Hosted by Word Whizz Deej Johnson, this interview sees Victor Caddy (Chartered Trade Mark Attorney at Wynne-Jones IP) explain what toy and game inventors should be looking to protect once they have an idea, as well as shedding light on the ways in which Brexit will change how toy companies and designers protect their IP.

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Elan Lee – CEO at Exploding Kittens – discusses the origins of the now iconic card game, sheds light on where the idea for the company’s latest game – Poetry for Neanderthals – came from, and his top tips for fuelling creativity.

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Shuffle, the card game brand from Cartamundi, has signed up as the sponsor for Games Designer of the Year (Kids/Family) and Games Designer of the Year (Party Game) at this year’s Play Creators Awards.

Taking place as part of Mojo Nation and The Toy Association’s Play Creators Festival, the Play Creators Awards celebrates figures in the toy and game design community that have excelled over the last 12 months, including in-house design teams, outside invention studios and freelance design partners.

“We are proud to sponsor Games Designer of the Year (Kids Games) & Games Designer of the Year (Party Games),” said Daniel King, General Manager UK at Cartamundi.

“Innovation is the lifeblood of our industry and its great to see so many wonderful new games and to honour the brains behind them. Good luck and well done to all of the finalists!”

Panels of expert judges – comprised of R&D execs, inventors and figures from design agencies and invention studios – will assess each category and select winners based on design merits, rather than sales figures, in a series of virtual roundtable sessions.

All winners will be revealed on Friday, September 11th in a special Mojo Nation newsletter.

For more information on the Play Creators Awards, head to www.playcreatorsawards.com.

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Freelance designer Adam Porter likes to mix things up! His products include board, card and dice games of different genres.

Here he discusses what he finds a chore… And what gets his mind racing with ideas!

For what would you most like to be known?
I’m a big follower of other designer’s games, and I always know the name of the designer of my favourite games. Any game by Phil Walker Harding, Bruno Cathala, or Wolfgang Kramer is automatically on my wish list! But oddly I don’t have a strong desire to be recognisable to gamers myself. I’d rather my games spoke for themselves. I’d like to be known among publishers though; I’d like to be recognised as reliable, professional, creative, and approachable.

As a child, you played Cluedo and the excellent Scotland Yard… With what else did you play?
I often played Gibson’s Dover Patrol, which was a childhood favourite game of my dad’s. If you can imagine Stratego but with dog-eared cardboard pieces, sketched warships, and components thumbed to within an inch of their life, then you can imagine the experience of playing Dover Patrol.

This is the game by H.P. Gibson and Sons? Now Gibsons?
Yes – I guess my dad was quite a gamer in his youth, judging by the wear and tear on the components. I also remember playing tattered ancient copies of Monopoly and Camelot, passed down the generations.

So to what extent did those games influence your designs today?
They didn’t! My designs are far more influenced by games that I’ve played in the past ten years. That said, I do aspire to the simplicity of the mass-market games I played as a child.

Can you give me an example of that?
I think my recent game Qwuzzle demonstrates both of those things quite well. It’s extremely simple to play, chaotic and fun – like my childhood favourites – but it has a robust ruleset, a lot of skill involved. I like to think it stands up as a good example of the sophistication and artistry of more modern games.

You obviously have an appreciation for tabletop and party games. What are the best and worst aspects of each?
Party games are accessible to everybody. I love introducing people to new games, and party games are the most versatile genre for that. Many people are terrified of playing a strategy game…

You think fear is a real factor?
Definitely. I’ve seen extremely bright people frozen with fear that they might end up looking unintelligent… So I get fewer chances to play this type of game. But I often crave the challenge of a really crunchy Euro. They’re something of an event for me these days – to be savored, rather than binged on.

I might pick up on the fear thing another time – because I completely agree! You’re the first person I’ve heard say that. For now though, how did you transition from game player to game designer?
I’ve always made up games; I don’t remember a time when I didn’t. As a teenager, my favourite game was Avalon Hill’s Wrasslin’ – a card game about 1980’s American Wrestling. I spent hours creating new wrestlers, illustrating new cards and designing role-playing systems for what was a very-simple little card game. I even remember creating a play-by-mail campaign for the game.

