Blue Orange Games is lucky to partner with a fantastic bunch of retailers who are passionate about their businesses and supportive of our games. We want to do more to recognize the stores and individuals that make our mission possible. That’s how our new monthly spotlight on an outstanding Blue Orange Games retailer came about!
We are pleased to announce that Kid’s Center in Tucson, Arizona is our Store of the Month for February! Renaud, a member of our sales team, nominated the store after being impressed by their dedication to their community and their passion for Spot it! which is why they are a destination store for the greater Tucson area.
The Kid’s Center got its start in 1989 when the state of Arizona wanted to widen the road that Jim Davis’ old business (a kitchen design and construction company) was located on. So Jim and his wife decided to downsize their physical location and enter the toy industry.
Since they made the change to toys, Kid’s Center has been a center for learning and play for the entire region. Every year they make it a priority to engage with their local schools and communities, getting young excited about reading and playing games. And for the past 5 years, they have participated in the Tucson Festival of Books (A two-day attraction that brings more than 100,000 book-lovers to the nearby University of Arizona).
Reading and education is a huge priority for the store. They have over 15000 children’s books at their store and they are so beloved by their community of children’s book enthusiasts that they even ship their books internationally to as far away as Africa.
The top selling games in the store are all quick playing, easy to understand and offer some kind of education benefit. And Jim makes sure that players of all ages will appreciate the games he caries. He is a grandfather, so it brings him a lot of joy to play card games like Spot it! Timeline and Picwits! with his family.
The Kid’s Center even helped with the development of Spot it! contributing to making it the smash sensation it is today. It was Jim’s nephew Stephen who first suggested the idea for a mini-game that we later called “Triplets” in the full version. It was Stephen’s idea to look for a match across 3 cards.
And their dedication to Spot it! doesn’t stop there! One of the things that first brought the Kid’s Center to MY Attention was Jim’s clever marketing strategy he came up with for to help promote Blue Orange Games. Jim reached out to us for custom made Spot it! pins that his customers can collect and bring back to the store to play. They earn a discount if they wear the pins back to the store and with a game of Spot it! using their pin as their card.
It’s exactly that sort of playful spirit and eye towards community that has kept the Kid’s Center the go-to destination for anyone interested in reading and games for the past 14 years.
The whole team at Blue Orange Games would like to thank Jim and the rest of the Kid’s Center staff for believing in our games and for creating rewarding, educational experiences for their community. Congrats!