The fairgrounds were full of duct-tape sculptures, such as a 20ft-tall Mr Potato Head toy, a Transformers action figure, and an old-fashioned red viewfinder.

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When people do buy toys they often shun the large toy retailers and head for discounters, notably Wal-Mart, which now dominates much of American retailing and has just launched a price war in some of the most popular toys, such as this year's must-buy, Hokey Pokey Elmo.

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We have forgotten that regardless of the target market, the key decision-maker, whether he or she is a financial adviser, a hospital administrator, a CEO, a mom buying a toy for her child, or the head of a large contractor for the military, is first and foremost a human.

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It was later revealed to be a toy submarine outfitted with a sea-serpent head.

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After making that first toy, it was eight inches tall, but in my head, it was like I'd just made a building or a boat.

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That way, he says, if something falls on a kid's head in a store you have leased to a toy retailer, your other properties won't be at risk.

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Charles Woo, head of MegaToys, says that he encouraged other toy companies to move close to him when he started up in the early 1980s because they could share suppliers and meet the demand if orders came in too fast.

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