...Jennifer Smith G.G. Toys: Case study #2 G.G. Toys was a toy manufacturer facing problems with productivity and profitability. The company found a profitable product in their Geoffrey doll and Specialty branded doll #106. Retailers could customize to the specifications and buying habits of their customer base. On average, the Geoffrey Doll cost $19.19 to produce, and the #106 doll $23.74. To access in a study of their overhead cost for both of their plants, research showed that: 1. A setup was performed in the Chicago facility each time a modification to the dolls was made. Additionally, each time a specialty-branded doll was produced, a separate setup was required to process the raw materials to the required specifications. 2. Workers in the Chicago facility often operated several machines simultaneously once they were set up. Thus, machine-related expenses might relate more to the machine hours of a product than to its production-run labor hours. Because each retailer required slight alterations to the Geoffrey doll's overall appearance, a new setup and production run was required for each design change. Retailers were found to be conservative in their ordering patterns, ordering fewer units more frequently. Thus increasing the number of setups required, causing increased labor and material cost. The research done by the external group did show an area of opportunity. Because setup is time consuming, labor intensive, and costly, it would be within reason (at least...
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...the popular toys in the 1990s, which are Tamagotchi, Barbie, and Lego. The first digital toy is the Tamagotchi Tamagotchi means a handheld digital device, which can be cared for as a digital pet including feeding, playing, and cleaning up after it. For example, the first Tamagotchi was created in Japan by Bandai in 1996. It went on to sell 76,000,000 units worldwide by 2010 (“Tamagotchi,” 2015). It was quite cheap with the price depending on the different versions available, in total there were 11 different variations, with prices ranging from $10 for the cheapest and up to $70 for the most expensive (“Tamagotchi Price,” 2015). The device was aimed at young children around the age of 6. It was aimed to promote nurturing instincts as the children would actually care for the digital pet, and if they failed at this the digital per would die (Baguley, 2013). Moreover, as there were strict laws governing ownership of pets in some countries, the Tamagotchi was an excellent solution for families unable to buy real pets for their children. This is why the device sold so many units. Some of the devices had communication abilities, which allowed children not only to play but also linguistically interact with the toys. This was seen as an educational component to the toy. As the toy was completely non-violent it became a popular choice for parents as a suitable toy for their children’s development. In summary, the Tamagotchi is the first digital toy. The second popular toy is Barbie ...
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...which toys are age appropriate for a child you should consider some important guidelines. Some specific guidelines for finding toys appropriate for all ages, you should consider making sure the toys are well made meaning no shared parts or splinters and no parts of the toys are able to pinch the child. You should also make sure that the toys are painted with non-toxic and lead free paint. Also, you should take into consideration that the toys are shatter proof so when they are dropped, the toys wont break and shatter and cut the child. All toys should be easily cleaned to help minimize the spread of germs. When buying electric toys, they should "UL Approved" (underwritters labortory). Also, if you are buying toys for children under the age of 3, the toys should be big enough so the child can't swallow the toys and choke on them. http://www.naeyc.org/ecp/resources/goodtoys Traditional toys are great. These include traditional dolls, small metal vehicles, and wooden building blocks. http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_view.aspx?ArticleID=343 I came across some resources that I found helpful in my research. They include: Abrams,S. (1990), Toys for early childhood development. Atlanta, GA: The Center for Applied Research in Education. Piaget,J. (1962), Play,Dreams, and Imitation in Childhood. New York: W.W. Norton and Company. The age recommendations are based on developmental abilities of an average child. That means that the toys should...
