Richard Gottlieb

Toy industry keeps getting the wrong kind of headlines
October 1, 2007

One of my pleasures in life is to sit with a cup of coffee on a quiet Sunday morning and read my way through the New York Times. It has that wonderful combination of being both stimulating and relaxing.

It was not so relaxing this Sunday.  When I got to the business section yesterday I got more stimulation than I had planned on. There, prominently placed on the first page, were two flanking articles on the toy industry. One, “Some parents test at home,” recounted the phenomenon of parents purchasing at home lead testing kits so they could see if their child’s toys were safe. The article noted that a Mr. Jones was “…[l]ike many parents. . . suspicious of all of his daughter’s toys now that millions of items for children have been recalled for high levels of lead.”

The other article, “Recalls Make Toy Shopping a Source of Anxiety,” talked about the challenge for parents of finding toys not made in China. The article noted that knowing where a product was made complicated by the fact that some toys had components made in other countries but were assembled in China.

My other Sunday enjoyment is to take a long walk around New York and end up by picking up a free copy of the weekly satirical newspaper, The Onion. It has some very funny articles and headlines and it gives me a good laugh. This time the front page was filled with headlines like “Bush Makes Surprise Visit to Work” and “Scientists Ask Congress to Fund $50 Billion Science Thing.” There was, however, anther headline: “Chinese Authorities Execute 10 Million Recalled Toys.” 

The article, supposedly date lined Beijing, opened with the following paragraph: “In an attempt to assure the world’s children that the millions of Chinese-made toys currently being recalled for containing toxic lead paint. . . Chinese officials announced Tuesday that millions of playthings are being rounded up and immediately being put to death.” The article was accompanied by a photograph of blindfolded and recently executed Barbie dolls slumped against a wall where they apparently had been shot.

Funny? Well, kind-a funny.

Here is what’s really not funny. Today, Reuters and other media sources told us that Wal-Mart is so concerned about the safety issue that it is cutting prices on toys early this year. In an article entitled: “Wal-Mart rolls out early holiday toy push,” we are told that “Christmas started in September this year -- at least in the toy aisles at Wal-Mart Stores Inc -- even as retailers worry that parents may approach toy shopping with trepidation this holiday season after massive numbers of toys were recalled in recent months. So to jump-start holiday shopping, the world's largest retailer began cutting prices on toys in its stores on Sunday…”

The article goes on to tell us that Wal-Mart will have some American made toys hitting the shelves later in the year. What I find disturbing, however, is that, at least in my visits to Wal-Mart and other major retailers, there is nothing in the departments advising parents on how to wisely choose toys until the American made ones arrive. Cutting toy prices may appeal to consumers' wallets and indeed sell  more toys.  It is not, however, going to appeal to a parent who’s bottom line concern is safety. They won’t take a chance for a price cut.  Maybe we need to start appealing to their hearts and minds as well as their pocketbooks by helping them make good purchasing decisions.

If the toy industry does not get in front of this thing, and the toy retailing community in particular, and do a better job of paying attention to parent’s fears, this could end up being a deservedly challenging toy selling season.

Posted by Richard Gottlieb on October 1, 2007 | Comments (0)