SERIES: Chicago Toy and Game’s Rising Star of the Year Nominees: In Their Own Words — Adam Borton, Creating Unique Toys Ltd.

Adam Borton launched Creating Unique Toys Ltd. in 2014 as a toy designer for companies such as Little Tikes. Since starting his company, he has designed toys and games for Hasbro, won Hasbro’s Emerging Inventor of the Year award and has been featured by the BBC and Forbes. This year Mattel released his game “Flushin’ Frenzy”, which has been promoted on the Disney and Nickelodeon channels, garnered more than six million hits on YouTube and was ranked as one of the top 10 best-selling games on Amazon.

He has been nominated for the Chicago Toy and Game Week Rising Star Award which will be presented at this year’s ChiTAG Toy & Game Innovation Awards (TAGIEs) ceremony in the Ballroom at Navy Pier on November 16, 2018 from 6 p.m. — 10 p.m.

Adam Borton in his own words.

I’m 32, from England and studied Product Design at Bournemouth University in the UK. I’ve pursued a career in Toy Design ever since I found out that it was an actual real job!

I designed a toy as final year project at University, then designed an entire global ‘Master Toy’ range called The Hive shown on the Disney Channel. I interned at Little Tikes in Ohio, then went on to freelance with Hasbro, where I was named Emerging Inventor of the Year. This year my game with Mattel, “Flushin’ Frenzy”, was featured on The Today Show and Jimmy Kimmel Live, and has been selling out at stores.

“Flushin’ Frenzy” is a game that entails plunging a toilet with a plunger until a poop flies into the air. The lucky player who catches it first, wins a tokens!

The ChiTAG’s Rising Star Award nomination process has brought awareness and visibility to inventors year after year. Authors, directors and musicians rightfully receive the credit for the things they create, and ChiTAG has done an amazing job of putting inventors — some of whom have created billion-dollar products — on the same level.

I became an inventor four years ago because it gave me the freedom to bring my ideas to life. I have lots of ideas, but it takes a long time to prototype them to a high level, so I have to invest my time wisely

It would be fantastic to win the Rising Star Award. I’m in this for the long haul and recognition from ChiTAG will make people sit up and take notice. It would also help me to forget all about the blood, sweat and tears shed to make some of my prototypes!