Learning Expressions

Blog: THE TWELVE TOYS OF CHRISTMAS

Learning Express unveils the hottest products for the 2010 holiday shopping season!

It may seem super early, but shoppers are already thinking about the upcoming holidays and so are we! Back in July I had folks on our Facebook page asking about what “the” toy of 2010 was going to be. And let me tell you, there was much debate when we sat down to actually create the list.

Learning Express has a unique position as a “specialty” toy store. It means that beyond the trends and fads (which, don’t get me wrong, we stay on top of) we’re interested in the quality of our products. And when it comes to finding the great gifts for this year’s holiday season, we were most concerned with investment. The best toys are the ones that are going to last. They’re the ones kids are going to come back to again and again. It’s what we call “play value,” and, trust me, it makes a difference.

So ::drumroll please:: here is what we’ve come up with this year. We hope this is helpful as you begin to plan a really wonderful holiday season.

The Twelve Toys of Christmas

Tickle Monster Laughter Kit
Be not afraid of monsters wearing magical blue gloves; they come in peace to tickle your funny bone! Cheerful drawings and silly poetry tell the story of a monster’s mission to spread joy while readers wear the furry blue mitts that make the tale come alive. Kit includes mitts and book. Ages 12 months+ $34.95

The gift set for this kit has a wonderful presentation and will wrap beautifully. (Don’t forget that Learning Express does FREE gift wrap!) The story is well-written and the mittens create a unique interactivity. It sort of reminds me of the same experience you’d get with a book like Pat the Bunny, but the fuzziness isn’t confined to the page.

Fold ‘N Go Trampoline
Ten monkeys may jump on their bed, but kids would be better off using this fully functional trampoline! Constructed with weatherproof tubular steel, use it indoors or out. Safe and fun trampoline folds for easy storage. Holds one child up to 150 pounds. Ages 3+ $99.99

Classic indoor/outdoor gift for active kids. It’s always been a bestseller, but they’ve recently redone the design and it’s better than ever.

Limited Edition Uglydoll Nandy Bear™
From the quirky cast of the Uglyverse comes this new, limited edition Learning Express Nandy Bear™. You’re a limited edition of one and you deserve a special friend like this special edition of Nandy Bear™! Now that we’re all special, let’s get down to some fun! While supplies last. Available only at Learning Express. Comes in three sizes—keychain miniature, classic, and two foot oversized. Ages 3+

Read last week’s post about Nandy and the popularity of Uglydolls!

Playmobil Furnished School
Back to school fun for everyone! Fun starts from the very first hour with this fully-functional two-story school. Stocked classrooms, science lab, art studio, and music room make for delightful learning. Functional bell and chalk board. Exceptional quality and play value. Ages 4+

Anything by Playmobil is an excellent example of play value. It’s what we call an “assortment line,” which means you can add pieces and build your collection over time. This particular set, the Furnished School, is HUGE, measuring 30” x 15” x 16”. Now THAT will look impressive under the tree!

Electronic Intelliglobe™
Oh, what a wonderful world! Use the wireless Intellipen to learn amazing information from this raised-relief globe. Accompanying 48-page book uses the same updateable technology to teach about our amazing Earth. Includes games, geography, history, ecology, and more in four languages. Quiz yourself! “Lisbon is the capital of what country?” Ages 5+ $129.99

For the brainiac. No question. Just look at how many topics it can cover, which will make it popular with budding historians and scientists alike. I think my favorite feature is that it talks to you in multiple languages so you can brush up on your Spanish while you’re at it.

Frog EcoAquarium
A best seller! Fantastic frogs in a carefree aquarium! The “living” gravel in this small tank keeps it clean, leaving you more time to enjoy the amusing antics of the resident aquatic frogs. Ages 5+ $24.99

Beyond the passing fads (like Silly Bandz), this has been our top selling item for over two years. And there’s nothing like getting a pet (even a no-hassle one like this) on Christmas morning.

Squap Catch
the latest craze! Snap the trap open to send your ball ballistic, then catch it with a snap of your hand. Includes two snap launchers and four balls. Ages 6+ $24.99

I tried this out the other day and loved it. It worked just as well inside in a hallway as outside in the yard. A really great game to get kids moving.

