Wednesday, July 1, 2015

2015 Holiday Plush Toy Catalog



Click Here for Digital Flip Catalog 
Click Here for Pricing

Tuesday, June 9, 2015

PLUSH TOY CASE STUDY #1: Healthcare Industry

   
    A hospital group decided building a brand character would be a good way to embed the hospital name and core messaging.  They developed a character named Reege.  Reege got his name from Regions Hospital.  Reege is a friendly guy that often encounters difficult life situations.  Reege has big "Goose Egg" on his head as visual reminder of the troubles he has faced in his life.

    Reege first took life in the form of a walk around mascot. He has been seen playing the piano in the hospital lobby.  Sometimes he goes for a walk in the mall.  Reege has his own Facebook page and lots of fans.  Reege's famous tag line is,  "Ouch....Take Me To Regions Hospital!"




   This character became so popular the hospital group cloned him in the form of 5,000 pcs custom plus toy with a sound chip.   Reege has helped spread the hospital's message of healthy living and better decision making at community events for many years.

    All healthcare providers want to remind people to make better decisions for their life. This can be done easily with friendly soft teddy bear gifts for new patients, supper soft pillow surgery gifts, or completely custom character that becomes a spokesman for your organization.

Monday, June 1, 2015

NEW PRODUCT RELEASE: Direct Embroidery or Print Bears

Remove the stuffing from our new line plush toys.
It allows direct embroidery and printing.

No minimums on blank product and 24 pcs. minimum on decorated product.

Inspiring the Use of Plush Toys In Advertising!


Custom Plush Toys / + 2,000 In Stock Styles / Safety Tested Guaranteed
 
"Follow us" on:                        for inspiring plush toy promotions. 
  1405 S. Albert Street, Allentown, PA  18103  / 484-788-0888 / info@artistictoy.com

Monday, February 2, 2015

Artistic Toy Honored with PPAI Supplier Achievement Award

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Jim Socci
484-788-0888 
ARTISTIC TOY HONORED FOR EXCELLENCE
IN PRODUCT INNOVATION AND DESIGN

Allentown, PA, February 2, 2015 – Artistic Toy Manufacturing, Inc., won the Gold Level in the 2015 Suppliers Achievement Award Competition sponsored by Promotional Products Association International (PPAI). Fifty-five Gold and Silver winners were recognized at the PPAI Awards Presentation & Reception held January 13, 2015 at the House of Blues in conjunction with The PPAI Expo in Las Vegas.
Winners of PPAI Suppliers Achievement Award are honored for their superiority in craftsmanship, graphic arts, creativity, innovation and service. These winners were selected by a panel of industry professionals along with independent, print, marketing and advertising professionals.
"PPAI is pleased to recognize Artistic Toy with the distinguished Suppliers Achievement Award,” said Paul Bellantone, CAE, president and CEO at PPAI. "Through its leadership and commitment to superior service, creativity, craftsmanship and innovation, Artistic Toy is leading our industry with a broad offering of products and decorating solutions that deliver impactful promotional messaging in the most powerful way.”
Artistic Toy was presented a Gold Level for the 2015 PPAI Suppliers Achievement Award in the category of Character Mascot Development. For more information about the PPAI awards program visit www.ppai.org/awards or contact the PPAI Awards and Recognition department at awards@ppai.org.
About Artistic Toy
Artistic Toy designs, decorates, and manufacturers stuffed toys used for corporate advertising.  Unlike other toy companies they only sell through a network of independent distributors and promotional consultants. They sew and stitch stuffed toy prototypes in the U.S. that go on to be mass produced in overseas factories.  They also warehouse and decorate thousands of different styles of stuffed animals that are delivered in a matter of days. For more information visit www.artistictoy.com and find them on Twitter @artistictoy, Facebook, YouTube and Pinterest.
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Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Jim Kelley Receives PPB Customer Service Superhero Award