At what point did that become serious, then? What was the first game you pitched successfully – and why do you think it succeeded?
It was Big Bazar… Good timing I think. The publisher, Blue Orange, had achieved much success with speed-reaction games, most notably Dobble. I suspect I caught them at a time when they were trying to expand on that success. As it happens, the game came out at the same time as a slew of speed games, and got a little bit lost in the shuffle.

And in terms of your creative process, how do you come up with games?
I come up with ideas when I play games, or when I talk about games. This is one of the main reasons I maintain my Youtube channel…

We’ll just plug that outright: Adam’s Boardgame Wales…
Thank you! So maintaining that and discussing game styles and mechanisms never fails to get my mind racing. I often wake up with a 5am moment of inspiration. I’m also one of the organisers of a playtesting group in Cardiff.

Would this be part of Rob Harris’s excellent Playtest UK?
Yes, our group is part of Rob’s network. We meet weekly and play each other’s prototypes. I also travel to other playtest groups around the UK. Having a regular group gives me a deadline to work to, and helps me maintain momentum.

So how important is it – in your experience – to get feedback as you go?
It’s essential. It doesn’t matter how good YOU think your game is. What matters is what other people think. Personally, I value visual feedback the most. I watch people play and look out for non-verbal clues. I find that more helpful than relying on written or verbal playtest reports. I want to ensure that players are having the experience I intended, and the only way I can make sure of that is to watch them play.

And do you have a different approach toward developing a trick-taking card game like Pikoko, say, versus a silly-social game like Doodle Rush?
Honestly, no. They’re not so different. They both require larger groups – three or more players – and take a relatively short time to play.

Short being defined as?
Doodle Rush lasts exactly six minutes! But I’m defining short as ‘playable in half an hour’. They’re both very social games. Doodle Rush is all about shouting the loudest and demanding attention. Pikoko is about reading other players, predicting – perhaps even a little bit of bluffing. Doodle Rush was quicker to finish because it has so few rules. But the same process was involved. Playtest, refine, playtest, refine… And eventually pitch.

I’m quite tempted to go into pitching here but you recently did a couple of videos about it on your channel. They’re excellent! So if you had to give one tip to designers, what – above all – would you say?
Play lots and lots of games, of all genres. This can get expensive, so go to a game group and play other people’s games. If you aren’t playing new games on a regular basis, then you’re set to fail.

Why do you rate that so highly?
So many mistakes have been made, and so many lessons have been learned by other designers. If you don’t play their games, you’re going to waste time making all those mistakes again for yourself.

Right. And if you could wave a magic wand and make one part of game design easier for yourself, what would it be?
Prototype construction! I find that a chore – particularly when you’re adapting the game after each playtest. I don’t particularly enjoy the “scissors, printer ink and glue” part of the process.

Good answer. I’m going to wrap this up now, Adam, but I want to thank you for your time – much appreciated. Finally, then, let me ask you this: what’s the most interesting object in your office?
Looking around, my eye immediately caught an old book called Impro by Keith Johnstone. Discovering that book was an important moment for me twenty years ago.

It’s an introduction to improvisational theatre, but it had so much to say about creativity, play, spontaneity, self-censorship, and so many more things. I’m quite certain that book has been as impactful on my designs as any games that I’ve played.

Oh, that’s fantastic! Great answer. Adam, I’m going to come back to you soon and pick up where we left off in terms of pitching and playtesting but for now, thank you so much.

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Having worked at the likes of Marvel Entertainment, Mattel and most recently at National Geographic, Helena Mansell-Stopher is now a leading figure in the industry’s fight to be greener 

We caught up with Helena to learn more about the Sustainability in Licensing Conference – taking place this November – and what role the toy and game design community have to play in help the industry become more eco-friendly.

Hi Helena. To kick us off, could you tell us a little of your history in the world of toys and licensing?
Yes, I started my licensing journey at HIT Entertainment, many years ago back when it was still a privately owned company of the late Peter Orton. I started in the publishing department working closely with the brand creators at HOT Animation, the author and illustrators of the book properties such as Angelina Ballerina, as well as selling international publishing rights globally.

