AccuTips.Com June 2001 Volume 7 Version 4Tapping Effectively Into Teens & Tweens In The MarketplaceBy Deborah AustinMarketers are rushing to tap the fast-growing purchase power of teenage consumers — and of “tweens,” who are just on the brink of their teen years.But if ever the principles of Marketing 101 applied, they are especially crucial here. Neglect fact-finding, listening, testing and follow-up, and you’d be better off not even trying to reach this savvy,…

The Plain Dealer Arts & Life Section Monday, May 7, 2001Hot kid-powered toys Just add water, bubbles for simple summer funBy Margaret Bernstein Plain Dealer ReporterYour kids are quick to tune you out when you nag. “It’s a beautiful day, why don’t you go outside?” But parents, be heartened: Some smart toy designers were listening.And the result is a new crop of toys, just in time for summer, that challenge kids to turn off the TV, get out of the house and participate in…

The San Francisco Chronicle Business Section Sunday May 6, 2001Fad factory Wham-o finds itself back in styleBy George Raine Chronicle Staff WriterOne of the reasons the Hula Hoop is in the pantheon of all-time famous toys is that it pretty much put neighborhood bozos in their sorry place if they couldn’t get the knack of it. Those of us who were particularly gifted with the Hula Hoop became neighborhood legends.Its maker – here’s a name for the ages – was and is Wham-O, a…

The Plain Dealer Marketing Section Tuesday, April 24, 2001More than just bristles on a stickBy Mya Frazier Plain Dealer Reporter It sounds a bit hokey, but it just might make sense for a new Cleveland marketing tag line – Visit Cleveland: the nation’s capital of toothbrush innovation. You remember the spin brush, right? The low-cost battery-powered toothbrush that debuted in late 1999, developed by Dr. Johns Products Ltd. of Bedford Heights. The spinning toothbrush quickly…

The Plain Dealer Business Section Tuesday, September 12, 1999Beanie baby mania enters Phase 2: ‘retirement’By Marcia Pledger Plain Dealer ReporterIf the announcement that all Beanie Babies will retire at the end of this year was a stunt to stir interest, it worked.“There’s been a flurry of phone calls from people asking if we have the new Beanie Babies,” said Michael Ziegenhagen, owner of Playmatters Creative Toys in Solon, Pepper Pike and Shaker Heights. “We’ve also gotten a…