Mattel Disney Pixar Diecast CARS: Target Rebuild
While it’s not a 100% guarantee, if you see this sign at a Target …
It means they are going to be concentrating their energies on mini construction – adding more electrical for the fridge-frozen section (or expanding it) and moving entire shelves for MORE FOOD – which means that shelves laden with stock are much harder to move so in many sections of the store including TOYS, they are simply going to pare back orders so the shelves are easier to move …
And depending on the size of the store they are retro-fitting, hopefully they are not losing toy space but maybe … and in the meanwhile, toys are pretty much the LAST item they are going to bring in during the somewhat slow toy season of spring anyway … that’s not to say they will receive nothing but they just won’t order as much and CARS are not Target’s highest priority … so hopefully when the revised food section opens, the other sections will participate in the reset … and that this new food did not come at the expense of the devoted to toy aisles.
But meanwhile, if that Target has the GROCERY COMING sign and seems a mess, don’t be expecting to see too much of anything new toy-wise …
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19 February 2010
27 Comments
Why can’t we ever win but i think mine are ok though
Imagine all those stupid lenticulars in the cereal aisle making the new Final Lap cars easier to find in the toy section.
Agreed, but my son has 97 Cars (mega-size, racers, classics, lenticulars and haulers) and 4 of the 50 car carrying cases (with some of them modified internally to accomodate mega-size vehicles)! Someone (Disney/Pixar/Mattel/Target/TRU/WalMart/etc.) needs to understand that my son and alot of other little kids that I see in the toy aisles with their mom and/or dad picking out a new Disney Cars vehicle are part of the big money-making operation and act responsible by being dedicated to their customers. I would agree that these someone’s really don’t care about alienating a few collectors, but to alienate the children that are the true foundation of toy departments world-wide is self-destruction.
It’s clearly understood that department stores don’t look at the toy department as a big part of their stores, but it’s still a part – and it helps bring people in, so why not make the best of it!
These days we see more and more companies doing everything they can to make doing business with them as easy as possible, someone tell me what is easy about wanting products that should be available for purchase and the company saying we don’t have any of those!
Sorry, this comment was a reply to Jack’ comment!
Couldn’t have said it better myself. My son and I just came back from Target, and there was a little boy with his mother cruising the CARS aisle picking out CARS — or trying to. All they had were the same peg-warmers that were hanging there a week ago. He didn’t like the “google-eyes” (lenticulars), his mom couldn’t interest him in a color-changer of any kind, and the only non-lenticulars were LMQs. His mother said he had enough LMQs and was really looking for the “unusual” characters. The little boy left empty-handed and disappointed.
As to the corporations knowing what they’re doing, I have my doubts. They have their own marketers who have their own assumptions based on years of producing toys, and they “know” that if you don’t put a lot of the main character in the case, it won’t sell. The retailers “know” how to handle inventory, and they “know” their computer systems are the most efficient way to track it. And if it’s more efficient to track a “class” of product by one number instead of each type individually — to assign the same tracking number to LMQ as to spit-bubble Mater — it doesn’t really matter ’cause they’re all the same. That’s how you get pegs and pegs of LMQ that won’t sell — and when they don’t sell, the inventory flags the product as a slow-seller, the system doesn’t order more, the manufacturer cuts production because orders are down, and eventually the whole line flames out.
(My grocery store does the same thing; there’s one particular flavor of rice cakes that always sells out right away, but they won’t order more until enough of the unpopular flavors are sold, even though they could sell more overall if they kept the popular flavor in stock. Of course, the producer most likely won’t sell them a case of just one flavor, they probably pack each case according to what their marketing gurus tell them is best for business.)
I did my part at Target today, though; I picked up a pair of non-lenticular LMQs with the intent of using them as a base for some customs. First up: my own Stig McQueen!
Shoulda mentioned that the boy’s mom told me they had also been to the Disney store, and he was very disappointed when they only had the “wrong” CARS — i.e., the larger Disney Store specials. They left that store empty-handed as well.
Two stores, no sale — to a kid who loves CARS, plays with them, and was looking specifically to buy more. Gotta wonder what those marketing geniuses are smoking…
My local Target also put in the expanded food area some time ago. I was in there tonight. Just the usual array of peg warmers but there were two changes that give me hope. One was that Color Changers showed up for the first time (yeah, I know, it’s about time, since other stores have had them for months). The other change was that there was a price cut on the lenticulars. They are now $3.54 while the regular versions stayed at the higher prices. Looks to me like there might be a move afoot to clear out some shelves, hopefully for some new stock.
On another note, I picked up Dragon McQueen at WalMart (only one there). At Toys R Us I found two new Mater the Greater four packs (Buck the Tooth Vendor in one and Rocket Mater/Mia and Tia in the other). Finally, something is breaking loose in Southern Indiana! I am a happy, but poor, man.