Over the years I have managed multiple product categories at Marvel and Entertainment Rights, I headed up the UK & Nordic consumer products team at Mattel for over 8 years, headed up all retail and business development at Bulldog Licensing driving toy brands such as Shopkins, and most recently was head of UK consumer products at National Geographic.

Last year you founded the Products of Change think-tank; a group of licensing professionals who meet up to discuss how the industry can improve its sustainability and facilitate changes. What prompted the assembly of Products of Change, and is there scope for toy and game designers to get involved?
As National Geographic was so heavily linked through to the National Geographic Society, I started learning in-depth the effects we have on the planet and shockingly how little time we have to turn this problem around.

We built both a creative and brand activation plan centred around bringing products to market that were better for the environment but were also profitable in driving business growth. During the process it became apparent that licensees wanted to change practices, but there was little knowledge on how to do this; the ‘Products of Change Group’ was formed by my wanting to pass on the knowledge I had learned as well as learn from others in ‘educating to inform change’.

If we are to minimise our impact on the planet then we need to re-design how we use products and a core element of this is to ‘design out waste’; we have to look at the end user of a product and understand how the product can be disassembled to re-use parts. Design is one of the largest solutions to this huge problem we have.

That’s a great thing for the design community to hear. But why specifically do you feel toy designers and inventors should be playing an active part in these kinds of discussions?
90% of global toys are made from plastic, and while they are not a single use plastic, a huge portion of their packaging is and it’s having a devastating effect on the planet. Plastic is, however, a wonderful material; cheap, light weight, versatile, strong and if you pick the right one can be recycled.

We need to find a ‘middle ground’ between using plastic when necessary (it’s lighter to transport thus saving on carbon emissions versus heavier materials) and researching new materials and plastics to create toys from. Redesigning packaging is key in delivering a more sustainable toy business; whether removing the ‘air’ from it or not adding plastic coating to it, there’s a lot that can be done while new materials are developed.

I also feel the circular economy can have a huge impact here. Imagine a future that enables you to send toys back to the manufacturer who then break the parts down to make new toys from the materials. If toys are designed to be re-used or re-cycled with as little mixed material as possible, then we don’t have to take ‘new raw’ materials from the ground to make new toys. This means the materials we use for new toys could be recycled material which would have a positive impact on the environment.

With a growing population, the demand for products is due to increase so we need to figure out how we continue to supply the demand but in a more environmentally and socially fair way.

Absolutely. And time is of the essence; so how fast is the toy space moving in the right direction when it comes to sustainability? And what needs to be done to speed things up?
When you compare the toy space to, say, the fashion space, it has been slower to react, but only slightly.

Throughout 2020 we have seen many larger companies state their intention. This is the first step; recognising things have to change. The important thing is to now track their progress to make sure the change happens and hopefully they will share their ‘best practice’ so that the smaller toy companies can benefit from the findings too and help push change quicker.

We are also seeing some fantastic innovation coming through from smaller companies such as Play Press with their cardboard construction toys. They have also reduced packaging significantly and use packaging as part of the play pattern.

You then have larger companies such as Mega Bloks with their bio-based plastic (sugarcane). LEGO are also extremely committed to being more sustainable and have been on this journey the longest out of all the toy manufacturers.

So change is happening, but if we are to accelerate this change we need to be transparent and share best practice.

And that’s where the Sustainability in Licensing Conference comes in! You’re the Conference Director for that event. What sparked the need for it and is it something the toy and game design community should be attending?
The Sustainability in Licensing Conference came from my organising more outside companies to speak at the Products of Change Group meetings, and it became apparent that learning from outside the industry was going to be key if we were going to evolve as an industry.

The group is made of up 78 members, but if we are going to drive larger systemic change in the industry then I need to educate more people, so the SILC conference was born….

The conference will provide a knowledge across many areas including designing out waste and the circular economy, so yes, it is very relevant for the game and toy design community and I would love to see some of the Mojo Nation community attend the conference.

