Countdown to Christmas
HOT TOYS FOR COOL HOLIDAYS
Save Money by Sharing. With budgets tight, families will be loading up on low-priced fashion toys, dolls, action figures and fake pets...
This year's focus: basic toys priced to move. With sales of videogames and other high-tech gadgets slowing, the industry's perspective is that families are looking to put a decent stash under the Christmas tree. Kids will have the action figure, the board game and a few other things made by Mega Brands, a Canadian toy manufacturer known mostly for plastic blocks and building sets. Mega is redoing the prices of the stuff it's pushing this year, from a $50 to $90 range to $40 and under.
Among the firm's hot items this year: the game board and figurine version of kiddie TV star Ni hao kai-lan, the bi-lingual, Chinese follow-up to the enormously popular Dora the Explorer, who engages kids in both English and Spanish. Suggested retail price: $14.99. Another item expected to be a hit this year: Printies, which allows kids to turn their PCs into personal toy factories by coloring in animal designs online and printing them out on specialized paper to create an open 3-D version they can stuff and dress with accessories.
Among the firm's hot items this year: the game board and figurine version of kiddie TV star Ni hao kai-lan, the bi-lingual, Chinese follow-up to the enormously popular Dora the Explorer, who engages kids in both English and Spanish. Suggested retail price: $14.99. Another item expected to be a hit this year: Printies, which allows kids to turn their PCs into personal toy factories by coloring in animal designs online and printing them out on specialized paper to create an open 3-D version they can stuff and dress with accessories.
Also hot: Zhu Zhu Pets, last year's breakout smash from Bayou Toys that's currently got several versions of furry fake hamsters occupying the top six slots on Amazon.com's list of best-selling toys. The top-selling action figure of 2009, Bakugan, figures to keep flying off the shelves during holiday season. Funny what a slight quirk can do: Made by Toronto-based Spinmaster, Bakugan has consistently infatuated 5-to-10-year-old boys through the added nuance of having its warrior action figures emerge from an enclosed sphere. Most versions go for $15 or less. Making its holiday season debut at $149.99 is the Rubik's Touch cube, a modern version of the definitive 1980s game. Sounds perfect for boomer parents looking to get some fun from junior's toy for themselves. Maybe they can save money by sharing.
