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Discount Store News, March 3, 1997 by Laura Liebeck

When it comes to hot toy properties this year, one need only remember this: licensing licensing and licensing. And then collectibles.

And there is a lot of it.

At the recent American International Toy Fair, held in New York in mid-February, licensed goods upstaged individual product in most cases.

The headline licenses of Star Wars, Jurassic Park: The Lost World, Rugrats, Batman and Robin Star Trek and Winnie the Pooh were followed by Sabrina: the Teenage Witch, Goosebumps Clueless and Hercules. There was also a third tier of licenses that held a lot of promise, including: Captain Kangaroo, which Saban is forwarding; The Cat in the Hat, spearheaded by Mattel; The Fairies of Cottingley Glen, led by Playmates Anastasia, led by Galoob, and the Crayon Box by Tomy, which has championed Bananas in Pajamas.

In addition, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by Playmates and Power Rangers, reborn as Power Rangers Turbo, are being positioned for a revival, with new product lines and story themes.

But it was Star Wars, the 20-year-old property that stole the show. Licensed goods--from action figures and model replicas to books, costumes, games and puzzles--seemed to be in most manufacturers' showrooms. The movie trilogy, now being re-released into theaters, has enjoyed an explosive reception. These re-releases of the hit sci-fi movies are just the warm-up to the release of the prequel trilogy of films, expected to start next year.

In addition to being the top license at the show Star Wars also led the way in the nostalgia category, which is part of the retro craze. Disney plans to re-release the blockbuster movie "The Little Mermaid" and is following up its huge success of "Beauty and the Beast" with a sequel, "Beauty and the Beast, Enchanted Christmas." Also, "101 Dalmatians," a mega hit in theaters during the '96 holiday season, will be released to home video this spring and will become a syndicated TV show in the fall. All have new merchandise programs slated for '97 provided by Mattel. Also coming is "George of the Jungle," a movie based on the hit '60s TV show of the same name.

Other retro products or themes at this year's show included: laser tag games Masterpiece by Parker Brothers; and Flubber Lab by Mattel (with a remake of the old "Flubber" movie that starred Fred MacMurray to hit theaters this year, with Robin Williams as the zany scientist.)

Popular themes at Toy Fair this year were dinosaurs (thanks to the upcoming "Jurassic Park" sequel), pirates, party games (for example, Bop It by Parker Brothers), travel games, play sets and collectibles. In fact, collectibles included: the G.I. Joe Classic line by Hasbro, with tribute dolls for the Normandy invasion, General Patton and General Eisenhower; Rubik's Cube by OddzOn; Matchbox's 75 Challenge; and the Inaugural Collection of cars. Collectibility also was a popular theme this year in auto racing, with car lines devoted to NASCAR, Winston Cup, Indianapolis 500 and various other signature races by a host of manufacturers.

CD-ROM and all manner of toys with sound were big at Toy Fair. These included: a line of Girl Tech products under the Hasbro name such as Swap-It Locket and Keepsake Box; Galactic Battle and Star Wars Laser Tag by Tiger; Revv 'N Roar Workshop for little mechanics by Little Tikes; and Talking Viewmaster by Tyco.

Potential hot products abounded with such star-quality possibilities as:

* Talking Barbie and Dentist Barbie by Mattel

* Step2's new preschool line, with its new Bigger Family chunky people;

* Tamagotchi, an electronic "virtual" pet designed to look like an egg but act like a kid, by Bandai America;

* Sneaker Speakers, fun sounds from Saturday morning cartoons that attach to sneakers, by Ertl;

* Play By Play's Talkin' Tots, electronic dolls that talk to each other;

* Little Tikes' Turbo Banking Jet, a rear wheel drive ride-on;

* Zap Trap, a head-jolting game of dexterity, by Playmates;

* 3-In-1 Ride & Drive, a combination arcade ride, battery-powered ride and ride-on, for kids ages 1 to 3 years old, by Fisher-Price;

* Music Gizmo, a musical building toy, and Disgusting Designs, an art activity skull, by Yes Entertainment.

And one possible hit wasn't even a product at all. It was Playskool's introduction of Microban, a bacteria-inhibiting application applied to various toys manufactured by Playskool. The first Microban product to hit shelves was the Playskool 1-2-3 High Chair. So far, 15 toys with the anti-bacterial coating will be available in 1997. Next year, the line will be expanded.

Last year, toy sales totaled $20.7 billion, up by 2.3% from 1995 (without video) or 6.3% (with video), according to the Toy Manufacturers of America.

The categories turning in the biggest increases included video games (20.8%), dolls (8.6%), vehicles (8.3%) and plush (8.2%). Also charting an increase were games/puzzles (6.7%), action figures (5.9%), infant/preschool (2.9%) and activity toys (0.8%). Ride-ons posted a sales decline of 0.4%, and the category called "all other toys," which includes musical instruments, trading cards and sports activities, fell 1.1%, according to the TMA.