I’m sure they will! We should say that it takes place on November 25th at The British Library, and more info can be found at www.sustainabilityinlicensing.com. A huge thanks Helena – and good luck with the event.

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We caught up with the two – well, geniuses – to find out more.

Nolan, you’re the founder of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese. What excites you about your new board game, St. Noire?
Nolan: I’m always interested in the doors that open with new tech. What really animated me with this, though, is that I think a lot of people don’t realise the power of the A.I. smart-speaker market. Also, I’ve always felt that the most-interesting things happen when two big things collide… Like when earthquakes and volcanoes happen because tectonic plates collide! So what I wanted to do was collide the video-game business and the board-game business… And that intersection was made possible by smart speakers.

In combining smart speakers with a murder mystery, you’ve created the world’s first voice-controlled board game. There have been video board games like Atmosfear before, though. Is this different?
Nolan: It’s much different! The prime characteristic of a board game is eye contact: not me with a screen, or the board, but me with you… The interaction: elbowing each other, having a beer together or what have you… And I felt that can only really be accomplished if the intersection is mediated by sound.

So you’re creating the excitement of an on-screen activity without the screen?
Nolan: Precisely!

It’s interesting you compare it to tectonic plates… That could equally be an analogy for having ideas: this dot joins to that dot; that concept joins with this concept – suddenly things move and shake…
Nolan: Precisely! And the part that I like about it is that this then opens up a panoply of options that no one’s thought of before – including us! And one of the benefits video games have is that they remove a tremendous amount of the friction of score and time keeping. For example, how many board games have you seen that have a nasty little hourglass in them? It’s a horrible timer!

It IS a horrible timer! A game with a die or a sand timer often feels like it’s been lazy, or made to compromise…
Nolan: Right?! Amazon Echo times well though… And I can throw a seven-sided die electronically, say, which you can’t do in the physical world. We can also do a certain amount of scorekeeping, and do a certain amount of sound effects to get the atmospherics that we want. But most importantly, a smart speaker offers you a verbal, non-playing character.

So the smart speaker creates a character, controls the game, handles a lot of practical issues – AND makes it easier to create a tense atmosphere?
Nolan: Yes. We’re now really good at doing creepy…

“Really good at doing creepy…” Might put that on a Tinder profile! So, Zai… Somehow, creepy is where you come in! Your background includes design work on the Iron Man and Mission Impossible franchises… How have you come into board games?
Zai: I came into it because I had a company called DarkMatter in the past, then I was working with a video-game studio called Bethesda. Also, I love technology! But if you’re a creator, you can often create in any medium. So when I worked in film, the silver screen was my playground to experiment. And now, I’m just making it as a physical object for everyone else to enjoy.

Where do your ideas come from, Zai; what’s the seed and what’s your process?
Zai: I think the seed of an idea can come from anything and everything. It could come from a dream, it could come from a sense I get as I walk away from this interview… Anything! When I feel it means something, though, that’s when I start to ponder. I kind of say, “Oh! Okay… Let me take that and do something with it.” I start with almost like a branch… A tree of ideas, and I break it up… And then I break that up into more!

So would this be like Mind Mapping? The Tony Buzan system?
Zai: It’s very much mind mapping! And I learned a lot of it before I even knew about that. I used a lot of 3D software back in the day and you couldn’t get from one place to another unless you found out how you got there, and broke things apart. And since that’s how my mind works, it worked very easily for me. I got very good at it really fast… I attribute that to LEGOS by the way, it all goes back to LEGO!

These are the only two timeframes the world needs: Before Christ and Before LEGO! So you do these mind maps, for want of a better name – then what?
Zai: Well, you’ve got to isolate: you have to take one section, forget about everything else, and work on that: work on the now… Then take that part and put it together with another one, and another, or two of them, or three… It really is like LEGO.

Nolan: I’ve learned a lot from Zai because when he does these pathways, and you see this idea connect to another one – with boxes and branches and everything like that – it’s a really powerful thing, and I’ve never done that. But mind mapping is really valuable when you understand secondary connections… A lot of the time, other processes don’t give you secondary connections anywhere near as well as mind mapping does.

