Much like the film industry relies on writers, the toy industry needs inventors to come up with new concepts. I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Ben Dermer, senior vice president of creative development at Spin Master, a leading global children's toy and...
How Hasbro Finds Its Next Great Ideas
When you're an inventor reaching out to companies that accept ideas generated outside their own walls--also known as open innovation--there are so many questions that run through your mind. Do they truly need my product idea? Will they pay me for my idea?...
How Marissa Louie Built the Hottest Plush Startup in Years
After 20 years of being in business, this is what I know for sure: Making customer service a priority is one of your best forms of protection, hands down. What does putting your customer first look like in practice? Asking them about their experience. Answering their...
Chicago Toy & Game Week Leads to Licensing Deals
Last week, I had the pleasure of interviewing a remarkable toy inventor named Mary Couzin. In 2003, Couzin founded Chicago Toy and Game Week -- affectionately known as ChiTAG -- to bring toy inventors, toy companies, and toy lovers together. Now in its 16th year, the...
Hasbro-Indiegogo Partnership Celebrates the Benefits of Open Innovation
Open innovation takes many forms. One of the most exciting examples to hit my desk of late is the Next Great Game Challenge, a partnership between Hasbro, Inc. and Indiegogo that resulted in two independently designed games being brought to market in 2016. Their...
What Your Kids Will Be Playing With Next Year: Toy Fair 2017, a Product Recap
The last time I was at Toy Fair in New York City, I was pitching products and visiting a licensee, Ohio Art, which back then was launching the Michael Jordan Wall-Ball. The Wall-Ball had been my idea, to replace the back board of a Nerf basketball hoop with Jordan's...
Have the Next Hit Toy? This Company Wants to Hear From You
I only spent a few years attempting to license my ideas for toys, but the takeaway was clear: This is one incredibly competitive industry! Toy companies have always relied on outside inventors to commercialize the most innovative new products. In February, I had the...
New Bear, Same Stories: Wicked Cool Toys Relaunches Teddy Ruxpin
When I worked at Worlds of Wonder, the startup that brought the hit plush talking bear Teddy Ruxpin to market in the 1980s, I didn't fully feel the impact he had on kids because I didn't have any. Today, I can clearly see that experience for what it was: Like...
In a Strategic Shift, Mattel Embraces Open Innovation
Calling all product developers, designers, engineers, inventors, artists, makers, tinkerers, and DIY enthusiasts! I have great news for you. The toy company Mattel is now accepting your ideas for new products online. Until recently, submitting an idea to Mattel was a...
An Interview With a Toy Product Scout
My first 'real' job was at Worlds of Wonder, a toy startup, in the late '80s. I was fortunate to work on two number one hit toys, Teddy Ruxpin and Laser Tag. It was truly an amazing time. And like everyone else, I was totally hooked. What's not to love about the toy...