Sep 13, 2010
Noah’s Ark Sets Sail for Family Christian Stores

Australia – The ingenious Noah’s Ark from Tier Toys™ has been wowing industry judges, moms and kids for more than a year since it first landed in the States from Down Under.

Now the colorful ark sets sail for the toy section of Family Christian Stores® with locations coast to coast.

The dexterous toy that stacks tiers up and over will soon be on shelves at America’s leading specialty retailer, Family Christian Stores, with nearly 300 locations in 36 states dedicated solely to the $4.3 billion Christian retail industry. Family Christian Stores sells Christian products and church supplies not only through its chain of stores but also its popular website.

Noah’s Ark, made of 12 different stackable layers that lock together into a solid, fully inhabited (animals and humans) ship, caught the eye of Kevin Traub and Mark Haase, Jr., Family Christian Stores buyers for its Kids Department. A meeting took place in St. Louis at the CBA Christian Retail Show and about 40 days and 40 nights later, a deal was struck for an initial order of 1500 units.

“This is a new channel of distribution for Tier Toys,” explained Mike Lauter, U.S. Sales Director, “and dare I say, a made-in-heaven fit for our Noah’s Ark. Look for our holiday and in-store promotions with feature signage in the days leading up to Christmas.”

Animal Stackers Noah’s Ark

$39.99

Ages 3+ This fun, educational, and interactive toy is one grownups relish as much as the kids. A total of 44 detailed figures, including Noah and his wife, are packed in their own spot among the 12 layers that make up one very cool ark. A free download of the story of Noah’s Ark allows children to relive the Biblical tale, plus enjoy six fun games and educational activities. Ages 3 and up can play with it safely. Ages 6 or 7 should be able to assemble it successfully on their own. The Ark expands for unlimited fun and then neatly contracts for storage. Moms will be impressed with the family’s newly acquired tidying- up skills!

Noah’s Ark caught the eye of many an industry expert when it was introduced last year, racking up 14 major toy awards:

The Toy Man Editor’s Choice
The Toy Man Award of Excellence
The Toy Man Seal of Approval
PTPA Media Award
Great Dad Recommended Seal
Mr. Dad Seal of Approval
Tillywig Sterling Fun Award
Tillywig Brain Child Award
Creative Child Magazine Top Toy of the Year Award ’09
2009 Parents’ Choice Approved Award
National Parenting Center Fall 2009 Seal of Approval
iParenting Media 2009 Outstanding Products Awards
WTS Award
Mom’s Choice Gold Award

Like Noah’s Ark, Tier Toys’ other themed stackers — Dog House, Barn Yard and Sea X-Plorer – utilize a child’s imagination (not batteries or plugs) to power these multi-level toys, all patented as educational puzzle toys.

ABOUT TIER TOYS
If play is a child’s work, then toys are the tools children use in play is the motto of Tier Toys. Australia- based Tier Toys began as a great idea for a unique, educational toy for children. Little did creator Mike Romyn know that coming up with the idea would be the easy part. After 9 long years of market research and development, with robust Australian and U.S. patents in-hand, his idea finally became a reality. They created a line of toys known as Stackers, which are ingenious stack and play products that range in theme from Noah’s Ark to a Barn Yard. For more information, log on to www.tiertoys.com.