I don't want to grow up...I don't want to change
Like a friend or a cherished memory of your childhood, we do not like to see children 'grow up' and 'change'. However, the motto of "I don't want to grow up..." jingle that trademarked classic Toys R Us, the company appeared settled with not innovating and adapting to the dotcom era, they suffer for the lack of vision.
I will be okay. A few partnerships and compliments over 10 years is hardly a reason to believe that I warrant a say in the decisions that go on at TRU. But clearly, like so many other businesses that go under daily, you adapt or you cease to exist.
Major issues under my watch...
(1) Brokering a deal with AG and removing Journey Girls from over 250 stores. The idea to recover debt with a doll commanding 3x the cost proved a fail
(2) Fading out the curly haired Chavonne instead of offering her as an option adjacent to the 'new' wavy one
(3) Lack of presence of dolls that identify with ethnic children...in other words "why are the African American Dolls" not in the store, limited, or hidden from customer view?
Add to that...the break from Amazon, the fail to launch/revive quickly post the failure of its own 'eToy' after its purchase of the latter. Then there is leaving public trading to go private.
Sad events are underway for what seems like 800 stores and 30K employees. The sky cracked and appeared to start dropping shards right before everyone else's eyes. How is it that TRU did not see it in time to repair?
Forced bankruptcy to dissolve without terminating (responsibility to) employees
After 2006, a theory to consider is that TRU drove their train off the tracks...a self-inflicted gun shot to the heart. The best way to erode yourself of responsibility to deliver pink slips is to sit on the coffers, buy debt, pay no one...kick the can down the road until the banks calls in your loans.
Maybe that is a harsh thing to say, but if the visual aesthetics for what a store should look like under liquidation holds, TRU has only come to begin to look like they are trying in the same week they marched in with a surrender flag to wave.
That told a story. TRU never really appeared as a guy working to pay its debt. The sales remained slow and customers waited as long as they could. Yesterday I went to a store looking for Chavonne's and only walked out with a Wonder Woman Action Figure along with a Finding Dory watch. The store is starting to look like it is trying to move merchandise, but it is not fooling the wise.
Looking ahead
Whatever side the company lands, we will adjust. We will hopefully use its lesson to teach ourselves about our own personal and professional decisions. Shopping great deals is likely, but when and where? Will the online be the place to shop those deals? I remember when BFC Ink dolls were no longer because I missed its entire evolution. I did hear that the dolls dropped in price significantly and folks swooped in to hoard and sell higher to match customer demand and few products to choose.
We hope that smart employees have options and those who leveraged the benefits may emerge in a better place.
Like a friend or a cherished memory of your childhood, we do not like to see children 'grow up' and 'change'. However, the motto of "I don't want to grow up..." jingle that trademarked classic Toys R Us, the company appeared settled with not innovating and adapting to the dotcom era, they suffer for the lack of vision.
I will be okay. A few partnerships and compliments over 10 years is hardly a reason to believe that I warrant a say in the decisions that go on at TRU. But clearly, like so many other businesses that go under daily, you adapt or you cease to exist.
Major issues under my watch...
(1) Brokering a deal with AG and removing Journey Girls from over 250 stores. The idea to recover debt with a doll commanding 3x the cost proved a fail
(2) Fading out the curly haired Chavonne instead of offering her as an option adjacent to the 'new' wavy one
(3) Lack of presence of dolls that identify with ethnic children...in other words "why are the African American Dolls" not in the store, limited, or hidden from customer view?
Add to that...the break from Amazon, the fail to launch/revive quickly post the failure of its own 'eToy' after its purchase of the latter. Then there is leaving public trading to go private.
Sad events are underway for what seems like 800 stores and 30K employees. The sky cracked and appeared to start dropping shards right before everyone else's eyes. How is it that TRU did not see it in time to repair?
Forced bankruptcy to dissolve without terminating (responsibility to) employees
After 2006, a theory to consider is that TRU drove their train off the tracks...a self-inflicted gun shot to the heart. The best way to erode yourself of responsibility to deliver pink slips is to sit on the coffers, buy debt, pay no one...kick the can down the road until the banks calls in your loans.
Maybe that is a harsh thing to say, but if the visual aesthetics for what a store should look like under liquidation holds, TRU has only come to begin to look like they are trying in the same week they marched in with a surrender flag to wave.
That told a story. TRU never really appeared as a guy working to pay its debt. The sales remained slow and customers waited as long as they could. Yesterday I went to a store looking for Chavonne's and only walked out with a Wonder Woman Action Figure along with a Finding Dory watch. The store is starting to look like it is trying to move merchandise, but it is not fooling the wise.
Looking ahead
Whatever side the company lands, we will adjust. We will hopefully use its lesson to teach ourselves about our own personal and professional decisions. Shopping great deals is likely, but when and where? Will the online be the place to shop those deals? I remember when BFC Ink dolls were no longer because I missed its entire evolution. I did hear that the dolls dropped in price significantly and folks swooped in to hoard and sell higher to match customer demand and few products to choose.
We hope that smart employees have options and those who leveraged the benefits may emerge in a better place.
No comments:
Post a Comment