The 1980s: When Deal Toys Got Loud

By the 1980s, deal toys had evolved from simple Lucite blocks into full-on creative expressions.

Wall Street was booming. Rivalries were fierce. And with every closing came an unspoken competition: who could come up with the most memorable commemorative?

Lucite was still the go-to medium, but the designs got bolder—and more specific.

Some now-iconic examples:

• A metal-cast Liberty Bell for a municipal bond deal

• A giant poker chip for a casino IPO

• An Oreo-shaped Lucite toy for a major merger

This was the era when the term "deal toy" really caught on. These weren’t just markers of success—they were trophies, badges of honor, and desk-worthy bragging rights.

Clients expected more. Designers pushed the limits. And every piece had to do more than say “we closed.”
It had to say who we are and how we did it.

That mindset still drives great commemorative design today.

At Polaris, we bring that same level of creativity and care to every project. Because even now, decades later, the best deal toys are the ones that make a statement.