Talkin' Bout Kid Nation

Brandweek, Feb 14, 2000 by T.L. Stanley

"Kids found the play pattern in them," said Gina Beebe, svp-marketing at X Concepts. "They made the choice."

With the mandate, "make them real," X Concepts forged licensing deals with major skateboard makers, adding graphics and logos to reflect the look of full-size models. The Tech Deck line now sports more than 500 SKUs; some 17 million pieces have shipped to date. Due to rising competition, X Concepts will spend over $1 million on its first TV ads this spring to reach beyond its core 8-14 boy demo. "You have to be really close to your retailers," to know what's hot, Beebe said. "This product launched at Ron's Surf Shop, small sporting goods stores and skateboard stores, not at Wal-Mart, Target and Toys 'R' Us."

The popularity was, no doubt, propelled by the product's 20-something appeal, giving younger kids something to aspire to. "It was a hackey-sack kind of phenomenon," Beebe said. Extensive coverage from the likes of ESPN also helped. The category, not surprisingly, has expanded, with mini-BMX bikes due to bow at Toy Fair this week.

Because of seemingly limitless choices and audience fragmentation, some toy industry observers think the days of a POG-level phenom are long gone.

"There are all these different tribes of kids, and something could become popular with one and never catch on with another," said Ivy Ross, Mattel's svp-worldwide girls design. "My sense is that it can still happen, but on a different level than in the past, and it would need some nudging. It won't be as wholesale."

Even if it's niche, compared to a Pokemon-sized hit, manufactures have to examine what's important in kids' lives in order to detect a trend in its nascent stages.

"You have to be very sensitive to those little tremors," said Bandai's Goldner," because those can become the big trends."