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are we seeing that are recreations of past tense properties? No matter how good they are, sequels eventually create a state of ennui among movie goers and their children. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides; Kung Fu Panda 2; Cars 2; Transformers: Dark of the Moon; Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II; Winnie the Pooh; The Smurfs and Ice Age 4 are all sequels and all came out in 2011. They collectively demonstrate a profound failure to create and innovate.
control more than 50 percent of toy sales. When you control that much turf, you pick the winners; and the winners, whether yet another version of Nerf, Barbie or even Teenage Mutant Turtles, seem frequently to be reruns of past successes. What Can Be Done? Most historic periods of stagnation have been followed by periods of creativity. The Romantic movement of the early 19th century replaced the Neo-Classic period and the early 20th century was filled with the excitement of the Impressionists, the Cubists and the Modernists. This period of stagnation will surely end. The combination of new technologies, the Internet and stores without walls will mean that there is room for smaller players. Costs of entry will go down and designers and inventors will become more powerful forces as they control their own content by making it available through new low cost channels of entry. The toy industry will be no more immune to the future than the
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Retailers Retailers, and particularly the retail leaders, Target and Wal-Mart and to a lesser extent Toys R Us, need to take a share of responsibility for a risk-averse toy industry culture that favors the old, proven and tired over the new, different and exciting. Like Hasbro and its short-sighted game strategy, toy retailers have replaced the consumer community’s former vision of the toy department as a place of wonder with an expectation of the expected (redundancy intended). If you are a THE COMBINATION OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES, young, visionary THE INTERNET AND STORES WITHOUT WALLS company with one WILL MEAN THAT THERE IS ROOM FOR SMALLER or two products, no PLAYERS. COSTS OF ENTRY WILL GO DOWN. retailer of size will purchase your prodmusic, television and book indusucts. Why? Because the economics tries have been. of conservative retailing dictate that Big box retailers will be smart to setting up small toy companies as start dedicating space to products vendors is just too that reflect the tastes of a new expensive. Why? Because in the generation rather than forcing event that these companys’ prodrepurposed versions of 20th century ucts fail, they will not be around to relics on the digital 21st century’s provide markdown money. Why? parents and children. I’m waiting Because when you constantly go for the renaissance and it can’t come with the tried and trusted, there is too soon. simply no room on the shelf for the new and risky. Is it an exaggeration to say that Richard Gottlieb is president of the big retailers no longer take risks Richard Gottlieb & Associates LLC, a on the new and different? Yes it is, provider of business development serbut it is not a big one. What makes vices. He has 35 years experience in the these toy retailers’ business models toy industry in sales and sales manageso troubling is that between Tarment. He can be reached at Richard@ get, Toys R Us and Wal-Mart, they usatoyexpert.com. Circle #218
№ 234 gifts and decorative accessories | january 2012
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12/19/2011 6:11:49 PM