Real Toy Story Inside the Ruthless Battle for America's Youngest Consumers

INTRODUCTION Play is the work of the child.Maria Montessori The business of toys is anything but child's play.Toy Department, Otis College of Art and Design, Los Angeles, literature Toys are wonderful. They inspire love, comfort the lonely, enrich experience, embody the best childhood memories. A bedraggled toy dog in bed can hold back the night. A red plastic fire engine can put out a tantrum. A tiny doll stems tears. They encourage learning, nurture imagination and creativity, and turn people into lifelong collectors. Toys are special. They give a glow, years after they've been discarded. Remember the excitement of opening presents: the belled clatter of a xylophone, the slither of a Slinky, the waxy smell of Crayola crayons. The feel of Play-Doh in your hands. That Fisher-Price airplane peopled with pop-in passengers. Toys are fun. More, they are a vital part of our lives, our culture, and our children's development. They are crucial for physical, emotional, intellectual, and social interaction. Good toys enhance play. Play is the work of childhood, and toys are the tools of that work. They stimulate imagination, creativity, coordination. They let children experiment, discover themselves, solve problems, feel in control. They provide a two-way connection with adults. They help them make sense of the world and find their role in it. The industry that produces these toys should also be special. It has to hold a singular place in our society: Few others affect such a critical and sensitive area of family life. The American toy industry dominates not just the United States but also the whole of the globe. It is now a $21 billion business, and although fewer than 4 percent of the world's children are American, American children consume more than 40 percent of the world's toys. It is massive and exciting. Every year it puts almost 3.6 billion toys into the home market alone, including 76 million dolls, 349 million plush toys, 125 million action figures, 279 million Hot Wheels and Matchbox cars... The toy industry has never been a static one: Part of its genius has been a capacity to adapt with speed and flair. Today, though, the changes that buffet it are huge, the greatest for at least 50 years. Kids are leaving behind their toys earlier and earlier. Partly it is that they are growing up faster -- the famous KGOY (kids getting older younger), a trend ironically encouraged by the toy industry's own marketing methods of using sex and violence to attract kid sales. Partly it is the competition from all the other rivals for childhood time and attention, especially from today's new "toys," such as iPods and cell phones -- electronics are eating the toy industry, laments one insider. The industry that once drew vigor and innovation from the sheer number and challenging creativity of its range of companies is now corporation dominated. Just two toy companies and three retailers control a huge proportion of the world's toys, determining which will be produced and which die. And their overriding concern is not the wonderful, special nature of toys -- but the bottom line. The fact is, the toy business is no longer fun and games. It's a harsh, corporate world, driven by social and demographic changes, concerns about stock prices, and fierce battles between global brands. The rewards for success are enormous: A top toy can earn billions. H. Ty Warner shot into Forbes' World's Richest People list with his Beanie Babies. Likewise, the cost of failure can be catastrophic -- the battlefield is littered with the corpses of once-successful toy companies whose multimillion-dollar gambles did not pay off. As a result, the toy business has become increasingly ruthless, willing to use "gloves off" methods and exploit its young customers. In the industry's struggle to adapt and to survive, our kids are regarded as walking wallets. Ever younger ageClark, Eric is the author of 'Real Toy Story Inside the Ruthless Battle for America's Youngest Consumers', published 2007 under ISBN 9780743247658 and ISBN 0743247655.