According to the Toy Association,  84% of kids still play non-computer games. Does that surprise you? It shouldn’t. Educational toys, board games, puzzles and collectibles are products that appeal to the creative, inquisitive and tactile nature of children.

Panoramic Puzzles - Safari LTD

Using Toys To Make Your Store Stand Out

This is where your shop can excel.  By stocking your shop with collectible toys, fun board games, puzzles and educational toys, you can knock the boredom out of standard gift giving. Offering products that add fun and excitement to the weekly family entertainment gives you a unique selling proposition and a reason for consumers to shop with you.

Dice Game - Jax LTD

Below is a breakdown of the different toy categories that fall under the idea of unique gifts.  Once you understand how and why people buy these toys, you will be able to create an effective toys product mix for your store. Your toy wholesalers can also help you to choose which items work well in your area.

Educational Toys - Parents want to give children a gift that doesn’t scream “educational” on it, but silently says “play with me and you will learn.” Children today are interested in computer games or interactive toys. Instead of flash cards with math problems, give them a computer program that has cool math games or a dice game that encourages addition.  Adults love to show off their knowledge or expertise. Memory or question games with unique twists give adults the opportunity to show off and have fun with their kids at the same time.

Board Game - Fundex Games

Consumers have many interests.  Board games can revolve around these very interests.  Games such as math games (Suduko) or “green” earth games (where the goal is making the earth eco-friendly) engage players by involving their interests.

Puzzles – This category has many extraordinary items to choose from; tiny puzzles that are only 4” x 6”, collectible puzzles that have specific themes by artist, travel puzzles, as well as 3D puzzles. All these are unique, fun items that you could incorporate into your sales mix. Consumers love a challenge. Puzzles give them a fun way to challenge themselves.

Collectible Dolls - Girls Explore

Try incorporating one or more of the above unique gift ideas into your product mix.  After all, everyone needs a little entertainment in their lives.

Need help finding the right toys? The FGmarket wholesale toy vendors will be able to offer you a great selection of board games, educational toys, puzzles and collectibles.  To jump start your toy search, check out the FGmarket wholesale toy vendors highlighted below.

Educational Games from Birdcage Press

Educational books like these from Birdcage Press are well received by parents and children alike because they stimulate creativity and passion–two things no parent wants to stifle.

Birdcage Press also has award-winning books such as “Gallery Ghost” which was recently awarded with inclusion in the National Association for Gifted Children’s 2009 Toy List.

If you have a fair amount of time for reading, visiting the Birdcage Press awards list will surprise you. The list of award-winning educational toys, books and games from Birdcage Press is huge! Many respected companies have and continue to recognize Birdcage Press for their contribution to developing the minds of children. Watch the list grow and be a part of something special in educational toys when you offer educational books and games from Birdcage Press.

Want the children who come into your store to have a better understanding of wildlife? Educational games designed just for this are available from Birdcage Press. Even parents searching for unique Christmas gifts will be drawn to their fun educational games. Games that stimulate a knowledge of art are also popular educational toys from Birdcage Press.

If you’re ready to take your toy selection up a notch or ten, visit Birdcage Press and watch little eyes light up all year.

HABA USA's "Cory Caterpillar" Pulling Toy

Recognize the face on the right? That’s the smiling friendly face found on many HABA USA toys. This smile greets children warmly, providing an unspoken invitation to have fun, learn, grow and get excited today. All of HABA USA’s toys are guaranteed high quality and safe for infants and toddlers. Everything from rattlers to building blocks are made with baby’s well-being in mind.

As if safe and educational weren’t enough for these toys, they’re also award-winning! HABA USA’s “Cory Caterpillar” recently won The Toy Man award of excellent, The Toy Man seal of approval, The Toy Man eco-recognition seal 2009, and The Toy Man editor’s choice award. Talk about your quality toys!

Want award-winning, safe and educational toys to satisfy parents who visit your store? Visit HABA USA today and be more than pleasantly surprised with the quality and originality you’ll find.

Bananagrams® Wholesale Educational Game

The rules are simple and easy to understand for children of a young age to a group of adults. Players take a certain amount of lettered tiles, try to form words with them which can read vertically or horizontally but must use at least one letter in another word. Beat the clock so to speak by becoming the first person to use all of their share of tiles without any misspelled or incorrect words.

It’s a race to the finish! But players also have to beware of becoming the “rotten banana” which means they have misspelled or incorrect words in their hand so the game continues for the remaining players. What a challenge!

Bananagrams is a wholesale educational game that is fun for the whole family. Start to finish, every player will want another round. It’s a “bunch” of fun that will leave every player going throughout their day imagining letter combinations in vertical and horizontal patterns. They may not start shouting “peel!” or “split!” ad nauseum but they’ll definitely go bananas over Bananagrams!

