Your own life is the best inspiration for your game and toy ideas. While it can be from something like your educational background or profession, it doesn’t have to be anything complicated. Just think of the best times with your friends and family and you might come up with an idea. Today’s podcast guest did just that. Today’s guest is Greg Watson. Greg has actually been on the podcast before! In episode 72 you heard him talking about working with a distributor to get your toy or game into retai...
Jun 29, 2022•43 min•Ep 132•Transcript available on Metacast Is your toy idea begging to see the spotlight? Do you have a game idea swimming around in your imagination? You may be a burgeoning toy inventor! However, if you are ready to fully flesh out your toy idea, brand, and marketing, you may be a toy entrepreneur. What is the difference between these two toy industry tracks? You will find out that and more on today’s episode of Making it in the Toy Industry. Today’s guest is Toy Creators Academy alumni Chrissy Fagerholt. After a career as a floral des...
Jun 22, 2022•48 min•Transcript available on Metacast At the beginning of June, The Toy Coach was invited to give a keynote speech at the Science Museum Oklahoma’s Inspire and Be Inspired Event. This 2nd annual Convening of Makers and Educators is presented by Oklahoma EPSCoR. This weekend provided STEAM educators, artists, and makers an opportunity to inspire and be inspired as they connected to share ideas and resources. The creative community learned, laughed, and explored great ideas together. The museum is over 390K square feet of creative exh...
Jun 15, 2022•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Have you ever struggled with the idea of promoting your brand on social media? Well lucky for you, today’s podcast episode focuses on how to make social media marketing fun! Our guest is a graphic designer and all-around creative gal who knows the power of creativity and playfulness in marketing. Deanna uses humor and empathy to help her clients feel more comfortable being themselves while marketing their business and connecting with their ideal clients. In today’s podcast episode we talk about ...
Jun 08, 2022•49 min•Transcript available on Metacast If you have a brand or product you should consider adding licensing to your business model. Licensing is a great way for toy manufacturers to borrow the authority of powerful brands and grow their own revenue. A great licensing deal can help growing brands expand to various consumer goods categories while avoiding the added cost of manufacturing. If you’re ready to learn more about how licensing can benefit your toy business, you should consider attending the Las Vegas Licensing Expo next year. ...
Jun 01, 2022•47 min•Transcript available on Metacast The Toy Coach’s entrepreneurial journey didn’t start in toys, but instead it started in fashion. In 2012 Azhelle Wade, aka The Toy Coach created a fashion brand called Costumize Me. What started as a made to order costume company, evolved into a convertible event wear brand with the tag line 1 dress 100 ways to wear. The story of Azhelle building a brand in an industry she knew nothing about is one that she is excited to share with you on the podcast today, because it’s one that you can probably...
May 25, 2022•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast The Toy Coach’s entrepreneurial journey didn’t start in toys, but instead it started in fashion. In 2012 Azhelle Wade, aka The Toy Coach created a fashion brand called Costumize Me. What started as a made to order costume company, evolved into a convertible event wear brand with the tag line 1 dress 100 ways to wear. The story of Azhelle building a brand in an industry she knew nothing about is one that she is excited to share with you on the podcast today, because it’s one that you can probably...
May 18, 2022•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast Today’s podcast guest has been called The Godfather of Toys and is a social media icon in the collectors toy space. Jeremey’s journey in toys started at a clothing and toy store called Only Kids in Memphis, Tennessee. In today’s episode Jeremy provides advice on “making it” in the corporate toy world and what it takes to be an entrepreneur. You’ll learn the difference between collectibles both physical and digital, and yep that means we talk about NFTs! The consistent theme in today’s episode is...
May 11, 2022•55 min•Transcript available on Metacast All across the globe we are seeing a massive increase in prices and reduction in quality. In fact it’s so prevalent, it has a few nicknames. Shrinkflation and Skimpflation are two practices of reducing the quality of goods and services to maintain margin, and reducing the actual contents of goods and quality of services while increasing the cost. Customers have noticed the change in gas prices, groceries and now even our toys. If you are a new entrepreneur, inventor, or toy maker you may think t...
May 04, 2022•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Mission driven toy creators like Julie Dini have one major goal in common. It’s to improve the lives of the kids and families that interact with their products. Today on The Toy Coach Podcast, our guest Julie Dini shares her toy journey from handmade prototype to recurring sales online. Julie’s product, Dealing In Feelings, helps kids understand simple to complex emotions through identification and gameplay! Learn what it takes to launch a product from concept to manufacturing and find out why t...
