Stationery has written its way into the books of many a toy retailer, providing much needed impulse and bolt-on sales as well as strong opportunities for cross-category merchandising in-store.
Toy World speaks to a number of leaders in the Stationery space to find out where they draw their inspiration from and which of their ranges will rule this year.
According to Lianne Fletcher, head of Marketing at Maped Helix, the company has become a household name in Stationery thanks to its innovative and functional designs. The products – which take knowledge about how children learn and combine it with creative design flair – have injected a sense of fun into classrooms nationwide. This, in turn, inspires children to participate in their learning on a more profound level, which greatly improves the quality of their education in the process.
Stabilo, meanwhile, says it’s known for producing ‘pens with cult status’. Vanya Hunter, UK marketing manager, tells us that the company is a ‘pioneer of innovation’ with a huge range of products spanning writing to colouring (and everything in between) in an extraordinary variety of colours.
Relative newcomer Haico leans into colour when it comes to its packaging, which is designed by the company’s in-house team to ensure it really stands out at retail. Haico’s two stationery brands, KIWI and Mindful, cover everything from classic Back to School collections to specialist sensory stationery.
While Maped Helix, Stabilo and Haico offer generic stationery ranges, Blue Sky has a very broad portfolio of licensed goods that caters to a variety of demographics. So, broad, in fact, commercial director Gavin Holden tells us there are too many items to list: “We offer everything from early years properties such as Peppa Pig to core, evergreen Back to School licences including SpongeBob and Harry Potter. And older, Back to College groups are catered to with properties such as South Park, Beetlejuice and Emily in Paris.”
RMS International counts properties such as Barbie and Harry Potter among its own extensive licensed stationery portfolio, while IG Designs has a licensed stationery line-up that connects across all consumer segments, with ranges carefully curated to offer age-appropriate activities.
To find out about what else the companies had to say about the Stationery space and what is yet to come, read the full article, which appeared in the July edition of Toy World, here.