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... GENDER AND TOYS As all we know, we begin to learn our gender as soon as we are born. And it strengthens in time. The most effective reason of this is the environment. What I mean is the family and teachers. Thus, toys are very important for gender discrimination. As different colors for boys and girls are learned from the beginning, toys are, too. For example, dolls are given to girls while boys play with cars or balls. There are some reasons for different toys according to gender. Firstly, it makes us ready for our duties in the future. In some sort, it decides that home is the place of women and work is for men. Secondly, there are gender differences in abiliities and behaviour as Kimberly Wright Cassidy writes. There are some generalizations about gender issues. For example, girls are better at verbal and writing skills while boys are better at numerical skills like math or phsyics. This leads parents to choice different toys. Another generalization is that boys are more active than girls. However, there are some axamples like Egalia which is a school stopping gender differences and Baby X experimentation which denies these generalizations. In ‘’X A Fabulous Child’’ written by Louis Gould, the baby X is given both doll and ball. In addition to this, ball is given by the mother while doll is given by the father. At the end, it is seen that the baby X is good at games inside and outside. Toys determine gender before the...
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...Elizabeth Harris MGMT 430 Week 8 Assignment 2 Mattel designs, manufactures, and markets a broad variety of toy products worldwide through sales to its customers and directly to consumers. Mattel’s business is dependant in great part on its ability each year to redesign restyle, and extend existing core products and product lines, to design and develop innovative new products and product lines, and successfully market those products and product lines. Mattel plans to continue to focus on its portfolio of traditional brands that have historically had worldwide appeal, to create new brands utilizing its knowledge of children’s play patterns and to target customers and consumer preferences around the world. The objective of Mattel is to continue to create long-term stockholder values by generating strong cash flow and deploying it in a disciplined and opportunistic manner which is outlined in Mattel’s capital a investment framework. To achieve this objective, management has established these three overarching goals. The first goal is to grow core brands by continuing to develop popular toys that are innovative and responsive to current play patterns and other trends. Additionally, Mattel plans to pursue additional licensing arrangements and strategic partnerships to extend its portfolio of brands into areas outside of traditional toys. The second goal is to improve execution in areas including manufacturing, distribution, and selling. Mattel continues to focus on improving...
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...GROUP 7 GROUP 7 TOY INDUSTRY SUBJECT: SMSP TOY INDUSTRY SUBJECT: SMSP DHARAM JOSHI VISHAL NARULA POOJA SAMPAT VINEET HARDA CHIRAG SHAH KUNAL PAREKH DHARAM JOSHI VISHAL NARULA POOJA SAMPAT VINEET HARDA CHIRAG SHAH KUNAL PAREKH GROUP MEMBERS GROUP MEMBERS India’s market potential The Indian toy industry is estimated at about 1.4 billion US dollars and until now has generated only 0.5 per cent of the global market. However, growth of some 15 % promises a rapid rise in this statistic, especially in the context of the growing middle class and increasing demand for quality and luxury goods. In recent years, cities like Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Pune have become the most important manufacturing sites of the Indian toy industry. Among the local manufacturers in India about 59 % are still focusing on the production of cheap and unbranded toys which appeals to the price-sensitive Indian consumers. In the future it is expected that these companies will shift towards branded toys as well to stay competitive with international companies. Internet retailing is becoming a more and more important distribution channel due to several reasons. Consumers have increasing access to the internet and online retailers often have better merchandise in terms of variety, new launches and the offer of branded toys. The share of internet retailing in sales grew from 1 % in 2007 up to 18 % in 2012. Focus on quality Indian consumers pay more and more attention to high-quality...
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...The toy industry has been a thriving industry around the globe for a very long time. Manufacturers of toys have invested billions of dollars to come up with new ideas, that fits the expectations of everchanging preferences of children who are the main consumers of the products. Today in the post-fordest era of capitalism and globalization, this industry effects so many people from different areas of the world. After studying the commodity chain of toys with geographer’s perspective this paper will conclude how, despite being a multi-billion-dollar industry (World Toy Market, 2007-2016), the current commodity chain of toys is inefficient benefiting only the executives that dwells in modernized/developed countries like USA at the expense of the...
