David Allan, DKL sales & marketing director, spoke to Toy World, about what the future holds for the company.
With seven quality brands in its portfolio, DKL Marketing celebrates its 30th anniversary this year; no mean feat in the toy industry.
“We’ve always distributed trusted, high-quality brands, and we work closely with our customers to offer strong in-store support,” explains David Allan, when asked why the company is enjoying such longevity. “DKL has always responded to emerging trends and changing market conditions, bringing in products that consumers want to buy and that retailers want to sell. We started a TV advertising campaign for Hama in 2018 which worked very well, and with Plus-Plus really coming into its own this year we’ve decided to do the same for this brand. Marketing is one of our core strengths; we’re investing in TV, social media across all platforms, print, in short everything (within budget) to ensure that our brands are asked for. Retailers are facing a challenging time, so we want to help drive consumers into stores.”
After three decades, DKL has certainly seen its fair share of change. David says: “Compared to 10 years ago, when the focus was on getting kids to play together or with their parents, parents are now looking for entertaining toys that kids will enjoy, but will also allow parents to enjoy precious time to themselves. The market is also being impacted by electronic toys and games. With consumers increasingly conscious of price, perceived value is crucial.”
Looking to the future, the company has its sights set firmly on further growth, moving to a third-party warehouse which allows more flexible shipping in preparation for Brexit. David is also looking at different ranges, telling Toy World that there’s a big difference now between mass-market and independent ranges.
He adds: “We have to grow, but we have to grow carefully, and to continue being a distributor that people trust we have to manage our ranges well. Our TV and other marketing campaigns are already contributing to our growth as a company; long may this continue.”
To read the full interview, which was published in the May issue of Toy World, click here.