Hugg-A-Planet Educational Toys

Plus, playing with the Hugg-A-Planet educational toys is fun for the parents as well! Wanting to play with children will create many bonding experiences that parents and children will treasure for years to come.

We all know that children develop many important skills during the early years of childhood. What most parents seek to find are the educational toys that stimulate this development. One of the toys essential to learning about geography and an eco friendly lifestyle is the Hugg-A-Planet® line of toys.

Educational toys like the Hugg-A-Planet®, HuggAmerica®, and Hugg-A-Planet Mars® are perfect for a wide range of customers. Teachers wanting a novel idea for their students will love how the Hugg-A-Planet® toys encourage learning through interaction. Parents will love how easy it is to teach their children through play what it is like to love the earth. Anyone interested in stimulating a child’s mind through play will adore this cuddly, soft toy designed with children’s minds in mind.

What does this list of long words mean to you? To Answers In Motion LLC / Thumball customers it’s a list of the educational benefits of playing with the Thumball. Talk to people who have played with the Thumball and you’re likely to hear a different set of enthusiastic praise for the toy.

The Thumball ™ Therapeutic & Educational Toy

For the Thumball educational toy, the only downside is that it’s too fun to put down! Here’s what people are saying about the Thumball.

Fun for the whole family. Great way to spend time together. Didn’t even know I was learning.

The Thumball is perfect for a wide range of groups. Families wanting to spend quality time together love tossing the Thumball around. This is because playing with the Thumball creates a sense of socialness and knocks down any barriers of shyness. It may be an educational toy but you’re playing! You’re having fun! A few tosses in and you’ve already forgotten why you were so hesitant.

Instant teamwork development skills, enjoyable interaction and a chance to expand the mind at the same time are reasons why business owners and managers also love the Thumball. In a brainstorming meeting, this element of creativity and unity is crucial. Educational toys like the Thumball are great ice breakers to start the meeting and get the brain flowing.

It’s often difficult to break young kids away from their video games. Not with the Thumball! They’ll be asking to play for hours and parents who have played will rarely argue. Whether breaking the ice at a meeting or stimulating family relationships, THE play and learn educational toy for all ages is the Thumball.

"Paper Football" Board Game

It’s more important now than ever to see families bonding and learning together. It’s a great opportunity to witness children enjoying learning in the classroom because they are playing a fun board game. That’s where Rayzor Sharp Entertainment and your store come into the picture.

Someone has to be the provider that is willing to take first place with parents. Someone has to step up as the cutting edge provider of educational toys that children will actually want to play. Someone has to go the extra mile and be the talked about carrier of great games that advance society instead of simply distracting it. Rayzor Sharp Entertainment has these games. Now it’s your turn to step up to the plate and hit a home run with parents by offering educational games for all ages.

"Math Wiz" Card Game

When you’re in search of a guilt-free game that enhances every player look to Rayzor Sharp Entertainment. That excited feeling that rushes over you when your first shipment arrives—that’s the cutting edge.

There is an emergence of renewed family time occurring across the nation. With this trend, also, comes the need to shower loved ones with gifts. Plush and novelty toys are wonderful gifts given through out the year and a potential for increasing your sales. As with any merchandise you sell, understanding and knowing your market is essential to success. In this FGmarket Newsletter, we will look at the different categories of plush and novelty toys as well as how you can capitalize on family friendly products with younger members and special occasion emphasis.

Plush Frog Puppet With Sound

Plush toys fall in to several categories: play plush, collectible plush and complimentary plush gifts. Each category or style can appeal to wide consumers base and enhance other existing product lines. It is important to understand your market as well as the categories and how you can pump up sales for each of these types of plush types through out the year.

Play Plush refers to toys that children can play with, hold and carry around. These toys can be interactive like Fiesta Toy Company’s plush puppets with sound. In fact, interactive toys are great for young children. While, ever popular teddy bears are considered the staple of the play plush toy market, stuffed animals (puppies, furry little kittens, frogs, etc.) are great items for those looking for children’s toys.

Plush Collectibles refer to toys that are given or bought because they are a series in a collection or commemorate special memories, such as a graduation plush toy or a school mascot. Holiday collections are a another form of collectible. Easter plush toys and Christmas decorating plush toys are holiday collectibles that are very much in demand.

Plush Gifts refer to items that customers will want to give for special events, such as valentine plush toys, or birthday bears and even plush baby toys for welcoming baby home.