The Fixer | Jim Kelley |Production Supervisor 

Artistic Toy Manufacturing, Inc. (UPIC: ARTSTOY)
Allentown, Pennsylvania | Years At Artistic Toy: 2-1/2
Nominated by Katrina Marshall and Jim Socci, Artistic Toy Manufacturing, Inc.
Why Jim Is A Superhero: “Jim goes above and beyond every single day,” says Katrina Marshall, account manager at Artistic Toy. “His day rarely begins at 9 am and never ends at 5 pm—he often works early mornings, late nights and even weekends to make sure our orders ship on time. Jim doesn’t let his job title define who he is or what he does; he is often thinking outside the box by offering suggestions to the sales team or coming up with innovative marketing ideas. Our team always appreciates Jim’s efforts to help the company save money and cut costs in any way possible. He encourages his team to focus on quality over quantity, yet still manages to meet every one of our customers’ demands.” Jim Socci, president of the company, adds to the accolades. “Every superhero overcomes incredible odds. Jim Kelley has done just that. He started off as production associate [almost] three years ago. Over the past year he has demonstrated heroic levels of humility, strength and compassion. His heroic humility surfaced after leaving abruptly due to some differences with a team member. He apologized in such a way that we were happy to welcome him back and promote him to lead the department as the production manager. Jim reconciled his differences with his teammate and went on a mission to be a real leader in the company. His mantra is to never say no to an order because of tight delivery dates. He is a salesperson’s best friend because he does everything, from calling on friends or family to help on the production line to re-arranging production schedules to help avoid rush charges or expedited freight. He has real heart for Artistic Toy team members and an understanding for our customer needs. He is constantly double-checking the order entry team and evaluating their workload, recognizing they are the front of his production line. Without Jim we could not deliver world-class wow customer service.”
How Jim Saved The Day: One of the company’s toy shipments was delayed from its West Coast warehouse. Kelley developed plans A, B, and C and executed plan C, which involved him driving an hour each way to deliver the order to the client on time. In another order situation, an order was scheduled to ship to Canada from the factory in China. The shipping company misread the shipping documents and missed the sailing date. Instead of going back to the customer to tell them Artistic Toy could not meet its originally scheduled delivery date or pay extra for air delivery, he worked out a deal with the carrier to send it air freight. His strong relationships and commitment to the company’s reputation resulted in saving $1,500 in additional air-freight charges, delivering the products early and maintaining a flawless reputation with the client. Kelley continues to remind Socci and the team that they have missed only one client delivery date in nine years, and he doesn’t plan on missing another one on his watch.
Favorite Part Of The Job:“I love the fact that every day brings new challenges. The people I work with are absolutely amazing and I look forward to coming in everyday and seeing how I can help others.”
Most Valuable Lesson Learned: “There is always a way to make the impossible happen. I personally do not like ‘no’ as an answer and therefore I will never tell a customer no. If I cannot do it on my own, we have an amazing team here at Artistic Toy and together we will find a way to make the customer’s dream a reality.”
No. 1 Tip To Help Others Improve Customer Service: “Never say no. Sometimes all you need to do is think outside of the box and the answer is there.”
His Wish For One Superpower: “If I had one superhero power it would be to fly. Life would be so much easier if I could fly everywhere and avoid all the traffic and congestion. Plus, I would never have to be late for anything again.”

(Excerpt from November PPB Magazine Article "Making the Impossible Happen")

  

Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

Turning Tractors Into Plush Toys

A step by step pictorial of the transformation process to turn a preexisting manufactured tractor into a fun, lovable, hugable plush toy character.


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DIE CAST MODEL:


FIRST DESIGN SAMPLE:





SECOND DESIGN SAMPLE:





THIRD SAMPLE:



ADDING CHARACTER / PERSONA








WORKING ON THE BUMPER





FOURTH FACTORY SAMPLE:









FINAL PRODUCTION SAMPLE: