Toy Expert and America’s Savvy Auntie®,
Melanie Notkin, Reveals the
2013 Savvy Auntie Coolest Toy Award
Winners
New York, NY – November
8, 2013 – Melanie
Notkin, founder and CEO of Savvy Auntie,
the multiplatform lifestyle brand for aunts by relation, aunts by choice and
godmothers, announces her 5th annual list of coolest toys for the 2013 holiday season. In all, 21 toys have
made the coveted list this year.
Notkin is the
tribal leader for the underrepresented influential niche of American women whom
she’s dubbed “Savvy Aunties.” This powerful demographic of PANKs®
(Professional Aunts No Kids) has a strong desire to make the most savvy toy
choices each season. With many toy marketers and toy lists focusing on primary
caregivers, Notkin created the Savvy
Auntie Coolest Toy Awards in 2009 to give aunts and other secondary
caregivers the toy-savvy they need to make the best gift choices for the
children in their lives. Savvy Aunties may be secondary caregivers, but they
are primary gift givers.
Notkin’s annual
toy list certainly helps Aunties maintain that “Cool Aunt” status. And Notkin’s
toy list also fosters what she’s playfully dubbed: “QualAuntie Time.” The
playtime time an Auntie spends with a niece or nephew of any age is quality
time - often uninterrupted playtime - an important part of any baby and child’s
developmental growth. Studies show that
from pretend play as babies and toddlers to social development and problem
solving as big kids, toys that children enjoy playing with are often an
important part of their development. Savvy Aunties are giving kids gifts they
crave as well as giving them the opportunity to develop necessary skills
through having fun.
As a respected toy expert, Notkin meets with toy manufactures and industry
analysts to discover the year’s ground-breaking toys – the ones on the top of
most nieces’ and nephews’ lists. “I find the most buzzed about toys based on
industry outlooks, toy quality, strong pop culture tie-ins, modern twists on
the classics - and then I add a little of my own “Savvy Auntuition” to produce
this list each year,” Notkin says. “The toys children want to play with the
most are the definitely the coolest toy choices an aunt can make.”
2013 Savvy Auntie Coolest Toy Award
Winners
There are 21 winners in all,
sorted by age range. For more information on each award winner and ‘Why Savvy
Auntie Loves It’, visit SavvyAuntie.com/ToyAwards.
Please note: prices may vary throughout the holiday season.
Ages 1+
VTech:
Go! Go! Smart Wheels - Train Station Playset, Ages 1-3 ($49.99)
Playskool:
Sesame Street Big Hugs Elmo, Ages 1-3 ($49.99)
Ages 2+
Mattel: Disney
Sofia The First Talking Sofia and Animal Friends, ages 2-8 ($28.99)
Mattel: Disney
Planes Wing Control Dusty Crophopper Radio Control Plane, ages 2-7
Ages 3+
Fisher-Price
Imaginext Batcave, ages 3-8 ($32.99)
Just
Play: Doc McStuffins Deluxe Get Better Check-Up Center, ages 3-5
Mattel:
Barbie® Dreamhouse® (New Version), Ages 3-8 ($189.99)
LeapFrog
LeapPad Ultra Tablet, ages 4-9 ($149.99)
Ages 4+
Playmates:
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles RC Control Shellraiser, Ages 4-9 ($49.99)
Spinmaster:
Zoomer, Ages 4 and up, ($99.00)
Thinkway:
Despicable Me 2 8-inch Talking Minion – Dave, Ages 4-11 ($34.99)
Spinmaster:
Flutterbye Flying Fairy Doll, Ages 4-8 ($27.44)
Blip
Toys: Disney Princess Palace Pets Spa Playset, Ages 4-6 (29.99)
Ages 6+
LEGO
Friends Heartlake High, Ages 6-12 (39.99)
Ages 8+
Rainbow
Loom, Ages 8 and up (19.99)
Mattel
Hot Wheels® Car Maker, Ages 8-10 ($49.99)
Nerf®
Rebelle Heartbreaker Bow Phoenix, Ages 8 and up ($15.99)
LEGO
Legends of Chima Cragger's Command Ship, Ages 8-14 ($89.99)
Ages
10+
LEGO
Minecraft, Ages 10+ (34.99)
Activision
Publishing, Inc: Skylanders: SWAP Force Starter Pack, Ages 10+ ($74.99)
Disney
INFINITY Starter Pack, Age 10+ ($74.99)
Each winning toy is listed
on SavvyAuntie.com/Gifts with links to an online retailer and an “Ask a Parent”
button to help ensure parental approval when needed. The winning toys earn a
2013 Savvy Auntie Coolest Award Winner seal for promotional purposes,
attracting the PANK demographic with Notkin’s ‘stamp of approval.’
###
About
Savvy Auntie
Founded by Melanie Notkin,
Savvy Auntie is the multi-platform lifestyle brand that empowers and engages
aunts, serving the PANK demographic discovered and coined by Notkin, and
heralded by fabulous kid-loving women everywhere as a modern celebration of Aunthood.
Notkin launched SavvyAuntie.com in 2008 and it remains the first and only
resource and online community for this demographic. The brand also includes a
popular and engaged social media following, Auntie’s Day® - a national day
founded by Notkin to honor aunts and godmothers, the Savvy Auntie Coolest Toy
Awards and Melanie Notkin’s national bestseller: Savvy Auntie: The Ultimate
Guide for Cool Aunts, Great-Aunts, Godmothers and all Women Who Love Kids
(Morrow 2011). As a lifestyle expert, toy expert and a taste-maker for
children’s trends, Notkin appears on TV and as a spokesperson for brands. For
more information, visit: SavvyAuntie.com.
Melanie Notkin appears on TV
as taste-maker for children’s trends and is available immediately as a
lifestyle expert for Holiday Gift Guide stories and TV segments, as well as
other child lifestyle expertise as needed.
For
additional information on the Savvy Auntie Coolest Toy Awards or on-air and
talent inquiries: Press@SavvyAuntie.com.