CAMBRIDGE - Rick Henry, owner of Stellabella Toys, took a hard look at his inventory after the recent recalls of millions of toys imported from China, and realized he needed to make changes.
So, he doubled the amount of merchandise not made in China for his two Cambridge shops. He bought as many LEGO toys (made in Denmark) and Playmobil products (made in Germany) as possible. And he added new lines, including German stacking toys and wooden trains from Maple Landmark Woodcraft of Vermont.
This holiday season, in the wake of massive recalls of mainstream toys like Barbie and Batman, those changes are paying dividends: Already, Stellabella has seen sales increase 15 percent.
The jump in Stellabella's business reflects a trend in the industry as consumers worried about toy safety flock to small shops, helping to reverse sales declines to mass merchants like Wal-Mart Stores Inc., which often offer better prices. Domestic manufacturers also are seeing a boon for the first time in years as stores are stocking their shelves with more toys made in Europe and the United States.
Specialty shops are gearing up for particularly cautious shoppers, with some stores even providing lead-testing services. More than 65 percent of consumers say the recalls will affect their holiday shopping, and nearly one-quarter say they will refuse to buy toys from China this season, according to Maritz Research Retail Group.
"Not a day goes by that these recalls don't come up with shoppers," said Stellabella's Henry, who created a binder filled with toy testing standards, symbols, and product information from vendors to help answer shoppers' questions.
Shoppers' concerns have meant increased demand at some manufacturers. At Maple Landmark in Middlebury, Vt., colorful blocks and wooden rattles are flying off the factory line, but not fast enough. Orders have soared 60 percent this season. Despite doubling production - with more than 400 hours of overtime logged over the past week - Maple Landmark still has not cleared hundreds of orders that likely won't make it in time for Christmas.
"If anybody told us six months ago what we were in for this season, we would have laughed at them," said Mike Rainville, owner of Maple Landmark. "This is earth-changing for us."
The recalls also have meant big changes for the shopping strategy of Deana Tolliver as she tries to ensure the safety of the toys she buys for her four-year-old daughter and six-year-old son. The Cambridge mother has spent weekends combing through specialty shops to find crafts and building blocks.
She takes photos with her phone of toys from companies with high testing standards, such as Melissa & Doug, and e-mails them to friends and relatives. And she's cutting her toy budget in half, instead buying memberships to the Children's Museum in Boston, the New England Aquarium, and the Museum of Science. "I just don't trust that what's on the shelves at large stores," Tolliver said, as she examined a cowgirl puppet at Stellabella Toys. "I don't want to buy those painted plastic items. It will take quite a bit to convince me that these items are safe."
Parents' safety fears continue because even though retailers are required to take recalled items off their shelves, several toy safety groups have issued reports in recent weeks contending that toxic toys remain in stores and additional products that have not been recalled contain high amounts of lead.
Because about 80 percent of all US toys are manufactured in China, where they are cheaper to produce, it is more likely that the toys will end up in mass merchants, which often carry large volumes of toys. Only in September did China sign an agreement to prohibit the use of lead paint on toys exported to the United States, while the United States and Europe have banned lead paint for decades.
The recalls and confusion has many specialty store owners targeting shoppers who are seeking advice on what to buy. Green Planet Kids in Newton hosted a free lead testing event last week and another is planned for tomorrow where parents can bring toys from home and get them tested.
At the first event, seven toys tested positive for lead, including a rubber duck bath toy, plastic building blocks, and a wooden maraca from Mexico, according to Annabelle Ship, owner of Green Planet Kids, which has seen sales jump more than 50 percent this holiday season. Ship said she has already tested the entire store for lead and plans to offer free testing in the evenings for the rest of the season. "The problem of toy safety is not a Chinese problem but a global manufacturing problem. If everyone in the supply chain tested their products, the problem would disappear within a few months," Ship said. "The large stores should be leading the way, not only because most of the items that have been recalled are sold in those stores, but because they have the volume of business to absorb the cost of testing."
Several of the larger toy retailers, including Toys "R" Us and KB Toys, have responded to the recalls by expanding testing of the toys they buy and increasing promotions and advertising in an effort to attract parents.
On the day after Thanksgiving, when the holiday shopping season traditionally kicks off, Toys "R" Us, for instance, offered four times more doorbuster deals than last year. But in several of its holiday circulars this season, which are printed weeks ahead of time, Toys "R" Us promoted the popular Aqua Dots - which were recalled in early November because they contain a chemical that can convert into the toxic "date rape drug" GHB.
Gloria Park Bartolone, vice president of Maritz Research's Retail Group, said there are few visible changes at the big box stores. "Toy safety is clearly a concern for consumers this holiday season and you wouldn't know it by looking at American toy aisles," said Bartolone. "There's little or no signage to restore customers' confidence in toy safety."
Angela Litovchick is one shopper who has changed her mind about the bargains she used to find at dollar stores or mass merchants. This year, Litovchick is refusing to buy Fisher-Price toys for her 9-year-old and 2-year-old daughters because she no longer trusts the brand after it recalled more than 1 million products this summer, including Elmo and Dora and Diego characters, which were made in China. Her shopping strategy now involves movie tickets, coloring books, craft kits and tickets to Cirque de Soleil. "I cannot afford to buy expensive USA made certified nontoxic toys and I do not want to buy cheap potentially toxic toys," she said. "Previous years I was much quicker to just buy another small toy to make my kids happy. Now, I try to think what I can buy or do instead of toys and still keep them happy."
Jenn Abelson can be reached at abelson@globe.com.
