The German toy brand Playmobil suffered a loss for the first time in company history in the past financial year. Just a few weeks ago, the company announced it would be cutting hundreds of jobs.
According to a preliminary report published on Tuesday, Playmobil boss Bahri Kurter told ‘Zeit’ that the turnover of the toy brand Horst Brandstätter Group had shrunk from 653 million euros to 614 million euros. Kurter said he was “pleased” with the Christmas activities.
Playmobil is only interesting up to 8 years old
At the beginning of October, the group of companies announced that it would cut 694 of its approximately 4,000 jobs worldwide by 2025. The following should apply to the company in the future: “Away with prohibitions on thinking, more creativity,” says Kurter. The children’s playing habits have changed and entrepreneurship has become more difficult. “The relevance in children’s rooms has fallen by a third,” said the manager. The digital offering in particular has come into competition with classic toys, resulting in a smaller target group. “Now Playmobil only works for between four and eight years,” Kurter explains. Playmobil was once intended for children up to ten years old.
Celebrity figures planned
Kurter was only appointed to the management of the Horst Brandstätter Group this year. To stimulate demand, he wants to appeal to all age groups in the future: Playmobil must “transform from a product to a brand” that is also interesting for young people and adults. Think of Playmobil board games or emotional figures of prominent footballers and other stars.
Playmobil toy figures, which were first presented at the Toy Fair in 1974, are known worldwide. However, according to industry experts, the company has missed key trends in recent years, such as digitalization. The Danish competitor Lego has changed better here.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
