We are still working with toy companies to get everyone on the same page in terms of lead content as part of our review process–in fact I believe we are making really great progress which we will share as we get closer to the fall. My question, its been almost a year since the whole issue exploded–is it something you’re still thinking about when you go to the toy store? Are there other safety concerns that you feel need to be addressed?
Stephanie Oppenheim on Toys
Thoughts on Toys from the Co-Founder of the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio
Just a note about the quality of toys. My son received the Discovery Toys ATM machine for his birthday. The LCD didn’t work, and neither did the bill feeder motor. I had them send a new one. I then went to their website and read the reviews and did some quick statistics. There are 279 reviews for this toy, 85 of the reviewers received a malfunctioning ATM machine. That’s 30% of the recipients! Where is quality control? Whether its lead or overall quality, this is getting insane.
I think about this issue all the time. I can’t believe that it is 2008, we know the dangers of lead, and yet we have to be concerned about this each time we buy our children a toy. Ideally, someday there will be a label on each and every toy produced verifying that the batch it was produced from is “safe.” I don’t know if that is realistic, but I can dream . . .