The new specialty online store from Amazon.com and Toys R Us Inc.,
Imaginarium.com, validates the educational toy market, Ron Elliott, CEO of Needham,
MA-based LearningStar Corp., operators of SmarterKids.com, tells Internet Retailer.
Elliott says Smarterkids.com is not intimidated by such a large competitor in a market it had dominated until now. “We use academic principles to choose our products. But more importantly, our products are accepted and used in preschools and daycare
centers across America, which keeps the continuum of learning from home to
school and back to home,” Elliott says.
Smarterkids.com believes it differentiates itself from Imaginarium with its educational focus. Besides educational toys, Imaginarium also sells collectibles. Elliott cites in particular SmarterKids.com’s patent pending search engine, SmarterPicks Engine, which allows shoppers to match toys based a child’s learning style as well as by goals set by the gift buyer, such as whether the child’s achievement level is above or below average. The search engine gives shoppers a more targeted list of toys that suit the child’s needs, Elliott says.
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