Just a couple of weeks ago, The Child, AKA Baby Yoda, took Toy Fair New York by storm with the pre-orders for the new Hasbro toy selling out in several places.
Now, there might be a possible hiccup with supply chain disruptions due to the Coronavirus (Covid-19.)
So far it is on schedule, but looking down the road there could be issues according to Jim Silver, CEO of Toys, Tots, Pets & More. He apparently talked to the some people in the factories that Hasbro uses to produce the toys, telling CNN Business “If things aren’t normal by the time June and July roll around, there will be shortages on a litany of toys.” He also expects a 5-10% toy production decline due to the disruptions.
Now that 5-10% might not sound like a lot, but if you have 100,000 units that’s 5,000-10,000 that don’t get sent out to fill pre-orders.
Hasbro has confirmed that there could be delays as well. CFO Deborah Thomas told investors and analysts on February 21.
“We are working to mitigate the impact of our manufacturing partner factories being closed longer than anticipated, as well as to reschedule the shipments we have not been able to make.”
Of course this was mentioned after the pre-orders launched and people ordered.
Hasbro also released a regulatory filing last Thursday, that stated:
“However, if we or our suppliers suffer prolonged manufacturing disruptions due to public health conditions, such as the coronavirus, manufacturing capacity of our third-party manufacturers as well as supply of components, accessories and our products may be adversely impacted.”
Due to the fact that some of the necessary raw materials are from China, and can’t be easily obtained from other countries, this could be a big problem in the near future.
The problem is that June is usually when toy companies ramp up their holiday toy production. By summer we should have a better idea about how badly Covid-19 disrupted the supply and production chains for not only Hasbro, but Mattel and other large toy companies as well.
What do you think? Comment and let us know!
Source: CNN Business, Click 2 Houston, Hasbro
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