Apr 27, 2022•31 min•Ep 123•Transcript available on Metacast Have you ever wanted to throw in that towel on your toy dreams? Maybe you’ve been on the hunt for your dream toy job, or perhaps you’ve been working on developing and launching an amazing new toy idea. You might also be a new toy inventor struggling to make contact with a toy company that you have the perfect idea for. After months or years of non-stop hard work you might be feeling mentally, emotionally, and even physically exhausted. Well, before you give up on those big dreams of yours, give ...
Apr 20, 2022•36 min•Ep 122•Transcript available on Metacast If you’ve been a listener of The Toy Coach podcast for a while now, you may have grown comfortable with the format of the show. But today’s episode is a small break from the toyspirational education that you’ve gotten used to. With The Toy Coach out sick, her fiance Christian Castro stepped up to the mic to share upcoming changes that are coming for The Toy Coach Podcast, Community, Emails, and our signature program, Toy Creators Academy. At the very end of today’s episode, Christian shares with...
Apr 13, 2022•8 min•Transcript available on Metacast A logo is not the most important part of your toy business. A logo holds NO meaning without a strong product or service behind it. Knowing that is true, should help alleviate the pressure of designing or selecting the perfect logo for your toy brand. Your logo can evolve and change as your company evolves, and it can still maintain the brand recognition of powerhouse brands like Barbie, Hasbro, and Google. In today’s podcast episode The Toy Coach dives into the meaning of a Logo. You’ll learn wh...
Apr 06, 2022•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast Are you struggling with developing the perfect package for your toy or game product? As toy or game creators you spend a lot of time thinking about the amazing toy idea you have and the innovative game that you will create, but you likely don’t spend nearly enough time thinking about the packaging of your toy or game idea. Well today that changes! It’s time to learn toy and game packaging 101 with The Toy Coach. By The End Of today’s Episode You will know the anatomy of great toy and game packag...
Mar 30, 2022•47 min•Transcript available on Metacast Wondering if there are any manufacturing options for you that are outside of China? More and more toy makers, toy creators, and even toy companies want to expand their manufacturing resources beyond China, but they don’t know where to start. Major toy companies and retailers have announced goals to move 30%-60% of their manufacturing of toy products out of China by 2023. And where will they move them? Likely India. India is an emerging country for manufacturing in general, but especially is a cu...
Mar 23, 2022•51 min•Ep 118•Transcript available on Metacast Do you know how to play? It seems like a simple question and your first thought might be, “of course I do!” but many adults today have forgotten how to play. As toy people, we know that play is necessary for the growth and development of children…but what about play in adults? Play is proven to help ease stress and inspire creative problem solving. So what do you do when the stresses of life stop you from playing or worse yet, you forget what play is to you? Well that’s where my guest today migh...
Mar 16, 2022•47 min•Transcript available on Metacast Do you have an idea, and maybe even a prototype for a toy invention, but are wondering how to get it in front of toy industry executives? You’re not alone. This is something some toy inventors struggle with. Today’s episode is all about some things you can do to make that happen, and they might be surprising to you. I interviewed Daniela Valenzuela Bomchil, a recent student of the Toy Creators Academy. When Daniela came to the academy, I noticed that her prototypes were impeccable, and she was s...
Mar 09, 2022•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Wondering what toy entrepreneurs like you do to get their product placed in retail? In this episode, The Toy Coach sits down with Nicole Hawthorne, student of Toy Creators Academy and co-founder of Jaylas Heirlooms dolls. Nicole is a researcher at heart, and her devotion to the craft of Googling helped her find the roadmap that she so desperately wanted. Nicole shares how she devoured the podcast way back in season one, enjoying episode after episode. A few years and a few grants later, Nicole J...
Mar 03, 2022•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Did you recently discover the Toy Coach and are looking for help on how to break into the Toy Industry? Well this is the perfect episode for you. Today, The Toy Coach is sharing a presentation and step-by-step roadmap on How To Break Into Toys. The lessons taught in today's episode are applicable if you are hoping to be a toy inventor, entrepreneur or find a corporate toy job. In today’s episode you’ll learn two ways to educate yourself in the toy industry from traditional to digital. The T...
Feb 23, 2022•30 min•Ep 114•Transcript available on Metacast Does this sound like you? You have a life outside the toy industry, but you have ideas. Maybe you are a lawyer, a baker, or even a mechanical engineer. But there’s something from your daily life or playtime with your family that has inspired an idea for a toy or game. How do you take that from inspiration to product? In today’s episode, I share stories from my students who took their products from idea to reality with the help of The Toy Creators Academy. Learn how a developmental child psycholo...
