donderdag 18 december 2008

Colruyt investigates the safety of toys themselves




Since the beginning of this year Colruyt and Dreamland control all the toys they import from non-European countries. The XRF scanner searches for heavy metals like lead, quicksilver and others of which the level in toys is legally limited. Only those parts for which the scanner gives a warning are send to an extern lab for further analysis. This scanner was developed to detect heavy metals in electrical machines but it has proven its purpose for testing toys. Thanks to the pre-selection, the extern lab can test more purposeful and Colruyt and Dreamland can complete the test procedure quicker. In 2008 they will have scanned 1200 items.

Eva Joye

Source: http://www.nieuwsblad.be/Article/Detail.aspx?ArticleID=DMF17092008_137
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This year: DVD-players from St-Nicolas.


Toys become more and more realistic. The possibilities of the multimedia have become so big that everything that is made for adults can be copied for kids. Toy retailers adapt to that. According to Johan Geeroms, the chief of the toy retailer Dreamland, imitation is very important: toys become more and more realistic because children like to imitate there parents. In former times there used to be a simple kitchen from Smoby but nowadays a kitchen is more real thanks to the technology. Some people think that all that technology reduces the imagination of children; others say that you can’t underestimate the possibility of their imagination.

Eva Joye

Source: http://www.nieuwsblad.be/Article/Detail.aspx?ArticleID=K81I6NTV
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New target group: early youngsters



Girls of eleven years old aren’t children anymore. Playing with dolls and other toys doesn’t fit there image. These new type of youngsters are a new target group for toyshops.

There used to be two target groups: toys for four to seven year old kids and toys for seven to twelve year old kids. But girls of nine to twelve years don’t like the toys that are made for their age anymore. It’s not ‘cool’ enough or just too childish. ‘They have become a unique area of distribution’, says Bart Coeman, manager of the toy store chain Fun. ‘Especially ‘gifts’ are now important, the gadgets to say it disrespectfully.’

Just think about the me to you- bears, little grey teddy bears with a message like ‘someone special’ or the similar NICI-bears. The greeting cards and chamber decoration are also very popular. And because a lot of girls of eleven already have a mobile phone, cell phone-holders and other accessories keep scoring very well.

But what with the boys at the age of nine to twelve? That’s also a different market but it turns out that it’s not so extreme as with the girls. They still want to play with a robot but multimedia is now omnipresent.

Eva Joye

Source: http://www.nieuwsblad.be/Article/Detail.aspx?ArticleID=K81I6NTN

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toys have to become safer


The 20- year old safety prescriptions are no longer sufficient to assure that new toys entering the market are completely safe. An adjustment is therefore necessary. The most vulnerable consumers are children, and so they must be protected as good as possible

Representatives of the European Union, USA and China want safer toys for children. They are willing to work together to increase the product safety. However, no agreements have been reached on when the standards have to be reached. Their main purpose is to extend information about which products could be dangerous. They support also stronger control on the import, especially on toys from China.

The discussion about safer toys became a topic of the day, when last year a child died after swallowing a little magnet that was incorporated in the product. This accident happened in China. As a result, the American toy giant Mattel took 18 million articles out of retail.


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Wii


Winter has started again, the ideal season to stay at home by the fireside and…. play wii!

The least you can say about this new games computer is that it is unique: it has reached a huge target group and is loved by both young and older people.

But what about the name? At first sight it’s short and original, but the name is apparently also very suitable to make puns with it. A few examples:
“Let’s connect my Wii with your Wii en play all night with it”, “We are the knights who say Wii!”, “The winner will be the first one to touch Nintendo’s Wii”.


Actually, wii is related with the word “we”, the fact that it’s a game for both young and old.
In France however, they are negotiating about changing we into the short and strong word “oui”
The logo is fresh en certainly recognizable. It’s in line with the I-pod logo, which makes it very attractive to adults, and avoids being ‘kiddy’.
But what’s in a name or logo? Whether you like it or not, the most important things are the game, the price and if you enjoy it!
And as even the price is acceptable (about 250euro), ‘Nintendo Wii” is very successful!
If we may believe certain results the success still hasn’t reached his peak.

Marion Leenknegt


source:

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Barbie


Barbie is a fashion doll manufactured by Mattel, Inc. She has been around since the fifties and is still loved by millions of children today. In recent years, Barbie has faced increasing competion from the Bratz range of dolls. Although they have managed to gain some part of the market, her sales figures remain high and we are sure she will be around for many years to come.

Part of Barbie’s appeal was the fact that she was different than any other doll on the market, girls are able to look at her as a role model. Young girls dream about having the same clothes, blond hair and figure as Barbie. They also show the girls how their body will look like when they get older.

Barbies and their outfits changed with the fashions of the times. In the last few years, Mattel even produced versions of Barbie in a line of ‘good jobs’ such as doctor, teacher, etc. Barbie wants to offer the children a more beautiful, glamorous an fashionable future. Barbie is incredibly popular today and is probably the best known doll in the world.
Marion Leenknegt
source:
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woensdag 17 december 2008

The price up of toys.


In the last few years, the price of toys has increased significantly. For this rise there are three reasons.


First of all, there are the high oil prices that not only increase transportation and energy costs, but of course also the derived products of oil, namely plastic and rubber, became more expensive.


The increased wages of the Chinese people, caused by the latest Olympic Games, also affect the price because 80% of the toys sold in Belgian Shops are made in China.


After having found forbidden substances in finished products, lots of product lines had to be inspected and adapted. This higher level of safety measures by the Chinese government is also a reason for the price up.


Lieselot D'hoop


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dinsdag 9 december 2008

Boys and toys


Every year, the ‘toy of the year’ is elected in the Toy Museum in Mechelen. But, it’s not just one toy that’s elected. The toy market is divided into 11 categories, such as ‘stimulating activities for babies’, ‘girls and dolls’ and ‘electronic games’. The election is organized to reward toy producers for being dynamic and creative in the development of their new toys.
The winner in the category ‘boys and vehicles’ is a computer-controlled helicopter, invented by a Belgian engineer. He says he’d always been fascinated by helicopters, and after 40 years of tinkering, he finally commercialized one of his designs.
The election of this helicopter proves once again that the toy market is evolving. While traditional toys are still sold (a lot), the sales of their electronic counterparts are rising...


Laure Konings
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