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September 17, 2007

Toy story | A massive recall of China-made products bodes well for Maine's toymakers

By Samantha Depoy-warren
In early August, Sue and Bruce Dennison were driving to Virginia Beach to visit their grandchildren when the news broke that toy titan Mattel was recalling millions of its playthings after lead was discovered in the products' paint.

"We looked at each other and we just knew. We knew this was a very bad thing for Mattel and that it could have a huge impact on us," explains Sue Dennison, who with her husband owns Roy Toy, a maker of wooden toys in East Machias. "The first thing we did was call our son who manages our production. We told him to turn on the radio and make sure someone was there answering the phones because we knew they were going to start ringing."

Literally overnight, Roy Toy's website visits rose 500%. And two weeks after the recall, Dennison says the company ˆ— which makes log cabin building sets that are sold through major retailers like L.L.Bean, Cabela's and Restoration Hardware ˆ— had its busiest week ever. In just three days, Roy Toy filled more orders than it had during the first six months of the year.

"Our business has been affected tremendously," says Dennison. "We used to get two, three, maybe four inquiries a week asking if our products were made in the United States. Now, we're getting 10 or 15 a day. It's just been unbelievable."

The Dennisons and other small toy makers struggled throughout the 1990s to remain competitive with a Chinese toy manufacturing market that makes roughly 80% of the toys sold in the United States. The recall could be their rebirth.

Roy Toy has four full-time employees, and traditionally brings in 10 seasonal workers in September to fill holiday orders. Within days of the recall, Dennison called in those seasonal workers early, and is advertising at the Machias CareerCenter in hopes of adding even more employees to the payroll.

"We're running at 100% capacity for the first time in a long time," she says. "We usually have just one shift but now we're looking to have two or three."

A competitive edge
Roy Toy uses food-safe dyes to color its toys and all the company's products ˆ— and even its packaging ˆ— are made in the United States. Now, it's a selling point Roy Toy's owners are taking to the bank. Since the recall, Dennison has ordered "Made 100% in the U.S.A." stickers for all of the company's packaging. "All over the website and on the packages it says our toys are made in the U.S., but these stickers will help put that information right in the customer's face so they don't have to go looking for it," she explains. "People are not going to stop buying toys. They are just going to work harder to ensure that the toys are safe, and that means knowing they're made in America."

As safety questions leave customers concerned, Kathleen Tutone, owner of Treehouse Toys which has storefronts on Exchange Street in Portland and in Portsmouth, N.H., says she's noticed more customers inquiring about how safe a product is and where it was made.

"People haven't changed their buying habits too terribly much," she says. "But they are asking questions."

She sees the recall as an opportunity to better educate her customers on the stringent safety testing of toys she sells. And she stresses that many toys made in China are still safe. (Tutone adds that Treehouse Toys does not sell any Mattel products.)

"We want to help make people feel more comfortable about the toys they are buying," she says. "We want our customers to understand that the toys we sell are heavily scrutinized for safety. There are still guardians out there protecting our children."

While Roy Toy's sales surge, some Maine toy makers sell specialty products that are immune from recall repercussions. William John Woods, owner of Oqunquit Wooden Toy, has been crafting wooden toys and baby rattles for three decades and admits he wasn't even aware of the Mattel recall until weeks after it had been announced.

His website, which comes up tops on a Google search for "wooden baby rattles," features photos of beaming babies suckling on rattles that glisten thanks to the polished patinas brought on by coats of natural walnut oil and beeswax. He sells about 1,200 rattles a year at $20 a pop, and has customers around the world. "I don't see these recalls as having a positive or a negative effect on people like me who have a strong following and a unique product," he says. "People have always viewed a toy as a disposable item, but people who buy from me appreciate a quality handcrafted item."

But like Dennison and Tutone, Woods hopes the recall will serve as a reminder to buy local products. "The toy recalls are on top of everything else ˆ— the pet food, the produce, the toothpaste," Dennison says. "It used to be people bought toys made in the U.S. as a way of supporting American businesses. Now people are buying toys made here because they know they are safe. For the first time in a long time, U.S. manufacturers are going to have the edge."

Samantha DePoy-Warren, a writer in Farmington, can be reached at editorial@mainebiz.biz.

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