Crazes that took over Victorian schoolyards
IF your child’s fidget spinner is driving you crazy, it’s probably what you did to your parents with the Coke yoyo in the 80s or the Tamagotchi in the 90s. We look back at the hottest toys that have captivated kids.
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IF your child’s fidget spinner is driving you crazy, it’s probably what you did to your parents with the Coke yoyo in the 80s or the Tamagotchi in the 90s.
We look back at the hottest toys that have captivated kids across the past four decades.
Whether it was Hatchimals last year, Furby in the ‘90s or the yoyo in the ‘80s — they were all a must-have toy at their popularity peak.
RMIT University marketing expert Dr Con Stavros said the perfect toy is pocket-sized, affordable and visible to the public eye.
“If it looks cool it catches on quickly,” he said.
“Having a product that’s observable like the fidget spinner is often the reason for its success.
“These toys have often been around for a long time but for whatever reason social media allows these crazes to go viral very quickly.”
“With so much exposure we’ve seen the fidget spinner — like Pokémon Go — catch on simultaneously around the world.”
While the internet now plays a big part in a toy’s popularity, ultimately the influence of the so-called “cool kids” still decides what toys or activity becomes a craze.
“Kids are incredibly peer responsive and suffer from quite a bit of pressure to have the latest items and gadgets,” Dr Stavros said.
“Once a craze catches on in a schoolyard that transfers quickly to parents who then rush to go buy it.”
“Scarcity is also a big motivator as a fad creates the idea that you need to have it now or you’ll miss out.”
Here’s a list of some of the hottest toys to take off in the past 40 years:
FIDGET SPINNERS
Fidget spinners are the latest craze to captivate the attention of school kids.
Commonly used in the past to ease stress in people with learning difficulties, the typical model has two or three paddle-shaped blades and spins between fingers using a ball bearing.
They come in all sorts of colours, shapes and sizes, some even glowing in the dark.
HATCHIMALS
The IT-toy of 2016, Hatchimals are a furry interactive toy that self-hatches out of an egg.
Some look similar to penguins, while others have horns and antennas.
Hatchimals learn how to walk, talk, and play games as they go through the five stages of their life: egg, hatching, baby, toddler and kid.
LEGO
Lego never gets old. It’s been a flourishing brand since the 1930s and shows no signs of slowing down as it comes up with new ways to make interlocking blocks exciting.
While children can construct and create a world or their own, adults are also drawn to the intricate building plans and niche themes offered by Lego.
“Lego still has a place in the world of technology as it still feels as relevant now as it ever was,” Dr Stavros said.
“It has been clever in marketing itself not only as a fun activity but also as a learning experience which is multi-generational and allows parents to pass on their own nostalgic experience.”
LOOM BANDS
Every parent across the state was wearing a home crafted loom band bracelet in 2014.
Available in fluorescent, glitter and glow in the dark, loom bands simply involve using your fingers or a pegboard to create jewellery out of tiny rubber bands.
SHOPKINS
Believe it or not, these miniature supermarket products have practically been running off shelves across the country since 2014.
Allowing children to replicate their parents shopping experience, kids can pick up bags of frozen peas, toilet paper and dish washing liquid.
POKEMON GO
Seemingly an overnight sensation, Pokemon Go captivated the globe with the touch of a button last July.
It is an app that allows users to catch digital creatures in real locations out on the street.
While little is said of it now Dr Stavros said that Pokemon Go is still very much alive and popular among its diehard fans.
“If they continue bringing out new versions and updates it will continue to have some currency and relevancy,” he said.
“It was just the beginning as the virtual reality concept will be a huge market in the future.”
FOOTY CARDS
Footy cards are an ever-valuable playground currency.
They come in waves, particularly popular during the home-and-away season.
With the aspiration to make their dream team and fill up every slot in their card book, each child learns the art of bargaining and trading to best benefit their needs and absences.
“Kids loves to get immersed in collecting, classifying and trading,” Dr Stavros said.
“A lot of the good brands have notice kids love to function in their own world away from something their parents don’t fully understand and that’s a big part of the appeal.”
TAMAGOTCHIS
If you didn’t get an after school detention for leaving class to feed your Tamagotchi were you even there?
A handheld egg that ate, played and even died if left neglected provided kids born in the late 90s with a digital spin on the circle of life.
Keeping a Tamagotchi alive was hard work and children adored their pixelated baby like it was a family member.
FURBY
Furbies were an adorable gremlin like creature that learnt to speak English with the help of their owner.
Similarly to a baby animal, the Furby also reacted to pats on the back and being fed.
Originally released in 1998, the brand sold about 40 million furbies within the first three years.
TAZO DISKS
Tazos were collectable disks illustrated with cartoon characters that made your lunchtime packet of chips all the more exciting.
Tazos were the size of a 50 cent piece and were a giveaway in Frito- Lay’s snack foods, including Thins, Doritos and Cheezos chips.
The rarer the character the higher was the tazos worth in playground trading.
Thins potato chip sales were said to have risen by more than 80 per cent after the introduction of the collectable in Victoria.
BARBIE
Barbie is possibly the most iconic doll in history and still has many years in her to come.
The success of Barbie is pinned on Mattel’s ability to keep up to date with the latest fashions and respond to criticisms and concerns about Barbie’s body image.
“For long-term brands it’s about keeping things contemporary, it’s easier for children to move from product to product more quickly but they will come back to their favourites,” Dr Stavros said.
YOYO
Each successive generation of schoolchildren adds the yoyo to its bag of playground tricks. Simply made up of plastic and a piece string it has held its place as one of the most enduring toys of the twentieth century.
Learning to ‘walk the dog’ is a moment most children have shared with their parents.
“Some toys are timeless because they can bring out new additions, or they just never flame out entirely,” Dr Stavros said.
RUBIK’S CUBES
The Rubik’s cube is one of the most puzzling toys of all time.
Despite requiring endless amounts of patience, someone who can complete the Rubik’s cube is still considered pretty impressive on the modern-day playground.
Twenty- six brightly coloured cubes rotate on axes of the larger structure with the aim of having each face a different solid colour.
CABBAGE PATCH DOLLS
Cabbage Patch dolls were an obsession of a generation in the 80s, raking in around $2 billion in sales.
No two Cabbage Patch dolls were alike — they varied in skin colour, hair style, clothing, smile, freckles, and even dimple location.
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