CHICAGO TOY & GAME GROUP ANNOUNCES 10th ANNUAL YOUNG INVENTOR CHALLENGE PRESENTED BY TARGET &
Media Contacts:
Scott Goldberg
scott@salmonborre.com
CHICAGO (October 13, 2016) ― The Chicago Toy & Game Group announces that registration is now open for the 10th annual Young Inventor Challenge, now through November 1, 2016. The Young Inventor Challenge invites girls and boys between ages 6 and 18 years to use their imaginations, critical thinking skills, and love of play to invent their own original toy or game.
Contest entrants will showcase their original toy and game ideas “science fair style” to a panel of play industry experts on Saturday, November 19, 2016 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Chicago Toy & Game Fair (ChiTAG). ChiTAG, the largest toy and game fair in the U.S. that is open to the public, returns to Chicago’s Navy Pier on Saturday, November 19, 2016 and Sunday, November 20, 2016.
Young Inventor Challenge entries will be evaluated based on innovation, presentation and creativity by play industry experts during the ChiTAG fair. First place and runner up awards will be given out in both junior and senior categories, as well as one “People’s Choice” award selected by the fair’s 30,000+ attendees. In celebration of the event’s 10th anniversary, an additional grand prize winner will also be selected by the contests’ presenting sponsors, Target and Pressman Toy.
The grand prize will include a professional game or toy mentorship opportunity with Jeff Pinsker, president of Pressman Toy, as well as chance to have the winning creation on sale in Target stores. First place prize packages will also include a behind-the-scenes tour of New York Toy Fair, courtesy of Toy Industry Association. All winners will be announced at 5:00 pm on Saturday, November 19, 2016.
“Pressman has been making games for kids for nearly 100 years so I’m excited that we have the opportunity to make a game with a young inventor, and with help from Target. The best part, of course, will be working with the winner on his/her game,” said Pinsker.
This year’s judging panel features an impressive lineup of industry professionals, including Dan Klitsner, Founder of KID Group, Warren Tuttle, President of the United Inventors Association and many more.
“We are very fortunate to have Target and Pressman on board as partners this year,” said Julie Blake, Director of the Young Inventor Challenge. “We’re really excited to be introducing a new inventor mentorship component with Pressman as we grow into our tenth year. Target’s willingness to help kids discover the possibility of play and the power of invention is very inspiring.”
To learn more and register for the Young Inventor Challenge visit, http://www.chitag.com/yic .
Registration is open until November 1, 2016. There is no fee to enter, and it is easy to participate. Participants and their immediate families will also be given complimentary tickets to the ChiTAG fair for the entire weekend.
About the Chicago Toy & Game Group, Inc.
The Chicago Toy & Game Group, Inc. promotes and hosts initiatives designed to encourage and promote the power of play and invention in social, educational, and professional environments. Chicago Toy & Game Group initiatives include the Chicago Toy & Game Fair (ChiTAG), the Toy & Game Innovation Awards (the TAGIEs), Inventor Conferences for New and Professional Inventors and Product Acquisition Executives, the Young Inventor Challenge, the Young TECH Challenge, Play in Education Conference, Discover Games Inventor Co-op, the PlayCHIC Fashion Show, and the Chicago Toy & Game Foundation. For more information, visit www.ChiTAG.com.
About Pressman Toy Corporation Pressman Toy Corporation, one of the largest board game companies in the United States, was founded in 1922 and grew to become a major player in the toy industry when it launched Chinese Checkers in the late 1920s. The company has been a force for innovation in the U.S. toy business for decades, by introducing pretend-play products such as doctor’s kits in response to children’s concerns about getting shots after the discovery of the polio vaccine, and by being among the first toy companies to advertise on TV and to have a female CEO. Pressman’s brands include games that consumers have enjoyed for generations, such as Rummikub®, Mastermind®, Tri-Ominos®, and Let’s Go Fishin’. One of the first companies in the industry to begin licensing popular characters and content for toys and games, Pressman Toy currently manufactures games and puzzles based on properties such as Shopkins, Harry Potter, The Powerpuff Girls, Oregon Trail, Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and Curious George.