So then: St. Noire! If people are summing it up in the toy aisles, they’ll probably be saying it’s a creepy, hi-tech Clue or Cluedo! How did you two end up working on it?
Nolan: Zai and I were in the same Breakfast Club… We got along, so we started to just meet up. We’d start talking, and we were attracted to some of the same ideas…

Zai: Yeah. And we come from different parts of the same industry, but we complement each other very well.

Nolan: Plus, we’re both the same kind of creative person: there seem to be two different types… There’s one that says: “I’ve had an idea, and it’s mine!“ But the other is the kind that says, “I’ve had this idea: how can you make it better?” Zai and I are both like that.

And it’s the other kind, presumably, that are overprotective of their ideas? They’re closed off and defensive about feedback?
Nolan: Yes… And it doesn’t get anywhere. You know, in my speeches I sometimes say, “Everyone that takes a shower has a good idea.”

There’s a strapline for the article…
Nolan: Point being that those ideas don’t get anywhere because you don’t really own them at that time. But the person that makes a difference is the person that gets out of the shower and starts working on it. Then, as you work harder on an idea, you own it just a little bit more, and a little bit more.

So having an idea is easy. Working on the idea is harder. What’s the hardest part for you?
Nolan: The economic model… If you can’t figure out a way to enter the market, you’ll never get it to be big because you can’t afford to build it, market it or any of that. So an idea has to be integrated with a business structure, and many times good ideas just don’t fit to a business model that’s successful.

Can you give us an example of that?
Nolan: Well, certain things don’t happen unless they have scale, for example. Facebook is one of those. Facebook wouldn’t be fun if it were just six guys sitting in a garage. So there’s this idea of rightsizing… What is the size of the business that could be funded? In the case of the video-game business, I was able to fund it out of my wallet: we started the company with 500 bucks. We got no venture capital until we’d done 30 million in sales. Venture capital hadn’t been invented when I started!

Wow. Okay! So, Zai, you were saying earlier that your style complements Nolan’s, and vice versa. In what way? What does each of you bring to the table?
Zai: We come from different worlds… Nolan comes from gaming; I come from entertainment and film. So Nolan brings game mechanics; I’ll bring some visual and audio.

Nolan: There’s another big one! I’m a “Let’s-build-this-kind-of-quick-and-get-it-out-fast” kind of guy! I want to see a result quickly, just to know it works… Zai looks at stuff and says, “Wait! We can make this a lot nicer with just a liiiiiiittle bit more time.”

And what advice would you give other people to help them be more creative?
Nolan: I think you can start out by being an editor… Start out by playing a game, or doing something that you like, but then go down the pathway of asking, “How would I make this better?” Just by taking variables, and changing them, you can create different things.

Zai: For me, I visualise a lot. And I storyboard everything. There’s about an 80/20 split… I have like a film projector in my mind, so for about 80% of the time, I see things in my head. I visualise things really clearly before I physically do anything. I want to visualise people playing a game, say, or visualise how something’s going to look, or imagine what sounds we’re going to hear… Then, the other 20% I get done faster! And it can be tough: I’m not committed to the original vision but I’ve got a good idea of where I want things to go; a target. So it’s a guide.

We’ve got to see inside your head; we have to show people how you see things… Meanwhile, if you fellas were going to write autobiographies, what would they be called?
Nolan: He Did Interesting Things.

Zai: Enter the Future…

Brilliant! Last question: What’re the most interesting things on your desks?
Nolan: I have a crystalline form of nickel. It’s almost perfect, except for one odd little bit that lets you know it’s a crystal. It was a gift; I love it.

Zai: I have this beautiful, artistic, handmade statue of a jaguar cat. It’s hand-painted; I bought it in Mexico… It’s very inspirational to me; a reminder of all that’s creative.

Lovely! Fellas, thank you so much for your time; this has been a pleasure. I don’t know how it’s going to edit together without all the rude stuff, but let’s find out! In the meantime, good luck with St. Noire.

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The post Atari founder Nolan Bushnell, and Zai Ortiz – the designer behind Iron Man’s J.A.R.V.I.S. – on their new game St. Noire and how to be creative appeared first on Mojo Nation.

