2022年12月25日 VOA慢速英語(yǔ)：成人玩具是一個(gè)不斷增長(zhǎng)的市場(chǎng)

 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Elizabeth Hulanick has turned to toys from her childhood to deal with worry and stress.
在 COVID-19 大流行期間，伊麗莎白·胡拉尼克 (Elizabeth Hulanick) 從小就開(kāi)始使用玩具來(lái)應(yīng)對(duì)憂慮和壓力。
 
She started bringing Lego toys to work to build things out of the colorful blocks with her co-workers. She also started playing with Silly Putty, a toy made of special rubbery material that changes colors. Playing with the Silly Putty, she said, brought her comfort.
她開(kāi)始帶著樂(lè)高玩具與同事一起用五顏六色的積木拼搭東西。她還開(kāi)始玩 Silly Putty，這是一種由特殊橡膠材料制成的會(huì)變色的玩具。她說(shuō)，玩 Silly Putty 給她帶來(lái)了安慰。
 
"I always need something to be tinkering with, and that's probably the safest bet for me to stick with a toy versus keep trying to figure out how to fix cars or something like that," said Hulanick, who is 37 years old and lives in New Jersey.
37 歲的胡拉尼克說(shuō)：“我總是需要一些東西來(lái)修修補(bǔ)補(bǔ)，這可能是我堅(jiān)持玩玩具而不是一直想弄清楚如何修理汽車或類似東西的最安全的選擇。”新澤西州。
 
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, many adults turned to toys to remember feelings from their childhood. The stresses from the worldwide health crisis only grew that trend, said Jim Silver. He is editor-in-chief of TTPM, a toy review website.
在 COVID-19 大流行之前，許多成年人轉(zhuǎn)向玩具來(lái)回憶童年的感受。吉姆西爾弗說(shuō)，全球健康危機(jī)帶來(lái)的壓力只會(huì)加劇這種趨勢(shì)。他是玩具評(píng)論網(wǎng)站TTPM的主編。
 
Many toymakers see adults' interest in toys as a long-lasting thing, even after the pandemic fully ends. This so-called "kid-adult" market is a big part of the toy industry. The market is the second-fastest-growing group after customers aged 12 to 17.
許多玩具制造商認(rèn)為成年人對(duì)玩具的興趣是一種持久的東西，即使在大流行完全結(jié)束之后也是如此。這個(gè)所謂的“兒童-成人”市場(chǎng)是玩具行業(yè)的重要組成部分。該市場(chǎng)是增長(zhǎng)第二快的群體，僅次于12 至 17 歲的客戶。
 
Some toy companies are creating new products, services and websites designed for the older group.
一些玩具公司正在開(kāi)發(fā)專為年長(zhǎng)群體設(shè)計(jì)的新產(chǎn)品、服務(wù)和網(wǎng)站。
 
For example, Mattel's American Girl Cafe recently added alcoholic drinks to their menu after seeing adults show up without children. American Girl makes popular, costly dolls.
例如，Mattel 的 American Girl Cafe 最近在看到?jīng)]有孩子的成年人出現(xiàn)后，在他們的菜單中添加了酒精飲料。American Girl 制作受歡迎、昂貴的洋娃娃。
 
Last year, the company Build-a-Bear launched a website called Bear Cave for customers 18 and over. Products include a stuffed rabbit holding a bottle of wine.
去年，Build-a-Bear 公司為 18 歲及以上的客戶推出了一個(gè)名為 Bear Cave 的網(wǎng)站。產(chǎn)品包括一只拿著一瓶酒的毛絨兔子。
 
Even the fast-food restaurant McDonald's is marketing to toy-loving adults. It released its adult Happy Meals in October. McDonald's President and CEO Chris Kempczinski said the company sold half its supply of collectible toys in the first four days of the special deal.
甚至快餐店麥當(dāng)勞也在向喜愛(ài)玩具的成年人推銷產(chǎn)品。它在 10 月發(fā)布了成人 Happy Meals。麥當(dāng)勞總裁兼首席執(zhí)行官 Chris Kempczinski 表示，該公司在特惠活動(dòng)的前四天就售出了一半的收藏玩具。
 
The Lego Group has been increasing its products for adults since 2020. It now has 100 toys designed for older customers. Among the most popular toys for adults are Star Wars and Harry Potter-linked Lego sets. That information comes from NPD Group Inc., a market research company.
樂(lè)高集團(tuán)自 2020 年以來(lái)一直在增加面向成人的產(chǎn)品。目前已有 100 款專為老年客戶設(shè)計(jì)的玩具。最受成人歡迎的玩具包括星球大戰(zhàn)和與哈利波特相關(guān)的樂(lè)高套裝。該信息來(lái)自市場(chǎng)研究公司 NPD Group Inc.。
 
Genevieve Cruz is senior director at Lego. She said, "The pandemic certainly served as a catalyst for this trend as adults found themselves stuck at home with nothing else to do with a lot of time [on] their hands."
Genevieve Cruz 是樂(lè)高的高級(jí)總監(jiān)。她說(shuō)：“大流行病無(wú)疑是這一趨勢(shì)的催化劑，因?yàn)槌赡耆税l(fā)現(xiàn)自己被困在家里，無(wú)事可做，手上有很多時(shí)間。”
 
Cruz added, "We do believe that the trend goes beyond the pandemic."
克魯茲補(bǔ)充說(shuō)：“我們確實(shí)相信這種趨勢(shì)超越了大流行。”