Toy Industry - Publications - Faculty & Research - Harvard Business School

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01 Mar 2004
News

Toy Story

kid-pleasing category of electronic toy. The LeapPad took the dusty, flash-card connotations out of the term “educational toy” and launched a new, highly successful product line of “smart toys.” LeapFrog did what no other new player in the View Details

Keywords: Susan Young; toys; Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries; Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries

February 2003 (Revised December 2006)
Case

Toys "R" Us (A)

By: Michael G. Rukstad, Dennis A. Yao and Cate Reavis

In 1992, Toys "R" Us, the pioneer of the "category killer" retail format, faced significant competitive threats from mass discounters and warehouse clubs and was losing market share. This case explores the dynamic sustainability of Toys "R" Us's retailing model, its... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Competition; Supply and Industry; Power and Influence; Retail Industry; United States

December 1995 (Revised February 1999)
Case

Toys "R" Us Japan

By: Debora L. Spar

Documents the American retailer's process of entry into the Japanese toy market. Discusses the history of Toys "R" Us in the United States as well as the history of the Japanese toy market, distribution, wholesaling, and retailing systems. Eager to enter the world's... View Details

Keywords: Market Entry and Exit; Cross-Cultural and Cross-Border Issues; Retail Industry; Japan; United States

2023
Article

Moral Escalation: Contested Category Emergence and Its Consequences in the Toy Industry

Preexisting research has outlined the cognitive, competitive, and economic barriers to market category emergence. Yet scholars have paid scant attention to the processes and consequences of moral resistance to nascent categories. Through a longitudinal, qualitative... View Details

Keywords: Moral Sensibility; Market Entry and Exit; Product Positioning; Technology Industry; Technology Industry

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November 2004
Teaching Note

G.G. Toys (TN)

By: Dennis Campbell and Susan L. Kulp

Teaching Note to (9-105-005). View Details

Keywords: Accounting Industry

October 1991 (Revised November 1993)
Case

Play Time Toy Co.

By: Thomas R. Piper

The president of a toy company is considering the adoption of level production in a business characterized by highly seasonal sales. The issues include balancing the cost savings and the inventory risk, estimating the seasonal financing need, and determining the... View Details

Keywords: Production; Cost Management; Banks and Banking; Sales; Goods and Commodities; Financial Management; Risk Management; Entertainment and Recreation Industry

December 1974 (Revised October 1983)
Case

Sunshine Toy Co.

By: Thomas R. Piper

Keywords: Entertainment and Recreation Industry

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May 1997
Teaching Note

Toy World, Inc., Teaching Note

By: W. Carl Kester

Teaching Note for (9-295-073). View Details

Keywords: Entertainment and Recreation Industry

February 2003 (Revised September 2003)
Supplement

Toys "R" Us (B)

By: Michael G. Rukstad, Dennis A. Yao and Cate Reavis

Supplements the (A) case. View Details

Keywords: Retail Industry

June 1986 (Revised May 1989)
Case

Good Time Toy Co.

By: Thomas R. Piper

Keywords: Entertainment and Recreation Industry

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September 2020 (Revised December 2020)
Case

Hot Wheels at Mattel: Reinventing the Wheel

By: Elie Ofek, Andres Terech and Nicole Tempest Keller

In 2017, Chris Down, Global Brand General Manager for Hot Wheels, and his team from the Advanced Play Group within Mattel, Inc., were considering which innovation path to pursue in order to "future proof" the Hot Wheels franchise going forward. Hot Wheels was the... View Details

Keywords: Toys; Industry Evolution; Innovation Strategy; Product Development; Growth and Development Strategy; Technological Innovation; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Decision Making; Digital Transformation

May 1986
Case

Sunshine Toy Co., Software Case

By: Thomas R. Piper

Keywords: Entertainment and Recreation Industry

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January 1992
Teaching Note

Play Time Toy Company TN

By: Thomas R. Piper

Teaching Note for (9-292-003). View Details

Keywords: Entertainment and Recreation Industry

2024
Working Paper

Moral Incoherence During Category Emergence: The Contentious Case of Connected Toys

Through a longitudinal study of the emergence of connected toys – physical toys that interact with digital devices – I build theory about moral incoherence: when competing views about the moral worth of a category persist over time. During the course of their... View Details

Keywords: Technological Innovation; Technology Adoption; Moral Sensibility; Market Entry and Exit; Consumer Behavior

November 2012 (Revised September 2013)
Case

Learning Resources: A Hands-On Toy Company Deals with New Challenges and Opportunities

By: Boris Groysberg and Anahita Hashemi

Learning Resources is a family-owned educational toy company that, by late 2011, was facing a myriad of challenges, including increased competition, entry into new markets, new distribution methods, rising costs of production in China, and changing customer behavior.... View Details

Keywords: Leading Teams; Strategy Formulation; Strategy And Execution; Innovation; Corporate Culture; Industry Analysis; Organizational Alignment; Entrepreneurs; Sales Channels; Leadership; Strategy; Change Management; Innovation Leadership; Family Business; Entrepreneurship; Product Design; Sales; Retail Industry; United States

August 2003
Teaching Note

Toys "R" Us (A) and (B) (TN)

By: Dennis A. Yao and Michael G. Rukstad

Teaching Note for (9-703-445) and (9-703-446). View Details

Keywords: Retail Industry

November 2012 (Revised January 2014)
Case

The LEGO Group: Envisioning Risks in Asia (A)

By: Anette Mikes and Dominique Hamel

On January 1, 2012, the LEGO Group announced a major new initiative to enhance its market penetration in Asia. Later in the year, a cross-functional group of senior managers gathered at company headquarters to discuss the status of the Asian initiative and the risks... View Details

Keywords: LEGO; Toy Industry; Fashion And Creative Industries; Organizational Structure; Risk Management; Supply Chain Management; Organizational Design; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Denmark; Asia

June 2019 (Revised September 2024)
Case

Parrot: Navigating the Nascent Drone Industry

By: Rory M. McDonald, Emilie Billaud and Vincent Dessain

In 2018, Henri Seydoux, CEO and Founder of Parrot, believed that his company was at an inflection point in its history. Parrot had been a European leader in consumer electronics since the 1990s, first developing Bluetooth kits for cars before moving on to electronic... View Details

Keywords: Forecasting and Prediction; Disruption; Entrepreneurship; Corporate Strategy; Technological Innovation; Leading Change; Competitive Advantage; Information Technology; Competitive Strategy; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Europe; France; Paris

01 Dec 2004
News

A Life by Design

System, a building set for preteen girls. Ello immediately won praise from toy industry insiders and has since become a hit for Mattel. Based upon the success of the Ello project, Mattel’s chairman and CEO,... View Details

Keywords: Roger Thompson; toys; Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries; Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries; Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries; Amusement, Gambling, and Recreation Industries

February 2025
Teaching Note

Barbie: Reviving a Cultural Icon at Mattel

By: Elie Ofek and Sarah Mehta

Teaching Note for HBS Case Nos. 525-006 and 525-020. View Details

Keywords: Brand Management; Marketing Strategy; Entertainment Marketing; Intellectual Property; Consumer Preferences; Toy Industry; Culture And Marketing; Societal Marketing; Brand Purpose; Diversity And Inclusion; Turnaround Strategies

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