Toy and game designers will be able to pitch concepts to Fat Brain Toy Co. at this year’s Mojo Pitch event.

Forming part of the Play Creators Festival, the Mojo Pitch will take place on Wednesday, September 9th, 2020 at London’s Stamford Bridge stadium.

The event welcomes toy and game designers (both seasoned professionals and talented amateurs), invention houses and design agencies as they pitch exciting new toy and game concepts to a range of companies, each on the lookout for new products.

“Fat Brain Toy Co. found the Mojo Pitch event in London this past September to be one of the best during the entire year!,” said Fat Brain Toy Co.’s Director of Product Development, Erik Quam.

“Not only were we matched with experienced and new inventors who had done their homework, and understood our brand, the Play Creators Conference was perfect networking opportunity. Looking forward to the 2020 event!”

If you’re a designer, inventor or design agency that would like book in a meeting with Fat Brain Toy Co. at this year’s Mojo Pitch, head to mojo-pitch.com for more information or email Mojo’s Billy Langsworthy on billy@mojo-nation.com

If you’re a company that would like to join Fat Brain Toys in meeting with designers and inventors at the event, email Adam Butler at adam@mojo-nation.com

For more details on the wider Play Creators Festival, head to: www.playcreatorsfestival.com

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Toy and game designers will be able to pitch concepts to Ravensburger at this year’s Mojo Pitch event.

Forming part of the Play Creators Festival, the Mojo Pitch will take place on Wednesday, September 9th, 2020 at London’s Stamford Bridge stadium.

The event welcomes toy and game designers (both seasoned professionals and talented amateurs), invention houses and design agencies as they pitch exciting new toy and game concepts to a range of companies, each on the lookout for new products.

“Innovation is at the very heart of the inventor community and, by its nature, it is ever-changing and ever-growing,” said Benn Bramwell, International Product Manager Children’s Games at Ravensburger.

“With extensive knowledge of the inventor world, the Mojo team have proved themselves to be effective facilitators in making introductions that are both relevant and productive. They have been instrumental in helping us forge a number of promising new relationships already and we’re certainly looking forward to seeing what the next event will bring.”

If you’re a designer, inventor or design agency that would like book in a meeting with Ravensburger at this year’s Mojo Pitch, head to mojo-pitch.com for more information or email Mojo’s Billy Langsworthy on billy@mojo-nation.com

If you’re a company that would like to join Ravensburger in meeting with designers and inventors at the event, email Adam Butler at adam@mojo-nation.com

For more details on the wider Play Creators Festival, head to: www.playcreatorsfestival.com

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Inventing toys of every kind, Louise White is the President and Head Designer of Me First! Designs.

We spoke with Louise to hear where ideas come from, and what advice she’d give clients, new designers and her younger self.

Louise, you’ve been in toy design since 1998. What’s in your back catalogue?
Since starting, I’ve created thousands of plush, bath and plastic toys; bedding, prints, accessories, books, small furniture, and kids’ apparel for a global client base. I’ve worked with large toy companies like TOMY, Earlyears, Cubcoats, Kids II, Fat Brain Toys, Sassy, Alex Toys, Toys R Us and many others. I’ve also designed pet toys, as well as being a trend-report writer for companies overseas.

Wow. That’s quite a list. You’ve also done licensed products?
Yes; hundreds of licensed products: Disney, Star Wars, Marvel, NBA, NHL, MLB, Hello Kitty, Peanuts, Thomas the Tank Engine, Taggies, D.C. and Paw Patrol. I also work on branding, including logos, packaging, style guides, and patterns.

Phenomenal! When did you start showing an interest in design?
As a child! I was obsessed with sketching; doodling on my desk, notebooks, and anything I could get my hands on – much to the dismay of teachers. I even started my own fashion line in middle school. That put me in the crosshairs of my principal: he didn’t appreciate my entrepreneurial spirit!

It was against your principal’s principles! Where did you major?
I majored in Industrial Design at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, with a focus on product design. My first instructor told me that my greatest strength was my out-of-the-box thinking, and ability to come up with unique ideas. That became ingrained in my mind and has propelled me forward for more than two decades as a professional designer.

