Toys ‘R’ Us unveils ‘green’ toys; Wal-Mart focuses on eco-friendly clothing, home goods
“Good Green Fun” is the theme of the latest marketing campaign at Toys “R” Us Inc., designed to promote a new line of toys the Wayne, N.J.-based retailer calls “eco-friendly.”
Wooden building blocks and pull toys, and dolls made with organic cotton will be labeled with a green “R” logo bearing the words “Recycle, Renew, Reuse, Re-think.” The retailer also is selling bio-degradable gift cards.
Toys “R” Us said the products will be available, grouped in special “green” sections of its stores, by Earth Day, April 22.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. also unveiled its green products Monday, but the nation’s largest retailer is focusing on clothing and home and garden products rather than toys. Wal-Mart is promoting T-shirts made from recycled plastic bottles, mulch from recycled tire rubber and natural cleaning products.
The spate of toy recalls last summer and fall, some of which involved high lead levels in painted and plastic toys, created a demand for natural, or chemical-free toys. A growing number of toy makers have rushed to fill that niche. Toy manufacturers also are looking at the profitable trend in organic foods and reasoning that parents who spend more for organic baby food will spend more for organic cotton dolls and natural wood trains.
The Toys “R” Us eco-friendly line represents a dramatic departure from most of the brightly colored plastic toys sold in Toys “R” Us stores. The wooden toys use natural, unpainted wood, and the toys are packaged in beige and earth-tone boxes. The packaging will be made out of materials that are at least 70 percent recycled.
Jim Silver, editor in chief of Toy Wishes magazine, called the eco-friendly line a smart move, although he said the toys probably will appeal to only a small segment of the toy-buying population.
By Joan Verdon
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