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Article: Selling the Soft Stuff.(soft toy industry)(NPD Group Inc.)
- Article from:
- Playthings
- Article date:
- November 1, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 Reed Business Information, Inc. (US). This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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By Pamela Brill
Plush makers seek new strategies to overcome sales decline
There's no way to soften the blow: the plush category has taken one of the greatest hits in overall toy sales this year.
According to the Port Washington, N.Y.-based NPD Group, soft toys experienced a 17 percent decline in sales in the last year. In the period from August 2008 to August 2009, annual retail sales dropped from $995 million to $822 million, marking a severe loss for plush toy manufacturers.
While the category struggles to make up for lost dollars as the holiday season begins, manufacturers reflect on the trends currently shaping the market and ...