ZEBULON -- Mattel has Barbie. Parker Brothers has Monopoly.
Now add to that list: Nomaco and Planet Foam.
At least, that's the Zebulon company's plan.
Last week, the company made its first attempt at breaking into the retail toy industry, launching its first products under the Planet Foam brand.
The 350-employee company manufactures foam insulation, but the foam toys are not a complete change of pace.
For more than a decade, Nomaco manufactured Funnoodles, those foam tubes that children splash around with in swimming pools. The difference is that Nomaco was the manufacturer only. They sold the noodles to Jakks Pacific, a national marketer known for brands such as SpongeBob SquarePants and Creepy Crawler, which in turn sold them to retailers.
Two years ago, Nomaco executives decided to take the plunge into retail and told the giant marketer that it would produce similar noodles under its own brand name.
"We are making that shift from vendor supplier to marketing," said Jeff Slater, director of retail sales and marketing for Nomaco. "This is a great opportunity to get the Nomaco name in the market place."
Slater said that he came up with the brand name as he walked around the Nomaco plant. "There was foam everywhere. I said, 'This is like planet foam. ' "
Nomaco had to create a new name for its foam floaties because Jakks trademarked the Funnoodle name. Jakks also is planning to continue to market and sell them, working with a new manufacturer.
Both Slater and a spokeswoman for Jakks said the two companies were working to resolve trademark issues but neither would elaborate.
Slater said the trademark issues would not affect the launch of the new brand.
Nomaco's Planet Foam noodles will come in three sizes and be called Dipper, Little Dipper and Big Dipper -- to represent the constellation of stars. Those noodles will debut in December under the new brand name in Wal-Mart stores in warmer states such as Florida, said Slater.
In a further attempt to differentiate itself from competitors, Nomaco has designed additional features to add to the noodle.
The Dip & Draw is a white noodle with a marker that lets children draw their own pictures on the noodle. The Dip & Sit is a water lounger with a noodle slid through the arms of bright green netting.
The products will sell for prices ranging from $1.49 to $6.99, said Slater.
And Nomaco is looking beyond noodles. Slater said it is deep into the development of several new foam toys that it plans to bring to the market during the next two years. One line will include a foam clubhouse, princess castle and pirate ship.
"I don't want to be a seasonal product," said Slater. "I want to sell this every day."
Those who study the toy industry say that Nomaco's challenge will be to stand out in the very crowded toy market.
"It is really a tough industry to break into," said Kim Ferguson, a spokeswoman for Funosophy, a Long Beach, Calif., company that tracks trends in the toy industry and has done some consulting work for Nomaco.
"But it is doable," said Ferguson. "Innovation is the key. If you have an idea that has never been done, there is a place for it."
Ferguson said that she thinks Nomaco is on the right track.
"They have a lot of good ideas," she said. "Constructing toys with foam has a safety factor, and it's easy for kids to manipulate. It has good play value with parents."
Nomaco is entering the industry with a slight advantage. Over the years, it has established relationships with big retailers such as Wal-Mart, Kmart and CVS through manufacturing of Funnoodles. However, it's the product that got them in the door, said Ferguson.
