Did retail make a false start by discounting Olympic toys early?
Suppliers upset by some stores cutting prices early “But how long will sales continue for?” ask retailers...
by Dominic Sacco and Lewis Tyler
THE OLYMPICS was a mixed bag for the industry as toy sales eventually shot up – but only after aggressive discounting by retail. Senior sources have told ToyNews that certain retailers slashed the price of official licensed London 2012 toys by more than half their original RRPs. “I have found working on the Olympic project to be incredibly exciting, but it is very sad that so many retailers across the board started discounting their Olympic stock before it had even started,” said She Who Dares founder Rachel Lowe MBE, maker of Destination London. Alex Balzaretti, project manager for the London 2012 range at Hornby, added: “Given the unprecedented nature of an event such as this, and
The Entertainer’s Grant saw strong sales after discounting, while Hornby’s Balzaretti and GB’s Hughes are confident demand will continue...
the opportunities and their associated risks, there were bound to be retailers who didn’t quite get it right.” But, retail says it had no choice but to slash prices to drive sales. “We saw literally no demand prior to the start of the Games, and during the week of the opening ceremony, we half-priced all of our stock, as did many of our competitors,” said The Entertainer’s buying director Stuart
Wreck-It Ralph line due
A HOST of figures based on Disney’s animated kids’ film Wreck-It Ralph will hit shelves in the New Year. Thinkway Toys has been named global toy partner licensee for the products, while Mondo will distribute the figures across Europe. The film – which follows an ex-video game villain who escapes his world to become a hero – arrives in UK cinemas on February 15th, 2013. Toys will be available six weeks prior to that in early January. They consist of action figures, plush toys and role-play products. “Thinkway has a really cool line and some innovative product,” Disney’s EMEA VP for toys and stationery Anna Chapman told ToyNews. “It’s a range of full action figures so it starts off with small-scale [items] and then there’s large scale ones with some cool features.
SEPTEMBER 2012
“One of Thinkway’s strong points is the innovation and technology it puts into product development, so there’s some really cool high-priced feature-led items.” Thinkway Toys is no stranger to Disney, having previously produced the licensed Wall-E and traditional Toy Story figures. “We’ve worked
with ThinkWay for a number of years and they tend to do really well with the innovative hero skus like Wall-E,” added Chapman. “We had a very small licensing programme on
Wall-E, but the £100 Thinkway Interactive Wall-E toy did amazingly well.” Wreck-It Ralph features the voices of several big-name actors including John C. Reilly and Jane Lynch. Disney: 020 8222 1000
Grant. “Subsequently we have had a phenomenal two weeks of trading, but all at deep discounting. The question is: how long will sales continue?” Indies had contrasting opinions. Some, such as Ellenbray and The Hub Direct, praised Lego’s Team GB Minifigure range after it sold out, though the former said some lines “were a disaster”. Others avoided stocking Olympics toys entirely.
But suppliers are confident sales of the toys will continue. Golden Bear’s commercial director Barry Hughes, added: “We anticipate that consumer demand will continue for Pride the Lion in the coming months.” And MV Sports sales and
marketing director Phil Ratcliffe said that the firm had made enough sales to recoup its guarantee, which “was a significant amount”.
Retailers Goo crazy for new Moshi Monsters sku
MOSHI Goo will help Moshi Monsters fever continue this year after its distributor saw pre-orders go ‘through the roof’.
The product is a powder that turns water into thick goo after two minutes. Kids can then add ‘Goo Dissolver’ to turn it back to water. A strong selling point for Moshi fans is the fact that each Goo box comes with one of eight exclusive green figures.
The In Thing is billing the £9.99 Moshi Goo as a fun bath time product for kids. It contains no harmful chemicals or preservatives.
“Moshi Goo is one the most unique products we have ever launched,” head of marketing Kieran Murphy told ToyNews. “We’re confident it’ll be up there as the most sought after Moshi line, especially with the exclusive Moshi Monsters figure included inside.” Sales director Pete Jackson added:
“Pre-orders approaching the launch were through the roof. We’ve had a great response and are delighted to see everyone getting as excited about Moshi Goo as us.”