Squishy Toy Craze Draws Kids and Adults to 7:30 a.m. Store Hunts
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 26
Squishy Toy Craze Draws Kids and Adults to 7:30 a.m. Store Hunts
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 26
Summary
7:30 a.m. Target lines in Hackensack, New Jersey, show how far collectors will go for newly released squishy toys, with parents and children arriving at opening time to secure the latest drops.
The craze centers on squeezable, stretchable fidget collectibles that are as much about the hunt and trading culture as the objects themselves, turning routine shopping into repeated "squishy hunting" trips.
One 32-year-old mother said her 8-year-old son now wakes himself at 6:30 a.m. for the searches, underscoring how the fad has spread beyond kids to adults who join the collecting.
New releases such as a squishy stick of butter and a cloud, alongside designs like dumplings, cats and raindrops, are fueling demand with novelty, texture and scarcity.