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Hummer of Iowa
Distance: 39.0 MiP Ave
52361 Williamsburg
Description
If your knowledge of the toy industry extends to what you saw in the 1980s classic “Big,” it’s safe to say that you don’t really know much. To be fair, the secrets of the toy industry seem to be heavily guarded. However, if you know the right places to look, you can get information about the newest toys, the trends that are on the horizon, and the latest toy business news. We’ve looked all over the Internet to find the top 20 toy industry-related blogs for your researching pleasure. Here they are! 1. Global License! License Magazine has all the news that’s fit to print about toy and video game licensing. As TV, movies, video games, books, and toys all get more and more dependent on each other, the licensing part of the toy industry becomes increasingly important. Read “From The Editor” for opinions about trends in licensing. The site features a global license finder and classifieds. 2. OhGoOutside OgoSport is a toy company that aims to design toys that encourage creative play. The two founding designers both attended the Pratt Institute, a well-known design school. The OhGoOutside blog discusses trends, toy industry news, and opinions. 3. Out Of The Toy Box Richard Gottlieb of Richard Gottlieb & Associates blogs about news and trends in the toy industry on this Playthings.com blog. Playthings is a toy industry magazine. 4. Toy Talk Journalist Michelle Burford writes “Toy Talk” for the Toy Industry Association. She blogs about new and interesting 5. The Bloom Report Philip A. Bloom and Associates publishes the Bloom Report, a top-notch insider’s guide to news and information in the toy industry. You have to register for the report to have access, but if you want the inside scoop on everything toy industry-related, you’ll do it. A must-read. 6. Play It Safe Susan DeRagon blogs about toy safety laws, recalls, and other toy safety issues for Playthings. DeRagon is associate director of a toy safety testing laboratory, so she really knows her stuff. 7. edplay Edplay is a magazine geared toward toy, gift, game, and other stores such as museum stores that sell educational toys. Their online newsletter features new toys as well as the results of “best toys” surveys. Independent toy makers are featured more than “major” manufacturers. 8. The Toy Book Blog The Toy Book is one of the leading trade publications in the toy industry. On their blog, they write about news toy industry developments, upcoming products, and manufacturer news. This blog is updated multiple times each day as toy news breaks. 9. Toy News Online: Opinion Toy News is the UK’s leading toy industry magazine, and their website is packed full of useful toy industry information. The Opinion pages are informative and thought-provoking, while you can read price comparisons of popular toys on the “Price Check” pages. NPD charts and retail charts are also publishes, so you can see what’s hot. 10. Raving Toy Maniac Raving Toy Maniac provides industry news, information for hardcore collectors, and many links to toy resources around the web. The “News” page is updated several times a day, so it is most like a blog. Check out the forum to communicate with other toy devotees. 11.