The problem with going to the Toy Fair on press day is you have to avoid this lot trying to cuddle, high-five, kiss or generally chase you about! Mind you they are absolutly hillarious when trying to pass through a standard size door...
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| Run! |
Late last year our favourite toy manufacturer was taken over
by the huge Canadian toy company Spin Master. Little known to us in the UK, Spin Master is well known in the USA and Canada. With some good reason,
Meccano nuts, world wide, were getting ready for bad news.
Having been assured that would not be the case, I was
feeling a lot better. At last Meccano had the backing of a large multinational
toy company with the time and the expertise to make it work. The question to
ask from our point of view was, how? More strange, oblique, moves into such
things as the Gears of war? The relentless pursuit of ‘B’ list franchise such
as Tintin and Rabbids? Only time was going to tell.
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| This is the first thing you see when entering the Spin Mater stand |
Anyone who was worried about Spin Master’s commitment to the
brand can now rest easy in their beds. The stand revealed to The Press at the
London Toy Fair today is fronted with huge Meccano presence. Meccano is
obviously their flagship brand and they are proud of it! The stand presents its hospitality area at the front with the James May IOM TT Motorbike in
pride of place, for all to see, backed with very high quality graphics and
prominent branding.
Now the good bit…
No new Gears of War, no new Rabbids. In fact no new ranges
at all this year. This is hardly surprising given the time scale but there is
another reason. The plan is to concentrate on the more traditional Meccano,
initially expanding and reviving the Multimodels range, as the basic Meccano,
and treating the Evolution range as the more advanced stuff. The two ranges
being totally compatible if desired.
I said earlier there were no new Gears of War or Rabbids,
but much to my delight there were no old ones either! There was a selection of
Maxi Kits and the Turbo range has a new rally car.
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| Looking good the 12 model set... |
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| ...and from the 15 model set |
To the left and leading you into the stand, there are two
large displays the first one showing the Multimodels range with some new sets
including 12 and 15 model sets. The second display presented the existing
Evolution range and four new models for this year. The chopper bike and the
skid-steer digger we have already seen and are scheduled for release in the spring but there is a wheeled digger
(Affectionately known on-site as a Rubber
Duck) and a Forest Engine, a robust looking 4x4 with log handling
equipment. Both should be available in the autumn, in time for Christmas.
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| Forest Engine |
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| Excavator |
Ralph.
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