6 PUBLISHERS WEEKLY ■ MARCH 2, 2020
News
F
or toy makers and publishers alike, the potential
impact of the new coronavirus on their respective
industries was one of the main topics of conversation
at the 117th edition of Toy Fair New York, which ran February
22–25 at the Javits Center in Manhattan. The number of
attendees, which is generally about 25,000 (final figures
weren’t available at press time), was also expected to be down
somewhat, as the U.S. has been denying entry to anyone who
has been in China during the previous 14 days.
Despite the lack of Chinese visitors, traffic on the show
floor did not seem significantly lighter than in a typical year.
When the fair opened, the booth displays of the approximately
30 publishers and authors exhibiting their books and side-
lines illustrated how the children’s book industry is testing
new strategies and tactics. Many of the initiatives reflect
growing synergies between books and toys as a means of
succeeding in a changing landscape.
Phoenix International Publications (PI Kids) devoted half
of its booth to its new toy division, announced at Toy Fair
last year. It has also been expanding beyond its core inter-
active sound books into traditional children’s formats such
as board books, storybooks, and picture books. Among the
new programs PI Kids was highlighting with longtime part-
ner Disney was a line of books under the Disney My First
Stories banner, a repackaging of a Hachette series from
France. “We’re not going after new one-off licenses, but we’re
doing more with our big licensors, including Disney,”
explained PI Kids marketing director Lynn Sikora. PI Kids
also showed three coloring and activity titles, its first ever,
with longtime partner Baby Einstein.
Like PI Kids, Carson Dellosa Education added toys to its
display this year, with about half of its booth devoted to a
new line of musical instruments under Mattel’s Fisher-Price
license. “It’s not a flash card or a workbook, but it’s still edu-
cation,” said William Harris, director of inside sales. The
company also introduced a new line of licensed Disney
Learning workbooks, flash cards, and other core formats.
Fox Chapel’s Happy Kids imprint, launched in 2018, is
making a foray into picture books with artist Jim Shore’s
Magic in the Attic, based on a line of gift figurines from
another Toy Fair exhibitor, Enesco. “Picture books is a new
direction for us,” said Michele Sensenig, v-p sales. Another
first for Happy Kids is publishing translated books, and at
the fair it showed two titles acquired through foreign rights
deals—from the Czech Republic and Italy. Fox Chapel’s initialBook-Toy Synergies Abound at Toy Fair
joke books, done with educational activities specialist Kid
Scoop, were also on display.
Chronicle Books and its siblings Mudpuppy and Galison,
as well as Quarto and its SmartLab division, featured 50/
mixes of books and products in their respective joint
booths. To achieve that balance, both Chronicle and Quarto
significantly increased the booth space devoted to books
compared to previous Toy Fairs.
The connection between books and toys carried over into
toy company assortments as well, from plush specialist
Fiesta to educational toy maker Manhattan Toy, both of
which offered board and bath books tied to many of their
toys. The books typically have ISBNs but are sold primarily
in channels that carry the related toys. Specialty toy company
Melissa and Doug highlighted an extensive range of books—
it launched a publishing effort in August 2019 after its acqui-
sition of Innovative Kids.
Publishers were also connecting with new customers and
exploring new distribution channels. First-time exhibitor
Kidsbooks sells its titles mainly in school book fairs but par-
ticipated in the show to expand into the toy and gift markets,
according to Lynn Phillips, specialty sales manager. And
Happy Fox’s new deal with YouTube ukulele influencer Emily
Arrow, for a book called Kids Guide to Learning the Ukulele,
has gotten the publisher into music stores, thanks to Arrow’s
relationship with instrument maker Kala, which was at the
fair and is helping the publisher secure placement.
“At Toy Fair, return customers come in ready to write orders,”
said Barbara Peacock, managing director of School Zone.
“But every year we see quite a few brand-new customers as
well.” —Karen RaugustVisitors at this year’s Toy Fair New York, which ran February 22–25 at the
Javits Center in Manhattan.PHOTOBYKARENRAUGUST