Spot It Game
There is always one, and only one, matching symbol between any 2 cards in this party game. Spot it and you win! A sharp eye and a little bit of speed is all it takes to become a Spot it! 2 to 8 Players Ages 6+ $12.99

Also took this game for a test drive last week. WAY fun for kids and adults and the compact tin is small enough to be a stocking stuffer. There are four different ways to play and you can include 2 to 8 players so I highly recommend, especially if you go on the road for the holidays.

 Stick N’ Style® Fun with Fashion Kit
Awesome accessories abound! Use your fashion flair to design and decorate beautiful bracelets, headbands, and more. Stick and peel jewels are eye-catching and easy-to-use. Only available at Learning Express! Ages 5+ $24.99

The model in this photo is one of our storeowner’s children. She didn’t want to take the accessories off when we’d finished the shoot. Pretty much says it all!

 

MLB/NFL/NCAA Bean Bag Game
Fun for old and young alike! Bean bags are back and more fun than ever. Grab these games in their handy carry bags and take them to picnics, parks, sporting events, or simply set up in your family room. Includes eight bean bags and one board. Teams will vary by store. Available only at Learning Express! Ages 8+ $29.99 each

This is for all the dads and granddads out there. Celebrate your favorite team while you play together. Fun. Pure and simple.

Rockboard Scooter
This super self-propelled scooter surpasses all others! Two-scooters-in-one, riders can quickly switch from traditional kick scooter mode to a unique rocking technology that propels you with a gentle movement of the knees. Rear spring suspension makes for a smooth ride anywhere. Folds for travel. Colors may vary by store. Ages 8+ $199.99

If you’re looking for a WOW gift for Christmas morning, this is it. You really have to see it in action to appreciate how cool this is:

 

 

NEW! Imazine® Sports Watches and Popochos™ Watch Skins
Times are changing! Sport these simple, trendy, and freakishly flexible watched for forward-looking fashion. Each watch produced negative ions, which help eliminate all the protons that your body is exposed to on a daily basis, and are waterproof. Accessorize with interchangeable Popocho™ skins. Ages 6+

For the fashion-forward tween, the trendy teen, and the modern mom. In the right colors, the watches are downright sporty and we’ve seen a lot of boys come in for them. For the ladies, the interchangeable popochos are incredibly versatile, not to mention, adorable. (I have several at home and people ask me about them every time I wear one.)

Here’s wishing you a very happy shopping season!

Blog: Limited Edition Learning Express Nandy Bear™ Uglydoll®

I’ll warn you right off the bat; this blog is going to get pretty ugly. But that’s because our subject of the day is the company responsible for one of the bestselling plush lines to come along in a long time—Uglydolls.

The unconventional Uglydoll® toys with their retro-feel and odd-ball personalities first hit the specialty toy scene in 2001. They’ve been bestsellers in the plush category ever since and I don’t think the timing could’ve been any better. That was exactly when peace signs and the “groovy” look returned to the fashion scene, and everything Ugly fits right into that. Learning Express began carrying the product in 2004 and at this year’s Learning Express Annual Convention, Pretty Ugly™ was honored with the Best New Plush Toy product award, as voted by the Learning Express storeowners in recognition of the 2009 OX™ Collection.

But what we’re really excited about this year is a limited edition Learning Express Uglydoll®, available only at our franchise locations nationwide and online (while supplies last). Every year our team of corporate buyers works with our top vendors to develop these “exclusives,” but this is the first time we’ve had a partnership with Pretty Ugly™. And talk about a cool company to work with.

The story behind the Pretty Ugly™ company is as quirky as its characters. In 2001, when creator David Horath’s soon to be wife and creative partner Sun-Min had to return to Korea, he sent her many “I miss you” letters with a little character known as Wage drawn at the bottom. Sun-Min sewed Wage into a plush doll and sent him to David as a surprise gift. David asked Sun-Min to sew a couple more for the Giant Robot store in Los Angeles and they sold out in one day. Sun-Min and David then began to pull more characters from the Uglyverse, a universe where UGLY meant unique and special, to translate into plush Uglydolls. They both met again at their very first Uglydoll® Toy Fair booth (a small 6x6 booth made of felt and wood) in New York, where they would go on to win Toy Of The Year four years later.

