MONROE – What’s Christmastime without toys, games and other fun oddities wrapped under the tree?
That’s why it’s the busiest time of year for the handful of local toy and game makers. Orders are heating up the Web site of Bothell-based FunKo, workers are busily assembling Find It games from that company’s Monroe warehouse, and Mukilteo’s Accoutrements is shipping amusement products across the country.
Bob Knight, president of Find It Games, said his work force of about 10 has lately assembled 1,200 to 1,500 games a day. The breakneck pace is finishing up a year that saw the company move to a much larger space and introduce three new versions of Find It.
Since launching in 2003, Find It Games has shipped hundreds of thousands of the games, which are now sold by more than 2,000 stores in the U.S. and more in several other countries. This year, the private company’s sales grew again by 30 to 35 percent.
Contained in a clear plastic cylinder capped at the ends, Find It hides dozens of small items – a button, plastic letters, a penny – amid a sea of colorful plastic pellets. It’s a simple yet addicting game for many of all ages.
Since June, Knight’s introduced beach and bird-watching editions, as well as a deluxe edition that can be played by several people at once.
“I wanted to create something everyone could play around the kitchen table,” Knight said of Find It’s Deluxe Edition, which includes a spinner, a timer and a deck of cards along with the Find It game.
With six different editions, Find It is sold at many independent toy and specialty gift stores, as well as online at finditgames.com.
After getting its start in Snohomish, FunKo Inc. has relocated under different ownership to Bothell. But it still is making a name for its growing collection of bobbleheads, coin banks and plastic figures depicting pop culture heroes.
In addition to Homer Simpson, Scooby Doo and others, FunKo’s new products include mini-bobblehead air fresheners.
Another company that’s made a name as a purveyor of odd gifts is Seattle’s Archie McPhee, whose parent company and wholesale division, Accoutrements, is centered in Mukilteo.
David Wahl, company spokesman, said this year’s popular items include the Cap’n Danger Stunt Monkey, a 4-inch plastic primate that performs stunts with a small parachute. There’s also the male nurse action figure and the Cold War Unicorn play set, with unicorns representing the Soviet Union and the U.S.
The company sells much of its merchandise through its Seattle store and on the company’s popular retail Web site, mcphee.com.
Wahl said there’s usually no rhyme or reason to determining what the holiday season’s big sellers from Accoutrements will be. “Most of what we sell is a big experiment,” he said.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