As you can see even though these plush toys fall into different categories, they all work together and can make great add on sales to your other product lines. A flower for Valentines day is great, but add a stuffed animal and it’s is extraordinary. Using wholesalers that carry a wide array of plush toys in all the categories can save you time. Plus, they already have a good idea of what items sell best.

Novelty Toys and Gifts – Making Family Time Entertaining

Novelty toys and gifts are diverse items. Puzzles, board games, as well as books, all of items that fall into the novelty toy and gift category. Patrons who buy these items do so for birthday’s, parties, as well as for family fun time.

Puzzles come in many styles and designs ranging from simple puzzle for toddlers to elaborate puzzle meant to be pieced together by friends and family’s as a project.

Fame Products Board Games

Books and Educational Toys are great baby shower gifts, children’s gifts, and birthday gifts. Books are also good impulse buy items and educational toys appeal to parents and grandparents. You may have a customer pick up a flower arrangement or gift who may stop and browse through the books you sell. This often leads to an extra sale, as they can purchase a book that they can read to their niece when she visits. Children’s books aimed at toddlers and elementary school children are excellent additions to gift baskets and coordinate well with other gifts like plush toys. Hint: Always carry items that can play off one another in sales situations or create an impulse buying reaction.

A nice mixture of plush and novelties sparks fun and oohs and aahs. More importantly providing customers with family friendly items will boost your sales as well. Promoting and selling novelty and plush toys isn’t hard. Most likely you carry a few for Valentines day, so why not carry more for each holiday season, Christmas, Easter, and Halloween. Board games, teddy bears, puzzles, books all things that can be sold separately or bundled together in a gift basket can help you increase your holiday gift sales. Keeping these products all year long can also increase your everyday gift sales.

Look to the wholesalers at FG Market for the right mixture of novelty for family fun with fuzzy fantastic plush and unique toys. Your customers will be entertained and you’ll be successful.

Ever wondered how to approach that birds and the bees talk with your children? Looking for a funny gag gift for a friend or sweetheart? Need to keep a child’s attention during a discussion about hygiene?

Even if you haven’t ran across these situations, your customers have. There is a now a wonderful way to provide your customers with a solution for all of these situations and others. GIANTmicrobes® are fun stuffed educational toys in the shapes of microbes so that science springs to life in cuddly stuffed form!

Science may or may not be a favorite subject, but it can certainly be a lively discussion thanks to the giant stuffed toy in the shape of the common cold, influenza virus, red blood cells, athlete’s foot, and even bad breath! If you can think of a common virus or disease it’s probably represented by cute stuffed animals from GIANTmicrobes®. Need a conversation starter? No problem! These educational toys keep customers and their friends talking for hours.

Doctors, science teachers, homeschool teachers and other professionals also love the GIANTmicrobes® products from Giantmicrobes, Inc. These educational toys help start the conversations that are often too uncomfortable for most. Preventative measures are much easier to remember when the fear of discussion is removed and people are given the opportunity to learn about a simple or scary virus. For the serious customer with a cause to discuss or the gag gift giving goofball, GIANTmicrobes® are excellent additions to your fun and unique product lines.

Wholesale educational games from US Games Systems, Inc. put your products in a whole new ballpark, reaching a valuable niche market for your store. These are the parents, teachers, daycare providers, and any other person with a major influence in a child’s life. These are also the families striving for creative activities to enjoy during family time. To tap into the potential of the group looking for educational toys, educational games, and family games, here are a few home run secrets.

Home Run #1: When browsing wholesale educational toys from US Games Systems Inc., consider the many ways that offering these products to your customers is allowing time to take a break from the hustle and bustle of daily life. Learning, playing, and competing together creates a family bond that can’t be broken. Your customers are seeking out great ways to provide this opportunity to their families. Being the one-stop provider of educational games creates en emotional bond with your customers who will later return to your store for toys (and people) that they can trust.

Travel Through Family Time With Great Games!

Home Run #2: Wholesale educational toys from US Games Systems Inc. are the perfect products for your store because they satisfy every core need of this group. These customers want to know that the emotional, social, and psychological needs of their children are being met and not being compromised. Wholesale educational games from US Games Systems Inc. are products that you and your customers can trust.

Games such as “20th Century Time Travel,” “Histories Mysteries,” and “Spotter Playing Cards” are games with the unique signature of The History Channel. Other games such as “State By State Playing Cards,” and “Signal Flags and Semaphores” are fun for the whole family and test everyone’s knowledge of interesting tidbits from American history.

It’s important that your customers know where to return for educational games and toys. The best way to keep your customers coming back is by building a relationship of trust with products that are perfect for families. Customer satisfaction on this rewarding level is easy thanks to the wholesale educational games and toys from US Games Systems, Inc.