Expert Q&A Fun World
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Fun World Looks to Spook Up Sales in 2014 The Halloween Insider chats with Phil Talio, senior product manager, Fun World, about how the company stays relevant in multiple Halloween product categories. The Halloween Insider: How important are costume accessories to your line? Phil Talio: Accessories are more important than ever. The current trend is to create a unique costume that reflects the individual’s style and personality. The trend has been inspired by the world of fashion and driven by the economy. Although makeup has historically been a female category, zombies have now allowed men and boys to wear makeup, causing sales to rise considerably. In addition, mask sales continue to rise. Both our wholesale distribution and results from retailers are strong. The surprise here is that the high-end masks are the better sellers. If the consumer puts on a mask and likes it, they’re sold. This is true for both the young boy who tries on a scary bleeding mask, or the lady who puts on the pretty masquerade mask.
THI: What are some of your most exciting new costume additions? PT: We’ve added a new license called Once Upon a Zombie, which includes zombified versions of Cinderella, Snow White, Belle, Rapunzel, and Sleeping Beauty. Betty Boop, Raggedy Ann, and Andy have joined the Fun World family of evergreen licenses this year, and we also have a lot of excitement in our generic line, such as the girls’ Pink Skull Fairy and Rockin’ Rainbow Monster. We’ve also added a bleeding scary clown and a bleeding zombie that uses our patented bleeding mask system.
Winter 2014
THI: Do activities products, such as pumpkin carving kits, still play a role in Halloween? PT: Pumpkin carving has been a strong category for years, but has been yearning for improvements and creativity. Before we broke into this category six years ago, the scoops and carvers were small and weak and often broke. The Fun World Super Goop Scoop and Colossal Carver have reignited the category. Retailers are now seeing improved sales in what was a strong—but stagnant—category. THI: Do you think Halloween falling on a Friday this year will affect sales of party products? PT: We will almost certainly see improved sales. The party category will get the benefit of both the Friday school parties as well as the parties with friends and family. The wild card is consumer confidence and the economy. The big question is: What percent increase will we see at retail? Our suggestion is a conservative estimate of 5 percent. We are not looking to unload product in one year, but would rather see our customers appreciate a strong and steady growth. Fun World has been in business for more than 50 years and we plan to be here for at least another 50, but we need our customers to get there.
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The Halloween Insider
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