WORKING WITH INVENTORS Pitch perfect
Having heard fi rst hand accounts from inventors over the last few issues, this month Hasbro, Coiledspring and Green Board Games tell Billy Langsworthy their experiences of working with inventors
A TOY company is only as good as its products, and behind every hit toy is a creative inventor. But exactly how close do
today’s toy fi rms work with inventors, both in-house and freelance, and for all the ideas that companies listen to, how many
against current business objectives and steer the best submissions to manufacturers like Hasbro.” And even with help managing the number of submissions, the fi rm still recieves over 3,000 ideas each year, with around a third of those considered.
with new products, from inception to seeding, need to adhere to a strict legal process, which protects the product, and you as the inventor, as well as Hasbro as a business,” adds Hasbro. “Because of this, on
average around 20 to 30 new incremental inventor items
can protect their ideas and for us
to select the best game ideas,” says Green Board Games CEO Keith Graf am. “A budding inventor can
get in touch with us is by following the instructions on the website. “As we invent, design and
create the majority of our games in-house, we tend to only take a few titles from other inventors a year. “We receive roughly 50 to
actually progress to the next level? It may be surprising to hear due to the company’s size but Hasbro does accept suggestions from budding inventors. Having done so for
years, the company now boasts a global network of established toy inventors and technologists.
“Many products aren’t
presented back for various reasons including a shift in our business priorities,” continues Hasbro. “It is our role to fi nd new
play experiences for every brand within Hasbro and every age group. “We need to deliver ideas and products that go above and beyond what
“Anomia came to us because our name kept coming up when people
were asking for recommendations.” Roger Martin, Coiledspring Games
However, due to the number of submissions the fi rm receives, Hasbro works with a network of brokers worldwide to help manage the fl ow. “For UK inventors, we
would advise them to visit the Toy & Hobby Association website (
www.btha.co.uk),” a Hasbro spokesperson explains to T
oyNews. “These agents are
extremely useful for a number of reasons but they will fi lter opportunities
www.toynews-online.biz
you would expect so we are extremely open to ‘alternative’ proposals. “If you get the right combination, it can lead to a radical new toy introduction so it is a hugely exciting process to be involved in.” With around 1,000 ideas considered by Hasbro per year, a number of factors then help to strip that fi gure down to a smaller pool of ideas which seriously progress. “It should also be noted that the fl ow and timing
seriously progress within the company each year.” Elsewhere, Coiledspring has a site for inventors to get in touch, but MD Roger Martin has seen an increase in inventors that are only looking for distribution. “Surprisingly we don’t
get as many prototypes as we do people who have self-published and are looking for distribution.” Martin tells T
oyNews. “On the publishing side
with inventors who need a publisher, we only currently get a handful as we only started publishing in 2013 and we’ve not done a lot of shouting about it. “However we’ve got four
more games in the pipeline and had meetings with games inventors demoing their prototypes to us at UK Games Expo.” Even companies that
predominately create their own games are open to contributions, as demonstrated by Green Board Games. “We have a dedicated
page on our website for inventors which provides information on how they
60 game ideas per year. In the last year we have taken two games, Word Bits and 10 Up, from a German inventor and have a new game in development from a Danish inventor.” As well as the launch of a potentially successful new toy, many companies have found collaborations with inventors leads to long lasting partnerships and relationships. “Over the past few years a lot of the partnerships we have formed have been, and continue to be, success stories,” says Hasbro. “For example, Bop-It (KID
Group, LLC), Furby (Levy, Chung & Hamilton) and Telepods (RETOY).” Coiledspring’s Martin
adds: “Anomia, one of the games we launched at UK Games Expo, came to us because our name kept coming up when people were asking for
recommendations. We’re really pleased with it, as is the inventor.”
T
oyNews is launching an event to help bring more toy companies and inventors together. The Toy & Game Inventors
Workshop is a new one-day conference and business- networking event for budding toy and game inventors. The event will provide
delegates with the chance to get their inventions in front of leading toy manufacturers, distributors and retailers. For sponsorship opportunities, email Jodie.
Holdway@intentmedia.co.uk
A WORD OF ADVICE:
Roger Martin, MD, Coiledspring Games
“Talk to as many people in the industry as you can, as they’ll be able to suggest publishing companies who are a good fi t for your product and your personality.”
Hasbro spokesperson: “Attend international toy and gaming fairs at various times throughout the year. The ability to network with fellow inventors can be fruitful in many ways including the possibility of partnering, co- creation and potential alternative route to get your idea to market.”
Keith Graf am, CEO, Green Board Games
“Our advice is never give up, keep creating, always consider who will buy it, why they will want to play it and how much they will pay for it. A great game has to be commercially viable.”
July 27
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