: February 2009.

These soft, posable plush pets can form a club in their treehouse, ride a monorail, play on the tire swing  and help the babies up into the tree with a dumb-water bucket.  They can even stand on their own! Launch date: February 2009.

This colorful tin box comes with three sheets of mermaid-themed magnets, including three dolls plus clothing and accessories, and two cards with background images on both sides. The product is printed with nontoxic ink, and the tin measures 7-7/8” x 6 3/10” x 1”.
— “Magnetic paper dolls from Mudpuppy,” are the best-selling travel toy at Twirl in Taos, N.M. “I sold 32 last month,” Owner Molly McMullin told TDmonthly in March 2009.
— Three of 64 retailers named Mudpuppy magnetic sets as top sellers for travel in spring 2009.

This small playset includes a backdrop and 11 dinosaur magnets.
— Two of 64 retailers cited Imaginetics as a best-selling travel toy in March 2009, reporting sales of 12 to 20 units monthly.

Suitable for ages 6 months and up, this set of colorful garden squirters for bathtime includes a flower, snail, ladybug, bee and butterfly. The products are phthalate free.
— “Most of my bath toys are Alex, and their bath squirters do really well,” Elizabeth Ryan, owner of Tales & Toys in Venice, Calif., told TDmonthly in March 2009, noting that she sells four to six of the squirter sets per month.
— Two of 64 retailers noted strong sales of Alex’s squirters in the bath category in spring 2009.
— “I can't miss on my bath toys for toddlers … the Alex line,” Linda Hanzelko of Timmy’s Toy Chest in Lake Mary, Fla., told TDmonthly in June 2010, citing sales of 30 a month.

Suitable for ages 6 months and up, this picnic set includes a soft, flip-top basket, plus colorful fabric and phthalate-free plastic accessories, including an ice cream treat, a bottled fruit drink, a watermelon wedge and a sandwich with removal ingredients.
— Linda Rocco of Gummy Lump Toys in Medford, N.Y., told TDmonthly in spring 2009 that her store sells about 20 units per month of items from the Fill & Spill series.
— Melissa & Doug was mentioned five times during a March 2009 survey of 64 specialty retailers about best-selling infant and toddler toys.

This set of 12 wooden, sliceable cookies offers creative play for young bakers. The realistic-looking cookies come in a durable dough tube.
— The set was listed as a best seller in spring 2009 at Green Frog Toys in Portland, Ore. “The set is good for fun, educational and creative play,” Owner Patricia Fiedler told TDmonthly.
— This cookie set has been on the top-10 best seller list at Pufferbellies in Staunton, Va., for at least a year, Co-owner Susan Blanton told TDmonthly in fall 2009.

Suitable for ages 18 months and up, this wooden play set includes a skillet, spatula, breakfast foods, utensils and service for two. It is made with organic materials and finished with linseed oil. The toast has internal magnets that allow the two pieces of bread to be joined together.