Having made it this far and waded through all the complexities and caveats, if you still want to be in the toy business then you might just have the intestinal fortitude it demands. All kidding aside, there are many paths to a career in the toy industry. An undergraduate degree in business, marketing, or communications can be helpful, and an MBA is a requirement if you want to be an analyst. It doesn’t hurt to have some experience in research and an understanding of product management and manufacturing.
If you want to be in design or development, you’ll need an understanding of engineering, design, and marketing. There are two programs that specialize in toys—Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles and at The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. Both of these programs have exceptional success at getting graduates placed in toy companies.
For either of these tracks you’ll also need a working knowledge of child development, and an understanding of popular culture and sociology can’t hurt. The nature of the toy business, as we’ve said, is that it reflects the culture, so your job is to find ways to reflect those trends in ways that are cognitively appropriate for the children you’re intending them for.
And then there’s coming up with your own ideas. This is more challenging than you might think. It’s about as easy to go into your room and write a hit screenplay as it is to create a successful toy on your own. The fact of the matter is that, like screenplays, more toys don’t make it than do, and by make it we mean turn a profit. Still, toy companies rely on outside ideas. Most large toy companies have an inventor relations department that works with outside submissions. You’ll probably need an agent or an alliance with a development company, however. You could work your heart out on building a model and designing a toy and send it in to a company only to have it returned unopened. It’s not that you have a terrible idea.
Most companies have strict policies about accepting submissions and will tell you readily that they may be working on something that is similar. If you get so far as a meeting with a toy company, you may very well be asked to sign something acknowledging that they may have something in the works that is similar to what you’re proposing. Since you can’t trademark an idea, it’s very difficult to protect your concept. If there are elements of your concept that can be patented, whether a design patent or a utility patent, it’s best to have that at least in process before you start to shop your concept. Oh, and you should be aware that companies may also have people known as “patent breakers.” These are engineers who are able to get around a patent and still have something perform a similar function. You’re going to need a good lawyer if you decided to go it on your own.
Lest this seem too dark, companies value their relationship with the inventor community and are often in partnership with inventors who either make royalties on their creations or sell them outright. The relationship between inventors and toy companies can be very profitable for both, but to make it there, you’ll need to build relationships and a track record.
Finally, you’ll need to go through all the processes here to make sure your concept is viable. Remember, as we’ve said, the toy industry reflects the culture, so knowing where something has succeeded before or is established in the current adult culture is a key to creating something that will work in the toy industry. Given the number of toys that are introduced in any year, over time the number that have truly changed the industry are very few and far between.
Still, while there are many in the industry today who would warn you off it, this is still one of the most exciting, creative, and engaging businesses you can be in. It can be a heck of a ride, but it’s worth it to get to play all day every day.