Most 2018 holiday events have wrapped up for the year and everyone’s gearing up to discuss product lines for fall of next year. Paving the way is one of the industry’s premier fall marketplaces for mass-long lead and specialty buyers – the Fall Toy Preview, Dallas. The three-day long event, starting today, estimates that approximately 300 retail outlets will be attending the show – a 65 percent increase from last year, while another 300 companies are expected to be attending the show this year.
Buyers from various major retailers are anticipated to attend the event including Amazon, Army & Air Force Exchange Service, Barnes & Noble, BJ’s Wholesale, Burlington Stores, Canadian Tire, Cinemark, Family Dollar, GameStop, Hallmark, Hobby Lobby, Hot Topic, J.C. Penney, Macy’s, Michaels Stores, Office Depot, Party City, Ross Stores, Spencer’s, Staples, Target, TJ Maxx/Marshalls/Home Goods, Tuesday Morning, and Walmart according to The Toy Association.
With IMC Toys makings it’s way to the US earlier this year, this is just one of many retail events that will be crucial to the plans they are looking to implement for the company within the US toy space. In July 2018, the company introduced themselves to the North American market with the launch of Cry Babies– their hit interactive doll line, featuring cute baby dolls that make baby sounds and cry realistic tears. Cry Babies Wave 1, featuring Lala, Lea,Coney and Bonnie,hit Target shelves and Amazon early July 2018 and has gained popularity and mass appeal among its audience swiftly within the last two months.
Whether it’s been the TV commercial on Nick Jr and Disney which has got every other child singing the catchy “Cry Babies, cry cry cry cry….” tune, the influencer unboxing and toy play videos on relavant YouTube channels (which have reached over 15 million fans in just under a couple months), or theon-going engagement on Cry Babies’ Instagram and Facebook pages, it’s no doubt that the brand has been very well received by it’s North American audience, setting positive momentum for the introduction of Cry Babies Wave 2 early next year. The company was also present at the toy industry’s hottest consumer and media events this year – Toy Insider’s Sweet Suitein July and TTPM’s Holiday Showcaselast week, both taking place in New York with attendance from the city’s top toy media, social influencers and bloggers.
Additionally, in 2019, IMC Toys are looking to release further series of products from the already popular Cry Babies; whether it is a variation of the doll types, the size, or packaging type is something to watch out for, though we can say it will be showcased and introduced for the first time to retailers at the Fall Toy Preview meetings! IMC Toys will also be previewing a series of other lines ranging from animal plush toys to specialty dolls, all with interactive play features, under the brand lines Bloopies, Club Petz, Club Petz Funny and more.
The US company is headed by Karen Branson who feels that the launch of Cry Babies Wave 1 is only the tip of the iceberg. She states: “The last few months have been challenging and exciting at the same time; it has been exhilarating to introduce Cry Babies in North America and the response has been very fruitful so far. Seeing Cry Babies success across Europe, we were quite confident that it would get great traction in the US as well and retailer call back has exceeded our expectations. There is a lot more to come for IMC Toys and we will continue to plough through over the next few months to make these plans a reality.” As a former national account manager at Hasbro and director at Schleich USA, Karen will be using her 10 years of experience in the North American toy space to lead IMC Toys’ venture into the United States.
For more on what IMC Toys has to offer, to meet the team or demo upcoming product, visit us at our Booth #13-3911 at The Fall Toy Preview, taking place October 2 to 4at the Dallas Market Center in Dallas, TX
