Retro, tech toys top requests on kids' 2004 holiday gift lists

Drug Store News, Dec 13, 2004 by Michelle L. Kirsche

Nearly half of shoppers surveyed--49 percent--said they would buy toys this holiday season, according to the NPD Group. More good news for chain drug retailers is that many of those toys ring in at comfortable price points for drug store shoppers, including Mattel's Barbie as Princess Anneliese and Erika for $19.99 and Jakks Pacific TV Games for $20, both listed on Toy Wishes magazine's Hot Dozen list for 2004. Each year, the magazine's editors select the toys they believe will be the hardest to find because of their popularity among kids.

This season, 1-in-5 holiday shoppers with children on their gift lists will be looking for Barbie merchandise for girls or video games for boys, according to the National Retail Federation's Holiday Consumer Intentions and Actions survey.

Barbie and video games also appeared on Internet search engine Lycos' fifth annual list of the most popular toys and video games for 2004 based on what it calls the Lycos 50, a weekly list of the most popular people, places and things searched for online.

"General searches for toys have gone up 255 percent over last week," said Dean Tsouvalas, author of the Lycos 50, in a Nov. 22 interview. Tsouvalas also noted that Bratz dolls generated 117 percent more search activity for the four weeks ended Nov. 13.

"The Bratz and American Girl dolls rank below Barbie in search traffic, but given that many Barbie searches continue to come from adult collectors, we believe the Bratz and American Girl dolls will be the top toys for girls in 2004, Tsouvalas noted.

The Lycos 50 also reported that SpongeBob SquarePants made the top 10 most-searched list for the first time this year and is en route to becoming the most popular licensed character based on online searches for the 2004 holiday season.

Another heavily searched item are Yu-Gi-Oh! Cards. "The cards are more popular than ever this year due to a printing error in the Dark Paladin card from one of the bonus packs, making the cards more of a collector's item," Tsouvalas said.

While Lycos identified what consumers are looking for online, it also cited where they are looking. Web sites that experienced the largest rise in search activity over the same four-week period included Toys "R" Us, up 265 percent; Target, up 258 percent; and Wal-Mart, up 25 percent.

Not to be outdone by the myriad hot toy lists released last month, Wal-Mart released its own.

"There are so many fantastic toys to choose from that we wanted to help our customers identify what we anticipate will be at the top of many lists to Santa," said Gary Severson, Wal-Mart senior vice president and general merchandise manager.

Wal-Mart developed its list from recent trend studies, customer buying trends from years past and feedback from children. Its top toys include:

* Cabbage Patch Kids.

* Barbie as the Princess and the Pauper.

* Marvel Spider-Man 2 Triple Action Web Blaster.

* Leapfrog Leapster Multimedia Learning System.

* ESPN Game Station.

* Little Tikes Hummer H2 Ride-On.

* Color Video Now Personal Video Player.

* Bratz Funk Out.

* Radio-Controlled Cadillac Escalade and Hummer H2 or SUT.

* Plug and play TV Games.

* Schwinn 20-inch Sting-Ray bike.

* Sesame Street E-L-M-O.

In addition to what should prove to be the hottest holiday sellers, Scholastic, by interacting with kids and parents through its school book clubs, book fairs and Web site, identified the most popular trends in books, games and toys for kids up to age 12.

It found that, as in years past, retro toys, games and characters like Slinky, Original Nok Hockey, Pogo Stick and Colorforms are being introduced to a whole new generation of kids.

According to Marisa Thalberg, president of Executive Morns, an organization for working moms, tried-and-true toy's still get the "most mileage award from moms, including toys that once appeared on their own gift lists, such as Candyland, E-Z Bake Oven, Lego and Lincoln Logs.

According to Charles Riotto, president of the Licensing Industry Merchandisers Association, the retro trend has not lost its steam. "The retro stuff looks like it's not going away," Riotto said. "But there are a lot of reasons for it. It's a fair bet for retailers to latch on to a property that already has a following. You have the nostalgia factor. Parents want to pass those memories on to their children."

Riotto noted that if the retro trend continues, more boys' products should re-emerge as hot properties. For instance, Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh! could crop up again. Riotto also noted that newer licensed properties like Finding Nemo and SpongeBob, SquarePants are driving kids video game sales.

For older kids, moms whom Executive Moms surveyed indicated that they were inclined to buy classic games like Monopoly Junior, chess and checkers.

Crafting is another hot trend this holiday season, including knitting, T-shirt art and kits like Design Your Own Soccer Ball and Holiday Window Art, which let kids create their own decorations. Celebrity-penned children's books also are gaining in popularity, with anticipated hot sellers including "Goodnight My Angel" by Billy Joel.