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...Gg Toys Case St G.G.Toys Thedecline margins our popular in on Gtoftry doIIproduct become has intolerable. production Increasing haae costs dropped pretaxmarginto less our than10%, below historical our 257omargins, wearegoing If far to increase margins, need consider our we to drastically shiftingour production towards sfecialtydolts aie that earning large prnniumin priceoaer standard line. a our doll -Robert Parker,President, G.G.Toys Background Robert Parker, president of G.G. Toys, was discussing last month's operating results with Audrey Hausner, G.G.'s conkoller, and David Morehouse, G.G.'s manufacturing manager. The meeting was taking place in an atmosphere tinged with apprehension because margins on thelr most popular product, the "Geoffrey doll," had been declining rapidly in the last few years due to rising production costs (summary operating results for the previous month, March 2000, arc shown in Exhibits 1 and 2). Parker saw no choice but to shift the company's product mix towards specialty dolls that carried a high price premium, and thus, a 34% margin. G.G. Toys was a leading supplier of high-quality dolls to retail toy stores throughout the U.S, The comPany had started with a unique design for molding highly durable dolls using vinyl and resin materials. G.G. quickly established a loyal customer base among retailers because of the high quality and popularity of its manufactured dolls. It soon established a major presence in the market with its high-volume...
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...lesson # 405498 Exam# 405498 Student ID # 21954934 Exam name Graded Toy Project Toy 1 : Pop Up Picture Book Description: This is a pop up picture book. Depending on the age of the child, the book teaches them many different things. Why is this toy developmentally appropriate for a child in this age group? This is appropriate for this age group because it develops the child’s brain in more than one way. Is this toy appealing to a child in this age group? Why or Why Not? Yes! The picture and colors also any animals in the book will capture the child’s eye immediately. Would a parent select this toy? Why or Why Not? Yes! I believe any parent would select books for their child because it teaches them basic things such as colors, letters, numbers animals and sometimes noises. Would you select this toy for a child in this age group? Why or Why Not? Yes! Because the book like I mentioned before can teach the child various different things and help them build skills they might have already mastered. Toy 2: Building Blocks Description: These are building blocks which can teach children many things such as fine motor and gross motor skills. Why is this toy developmentally appropriate for a child in this age group? Because it teaches kids things such as balance and gravity and beginning math concepts such as matching and grouping and also confidence in creating things. Is this toy appealing to a child in this age group? Why or Why Not? Yes. It is appealing...
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...When choosing toys for young children an early childhood educator has guidelines to follow to make sure they are appropriate for a specific age group. First, the toy needs to be developmentally appropriate for the age group in question. This means the toy should be challenging but not frustrating. The complexity of the toy needs to be age appropriate as well. If the child is unable to figure out how the toys works, he or she will not want to play with it they will give up and move on to another toy. The toy also needs to be safe for the intended age group. This means the toy passes the choke test for ages 0-3. There should be no sharp edges that could scratch or cut the child. Any possible eye danger should be considered as well. Another guideline to be considered is whether or not the toy is appealing to a child in the intended age group. The color, shape, and style should be considered and looked at when choosing appropriate toys. Play opportunities with the toy should be open ended, meaning the toy should stimulate thinking within the intended age group. There should also be more than one answer or way to use the toy. In an educational setting, toys should be multicultural but not stereotypical, meaning there should be no biases or prejudices in the classrooms. Weapons should not be included with toys and any aggression should not be encouraged. There are many other ways and guidelines to be considered when purchasing age appropriate toys for children. These should be...
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...Everyone has a toy that they loved to play with while they were growing up. However, most did not realize that these toys were building blocks for their development. There are numerous toys that are being sold in stores, like Toys R Us and Babies R Us that are amazing for kids. Toys are able to stimulate perceptual abilities, motor skills, etc. with bright lights, animal sounds, bright colors, and various shapes. The toys I picked to analyze are, Fisher-Price Bright Beats Dance & Move Beatbo, VTech Busy Time Activity Cube, Fisher-Price Classic Xylophone, and Fisher-Price Wood 40-Piece Learn and Grow Blocks. The Fisher-Price Bright Beats Dance & Move Beatbo is a very colorful and interactive toy. This toy is for the age’s 9-36 months. I believe this is an...
