(SAN FRANCISCO, May 11 2004) � Wild Planet Toys has been chosen to receive the Excellence in Community Service Award from the San Francisco Chapter of the American Marketing Association. The 10-year-old toy company earned the honor in recognition of its extensive kid-involvement programs, including its local Inventor Invasion™ series, regional Toy Opinion Parties™, and national Kid Inventor Challenge™.
"Our ultimate goal is to provide positive experiences for children," said Daniel Grossman, CEO and founder of Wild Planet. "One way we do this is by making innovative, open-ended toys; another way is by working with kids, teaching them about invention and encouraging them to use their imaginations. This award is the result of our entire company's dedication to children."
Wild Planet lists community involvement and child-outreach as priorities in its mission statement and developed the various programs to maintain its promise to champion kids. Each of its child-centered programs encourages creativity, exercises critical thinking, and boosts self-esteem.
The local initiative, Inventor Invasion, pairs Wild Planet employees with minorities and under-privileged kids in after school programs for weekly invention sessions. Toy Opinion Parties are events that allow kids to act as toy experts and voice their opinions and ideas, to speak up and be heard. The national Kid Inventor Challenge is a contest that gives kids the opportunity to have their ideas turned into real toys, and to earn royalties from the sale of their inventions.
Wild Planet will join Excellence in Marketing Award recipients eBay, the City of Oakland, AMD and the Taproot Foundation at a celebration/benefit dinner on May 20th at the Crown Plaza Union Square in San Francisco. The American Marketing Association is hosting the event, of which a portion of the proceeds will go to the SFAMA's Excellence Grant for Bay Area Students.
About Wild Planet Toys
Founded in 1993 in San Francisco, Wild Planet Toys creates innovative products that appeal to both parents and kids. Wild Planet focuses on fun without relying on violence, and involves kids in the creation process of all of its toys. Through monthly Toy Opinion Panels and an annual Kid Inventor Challenge contest, Wild Planet connects with kids and turns their ideas into real toys. For more information on Wild Planet and its Spy Gear™, Off the Map™, Waterball™ and Outdoor Antics™ brands, please visit www.wildplanet.com. Look for new brands from Wild Planet in 2004: Aquapets™, Beat Blenders™, SpongeBob SquarePants™ and G.L.S.™ (Girls Living in Style).
About the SFAMA
The San Francisco American Marketing Association is a local chapter of the American Marketing Association, the world's largest marketing association with more than 40,000 members. Founded in 1937, the SFAMA serves the five counties of the greater San Francisco Bay Area by providing its 600 members with a range of tools and resources, as well as valuable industry contacts and information.
