Sam Giltrow speaks to René Rozendal, director of Toys & Entertainment, Icecat, about how brands and retailers can benefit from listings in its digital catalogue.

When shoppers were forced to buy online during the Covid-19 lockdowns, many retailers and brands were left pondering how best to get across their product in a virtual store. Without being able to see and feel items in the flesh, customers could easily end up buying the wrong thing or discovering when it was delivered that it was not entirely what they were looking for. The toy industry was no exception.

Global syndicator of eCommerce product content Icecat, which was founded in the Netherlands in 1999, came to the rescue for many as it was able to convey product content online, sharing specifications, marketing text, images and videos related to their products.

And as buying habits change, René says the importance of having the right information, readily available for retailers to download at the click of a button, is more important than ever.

“The digital shopping experience is key as most people first go online before buying a product,” he says, going on to explain that Icecat’s catalogue hosts, in total, more than 26,000 brands and thousands of users that make use of the product content.

He also explains how Icecat can help retailers, which host their web shops on different eCommerce platforms, with various plug-ins, so they are easily able to retrieve the content and integrate it on their web shop pages.

Retailers and brands wanting to find out more about the company and what it offers can click here.

To read the full article on Icecat in the November issue of Toy World click here.