NEW YORK, Oct. 7 -- PlayDate Inc., an independent marketing services firm that produces the premier media event showcasing the Holiday season's hottest toys, board games, collectibles, video games and PC games, has received preliminary results from its annual survey of mass market and specialty toy and game retailers. PlayDate survey results indicate strong Holiday sales success for educational toys, video games and licensed toys.
"Toy retailers are facing several challenges this year, including a sluggish economy and labor challenges at the ports, but they still know one thing is for sure: Santa Claus is coming to town, and he's got a sackful of goodies," said Sean McGowan, co-founder of PlayDate Inc., which conducts an exclusive annual poll of leading toy and video game retailers. "The PlayDate survey this year points to strong sales in several key categories, reminding us that toys are relatively recession-proof, and that cargo ships aren't the only way to get toys under the tree."
Interactive Educational Toys Go Mainstream
Educational toys, like those from LeapFrog Enterprises, Inc. and VTech Electronics that blend learning with playtime, are expected to be particularly popular gifts for young kids this Holiday season. Parents are looking to give their kids a head start on education by introducing them to learning toys at a young age. Retailers expect LeapFrog's LeapPad learning system to be the best selling educational toy in 2002.
Video Game Hardware and Software Will Top Older Kids' Holiday 2002 Wish Lists
Video games will also be popular this Holiday season, with hardware sales continuing to grow, creating demand for software. According to retailers polled by PlayDate, the following games will be highly sought-after gifts:
- Grand Theft Auto: Vice City - The follow-up to last year's best selling video game, Vice City continues the tradition of over-the-top mischief and mayhem. Retailers expect GTA: Vice City to be the best selling video game during the 2002 Holiday season.
- Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 - The latest "T-Hawk" offering from Activision pushes extreme skateboarding to new limits. PlayDate's survey shows that Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 will be at the top of many wish lists this Holiday season.
- Portable gaming - Retailers expect NINTENDO's Game Boy Advance to be the best selling hand-held electronic game this Holiday season.
Board Games: Stay-and-play-at-home The post-9/11 family is spending more of their leisure time at home, and board games are clearly what's on the evening agenda. Cranium Inc. extends its award-winning string of family friendly fun games with Cranium Cariboo, expected by retailers to be the best-selling new board game this Holiday season.
Licenses Take Center Stage
Retailers polled by PlayDate expect Spider-Man to be the most successful toy license for Holiday 2002. But licenses from other blockbuster movies will also be popular, including Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and Star Wars. Also predicted to be hot toy and game properties are television licenses with crossover age and gender appeal like SpongeBob SquarePants. For the younger crowd, Dora the Explorer will make a significant impact because of the educational program's appeal to kids and strong endorsement by parents.
PlayDate 2002
PlayDate Inc. will unveil the complete results of its exclusive survey on October 22 at PlayDate 2002, a media-only showcase held at New York City's Metropolitan Pavilion from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The PlayDate 2002 survey will announce retailers' predictions of the following:
- Best Selling Brand Families
- Best Selling Toys Overall
- Best Selling Toys Sold in Specialty Stores
- Best Selling Board Games
- Best Selling Collectibles
- Best Selling PC Games
- Best Selling Video Games
- Best Selling Video Game Hardware
"The PlayDate 2002 retailer survey is the most comprehensive ever, encompassing more than 25 retailers ranging from national chains and toy chains to small specialty shops," added McGowan. "The results unveiled later this month will be the broadest look yet at what the nation's retailers are expecting to be the best selling toys, video games and PC games during the 2002 Holiday season."
This year's PlayDate is expected to be the most exciting show yet with dozens of companies showcasing their Holiday toys and games. Highlights of PlayDate 2002 include:
- Ty Penington from The Learning Channel's hit decorating show Trading Spaces will be demonstrating Smarty's Workshop, an engaging and interactive learning buddy from VTech Electronics
- Richard Tait, co-founder and Grand Poo-Bah of Cranium Inc., makers of the widely popular board game Cranium, will smart his familiar brain-iac hat to demonstrate the company's new product Cranium Cariboo
- First-looks at November video game releases from Nintendo of America and Activision
- Parade of costume characters from well-known toy and game companies
- Kids, tweens and teens playing with the Holiday season's hottest toys, games and video games
Products at this year's PlayDate will be on display from the following leading and innovative companies:- Activision
- BAM! Entertainment
- Bandai America Inc.
- Cranium Inc.
- Hasbro
- Huffy Bikes
- Funosophy Inc.
- Infogrames, Inc.
- Irwin Toy, Ltd.
- KB Toys
- LeapFrog Enterprises, Inc.
- LEGO
- Little Tikes
- Mattel
- Neurosmith
- Nintendo of America
- Sababa Toys, Inc.
- Sega of America
- THQ
- Toys 'R' Us
- Uncle Milton
- University Games
- USAOPOLY
- VTech Electronics, Ltd.
About PlayDate
PlayDate 2002 is an exclusive media showcase highlighting the best selling toys and games for the coming Holiday season, as predicted by the nation's top retailers. Retailers are surveyed by PlayDate Inc., an independent marketing services company tracking the toy and game software industries in the U.S. PlayDate Inc. compiles the survey results at the end of the third quarter, identifying those toys and games expected to be the best selling products during the Holiday season.
Its principals include toy and game industry veterans Sean McGowan and Jon Salisbury. McGowan's knowledge of the toy industry has been gained from his 15-plus years as a veteran award-winning research analyst on Wall Street covering the toy and video game software industries. Because of his stature as a research analyst and his role in creating PlayDate's annual events, McGowan is nationally recognized as an industry expert and is frequently quoted by print and broadcast media. Salisbury is the long-time publisher of toy industry periodicals such as World Toy News, and a host of numerous toy industry events in Europe and the U.S.
