‘Star Wars’ toys spill along I-44 as semi-truck tips and hangs off interstate.
He’d been into “Star Wars” as a kid — he was just 4 when his mother took him to see the first movie — but he was a college student at a record swap where he came across a trade newspaper devoted to toy collecting. “Thankfully my mom didn’t do what most moms did,” he told the La Crosse Tribune (http://bit.ly/1ParmPz ), “which is get rid of them at a rummage sale.” The toys weren’t in the condition he’d hoped, but he cleaned and bagged them. As the holiday shopping season formally kicked off Friday, retailers and analysts debated how big a bite online buying would take out of brick-and-mortar business, whether purchases of electronics would cool off, and whether apparel retailers would get a sales jolt after a nationwide warm spell crimped sales of winter clothes.The toy industry isn’t putting up the kind of growth numbers that some predicted this holiday season, said Toys “R” Us Chief Executive Officer Dave Brandon. The next few weeks are set to punctuate the toy industry’s best year in more than a decade, one in which a crop of new movies and a spate of technological innovations have playthings flying off shelves. Lee/The Dallas Morning News) A shopper checks out Star Wars merchandise at the Toys R Us on Times Square in New York, on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 26, 2015. (Eric Thayer/The New York Times) “It’s too early to tell.
While they may have “come from a galaxy far, far away” everything you could possibly want in a “Star Wars” toy was falling out of the back of a truck on I-44! He financed his collecting with student loans and the sale of other toys and eventually acquired all the figures and dozens of vehicles and play sets sold between 1978 and 1984. The hype and expectations are remarkable with all the trailer releases introducing new characters,” he said. “If it’s as big as people think it will be, we’re not sure. And on Black Friday, customers were out in droves to make sure they pounced early on the must-have toys on their shopping lists as they worried that in-demand items might sell out if they waited to buy them. With the eagerly awaited seventh episode in the series set to open next month, Roll, director of the Monroe County Local History Room, is putting his collection on display at the Sparta museum.
The truck was filled to the roof with brand new “Star Wars” toys or some might say, collectibles of the future, and headed for a store, according to KPTV News on November 27. Shoppers spent $1.7 billion online Thursday, a record-breaking level for Thanksgiving Day, and were on pace to spend $2.6 billion in e-commerce Friday, according to data from Adobe, whose software is used by many shopping sites. Can parents afford some of the amazing products that are on the market today that cost $100 to $400? “It’s phenomenal what some of these toys can do, but they’re higher priced and I think we’ll learn this season whether there’s a limit on our ability to sell $400 toys.” Two examples: Fisher-Price Smart Toy Monkey and Smart Toy Bear priced at $99.99 is an interactive computer plush toy.
Toy sales are projected to surge between 6.2 and 7.3 percent this year, according to researchers at NPD Group, after swinging between modest sales increases and declines for a decade and improving somewhat to 4 percent in 2014. According to the State Troopers on scene, the truck driver took a curve “a little too fast.” The result had a truckload of these much sought after toys seen “hanging over the edge of the interstate.” There was one injury in the crash, a woman, but she is expected to be O.K, according to KFOR News today. Although the Black Friday blitz is spread over several days, retailers such as Target reported strong in-store traffic at the kickoff of its big sales run Thursday evening.
One of the greatest tailwinds for that growth, experts say, is the hype around the forthcoming “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” film, which is scheduled to hit theaters on Dec. 18th and has reportedly already pulled in a staggering $50 million in advance ticket sales. But for a few bucks, kids could bring home miniature versions of Luke, Han, Chewbacca and Darth Vader to recreate the movie – and act out their own narratives. “The universe expanded through the toys,” Gray said. “George Lucas only ever gave us about nine hours of the movies.
When the first slate of new Star Wars toys were released in September on a Disney-designed holiday called Force Friday, one dollar of every 11 dollars spent on toys that week was on Star Wars gear. Analysts say the franchise is likely to gain even more steam as young children — not just longtime fans and collectors — get more familiar with the characters after seeing the movie. In 2014, the industry’s sales jumped 4% to $18.08 billion in the U.S., bolstered by strong demand for Walt Disney’s DIS -2.88% “Frozen” property.
NPD Group recently reported toy sales grew 7.5% for the first nine months of 2015 from the year-earlier period, as demand grew for Star Wars, Minions and tech-enabled toys. While the popularity of this movie grows in leaps and bounds, its hard to say if these new toys are purchased for a new generation of “Star Wars” fans or if it is the middle age group coming out and reliving their childhood! Shoppers didn’t venture out overnight during the flash flood warnings, he said, but people were picking up orders this morning that they placed on line at 2 a.m. Star Wars isn’t the only movie propping up the toy industry this year. “Jurassic World” and “Minions” were also blockbusters whose characters were easily transformed into toys.
Fountain City, Wisconsin, native Brian Semling turned his hobby into a multimillion-dollar online business that trades in vintage “Star Wars” figures as well as other toys. “If you ask your average … fan to explain their history with ‘Star Wars,’ it’s really common that they start giving you a very nostalgic picture of family life,” Gray said. “Fandom is a lot of people’s safe space – the things associated with it and the things that take you away to sort of an idea of a better world. Since then, the rise of Web competitors like Amazon.com Inc. hampered its performance, leading it to cancel plans for an initial public offering two years ago. Store employees chalked it up to the same deals being offered online and the Dallas Cowboys were still playing. “Come back after the Cowboy game at around 7 p.m.,” one employee said. Experts said this marks a shift from just a few years ago, when manufacturers were aimlessly larding up toys with the tech feature du jour, even if it didn’t add much value. Museums across the country are fighting the image of “sleepy, small-town museums with farm implements gathering dust,” Sack said. “History is the things, the events, the stuff . everything of our lives.” Too many people – including local civic leaders – are unaware of the museum, Lasko said. “We’ve got to get the word out that we’re here.
These days, experts said toymakers are getting better about incorporating technology in ways that feel more natural and useful. “The further we get away from the [economic] downturn, the more the toy companies take out projects that they may not have been eager to take to market in weaker times,” said Gerrick Johnson, toy industry analyst at BMO Capital Markets. “There’s a little bit more risk-taking.” Among the more innovative toys to hit shelves this season are Playmation, a smart toy from Disney and Hasbro in which kids can carry out live-action missions with guidance from a tablet or smartphone app; and Mattel’s Hello Barbie, a doll that can converse with a child thanks to voice-recognition software. Here’s your county museum.” The exhibit – all from Roll’s private collection – features all 91 characters that appeared in the original movies along with X-Wing and Tie Fighters, a Millennium Falcon and even a special cardboard Death Star only sold in the United Kingdom. Skylanders, the original toys-to-life property, is out with a new iteration this year called Skylanders Superchargers, which will compete for dollars with similar offerings from Disney Infinity and Lego Dimensions.
Our improved online and omnichannel capabilities helped generate increased traffic on jcp.com, where we offered a broader assortment of clothing, shoes, small kitchen and consumer electronics than ever before.” Inventory investments are paying off, he said. How they can successfully communicate their deals to consumers bombarded by advertisements and e-mails isn’t yet clear. “The challenge we all have is how do we break through the clutter and pick the right items and create an experience – online or in our stores – that will be attractive to shoppers,” Brandon said.
That’s why I was collecting, too, at one point in my life.” Roll said curating his own collection, which he has never displayed, felt like a culmination of his work. The Paw Patroller, a truck for transporting Paw Patrol pups and their vehicles, and the Hot Wheels Ultimate Garage Playset are also selling at a high velocity, according to NPD research. With other things – family, faith – to fill the void, he no longer feels compelled to collect, but he still enjoys the connection that comes from sharing his passion. “It’s going to be indulging in the joy of nostalgia with people that is going to make this all worthwhile,” he said. “Those pieces – they’re pieces of plastic; they’re 30 to 40 years old, but yet they still trigger something that’s deeply personal and close.”
The store on North Central Expressway in Dallas had about 400 people waiting to get in Thursday, but only 30 of the TVs featured in its Thursday advertisement were in stock. Indeed, in the quarter just before the holiday season, Target said it saw a robust 12 percent increase in toy sales, with strong sales in everything from action figures to board games. Lego has surpassed Mattel as the world’s largest toymaker and is projected to ring up big sales this quarter, thanks to items such as its Star Wars-themed sets and its girl-oriented Lego Friends line. Even as retailers and manufacturers welcome all the demand for their product, they could face challenges if they aren’t able to give shoppers enough of it. The TVs are special purchases by the major chains with specifications, such as one less USB port and cheaper plastic casings that allow them to be priced lower.
Disney Store, meanwhile, said it will undertake its usual steps for preparing for the holiday rush, including packing the store floor with 30 percent more products, stacking merchandise a bit higher and bulk-stocking larger toys, such as the $99.95 Frozen Castle of Arandelle playset, that they don’t keep in the store year-round. A Best Buy employee worked the line with an offer for a $799 television. “That’s quite a leap from $149,” Davis said, declining the ticket reserving the more expensive TV. “I’m looking at the circular to see if there’s anything else,” Davis said. “I really wanted to replace the 32-inch we have at home for my family.”