Starting how? How did you get into the industry?
I was at Six Flags designing height-check signs, and recoloring booths – for less than minimum wage. My first toy-industry job, though, was working at Prestige Toy in New York City. My parents are avid antique-toy collectors and I really wanted to work in the industry, but didn’t have any contacts. This was before one could search Google so I was forced to read the tags on the bottom of my plush toys, then call information on the phone to get their numbers. I’ve always been undeterred by barriers to access – and I’ve never looked back.

Pre-Google! Different world… You once said that you feel today’s kids are overloaded with media and tech. What’s the downside of that?
I have three children and see first-hand the negative aspect of media/technology overload. I hear the same story from parents of teenagers: this generation hangs out online, but not physically together…

Gen-Z have become more introverted and less adventurous; they watch a lot of YouTube and see a lot of the world online, but their physical worlds are getting smaller and smaller. The irony is that even with all of this access to information 24-7, they actually have less sense of wonder – and they certainly don’t read literature like previous generations.

It’s the age of wisdom, it’s the age of foolishness… Is there an upside to it?
Well… As a parent, doing homework is much easier with Google! I do find that this generation has become more entrepreneurial. They’re also more conscious of trends and are showing greater openness to different ideas, cultures, and schools of thought.

The upside of being a baby/toddler toy designer is that I can attempt to extend the wonder experience longer and help children develop their sense of creativity without a dependence on technology. The trend of “back-to-basics” is something that I welcome, encourage, and appreciate.

Inventors talk about having a spark of an idea. Where do ideas come from?
I always take photographs of everyday objects that might spark a future invention… I’ve always been an observer of life and nature, and how objects work. My parents’ antique/retro toy collection has a lot of mechanisms and I’ve always seen my role as, “How do I make this work in a more clean and modern way?” As a parent, I observe how my children use or misuse things, and I think about how to improve the experience – and fill in the white space.

Can you give us an example of a product that filled in the white space?
Sure! A product that I created under the Lamaze license for TOMY recently came about from my personal experience of trying to squeeze too much stuff into a diaper bag. As a result, I saw a need for foldable, on-the-go toys. I came up with the Fold & Go Activity Friends.

How easily can you talk us through your creative process?
It depends on the client or if it’s for my own personal invention company. I have some clients who present very detailed concepts and know exactly what they want. I have other clients who only have a seedling of an idea and need a lot of direction. Regardless of the scale of the project, I always do a lot of independent research by visiting stores, and researching online.

When working to a brief, how soon do you measure your idea with clients?
Oh, if they have a design direction, quite early on. Many times, I create a deck for the client so they can see what else is available, and ensure we’re on the same page. The goal is to make sure their product is as unique as possible. I often provide a deck with characters, and color trends as well.

That’s interesting: we don’t often hear about clients getting sign off at the early stages. What happens next?
Once a design direction is approved, I’ll begin to sketch out ideas, and have a video conference call with them to make sure that I’m capturing their vision but keeping the project grounded in reality… Can it be manufactured? Is it safe? Is it following a trend or is there a reason why nobody else is doing it?

That’s a great question! Some people take the absence of an idea on the market to be an intrinsically encouraging sign… Whereas, in fact, it means nothing without knowing the reason behind that…
Yes, and I’m very honest with clients; I don’t want people to waste their money on a product that’ll never make it to market. On the flip side – I don’t want clients who will just pick my brain for ideas and waste my time before moving on to do it themselves.

Just stealing the idea you mean? Is that a common problem?
Yes, stealing is a huge problem. I’ve been blessed with some of the best partners and representation in the industry – but also dealt with some of the worst. There are companies who will pick your brain – free – then take all of your hard work and, when the time comes to reward you financially, cut you out in order to get a bigger piece of the pie.

What can be done about it?
Those types of companies never succeed; this is a small industry where word travels fast when you’re dishonest and unprofessional. Those companies have short-term thinking as I have many ideas – not just the one.

