"Toy brands must reinvent themselves" | Key4Communications |

Mattel is present in Spain for 30 and considers this country as a priority for the group. In fact, Spain is one of its top five markets in Europe. In this interview Elvira Sanjurjo, Trade Marketing and DI manager at Mattel Spain, values the evolution of the toy industry and some of the trends for next year.

- How the toy industry will evolve in 2014? What about your company?
After a challenging first half of the year, in Mattel we continue to strengthen investment in new releases for Christmas. Mattel, as member of the AEFJ, shares the toy sector optimistic feeling, and we work for a continuous improvement. Our short-term goal is to maintain our market share position, always being attentive to how the industry evolves this year. The most important part of the sales is in the final weeks of the year.

- What factors have been decisive in these results?
In the case of Mattel, our position is given by the investment we have conducted in our brands and releases, which have brought us economic growth despite the market situation.

- How the Christmas season is presented?
Given the seasonality of the market it is difficult to predict. We hope there will be a change in the trend and we’ll start to see growth.

- What impact will the licensed toy have on the Christmas season? What are the outstanding licenses?
Licensed toys have taken an important role in the category. We estimate that the same licenses that have been in the first positions during the first half of the year, such as Frozen, will remain in leading positions also during the Christmas campaign.

- How do you think the industry will evolve next year?
Brands must reinvent themselves. We have done that with Barbie for five decades. Times change and we need innovation capacity to understand the consumer. To anticipate trends remain vital in the game. In any case, the toy industry needs stories. At Mattel, we are experts on it, because not only we create toys but everything around the concept and history that surrounds the brand.

- What are the key trends we’ll see in the toy market?
On one hand, we are witnessing a new way to play by children. Their playing time is is diversified among various spaces. This makes brands to be prepared to be present on all the platforms that are part of the everyday life of the child. In addition, we face an increasingly demanding consumer, which forces us to transmit values with which the child can feel identified.