Former Director of Product Development Tom Runtz named Vice President of Product Development after more than ten years of service

VERNON HILLS, IL (Jul. 16, 2024) - Learning Resources, a trusted and family-owned manufacturer of award-winning educational toys, games and classroom products, proudly announces the promotion of Director of Product Development Tom Runtz to Vice President of Product Development. Runtz succeeds longtime Vice President of Product Development Barb Plain upon her recent retirement.

“Tom has been instrumental in shaping our product strategy and delivering ideas that resonate with our customers,” stated Rick Woldenberg, CEO of Learning Resources. “We are confident that under Tom’s leadership, we will continue to set new standards in educational toys and inspire a lifelong love of learning in children around the world.”

Runtz joined Learning Resources in 2013 as a product manager and most recently served as the Director of Product Development, using his data-driven strategic approach to propel new product innovation and expansion into new product categories. In his new role, Runtz will focus on leveraging market insights and fostering creativity within the product development team to ensure Learning Resources’ products continue to meet the evolving needs of children, parents and educators. His team will also spearhead the development of pet toys under the Brightkins and Hunger For Words brands.

“I’m excited to continue building on the strong foundation Barb established,” Runtz shared. “I look forward to working alongside our talented team to develop products that make learning fun and accessible for all.”

Throughout her remarkable career spanning over three decades, Plain led the development of numerous best-selling products and spearheaded Learning Resources’ entry into new market segments. Learning Resources looks forward to extending Plain’s legacy of innovation and market leadership under Runtz.

“It’s been a great privilege to work alongside Barb. Her mentorship and vision have been invaluable in preparing me for success as I transition into this role,” added Runtz.

For more information about Learning Resources and its family of award-winning brands, visit www.learningresources.com.

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ABOUT LEARNING RESOURCES:

We're Learning Resources®, and learning is where we play. Trusted by parents and teachers since 1984, our award-winning educational toys from the Learning Resources and Educational Insights brands help kids develop a lifelong love of learning. From ABCs and 123s to screen-free coding, brain teasers and STEM toys, we make learning fun at every age, stage, and skill level. Discover countless ways to learn through play with our award-winning, top selling products including Pretend & Play® Calculator Cash Register, Toy of the Year winner Botley® the Coding Robot, viral phenomenon Kanoodle and our best-selling science toy line, GeoSafari.

For more information, visit www.learningresources.com, or follow the brand on Facebook @LearningResources, Instagram @learningresources and TikTok @learningresources.