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Beating the drum for Halilit Music After 50 years, Halilit Music has established itself as a staple developmental range, trusted by parents and baby groups alike. Amy Wildman, Halilit’s Sales and Marketing director, speaks to Toy World about the brand’s successes and its future. successes and its future.
50 years is a major milestone - what do you attribute Halilit Music's success to, and why is it trusted by so many parents and baby groups? As a third-generation family manufacturer, Halilit Music has always held quality and educational value at the forefront of product development. Having started out producing musical instruments for education, then subsequently expanding into the early years market, Halilit has always maintained a focus on providing instruments that develop a love and passion for music making. It is this strong message and clear focus that has helped us get to where we are today. Our continued success comes down to the excellent experiences consumers have with our items. We’ve been working closely with many of the well-known parent and baby groups for years, and the head offices know that they can trust a Halilit instrument to withstand the rigours placed on them, be easy to clean and most importantly, to sound great.
How does Halilit plan to mark the 50 year milestone? There may be a few surprises within the range a little later in the year, but we’re mainly just grateful to see how far the brand has come over the past 50 years and are looking forward to the next 50. Having said that, our birthday cupcakes at Toy Fair seemed to be very well received, so maybe we’ll need to find something else to celebrate next year too!
What are the developmental benefits in regard to early learning via music? Playing with musical instruments ticks so many boxes for little ones. Not only does it help babies and toddlers physically with refining their coordination and gross motor skills, making music also assists with cognitive development such as the understanding of cause and effect. Many items in the range also allow for additional learning opportunities, such as the Musical Shapes and Shaped Shakers, for shape recognition, or the Egg Shakers, for colours and counting. The range uses bold, bright colours and engaging sound effects to entertain both eyes and ears.
Why should retailers carry Halilit Music products in their stores? The heritage and reputation of Halilit Music is excellent, with many parents already familiar with the range from their experiences within baby groups. In turn, it puts Halilit on their own radars for gifting, so there is a large, ready-made audience who are actively looking for this range. To cater to everyone, we offer a variety of price points, from impulse priced rattles and shakers to standalone instruments such as the Baby Drum and Baby Xylophone, as well as an assortment of gift sets suitable from as young as just three months. Many of the smaller products are already displayed in handy CDUs and we offer eye-catching FSDUs too to help with merchandising. Parents still appreciate traditional play patterns, so there is still a huge demand for this type of consistent, classic, evergreen range. We see this with the retailers we work with, many of whom we have been supplying with Halilit Music for years, so we really do urge new stockists to give us consideration.
What are your aims for the brand for another successful 50 years? We want to get to a point where all toy stores stock Halilit Music as a core product category for babies and toddlers, and all homes with young children have some of our musical toys. Our Baby’s First Birthday Band is already a huge success; we want it to become the ‘go to’ gift – we’re already actively raising further awareness through social media influencers and working closely with various press for gifting features. We believe that in a society full of screens and electronics, keeping little ones engaged with more traditional toys will become increasingly desirable. Halilit is eager to be at the forefront of this, helping little ones learn through play for another 50 years and more.
INDX Toys to return this autumn INDX Toys will return to West Midlands event venue, Cranmore Park, on 2nd- 3rd September 2025, unveiling an inclusive product showcase, perfect for a variety of retail spaces and carefully crafted to drive commercial success. Visitors will be inspired by the hottest new toys and games, the latest licensed product ranges and unique kidult gifts from an expertly curated exhibitor line-up of market-leading brands. The only dedicated toy industry trade show taking place in autumn 2025, the organisers say this 2-day show is an unmissable opportunity to secure stock for Christmas and preview new launch products for 2026. New for 2025, INDX Toys introduces a dedicated area for 2026 product launches, a must-see for all visitors who shouldn’t be leaving the show without placing pre-orders. Plus, attending AIS Members will be able to take advantage of an unmissable selection of exclusive on-the-day deals, and member incentives will also be re-introduced at the show. Following the INDX Shows re-brand and Cranmore Park's investment in a new modular stand system, the 2025 INDX Toys show promises an elevated visitor experience and a bold new look and feel. Jane Bartlett, director of Events, Cranmore Park, said: “Our innovative new shell scheme is designed to accommodate any vision, empowering exhibitors to create stunning, bespoke displays, and therefore elevating the INDX experience to new heights.” To date, confirmed exhibitors include Character Options, VTech, Asmodee, Paladone Gifts, Kayes of Cardiff, Plus Plus, Playmobil and Smart Toys, with more to be announced. The show is open to all retailers and Cranmore Park is easy to access and centrally located, offering visitors free onsite parking and complimentary Barista refreshments. Attendees are also invited to the INDX Toys Networking Social, taking place after the show on 2nd September at the Loft, Cranmore Park’s new eatery and hospitality space. This is a great chance to get together, relax and catch-up, accompanied by drinks, canapés and live music. Exhibitor booking is now open, and enquiries should be directed to: liz.ayto@cranmorepark.co.uk
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