Target? What Target? There are NO Target stores up here!?!
When we lived down state, Target was notorious for “going out of their way to NOT sell you something” – especially collectables?!?
So, why then do they have store exclusives?
I say, and have said, for a long time – “No more store exclusives”!!!
Did they put the tissues by the sign for Cars collectors?
Seems a lot of people are upset …. the trashcan is already full…
I went to my target the other day and…. OH yeaH!!! We don’t even have them here in Canada!!!
Sad – So sad!
At one of my Targets the other day they were clearing out the frozen food section by cart fulls.
I just walked into my local Target and the entire CD/DVD section was a big giant open space! -Which bummed me out, because I went in looking for a CD. Anyhow, thanks for the heads up! I was wondering what was going on.
Well Ma Dang
There is so much of a negative feeling surrounding Mattels and Targets distribution. Everyday I read of more dissapiontment and complaints regarding the distribution of Cars. Obviously the passion and frustration of having trouble collecting all the Cars collectors want is because so Many truly love these Rolling pieces of art and enjoy collecting for themselves or with their families. I am positive however that Mattell and Target are not handling distribution poorly and limited out of lack of intelligence. These are multi billion dollar corporations that have access to statistics and spending habits far above what people think. No the distribution is done this way purposely not out of ignorance. The companies for whatever reasons intentionally want distribution done this way. Someone recently wrote to Target regarding the final lap cars and they recieved a comment that they purposely limit the supply of certain items. That should tell you all you need to know. When a company tells you we want it hard to find certain items, you should know you as a consumer are being used, not looked out for. Please don’t believe they are not maximizing profits. That they could make more money if they supplied higher amounts. Perhaps statistics show the harder some cars are to find the more other Cars and toys sell. Whatever it may be, you can be sure they have their reasons. There are only a few toy manufactures left. I don’t think they are too worried about alieninating a few Cars collectors. Either way the billionares who own these corporations are still going to get the peoples toy budget money and they and their great grandchildren will remain billionares. The bottom line is they don’t care about any particular small group of consumers. Sure they say they do, but they really don’t. The only recourse is to avoid their companies all together. Continue collecting for now if you would like but when your done you have the right to never give another dime to these companies. I know I will never collect anything that these companies sell again. I will use them for now as they use us and then my family will show these companies the same loyality they show us when Cars is but an old fad.
Good point. This is kinda like how grocery stores purposely put milk at the very back part of the store. Why? Because this is the most purchased item in any grocery store and they want you to walk past all those isles in hopes that you will buy more than just that gallon of milk you need. Perhaps this is the case with high demand items. Limit them so that the lemmings (er…collectors) continuously keep coming back each day and say, nope….still none, but while I’m here I’ll pick up X item. Sounds like Jack is on to something.
That sign showed up in a couple of stores around here. Luckily I live in the land of Target and have many stores to choose from when shopping for empty pegs.
Hold on, let me get this stright… TARGET has “Final Lap Cars”? hahahah Darn, I am not only OLD, but now I guess I am BLIND AS A BAT..Never mind, I miss read the sign it… It read, “You have seen your Final Lap of Cars at Target!
My local Target was already re-done along these lines a couple of years ago. When and where it happens is probably driven by local laws governing whether “department stores” can sell groceries, and how long it takes Target to get whatever special dispensations may be necessary to sell turnips alongside socks and blu-ray players.
Of course, the CARS pegs at my Target are perpetually empty anyway, with only lenticulars and color-changers to warm them. Don’t know whether to blame Target or the eBay scalpers. I’m thinking it has to be Target, though, because the same thing used to happen when my son was still shopping for Take Along Thomas diecasts; there’s not a huge collector market for Take Along Thomas, but we’d still go for months and months with empty pegs and more-of-the-same before anything new would ever appear…
Most of the targets around me are already doing this. the Car pegs are empty or with lenticulars only. I have not seen anything new in months. Thanks alot Target.
I guess I’ll have to pull a Blanche DuBois, and “depend on the kindness of strangers” rather than be beaten around by the Stanley Kowalski that is Target.
i just saw eggs and case b of color changers there. whats next a garden and yard section.
Great, now I’ll need to ask the stock clerks to go in the back and look for that case of fresh apples for me.
You’re not a “collector” of apples, are you? They’ll have to put up that little white sign in the food section! 😉
Great idea Mattel. Give an exclusive contract to a store that doesn’t even care about your product. Makes perfect sense to me….NOT 🙁
CARS are not Target’s highest priority, and yet they have an exclusive deal with Mattel for the Final Lap series. HELLO??? The more time passes, the crazier the logic seems to get for these toys…
I still find it odd that I am buyin’ my sox and my bananas in the same place I buy my Blu-ray player…
oh yeah …. let’s make it HARDER to get the Target exclusive Cars … sigh …