worldnews aroundtheglobe Toys R Us set to open new US stores


Toys R Us has announced that it is to open 21 new stores in the USA this side of Christmas. The new openings will include 11 superstores – which have full-size Toys R Us and Babies R Us stores in one location – and ten smaller stores. In total, over 1000 new jobs will be created by the move, which some analysts have suggested is an attempt by the retailer to boost interest in its forthcoming IPO.


Hamleys brings India plans forward


hamlets has confi rmed it now wants to have 20 stores in India by 2016. The original timescale for the expannsion was two years time but now the roll-out will see 20 shops added over the next fi ve years, rather than seven. If it all gos to plan, Hamleys could have more stores in India than the rest of the world altogether. Excluding its premises in Mumbai and Chenai, Hamleys currentl;y operates 14 stores worldwide. Sudhir Pai, Hamleys’ partner in India, commented: “All of our stores put together could end up being bigger than that of the franchisee. We want to expand much faster than what was in our contractual agreement because the response has been so encouraging.” Hamleys’ announcement coincided with the news that the Indian toy industry was estimated to be worth £225 million last fi nancial year.


Wal-Mart plans Brazil expansion


This month Toy World spoke to Julia Fitzgerald, CMO Toys and Seasonal at the Sears Holdings Corporation to fi nd out what’s going on Stateside


Wal-Mart is said to be in talks with the Brazilian subsidiary of Carrefour over a potential takeover, which – if it came to fruition – would create the largest retailer in South America.


Morrisons opens Hong Kong Offi ce


The UK’s fourth largest supermarket chain, Morrisons, has opened a regional buying offi ce in Hong Kong. The move is said to be aimed at supporting the development of its non-food buying programme and is expected to lead to a signifi cant increase in the amount of Far Eastern merchandise in the retailer’s range, and in particular the volume of own label product it offers customers.


You can access the digital edition of Toyworld via www.toyworldmag.co.uk. So wherever you are in the world, you are never out of the loop


108 Toyworld


Toyworld: So what’s hot in the States right now? Julia: What’s hot? Toys that cool you off! With the recent heat wave, infl atable pools, water guns and all water play have been fl ying off the the shelves. A nice surprise is the sucess of Minnie Mouse toys in the pre-school and girls category. For boys toys, we were expecting a bonanza with all the summer movies, but the sales are not meeting industry expectations. Thor, Green Lantern, Cars 2, and Transformers merchandise sales all fell short of the hype. On the positive side, WWE action fi gures and LEGO construction continue to outpace industry expectations.


Toyworld: Interesting...is there any sense those lines will pick up nearer to Christmas, or do you think it was a case of too great an expectation that they would always have struggled to live up to? Here in the UK -and I am led to believe in Europe- both Transformers and Cars seem to be doing fi ne. Julia: It was defi nitely a case of unrealistic expectations AND too many similarly targeted properties at the same time. There is a sense that sales will escalate in the fall – especially after the DVD releases for T3 and Cars 2. The other fun surprise is Angry Birds plush. They are ‘fl ying’ off the shelves. (Sorry, couldn’t resist the pun!).


Each month Toyworld will be fi nding out what’s happening in other toy markets around the world, from the people in the know.


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