Thirty toy suppliers took home a Gold award, with dozens more receiving silver, bronze and commendations
Toy Shop UK has published the results of its 18th annual Independent Toy Awards, showing what the nation’s independent toy retailers regard as some of the best toys to buy kids this Christmas.
The awards are voted on by the retailers who list themselves for free on the online directory. Gold, silver and bronze medal logos have been awarded in each of the categories, with several other suppliers receiving a commendation for products that narrowly missed out on a top spot.
The Gold winners are:
Halloween House Pop & Build, Santoro
1curiosity Lantern, 1curiosity
FurReal Maggie the Feed and Follow Cow, Just Play UK
Beanie Bouncers, Ty
Sparkle Pals – Winnie the Pooh Complete Set, Diamond Art Club
Bibi-Chibis, Eolo
Pixel Factory, Maped Helix
Connetix 48 Piece Roads Creative Pack, Connetix
Dress To Impress Mystery Dolls, Click
Noodle Slime, Funtime Gifts
Pets Alive Mama Turtle & Baby Surprise, Zuru
Doteki Multiplayer Battlepack, Tomy
Codenames, CGE Games
Depot, Playte
IQ Circle, Smart Toys & Games
LeapMove, Leapfrog
Djigsaw Vu at the Christmas Market, All Jigsaw Puzzles
Crayola ImagiPals – Foodie Friends Surprise Ball, Hunter Price
Scrunchems Squishy Marshmallow, Tobar
JumpPRO Xplore Rectangular Trampoline, MadFun
Eye Spy Assortment, LOL Surprise
Sportspower 8ft Trampoline by Sportspower, Geemac
R/C Blitz Wheeler, P&C Toys
Wicked – Glinda’s Bubble Wand, The Noble Collection
Xootz Dinosaur Bumper Car, Wilton Bradley
Earkins, Wild Republic
Sensory Square, HGL
Puppy Park, Magna-Tiles
Wooden Campervan, Jaques of London
Hooga Noble Wooden Dolls House, Hooga
Maddi Tiscoe, Head of Marketing at Click, which won three awards, said: “Independent toy retailers are the heartbeat of our industry, so to be recognised in this way means a great deal to us and our brand partners. Winning significant accolades across dolls, pocket money, and plush categories highlights the diversity and strength of our portfolio – and the hard work of our entire team to bring exciting, high-quality, and commercially successful products to market.”
Austin Marzan of Santoro, which won a gold for the second year running with its Pop & Builds line, said: “It’s so rewarding to see this new range of ours evolve and grow in popularity at retail, and to receive such recognition within the industry is wonderful. We’re continually trying to think outside the box with new launches, and this accolade will definitely spur us on to keep pushing those creative boundaries!”
Toy Shop UK founder Michael Hawkins said: “The Independent Toy Awards have always adapted to the habits of toy consumers, so launching a brand new and hotly contested kidult category this year has made the concept of a tablet category, which peaked in the 2010s, feel like an insanely long time ago. We’ve been blown away by the interest this year, both from our listers but especially from toy suppliers.”
The full list of winning products can be found at www.toyshopuk.co.uk/ita
