Page 8 - Toy & Hobbby Retailer Magazine Nov-Dec 2018

NEWS
FROM THE NEWS DESK
IN BRIEF
◗ GRANDPARENTS SPEND BILLIONS ON TOYS
The US chapter of the NPD Group, released findings into the spending of grandparents, stating that the cohort accounts for US$7 billion worth of sales in the US toy industry.
Although parents still spend the most on toys, grandparents’ spending growth in the past 12 months has exceeded parents’ spending and almost all other consumer segments.
In addition to this, grandparents’ online spending has pipped all other toy consumers at the post, growing more than two-times faster compared to the rest of the market.
According to NPD, 85 per cent of grandparents in the US preferred to make their toy purchases in a store in the past 12 months, while 72 per cent bought online and spent 3.5 times more online than they did in-store. 60 per cent of the segment reported that now that Toys R Us is closed, they will shop for toys online.
Toymate jumps on ex-Toys R Us sites
AUSTRALIAN toy retailer, Toymate, opened two new stores before Christmas in ex-Toys R Us (TRU) locations.
The new stores are located in Bankstown and Castle Hill, while plans for expansion into WA are also in the works.
Toymate director, Daniel Bloom, told Toy & Hobby Retailer that these locations were ideal to open new stores as they service large areas of people.
“So for us, the two stores we’ve opened in New South Wales that were TRU sites, were where we felt – I guess we want to try and cover New South Wales to the best of our ability – so those were two locations that we know service
a large area of Sydney, that we currently didn’t have stores in.
“We’ve been planning for [the new stores] for a few months. But to be 100 per cent honest, we would have liked there to have been more
planning to go into it and more time, but given that TRU did close and it was such a big specialty retailer, we wanted to try and cover the gap to the best of our ability before Christmas.
“The other thing is, in taking bigger stores, we have seen a gap in the market for a specialty [retailer] to do some categories of products that TRU really did well [with on] an ongoing basis, like the outdoor category, which is a bit new to us.”
Bloom said that the retail environment is proving to be tough, but that good rental opportunities are coming up because of it.
“Retail is very tough, it’s hard to get same stores sales growth, but what’s happening as a result of the tough market is that we’re getting some really great rental opportunities.
“So that’s the counter-balancing feature, I guess.”
The new stores in Bankstown and Castle Hill opened in October and November. ❉
◗ SPIN MASTER SIGNS UP FOR COOPERATION WITH ALIBABA
Canadian toy company, Spin Master, signed a deal with Chinese internet giant, Alibaba, in October.
The strategic partnership will see the businesses collaborate
on creating a leading digital retail platform, brand building and data- powered marketing.
Spin Master’s global president and COO, Ben Gadbois, said that the partnership represents a milestone.
“We have been actively pursuing our objective of growing global sales. China is a key part of our international growth strategy and Alibaba is a strong partner who shares our commitment to customer excellence.
“This strategic cooperation agreement with Alibaba represents a significant milestone,” he said.
NAB to forgive Funtastic debt
NATIONAL Australia Bank (NAB) is set
to forgive the debts of Victorian-based toy company, Funtastic in a debt forgiveness and capital raising deal.
NAB will forgive the debts of Funtastic upon receipt of a debt reduction payment of $5 million.
To fund the payment, Funtastic proposed an institutional payment and entitlement offer (capital raising) to raise approximately $8.2 million.
On Friday 07 September, Funtastic asked the ASX to put its securities
into a trading halt and this was granted on 10 September.
Funtastic’s stocks resumed trading on 12 September.
Funtastic said that once the payment is made to NAB, this will free up the company to
pursue new opportunities.
“On completion of the capital raising
(and after making the debt reduction payment), Funtastic’s balance sheet will
be transformed, giving it the financial flexibility to pursue a number of exciting commercial opportunities.” ❉
8 TOY & HOBBY RETAILER NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2018