Beanie Babies founder Ty Warner has unveiled a new line of stuffed animals that he hopes will capture the hearts of kids – and parents’ wallets.
Warner exclusively told The Washington Post in an email that the Beanie Bouncer is a 4-inch-tall stuffed toy with a ball inside that can bounce up to 50 feet. It will cost $5.99 and is due to hit stores next month.
“This is a brand new product, never seen or made before,” the reclusive billionaire said Wednesday.
Warner founded the collectibles company Ty Inc. more than 30 years ago and helped spark a huge stuffed toy boom.
Warner wouldn’t reveal what’s inside the stuffed toy — “that’s a secret,” he said — but he said he has applied for a global patent on the product and is prepared to “sue” anyone who copies or infringes on the stuffed toy ball.
Beanie Bouncer comes with 12 different animal characters, including Gilbert the Giraffe, Fins the Shark and Parry the Cat.
The products are being released at a time when the industry is struggling to generate growth and interest in traditional toys.
Overall U.S. toy sales fell 8% last year to $28 billion, and sluggish growth is expected to continue in 2022, with sales up just 1%, according to Circana data.
Hasbro, maker of Monopoly and Power Rangers, expects sales to fall by up to 12% this year and has announced significant job cuts.
Earlier this month, industry giant Basic Fun, maker of Tonka trucks, Care Bears and Lite-Brite, filed for bankruptcy protection.
Experts fear many more companies may go bankrupt.
For the first time in the first quarter, demand for toys from preschoolers outpaced that from adult toy collectors, according to data from Circana.
While Warner, who also owns luxury hotels including the Four Seasons in Midtown, blames the industry for a lack of creativity, he also acknowledges that today’s kids are too obsessed with technology.
“The industry is lethargic and risk-averse,” the 79-year-old billionaire said in an email to The Washington Post, adding that “innovation is nonexistent and no one wants to take risks on something unproven.”
He also noted that today’s children have a changing attitude towards toys.
“As a kid, I loved to play ball whenever I got the chance. Kids today are mostly indoors, sitting and playing with technology,” he said.
In a separate press release on Wednesday, Warner said Beanie Bouncer is the antidote the industry needs right now.
“You can throw it, catch it, bounce it, roll it, kick the ball or collect it,” he said in a statement. “It’s a great way to get kids out of the house and away from screens.”
His stuffed toys boomed, achieving $1.4 billion in sales just five years after Beanie Babies was introduced in 1993.
By discontinuing a particular style of toy, he created demand for $5 toys that ended up selling for as much as $5,000 on the secondary market.
But all demand had evaporated by 1999, and the rise and fall of the fad was chronicled in an infamous Warner Bros. movie called “Beanie Bubble.” As The Washington Post exclusively reported, Warners insisted the film was largely fiction.
Since the bubble burst, Ty Inc. has expanded its product lineup beyond bean-filled toys to include animal-themed purses, slippers, slides, pillows, key chains and more.
