After the “Barbie” movie rocketed to the status of global phenomenon over the weekend, Mattel on Wednesday talked about the film as a “template” for other opportunities — including more films and TV.
“There is momentum right now overall, not just for Barbie the brand, but for other brands,” Mattel
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Chief Executive Ynon Kreiz said during Mattel’s second-quarter earnings conference call on Wednesday. “And of course, even on Barbie, this is not just about one movie. The goal was to create, to build a film franchise and continue to expand the brand in more ways.”
Kreiz said it was still far too early to talk about sequels. But his remarks came as big studios increasingly crank out content under one of a handful of franchises — like Marvel or DC — as investors push for bigger profits, after years of prioritizing streaming-subscriber growth.
During the call, Kreiz said movie-related Barbie toys so far have “sold out across major distribution channels.” And he said the company would be “expanding the range” of those offerings in the second half of the year. Mattel has announced more than 165 consumer product partnerships in connection with the film.
But earlier in the day, Mattel — which makes Barbie dolls, Hot Wheels and Fisher-Price toys — stuck with its full-year forecast, despite “Barbie’s” success at the box office. The film, directed by Greta Gerwig and starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, brought in $337 million worldwide over its debut weekend. Warner Bros. Discovery Inc.
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produced the film.
When an analyst asked why Mattel wasn’t more upbeat on its 2023 projections, management said they still expected “significant growth” for Barbie in the second half of the year, with positive growth for the year overall, after the promotional timing of the film weighed on demand trends.
However, toy demand overall remained a little soft, they said, after people bought a lot more of them during the pandemic and inflation refocused consumer spending on essentials. Still, the company said retailers, who have been reluctant to order more toys as they try to clear other unwanted goods from their warehouses and stock rooms, were largely done with their inventory cleanout efforts.
“While comparisons improved from the first quarter, our second-quarter financial results were negatively impacted as retailers continued to manage inventory levels and by some overall industry softness,” Chief Financial Officer Anthony DiSilvestro said in a statement.
“At this point, we believe the retail inventory correction is mostly behind us, and we look forward to meeting consumer demand for our product, as we enter the second half of the year and all-important holiday season,” he continued. “Given our year-to-date performance and outlook for the balance of the year, we are reiterating our guidance.”
Shares of Mattel were down 1.8% after hours on Wednesday.
This story originally appeared on Marketwatch