Feb 16, 2022•33 min•Transcript available on Metacast Listener Erika wrote in asking how you can “Make It” in the toy industry when you’re just starting out with ZERO contacts. So, for today’s episode we will dive into 3 networking strategies that will help you jump start your toy network to connect with toy brands and toy people. Networking is best done when you don’t need anything because Networking is essentially lending a helping hand, making another person's day a little brighter or their load a little lighter so that they hold you and yo...
Feb 09, 2022•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Whether or not you’re completely addicted to Wordle, the simple online word game that recently got bought by the NYTimes for 7 figures, you’ve probably heard of it. Even if you haven’t heard of it, you’ve probably seen people posting cryptic social media statuses about it with green, grey, and yellow squares. It’s the latest viral fad that everyone is talking about. But, this isn’t the first time a toy or game has had it’s moment in the sun or 15 minutes of fame. In today’s episode, I examine 3 ...
Feb 02, 2022•24 min•Ep 111•Transcript available on Metacast Have you ever wanted to pick the brain of an award winning toy inventor? Ever wanted to know how iconic toys, like BopIt, got their start? Today you will get that chance! This episode is so helpful if you dream of creating the next big thing, if you want to learn more about pitching, or just want to hear about why you should be marketing their products on Tik Tok. Today’s episode features an incredible interview with the amazing Dan Klitsner, the inventor of BopIt, Simon, and Hyper Dash, and a c...
Jan 26, 2022•59 min•Transcript available on Metacast Finding a platform or opportunity to pitch your toy or game idea to an industry professional seems like an impossible task, especially if you have no previous experience or contacts within the toy industry. But what if you could be invited to a one-on-one meeting with a major toy manufacturer like Mattel or Spinmaster? What if before that meeting you could go through weeks of training and research to develop and polish your concept with the help of like-minded individuals? Well my friend, that i...
Jan 19, 2022•35 min•Ep 109•Transcript available on Metacast Do you find yourself putting off the repetitive daily tasks for your toy business? Did you ever wish there was a magical solution that could automate those tedious processes? Well, there is one! Today’s episode is all about saving yourself time and money using an incredible automation tool called Zapier. I personally use this tool to automate some of my Toy Coach processes and I have found it so helpful. My guest today is Kelly Goss, a Zapier certified expert and the founder of Solvaa, a company...
Jan 12, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Transcript available on Metacast Pitching as a toy inventor can be an intimidating process, especially if you’ve never done it before. But what if you could get the inside scoop from an industry executive at a major toy company? Just imagine if someone from, say, Hasbro, told you exactly what pitching to their company is like, step-by-step. Or, if they let you know exactly what they want to see in your sizzle reel. Stop imagining! Because that is what today’s episode is all about. Today’s episode features an incredible intervie...
Jan 05, 2022•1 hr 4 min•Transcript available on Metacast How can you weave your own personal story into your product and make a powerful connection? Telling potential buyers the reason behind your product or idea can increase interest and ultimately, success. Today’s guest, Cher Hale, founder of Gingko PR, shares her experience in helping diverse clients do exactly this. She also shares how she diversified her network and started working with the types of clients that she wanted to help to get their stories out there. Cher shares her moving story abou...
Dec 29, 2021•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast With the Great Resignation of 2021 companies struggled to retain talent. And some companies more specifically recognized their inability to retain diverse talent. Noting that diversity is a major factor to innovation, many companies are in search of a way to attract and retain diverse talent on their teams. But how can they make that happen? If you are a company seeking to retain diverse talent, or you are a person of color struggling to grow at your current employer, this episode is one you can...
Dec 22, 2021•58 min•Transcript available on Metacast Want to know how to protect your products and intellectual property when dealing with Chinese manufacturers? Dan Harris, a lawyer who specializes in International law, with a focus on China, gives you extremely detailed insider tips in today’s episode. I learned a lot and I know you will too. Dan tells you why you should go with an NNN agreement versus a typical NDA when dealing with Chinese firms. He also gives great details about the most common mistakes American inventors and toy companies ma...
Dec 15, 2021•54 min•Transcript available on Metacast Are you sure that toy you got is the real deal? The holiday shopping season brings lots of people to look for the trendy “it” toy their kids are begging for, as well as fun games and collectibles for adults. However, counterfeit toys are on the rise. Counterfeit toys are a multi-billion dollar industry. Some people who purchase counterfeit toys do so purposely to save money, but others just see a good deal and assume it is the real thing. Luckily, there are all sorts of things you can do to prot...
Dec 08, 2021•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
