Content about Toy

GOUVERNEUR, N.Y. — Kinney Drugs has kicked off the holiday season by hosting two separate gift-giving programs in all of its drug store locations to benefit less fortunate children and seniors.

From now through Dec. 14, Kinney Drugs is collecting new, unwrapped toys for children who may not otherwise receive gifts this year. During the holiday toy drive, toys collected at each store will be distributed to local children by a charitable organization within the store’s own community.

BETHEL, CT. — Duracell, partnering with Toys for Tots, is looking to "power" jubilant faces this holiday season. The company announced an exclusive sweepstakes on their Facebook page allowing consumers to win some of the holiday's hottest toys while helping those in need.

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Two new wooden toys that won a contest sponsored by Midwestern mass merchandiser Meijer will be featured exclusively on the retailer's website, the company said Thursday.

Meijer announced the winners of the Meijer Next Great Toymaker contest: Franklin, N.C.-based Circa Toys' Wagon of Blocks and Goshen, Ind.-based Peters' Group's Stick & Stack Cozy Cabin. The Wagon of Blocks, which sells for $69.99, is designed for children ages 1 to 3 years, while the Cozy Cabin, at $44.99, is for children ages 4 to 8 years.

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. — Thinkway Toys will launch a new line of toys based on the follow-up animated film to "Despicable Me," Universal Partnerships and Licensing and Illumination Entertainment announced.

Thinkway Toys was granted a master global toy license for the release of animated film, "Despicable Me 2," and will develop a wide variety of toys featuring the minions and other key characters, including interactive toys, figures, plush, dolls, playsets, vehicles, role play and novelty items, UP&L and Illumination Entertainment said.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Walgreens on Thursday announced it is teaming up with Toys for Tots and local charities across the nation. Through Dec. 17, Walgreens customers can donate new, unwrapped toys at any Walgreens store.

All community donations will be distributed to local families.

BETHEL, Conn. — Battery brand Duracell has launched a new program that is designed to help make the holidays a little less stressful for parents and provide a host of cool resources to help them more easily navigate the season.

NEW YORK — FyrFlyz could be the next big kid craze. The new spinning toy on a string from i-Star Entertainment has earned a spot on a number of “Hot Toy” lists, including the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio and Dr. Toy Top Ten Toys lists.


With multicolored LED lights that create unique light patterns when the toy is spun, FyrFlyz puts a new twist on the classic children’s spinning toy. Priced at $8.99 and aimed at kids 8 years and older, the toy is poised to be a holiday hit.


HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. — Kmart has announced its list of the top toys for the 2011 holiday season.

Unveiling its third annual Fab 15 toy list, Kmart said that this year's list features the hottest toys of the season from such brands as Hasbro, Mattel and more. The listed items range from $29.99 to $99.99.

1. Let's Rock Elmo

2. Fijit

3. I am T-Pain microphone

4. Barbie Designable Hair Extensions and Doll

UWANEE, Ga. — The Brainy Brands Co. has introduced a new line of wooden toys for its Brainy Baby line.

Brainy Baby FlashCars will consist of wooden toys in the form of vehicles, including a school bus, fire truck, airplane and recycle truck, accompanied by flashcards that will cover a specific subject, such as letters, numbers, shapes and colors, and animals. FlashCars are set to hit the market in fourth quarter 2011, Brainy Brands said.

Brainy Brands said it expects to introduce other series of wooden toys in the future.

Drug retailers are doggedly pursuing the pet care category, with Rite Aid fetching its own piece of the $47.7 billion category, according to the 2009-2010 “National Pet Owners Survey” conducted by the American Pet Products Association.


NEW YORK — GiantMicrobes has developed a new line of educational plush toys that are modeled after tiny organisms.

New to the lineup are toys that resemble magnified microbes of hay fever, a tick and a brain cell.

Original-sized GiantMicrobes (5-in. to 7-in. sizes) retail for $8.95, while GiantMicrobes petri dishes (three mini-microbes packaged in a dish) retail for $12.95, and Gigantics (15-in. to 20-in. sizes) retail for $29.95. The brain cell plush toy is available as a key chain, GiantMicrobes said, and retails for $5.95.

Consumers may be cutting their budgets, but when it comes to toys, there’s always room for a little splurge. Parents are more likely to cave when the toy offers educational value or is a classic.

Traditional toys are a mainstay of the category—particularly in the drug channel, where price points in the toy aisle rarely top $10. “Evergreen, classic games continue to be popular,” said Adrienne Appell, a spokeswoman for the Toy Industry Association. “They are affordable and have appeal across generations, particularly around the holidays.”