The exclusive Learning Express Nandy Bear™ comes in a bright blue color with pale pink eyes and a squishable personality. Three sizes are available—classic, two-foot oversized, and keychain miniature. I don’t want this to sound too much like a sales pitch, but I’m 100% confident that Nandy is going to be a hot commodity this shopping season, especially for families that have already ventured into the world of Ugly.

Visit www.learningexpress.com to find a local store or shop online. And stay tuned for next week’s post, which will announce the Twelve Toys of Christmas—our picks for the 2010 holiday season!

Blog: Kids in the Toy Business - Part IV The Pourtahmassebis

Part IV of our month-long series!

KIDS IN THE TOY BUSINESS
 

Part 4: The Pourtahmassebis

Here it is! The last installment in our KIDS IN THE TOY BUSINESS series of blogs (see Part I: Maddie Bradshaw, Part II: The Aebersolds, and Part III: Lexi Glenn). In this my final note on the subject, I’d like to turn our attention to a family with a brilliantly simple idea and a dazzlingly complicated last name—the Pourtahmassebis, creators of Do-A-Dot Art.

In 1990, Tina Pourtahmassebi was a mother of two working as a preschool teacher, constantly on the lookout for new ways to inspire and challenge her little students. In a previous life she had been employed as a pharmaceutical rep and one day, as she was cleaning out the garage, she found some old topical acne medicine bottles lying around. (Great ideas have to come from somewhere, right?) The bottles had a spongy dauber-like tip for facial application and Tina thought it might be fun to fill them with paint and let the preschoolers go to town.

It was a huge hit. Tina’s students created their next art project using dots of paint. The soft tapping sound of the sponge on paper was mesmerizing, the thickness of the bottle was easy for little hands to manipulate, and the resulting pictures were worthy of pride. From that point on, the dot markers were requested every time the art supplies came out in Tina’s classroom. It wasn’t long before her business degree kicked in and she realized she might have a bestseller in the making.

It was through hard work and perseverance that Do-A-Dot Art finally came into being. Tina made phone call after phone call, finding the right people to help her get the product off the ground. But she wasn’t alone in her efforts.

Beyond their obvious role as product testers, Tina’s daughters Tiffany (6th grade at the time) and Tessa (2nd grade), were packed into the family van and traveled with their mom to countless education and teacher conferences to help spread the word. They were also enlisted to work out of the family garage packing the markers into the boxes when new shipments came in from the factory. The Pourtahmassebis sold the concept, lock, stock, and barrel, as an easy setup and easy cleanup art supply that could also be integrated into an everyday school curriculum. Teachers, moms, dads, and kids alike were hooked.

(Tessa, pictured left, and Tiffany, center.)

Twenty years later Do-A-Dot Art is still a bestselling success. Learning Express is proud to be a part of the company’s history. Do-A-Dot Art shares many of our same philosophies—a belief in the power of play as a learning opportunity, a commitment to high quality products, and the creative potential of every child—so it’s no wonder that it’s been in our product mix from the very beginning.

So where are they today? Tina Pourtahmassebi is still at the helm of Do-A-Dot Art along with her husband, Rob, who is acting CFO. Tiffany and Tessa are both Designers and Tessa is also Head of Promotions. (A big thank you to her for answering all my questions for this blog!) The Pourtahmassebi sisters have recently embarked on their own adventure in the toy industry, launching their own company Fubulous Wubulous, Inc with its line of Glam Art.

As Tessa said, “We are following in our mother’s footsteps. Growing up in the toy industry and working in our family business has afforded my sister and me more opportunities that we could have ever imagined. Clearly, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree!”

The Pourtahmassebis’ story is a reminder that many of the best educational products on the market have come from moms and dads and kids. And what they all have in common, in the specialty toy industry at least, is an understanding that kids want what they need. Kids want to have fun and make us proud. They really do. And they need to express themselves as they explore and learn about the world around them. Great products like Do-A-Dot Art bring all of those elements together.

Additional photos and videos are below. Thanks for tuning in to our KIDS IN THE TOY BUSINESS series! We return to our regular programming next week.