{"id":10612,"date":"2025-03-03T11:34:01","date_gmt":"2025-03-03T16:34:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/fran.learningexpress.com\/franchise\/?p=10612"},"modified":"2025-03-03T11:34:01","modified_gmt":"2025-03-03T16:34:01","slug":"celebrating-learning-express-toys-and-sharon-diminico-at-the-25th-toy-of-the-year-awards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/celebrating-learning-express-toys-and-sharon-diminico-at-the-25th-toy-of-the-year-awards\/","title":{"rendered":"The Toy Association Celebrates Hall of Fame Inductee and Learning Express Founder, Sharon DiMinico, at the 25th Toy of the Year Awards"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t\t\t\t\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <strong>25th Anniversary Toy of the Year\u00ae (TOTY\u00ae) Awards<\/strong> celebrated the most innovative and creative toys in the industry, but this year&#8217;s event held special significance for <strong>Learning Express Toys<\/strong> and its visionary founder, <strong>Sharon DiMinico<\/strong>. As a pioneer in the specialty toy industry, DiMinico&#8217;s induction into the <strong>Toy Industry Hall of Fame<\/strong> marks a well-deserved recognition of her profound impact on the world of play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Sharon DiMinico&#8217;s Legacy with Learning Express Toys<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Founded in 1987, <strong>Learning Express Toys<\/strong> has grown into the largest specialty toy retailer in the United States, thanks to Sharon DiMinico&#8217;s dedication to providing high-quality, educational toys with a personalized shopping experience. Her vision of a neighborhood toy store that fosters creativity, learning, and community has become the hallmark of the brand&#8217;s success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">DiMinico&#8217;s leadership has not only built an iconic brand but also empowered countless women entrepreneurs through the company&#8217;s franchise model. Each Learning Express store is independently owned and operated, allowing owners to create unique shopping experiences tailored to their local communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Hall of Fame Honor<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At the TOTY\u00ae Awards, <strong>Sharon DiMinico<\/strong> was officially inducted into the <strong>Toy Industry Hall of Fame<\/strong>, joining the ranks of legendary figures in the toy industry. This prestigious honor highlights her trailblazing career and her unwavering commitment to bringing high-quality toys to families across the country. DiMinico&#8217;s dedication to empowering women entrepreneurs and her contributions to the specialty toy market have left an indelible mark on the industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Learning Express Toys: A Community Staple<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Learning Express Toys continues to set itself apart with:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Curated, educational toys that inspire creativity and learning<\/li><li>Hands-on play areas for kids to explore<\/li><li>Exceptional customer service, including free gift wrapping<\/li><li>Community-focused events like craft workshops and game nights<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These personalized touches create a shopping experience that big-box retailers simply can&#8217;t replicate. Under Sharon DiMinico&#8217;s leadership, Learning Express has remained a cornerstone of neighborhoods across the country, proving that specialty toy stores have a vital role in the community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Looking Ahead<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As Learning Express Toys continues to thrive, Sharon DiMinico&#8217;s influence will undoubtedly guide its future. Her commitment to high-quality toys, exceptional customer service, and community involvement remains the foundation of the brand&#8217;s enduring success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For more information about the <strong>25th Anniversary Toy of the Year\u00ae Awards<\/strong> and Sharon DiMinico&#8217;s induction into the <strong>Toy Industry Hall of Fame<\/strong>, read the full press release <a href=\"https:\/\/www.prnewswire.com\/news-releases\/top-toys-of-the-year-announced-at-the-25th-toy-of-the-year-awards-302389072.html\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Experience the magic of <strong>Learning Express Toys<\/strong> and discover how one woman&#8217;s vision has transformed the way families shop and play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hall of Fame Video<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">See the video shown at the TOTY Awards below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Big News for Learning Express! Sharon DiMinico Joins the Toy Hall of Fame\" width=\"720\" height=\"405\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/HIHHjDc_AQM?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The 25th Anniversary Toy of the Year\u00ae (TOTY\u00ae) Awards celebrated the most innovative and creative toys in the industry, but this year&#8217;s event held special significance for Learning Express Toys and its visionary founder, Sharon DiMinico. As a pioneer in the specialty toy industry, DiMinico&#8217;s induction into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame marks a&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":10614,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10612","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-toy-fair","category-toy-industry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10612","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10612"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10612\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10614"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10612"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10612"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pos.learningexpress.net\/franchise\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10612"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}