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...Subject: Children’s toy Future Life with Toys Tags: Toy, Gender Stereotype Above picture comes from Liuyuhen’s tumblr. This is a typical gender stereotype for children’s toy. Girl will get dolls or anything that female should have. And boy will get cars or anything can represent muscling. Color of the toy is also different for each gender. Girl normally will get toy that is pink, red or purple. Boy will get toy that is black, blue or grey. This social construct norm create stereotype for two genders and potentially affect children’s future career. The difference between two genders’ toy reflect adults’ expectation for their children. Women are assumed to do in-house work or light work such as baby sitting, housekeeping and supporting work (like nurse). Men are assumed to do out-house work or heavy work such as joining army, constructing and political work. When children receive their toys, the toy will represent their future expectation from their parents. When children grow up with these stereotypes and expectations, they might have subconscious feeling about what they should behave or what they should do in order to fit these social construct norm. Some opponents might argue that when children getting older and have their own independent consciousness, this doesn’t necessarily mean they grow up to be in-house worker or out-house worker. However, several studies are showing that toy could affect children’s career. According to an article “Do children's toys influence their...
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...solution for kids belonging to the middle and lower section of the society to play and learn at an affordable price. KidzCraft also runs a chain of Day Care Centers which provides a solution for the working parents and increases the interactivity among children from a very tender age which improves their overall personality. 1.2 Product KidzCraft has a range of products and services for children 1. Toy Retail. 2. Toy Rentals. 3. Day Care Centers. 4. Kids Entertainment. 5. Events for Kids for their overall development. 2.1 PEST Analysis 1. Political The Political situation in India has so far been very good for new industries. It has further provided many subsidies for new industries further in certain states like Gujarat are inviting new players to enter their state. 2. Economic The Indian toy industry has shown a double digit growth rate for almost a decade, as the population is increasing the demand for toy is also increasing in proportionate with the increase in the number of children. Moreover the Indian Toy industry is facing heavy competition from the Chinese toy industry. Thus KidzCraft is going to exploit the double digit...
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...When you think of a gift for a little girl, what comes to mind? A Disney Princess DVD? A mountain of pink cupcakes? A toy convertible for Barbie? These are the things that most of us have come to believe that all girls like. These are also the products marketers have created for girls… Notwithstanding the foregoing, there is an ongoing debate about gender-based marketing and in particular with gender-based marketing being focused on young children. . One of the events that triggered this debate was when LEGO came out with a product line for girls called Friends. The TV ad shows wonderful town of Heartlake where “Stephanie” and her friends get to enjoy “all the things girls love”: interior decorating, getting pedicures and baking cupcakes. The sets feature taller and shapelier feminine figurines that lock into pink, purple and pastel green settings, such as a dream house, a splash pool and a beauty shop. LEGO has created this product based on four years of behavioral research. This research purportedly led them to the conclusion that girls like everything pink, romantic and cute [5]. The product has generated outrage. The company was accused by many parents of feeding kids the gender stereotypes and locking them in to blue and pink roles in very young age. Marketing to children is even more of a grey area than marketing to women. When it comes to child psychology the foundation of any debate is the question as to whether their tastes are a product of either nature or...
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...The impressions and messages that people receive as a kid affects the way people view things as they grow older. When people think of kid’s toys, people do not really think much more beyond the surface of the toy. Toys are some of the first things kids interact with, which means the messages that these toys send to the kids are impactful and will leave an impression on them. Boys and girls’ toys enforces multiple ideologies on how boys and girls should act and be. When going to any type of toy store, people can clearly see difference between the toys for girls and the toys for boys. Even the simplest of toys are separated by gender just because of the color scheme that it holds. Legos are simple toy blocks, but they have two separate sets, one for girls and one for boys. The appearance of the toy, the activities of each set, and the packaging of the toy reinforces stereotypes and the connotative meaning of boys and girls. One difference between the girl and boy Legos are their packaging. The packaging of the girl and boy Lego sets are almost completely different. The boy packaging has dark colors, such as blues, blacks, greens, yellows and reds. Some of the boy packaging also has just boys playing with the Legos on the front of it. When it comes to the boys’ Legos none of the colors are bright and colorful, but the girls’ Legos...
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