Ronnen Harary, co-CEO, says strong POS, despite coronavirus disruption, ‘highlights the resilience of the toy industry’.
Spin Master has reported ‘stronger than expected Q2 results’ while the Covid-19 pandemic continues, with CFO Mark Segal highlighting the strong response of its global supply chain team and the progress the company has made from an ‘operational efficiency, profitability and cash flow perspective relative to Q1’.
A 10.9% sales decrease has been reported ($282.2m, down from $316.8m) alongside a 12.4% decrease in total revenue, compared to the same period in 2019. North America saw a slight increase in sales, but declines of 21.6% and 42.4% were seen in Europe and the rest of the world respectively.
Activities, Games, Puzzles, Plush and Outdoor toys – categories which benefited from a lockdown sales surge – all saw increases, but these were ultimately offset by decreases in Pre-School & Girls, Boys Action & Construction, Remote Control and Interactive Characters.
Kinetic Sand, Paw Patrol RC, licensed DC products such at Batman, and Tech Deck were among those brands that performed well; Gund, DreamWorks Dragons, Bakugan and Twisty Pets contributed to declines.
Spin Master’s Outdoor portfolio, meanwhile, saw sales increase a substantial 9.1% ($34.7m, up from $2.9m).
“This quarter we demonstrated meaningful progress towards resolving the operational challenges we experienced in 2019” said Ronnen Harary, Spin Master’s co-chief executive officer. “We are incredibly proud of the global Spin Master team, who remained focused on driving improvements across the company, while also managing through the complexity of Covid-19 for the full quarter. Our performance in the second quarter, which showed strong POS across most of our key brands, highlights the resilience of the toy industry, the strength of our diversified portfolio of brands, entertainment franchises and digital toys and our global platform. This is underpinned by our strong financial base, which positions us well for long term success.”
He added: “Looking forward, global economies are reopening but risk remains elevated and we are taking a cautiously optimistic approach to the second half. New opportunities continue to emerge, and we are prepared to take advantage as they arise.”
