Retro is everywhere, it seems. From Old Navy ads hearkening back to TV classics like "Leave it to Beaver" to the reintroductions of '70s and '80s toy classics like Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears, NPD's Industry Experts are seeing a "what's old is new again" trend play out across many of the industries NPD monitors.

Classic concepts, characters and brands are everywhere in the toy industry right now. We're watching Strawberry Shortcake, Care Bears, Transformers and Masters of the Universe reemerge as toy favorites - 10, 20 or 30 years after their original introductions. The launch of a 20th Anniversary Edition of the Trivial Pursuit board game, last year's "Spider-Man" movie and the summer's "Incredible Hulk" box office release all illustrate the "retro" trend. The reintroductions of older brands seem to be primarily among toys that enjoyed their first round of popularity in the 1960s through 1980s. This may be due, in part, to parents' nostalgia for toys they recognize from their own childhoods. It also may be partially attributed to a feeling that the toy industry is not brimming with truly new toy concepts at the moment. Manufacturers, movie studios, licensors of classic TV properties and other marketers are capitalizing on brands that already have strong equity - the key is updating and repackaging older concepts to meet today's consumer demands and styles. Toy marketers know these classics were hits in the past, and they think, why wouldn't the same ideas be successful today?
Christina Charasse
Senior account manager, NPD Funworld

"Retro" is bigger than ever in fashion, with emphases on familiar brands from years past and a new look at "mod" fashions. Brands such as Glora Vanderbilt, Sergio Valente, Faded Glory and other names in jeans and sportswear are back on the racks and denim and corduroy reminiscent of the 1970s are among today's hottest fashion fabrics. In footwear, European and American classics like adidas, Pony and Puma suede styles are hot, as are K-Swiss tennis shoes. Soon, we might even expect to see the reintroduction of the Earth shoe, taking consumers back a few decades. What will be next, disco balls and leisure suits? With the apparel industry in a stalemate, it is no wonder that designers are looking back in time for forward-thinking inspiration. Fashion is trying to revert to "the good old days" and introduce a younger generation to the times when fashion was fun. The big difference now is that while fashion was king in decades past, today it's just one of many interests competing for a share of consumers' wallets.
Marshal Cohen
Chief industry analyst, NPD Fashionworld

Today, kitchen remodeling involves bringing back a lot of the past. Looks reminiscent of a 1950s Cadillac are making their way into the nerve center of the home. It's that bold, hefty design with rounded corners and decorative details like moulding, ridges and vents that's making more and more kitchen appliances showpieces rather than things that get tucked away in the cupboard. We're seeing appliances like blenders return to their original styles of the 1930s, '40s and '50s, and people are looking to replace their original models with the same look. Toasters are moving away from the white, squared-off look we saw for the past few decades and they're going back to their shiny, diner-style 1950s chrome with round edges. And the '50s diner influence is happening with color, too - remember those bright red booth seats? Appliances are moving red back into the kitchen, as well as yellow, pink, blue, orange and green. The pastel yellows, pinks and blues of 1950s cars, poodle skirts and sweaters are making a comeback in the kitchen, and even the brighter oranges and greens of the 1970s palette are back. Stand mixers are the first place to look for color trends in the kitchen, whether as an accent or an inspiration for wider color selections in kitchen design. It's clear that in the kitchen, everything old is new again. We're seeing more and more of today's hot retro trend in the small appliances marketplace.
Donna Wallace
Director, NPD Houseworld

In consumer electronics, the look is usually sleek, compact, modern, new. We deal with products that, for the most part, haven't existed long enough to be hot, cool off, and be reintroduced to become hot again. That said, there has been a rise in nostalgic, "retro" products in specialty areas of the industry. We are seeing some specialty televisions, record players and radios that cater to specialty buyers yearning for a period look. Aside from their external features, which may take consumers back to styles of the 1940s or 1960s, these nostalgic electronics are anything but retro, crammed inside with today's technology.
Tom Edwards
Senior industry analyst, NPD Techworld

In the world of prestige fragrances, classic scents from the '70s and '80s are being re-introduced in lighter versions, targeting younger consumers who will experience these fragrance notes for the first time. Oscar de la Renta's fragrance, Oscar, and Yves Saint Laurent's Opium, both launched in 1977, are two brands offering lighter versions today, Latin Light and Opium d'ete Summer Fragrance, respectively. Similarly, Christian Dior's Fahrenheit 0 Degree Summer Fragrance offers consumers a lighter interpretation of its original Fahrenheit scent, launched in 1988. We're witnessing the reemergence of vintage styles in makeup, too. BeneFit Cosmetics, a brand known for packaging products inspired by the 1940's glamorous era, has introduced its Glamourette Set. The retro-style, dual-sided black compact is interchangeable and contains a face powder with a puff on one side and a blush on the other side. In addition, there is a handle that holds a lipstick. Launched in August 2002, this vintage compact became one of the hottest gift sets last year, generating sales of $1.3 million.
Timra Carlson
President, NPD Beauty