I’ve been fortunate to build long-term relationships that have survived recessions and corporate turnover. When I click with a design manager, sometimes I’ll work with them in several companies as I’m a believer in developing long-term relationships. Talent will only get you so far…

Being honest, having strong people skills, and treating people well goes a long way. Also, I’ve become an advocate for other designers; new people come to me for advice; looking for ways to sell their designs without being ripped off by companies. If I can represent them, I do. If I can’t, I refer them to reputable agents who can help them sell their concepts.

What other advice do you give would-be designers?
As a designer, you need to have a very thick skin. Art and design are subjective; you need to be prepared for a lot of rejection. It makes you a better designer because it forces you to improve your skills, or think differently. There are many reasons why someone might reject a design. You have to keep going. On the other hand, you can’t only focus on one concept at a time. As an artist and toy designer, you need to have many concepts and decks ready to be shown.

Sounds like resilience and idea volume are essential. What else?
Patience is a big part of being a designer. For example, I created a product for Alex Toy called Barber in the Tub. This addressed the needs of children who fear the sensation of a barber’s clippers against their scalp. My son, who was three years old at the time, had a very bad experience during a haircut and refused to sit for another one for years… I eventually licensed this concept several years after conceiving the idea. Success rarely happens overnight.

If the opportunity existed, what advice would you give your younger self?
Slow down and take as many classes as possible. Apply for as many internships as you can when you’re still in high school and starting college. While you’re still living at home and don’t have as many bills to pay, take advantage of the opportunity to learn from as many designers as you can.

And just to mix things up, what advice would your younger self give you?
Probably the same advice. I’ve never learned how to slow down! I need to relax more, read more, and be more open to different possibilities. Having said that, someone once asked me what I do for fun… The reality is that what I do is fun, and has been my career and hobby. I suppose, too, that my younger self would tell me to focus on less-traditional versus a standard way of thinking.

We got totally engrossed in this; we’re taking up a lot of your time! Let’s take it into the home strait… What’s next for you?
The booming economy has created a lot of new design and licensing opportunities. I have new products that are ready to be licensed, and I’m always open to new challenges. I’m also travelling overseas in 2020 to create trend reports for clients.

Superb! Finally, then, what’s the most interesting thing in your office?
I have an old toy that hung in my grandmother’s dining room; a model façade of a toy shop from the 1970s. I inherited it when she passed away… I look at it every day as a reminder of why I love doing this.

Love it! That’s totally the image we need to sign off with; brilliant. Louise White! What can we say? Fantastic interview; thank you so much.

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The post Prolific toy inventor Louise White on where ideas come from, her creative process and the advice she’d give her younger self appeared first on Mojo Nation.

The Mojo Nation 100 is a listing of the most influential figures currently working in the world of toy and game design who have excelled over the last 12 months.

The listing is spread across five categories:

Rising Stars (Sponsored by Wynne-Jones IP)
Research & Development (Sponsored by The Toy Association)
Design Agencies & Invention Studios (Sponsored by Alpha Group)
Independent Creatives (Sponsored by Si Digital)
Design Champions (Sponsored by The Marketing Store)

As well as the 100 itself, there is also a range of fantastic opinion pieces inside the book, including:
TinkerTini’s Trina McFarland on ‘Not Invented Here Syndrome’
Heayes Design’s Richard Heayes on ‘Ideas Management’
Making Things’ Fi Murray on ‘360 Degree Thinking’
Play Futurist Yesim Kunter on ‘Patience in the Design Process’
And many, many more….

You can also grab a physical copy of the book at London Toy Fair, Spielwarenmesse’s UK Pavilion and at US Toy Fair, download or purchase a copy here.

“Whether an in-house design superstar, an inventor relations guru or an invention studio that’s shined, the cream of the crop of toy and game creation is within the pages of this year’s Mojo 100 – and as usual, it’s all been voted for by the design and inventor community.”

“Only 27 of those who made the 2019 edition of the Mojo Nation 100 are present again in this year’s edition; a testament to the rich and expansive pool of talent working in our industry today,” said Mojo Nation’s Billy Langsworthy.

The post Read the Mojo Nation 100 online now appeared first on Mojo Nation.