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This blog will look at the winners and losers in the retail space. Who has the right strategy to capture consumer dollars? It also will look for trends in consumer spending and how that will impact the economy.
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With a dearth of dazzle in the holiday toy lineup this year, it looks like Elmo may just groove his way to the top again this year.
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Elmo Live He sings. He tells jokes. And he just may giggle his way to the top of the toy list this holiday season. |
Fisher-Price’s new Elmo Live, which sings, tells jokes and plays games, is expected to be one of the season’s hottest selling items. The giggly little dude hit store shelves last month and retails for about $60.
And he's not the only animated buddy vying for a spot under the tree this year.
Thinkway Toys’ Ultimate Wall-E robot, which brings the Disney-Pixar [DIS
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] movie character to life, is also expected to be a big seller, according to trade magazine Toy Wishes Magazine's "Hot Dozen" toy list — though the $249 price tag might deter some penny-pinching shoppers.
Also on the dazzle-them-with-technology list is Playskool’s Kota My Triceratops Dinosaur, a life-like baby dinosaur that stands over three feet tall, which kids can roar with, sit on and feed leafy snacks. He retails for about $240 and also stomped his way onto the Toy Wishes top-12 list.
To entice online shoppers to buy toys this holiday season, Wal-Mart [WMT
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] is offering 97-cent shipping on a slew of toys; Toys 'R' Us is offering free shipping on toy orders of $49 or more.
Toys that let kids ham it up are also expected to be big sellers.
Hasbro’s U-Dance ($75) is expected to do well, riding on the sequined coattails of shows like “Dancing With the Stars,” as is Disney’s Hannah Montana Acoustic Guitar ($80). For the budding superhero, Rand offers a Batman Dark Knight 16-inch kids’ bike ($65).
And, to capture it all on film, Amazon [AMZN
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] has the Flip Video Ultra Series Camcorder ($116), touted as “easy as making PBJ” (seriously, watch the Amazon video!) on its hot list. It’s listed in the ages 8-11 category, which means its perfect for that technology-challenged mom or dad in the family!
In the $20-and-under category, Amazon expects the Spalding Rookie Gear ($20), a kid-sized basketball, to sell well; and for the little ones, move over Baby Einstein, it’s the Munchkin Mozart Magic Cube ($20)! This soft-cornered cube teaches budding composers how to create create eight Mozart masterpieces with a variety of instrument sounds, including French horn, piano, flute and violin.
Jim Silver and Christopher Byrne, who now run their hot toy list on www.timetoplaymag.com, think Spin Master’s transformer-like Bakugan action figures and playing cards will be popular this holiday season — especially for economically-challenged families, as some of the toys and cards cost under $10.
Given the state of the economy this season, I think we could all use a laugh, groovy move or tot concierto to lighten the holiday mood!
Recent Holiday Central Posts:
- Holiday Trimming: Retail Sales Estimates Come Down
- Online Retailers May Have a Jollier Holiday
- OMG! Xmas Sales Are Starting Already
- Retailers Offer All the Frills, at Half the Price
- Holiday Office Parties Expected to Be Lamer Than Usual
- Value, It's a Good Thing
- Bernard and Ruth Madoff's personal possessions will be auctioned this weekend. Click ahead to see.
- If you are lucky enough to have money and the time, this is a great time to see America, says CNBC's Jane Wells.
- Vote and suggest your own, and remember--there's a fine line between a hero and a zero.
- How the Lord’s Prayer would read if Goldman Sachs’ Lloyd Blankfein were substituted for you-know-who.
- With 123 years of history, slogans and commercials, Coca-Cola is the most recognized brand on earth.
- The opening of a virtual pet store in “World of Warcraft” could prove a cash bonanza for Activision-Blizzard.
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes