Out of the Toy Box
Richard Gottlieb, president of Richard Gottlieb & Associates, a New York-based business development firm specializing in the toy business, offers his sometimes funny and always unique take on developments in the industry.
'Etch A Sketch' and the Power of Toys
If you weren't spending time in a cave last week you were undoubtedly inundated by commentary on the "Etch A Sketch" incident. You know, that's the one where Romney's senior advisor, Eric Fehrnstrom, compared the candidate's political positions to a drawing on an Etch A Sketch. As he put it:" "I think you hit a reset button for the fall campaign. "Everything changes. It... Read More
Comments (1)Part 2: Toys "R" Us and the rest of us; a look at the 4th quarter report
This is the second in a two part series about the recently released results of Toys "R" Us's 2011 4th quarter. Rather than dwell on those parts of the report upon which financial analysts focus, I am concentrating on aspects that are relevant to all of us in the toy industry.Video Game SalesWe can all remember a few years ago when Toys "R" Us benefited from strong video game... Read More
Comments (1)Toys "R" Us and the rest of us; a look at their 4th quarter report
Toys "R" Us had a disappointing 4th quarter in 2011. As you can imagine, there will be a great deal of commentary elsewhere on the recently released Toys "R" Us 4th Quarter report. So, instead let's focus on aspects of the report that are interesting to all of us in the industry rather than just to Toys "R" Us stakeholders and potential investors.China and Southeast... Read More
Comments (0)The Economy is Coming Back; Just ask Red Lobster and Mitt Romney
Well, despite the naysayers, the economy does indeed seem to be coming back. I had made the case in an earlier blog (Toy Fair 2012; Animal Spirits) that the rise in headcounts and intensity at February's Toy Fair indicated that the economy was looking up. Economic reports since then seem to be bearing that notion out.And now...and now even Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney thinks we... Read More
Comments (1)Part 2: Are Girls Smarter Than Boys
In my last posting, "Are Girls Smarter than Boys?" I pondered statistics from China and the United States that suggested that girls were smarter than boys. After all, how do you account for so many more females than males attending and graduating from US colleges (57% female and 43% male) and for a major Chinese politician asking that standards for male students be lowered so they can c... Read More
Comments (1)Are Girls Smarter than Boys?
I was having lunch with a friend last week, a well-known and highly respected news commentator. He is extremely up to date (maybe ahead of the date) on what is happening in the world and has a very inquisitive mind. He asked me about my work with gender and toys and when I told him about the concern some women have over the lack of girls in the sciences he responded with this: "Society's c... Read More
Comments (3)Brazil and Toys
I am honored to be invited by Synésio Batista da Costa, President of ABRINQ, the Brazilian Association of Manufacturers of Toys to speak at this year's Brazilian Toy Fair (ABRIN) which will take place in Sao Paulo from April 9 through 12. I have to admit, that other than referencing Brazil as one of the BRIC countries (the others being Russia, India and China) I have not paid sufficient attention... Read More
Comments (0)Let’s Fix the Toy of the Year Awards
The Toy Industry Association is to be congratulated for putting on a successful Toy Fair. According to the TIA, there were 100,000+ products on display and nearly 1,100 exhibitors. It appears that we have a healthy industry made up of a wide variety of companies. So here is the big question, how is it possible that out of 100,000+ products and almost 1100 exhibitors Mattel managed to win 40% o... Read More
Comments (4)Inventor of the Pinball Double Flipper Dies at 100
As those of you who read me know, I love mechanical games. Whether it is Electric Football (I was fair), Stiga Hockey (I was fantastic) or Pinball (I was once called one of the worst flipper men in the world). That comment was made early in my pinball career (I eventually became quite adept) but the comment must still sting as I thought of it when I read an obituary in today's New York Times: &... Read More
Comments (2)China’s Big Box Retail Revolution; The "Wal-Mart Effect"
I subscribe to China Daily in part because I want to see how the Chinese see the world. The newspaper provides insights on China's state of mind and on how they see us in the west. Take for an example a very interesting article entitled "China's retail revolution benefits all."The article looks at what the author sees as a revolution in Chinese retailing. He sees China as following... Read More
Comments (1)The Wooden Block Renaissance
Lego doesn't just dominate the construction toy section; it dominates the conversation about the entire category. That's why it was interesting to read a piece a New York Times article about the resurgence of traditional wooden blocks.The article by Kyle Spencer, entitled "With Blocks Educators Go Back to Basics," describes "...a renewed faith in unit blocks - those basic, indestru... Read More
Comments (0)Toy Fair 2012: Animal Spirits
"... [A] large proportion of our positive activities depend on spontaneous optimism rather than mathematical expectations....Most, probably, of our decisions to do something positive... can only be taken as the result of animal spirits - a spontaneous urge to action rather than inaction." John Maynard Keynes - The General Theory of Employment, Interest and MoneyI love the noti... Read More
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