Barbie, the most famous doll in the world, never goes out of style. Indeed, during the lockdown the children, stuck at home due to the pandemic, elected Barbie as the favorite toy in the time of Covid-19. Above all, thanks for the choice Mattel which also produces Monster High, the Hot Wheels and Matchbox model cars, the Masters of the Universe series of action figures, and the Uno playing cards. Thanks to the numbers made in recent months, the US company has in fact announced the best accounts of the last 10 years, with record sales and very positive estimates for the coming months.
With the pandemic, the lockdown and closed schools, parents have been looking for alternatives to keep their children away from TV and video games. Traditional toys have thus experienced a new renaissance and, according to research firm NPD, demand will continue to rise, also bearing in mind that Christmas is approaching.
Numbers in hand, Barbie gross sales up 29% at $532,2 million. As a result, Mattel's turnover rose to $1,63 billion, an increase of 10% compared to the same period of 2019 and beating the estimates of analysts who had expected a turnover of 1,46 billion. Net income for the quarter ended September 30 was $316 million, up 348% year over year.
An increase that sent Wall Street investors into raptures, with the Mattel title that inafterhours yesterday grew by 10 percent. In the session of October 23, the shares travel up by 11,5% to 14,42 dollars.
Il CEO of the Ynon Kreiz group he said: "We are working hard to meet the growing demand", also underlining that "Parents spend for their children and look above all to quality products, at good prices, from reliable brands".
However, the manager warned: if demand continues to grow, the company cannot be sure of "fully satisfying the increase".
(Last update: 16.40 on 23 October).
