TOYNEWS PARENT NETWORK Colour change
It’s no longer a case of pink for girls and blue for boys at Toys R Us, with the retailer confirming it is dropping gender signage in-store. A move which is emphatically supported by members of our Parent Network, as Billy Langsworthy discovers
NEWS THAT Toys R Us is joining the Let Toys Be Toys campaign by dropping gender labelling from stores has provoked a mass response from our readers. The ToyNews Parent
Network believes the move is great news for pre- school shopping, with many claiming it will open a wider variety of toys up to their toddlers. “We are living in the 20th century where same sex couples can now be married, so why can't little boys push toy buggies?” says Jade Lewendon from Unique Young Mum. “It means I could
purchase a wider range of items as my two year old nephew loves pushing things around. “I searched high and low
in Toys R Us for a blue or cream buggy but he ended up having a pink one. Pink is associated as a girl’s colour, so why not make blue or cream ones too?” Susanna Scott of A Modern Mother added: “It’s fabulous and long overdue. It's a bold and visionary step for a brand and will help to dispel stereotypes. More retailers should follow in their footsteps.” Some of our Network also believes the move will make the shopping experience more fun for children.
“I think gender labelling
of toys is unnecessary, but especially so for younger children,” said Toy Tattle’s Laura Robinson. “Browsing through shops, catalogues or online with my children, nieces and nephews, will be much more inclusive, and much more fun.” It’s a feeling echoed by
Actually Mummy’s Helen Wills and Susan Mann of
SusanKMan.com. “As a parent, I think it's a
good thing. 62 October “Not because I have a
problem with pink for girls, but because any boy who likes to play with stereotypical girl toys is going to get stick for it along the way, or feel uncomfortable,” Wills told ToyNews. Mann states: “I think it's
excellent news, having two boys, one of whom loves pink, loved dolls and buggies and was always ridiculed for liking supposedly girls toys. “Women drive cars, why can't girls play with cars. I never went for the gender labels anyway. My son had dolls and prams and my baby girl has a toy car.” Aside from the potential benefits to children, the move will also make parents feel more comfortable when shopping, claims Mellow Mummy’s Emma Button. “This is fabulous as I
often feel guilty if I buy my daughter a toy that was specifically labelled for a boy or specifically coloured in 'boy' colours.” With Toys R Us receiving plaudits for joining other retailers backing the campaign, Steffi Bach from Cartside believes the move indicates the retailer is shedding a commonly used marketing ploy. “The gendering of toys is
a marketing ploy to sell more,” she tells ToyNews. “A family has a boy first, buys toys in blue, and then has a girl and feels they have to buy the same toy again in pink because girl may not want to play with a blue toy.
“Kids do pick up that pink
is for girls and blue for boys early, in my experience somewhere between ages two and a half and three. This leads to parents being out of pocket, and more plastic toys in landfill.
Women drive cars, why can’t girls play with cars? Susan Mann
“Not gendering them
would allow children to freely choose what they want to play with rather than what a toy company has decided is appropriate for them to play with. “It gives choice back to
the children,” Bach concludes.
www.toynews-online.biz
If you are interested in joining the ToyNews Parent Network, simply email
Billy.Langsworthy@
intentmedia.co.uk for further details.
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