Toys 'R' Us' bankruptcy is one reason for the hiccup to bottom lines of major toy companies, but they're also reporting soft interest in licensed products. Hasbro's revenue rose by 7% to reach $1.8 billion in Q3 2017. The toyco adjusted its projection for Q4 2017, lowering expectations to 4–7% growth over the same period last year. Despite an increase in gaming and franchise … [Read more...] about Toycos Detail Q3 Declines
Toys ‘R’ Us
Retailer Alert: Holiday Sales, TRU & New Innovations
The economists have weighed in, and it looks like holiday sales will be strong this year. Deloitte projects that holiday sales between November and January will rise 4% to 4.5% from a year earlier to as much as $1.05 trillion. Online sales will rise at a much faster pace, gaining 18% to 21% to as much as $114 billion, or 11% of the total holiday retail sales. AlixPartners … [Read more...] about Retailer Alert: Holiday Sales, TRU & New Innovations
Retailer’s Top Toys of the 2017 Holiday Season
By Karina Masolova, karina@plainlanguagemedia.com The top toy lists from Toys 'R' Us, Target, Amazon, Walmart, and Kohl's are out! Just over one-third of the top toys of the holiday season are licensed offerings. This year, we've identified which toys are licensed, their respective manufacturer, and which are exclusive to the retailer. See the complete list below. In 2016, … [Read more...] about Retailer’s Top Toys of the 2017 Holiday Season
TRU’s Debt & Other Toy/Game News
By Karina Masolova, karina@plainlanguagemedia.com In the face of a $400 million debt due in 2018, Toys 'R' Us has retained a law firm to help restructure its financial obligations. The toy retailer has not ruled out bankruptcy as part of its plan, and is also looking at obtaining additional financing. TRU is also continuing to work with financial advisory firm Lazard, which … [Read more...] about TRU’s Debt & Other Toy/Game News
Top Retailers Tag Holiday Toy Favorites
The holiday shopping season is firmly upon us, with more retailers revealing their top picks for this year's holiday season. By the 7th of September—54 days before Halloween, 78 days before Thanksgiving and 108 days before Christmas and Hanukkah (which this year begins on Christmas Eve)—the two largest toy retailers in the U.S., Walmart and Toys 'R' Us, had announced the toys … [Read more...] about Top Retailers Tag Holiday Toy Favorites
Mergers & Acquisitions
Toys 'R' Us sells the FAO Schwarz brand to California-based toy manufacturer and distributor ThreeSixty Group. ThreeSixty will develop FAO Schwarz-branded toys and retail experiences, to launch next fall. Target partners with Alibaba to sell goods in China via the Tmall ecommerce marketplace. Viacom's Board of Directors forms a Special Committee of Independent Directors to … [Read more...] about Mergers & Acquisitions
Who’s News
Andrew Cooper is the new President of Sequential Brands Group.HMD global Oy appoints Pekka Rantala CMO. Following NBCUniversal’s acquisition of DreamWorks Animation, Universal Filmed Entertainment Group restructures its management team. Vince Klaseus leads the combined Universal and DreamWorks Animation games, digital and consumer products divisions. Margie Cohn helms the … [Read more...] about Who’s News
Who’s News
Global Brands Group and Creative Artists Agency (CAA) create a joint venture, CAA-GBG Global Brand Management Group (CAA-GBG). Perry Wolfman will serve as CEO, while Jared Margolis will be President. Endemol Shine North America names Michael Gifford SVP Business & Legal Affairs, while Ed Prince and Marjorie Williams have each been named VP Business & Legal … [Read more...] about Who’s News
Who’s News
Warner Bros. Consumer Products names Peter van Roden SVP Global Themed Entertainment. Brit Gordon joins Fermata Partners to collaborate with Founding Partners Kit Walsh, Scott Bouyack, Derek Eiler, and Chris Prindiville on behalf of the PGA TOUR. DHX Brands appoints Kaisa Nieminen Senior Brand Manager North America, where she will lead initiatives for Teletubbies, Twirlywoos … [Read more...] about Who’s News
As Pet Pampering Grows, Licensing Goes to the Dogs
By Marcy Magiera For evidence of Americans' preoccupation with their pets, look no further than Super Bowl Sunday, when Animal Planet's Puppy Bowl XII (in VR, no less) and Hallmark Channel's Kitten Bowl III will fill the hours leading up to the main gridiron event. Or the fact that a Petco survey during the fourth quarter showed that 82% of respondents intended to … [Read more...] about As Pet Pampering Grows, Licensing Goes to the Dogs