“Marketing to children: the case of Transformers Toys”
This two-page excerpt from The Ethical Business: Challenges and Controversies* comes courtesy of Google’s book archives, one of several online resources that has proven to be an invaluable reference tool. The case study is entertaining, but a single line — while technically correct — is just slightly vague enough that it makes me want to dig deeper into the story.
The book states:
“Despite ups and downs since [launch], constant marketing-led initiatives — new TV series spinning off new toys — has insured it has never been out of production, a triumph in a business where a successful toy is one that lasts more than a year [see Cartoon 7].”
If we look at Hasbro’s Transformers as a global brand then it is true that the toys have never been out of production, but I believe that this could have been remarkably clearer if the book had acknowledged the fact that there was a time in the United States when Hasbro did not include Transformers toys as part of their catalog. It’s a tiny detail, though, and in no way detracts from the enjoyment I got out of reading this small section of the larger book.
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