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- February 2025
- Teaching Note
Barbie: Reviving a Cultural Icon at Mattel
By: Elie Ofek and Sarah Mehta
Brand Management; Culture and Marketing; Marketing Strategy; Entertainment Marketing; Intellectual Property; Consumer Preferences; Societal Marketing; Brand Purpose; Diversity and Inclusion; Driving Growth; Turnaround Strategies; Toy Industry View Details
- July 2024
- Case
Wizards of the Coast and Magic: The Rebounding
By: Boris Groysberg and Tom Quinn
This case traces the history and growth of the Magic: The Gathering trading card game. From its development in 1993 by tiny studio Wizards of the Coast, to Wizards’ acquisition by toy giant Hasbro in 1999, to its evolution into a billion-dollar brand in 2023,... View Details
Keywords: Business Growth and Maturation; Change Management; Transformation; Cost vs Benefits; Business Cycles; Games, Gaming, and Gambling; Global Strategy; Growth and Development; Selection and Staffing; Collaborative Innovation and Invention; Innovation Leadership; Intellectual Property; Job Design and Levels; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Leading Change; Growth and Development Strategy; Growth Management; Management Succession; Risk Management; Brands and Branding; Product Positioning; Organizational Change and Adaptation; Competitive Strategy; Competitive Advantage; Expansion; Mergers and Acquisitions; Product Development; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; United States; Washington (state, US); Seattle; Japan
- January 2023 (Revised May 2023)
- Case
Learning Resources: Driven by Purpose
By: Boris Groysberg, Sarah Mehta and Heather Poco
In January 2023, CEO Rick Woldenberg must make several strategic decisions for his family-owned toy company Learning Resources. View Details
- September 2020 (Revised December 2020)
- Case
Hot Wheels at Mattel: Reinventing the Wheel
By: Elie Ofek, Andres Terech and Nicole Tempest Keller
In 2017, Chris Down, Global Brand General Manager for Hot Wheels, and his team from the Advanced Play Group within Mattel, Inc., were considering which innovation path to pursue in order to "future proof" the Hot Wheels franchise going forward. Hot Wheels was the... View Details
- February 2013 (Revised March 2015)
- Case
The LEGO Group: Publish or Protect?
By: Willy C. Shih and Sen Chai
Senior managers at the LEGO Group are faced with a quandary: Should they patent inventions coming out of their manufacturing process development work, should they keep them as trade secrets, or should they publish them so that they would go into the public domain and... View Details
Keywords: Plastics; Injection Molding; Toys; LEGO; LEGO Group; Tools; Additive Manufacturing; 3D Manufacturing; Toolmaking; Patenting; Spillovers; Knowledge Spillovers; Change; Trends; Engineering; Machinery and Machining; Intellectual Property; Patents; Operations; Production; Strategy; Corporate Strategy; Technology Adoption; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Consumer Products Industry; Europe; Denmark
- February 2013
- Case
LEGO (A): The Crisis
By: Jan W. Rivkin, Stefan H. Thomke and Daniela Beyersdorfer
As this case opens, iconic toymaker LEGO stands on the brink of bankruptcy. Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, LEGO's young and newly appointed CEO, must size up changes in the toy industry, learn from the company's recent moves, and craft a strategy that will put LEGO back on... View Details
- November 2012 (Revised September 2013)
- Case
Learning Resources: A Hands-On Toy Company Deals with New Challenges and Opportunities
By: Boris Groysberg and Anahita Hashemi
Learning Resources is a family-owned educational toy company that, by late 2011, was facing a myriad of challenges, including increased competition, entry into new markets, new distribution methods, rising costs of production in China, and changing customer behavior.... View Details
Keywords: Leading Teams; Strategy Formulation; Strategy And Execution; Innovation; Corporate Culture; Industry Analysis; Organizational Alignment; Entrepreneurs; Sales Channels; Leadership; Strategy; Change Management; Innovation Leadership; Family Business; Entrepreneurship; Product Design; Sales; Retail Industry; United States
- July 2012
- Case
LEGO
By: Jan W. Rivkin, Stefan Thomke and Daniela Beyersdorfer
LEGO has emerged as one of the most successful companies in the toy industry. The case describes LEGO's gradual rise, rapid decline, and recent revitalization as it is keeping up with a changing market place. Central to LEGO's management model is the ability to find... View Details
- March 2009 (Revised November 2021)
- Case
The Walt Disney Company and Pixar Inc.: To Acquire or Not to Acquire?
By: Juan Alcacer, David J. Collis and Mary Furey
Soon after Robert Iger took over as CEO of the Walt Disney Company in late 2005, he turned his attention toward Pixar, the animation studio with which Disney had worked since 1991 and was responsible for producing hits such as Toy Story and Finding Nemo. Disney's own... View Details
- February 2008 (Revised September 2010)
- Case
LeapFrog Enterprises
By: Lynda M. Applegate and Elizabeth Collins
Explores the success factors leading to the company's rise to the number three ranking in the aggressively competitive toy industry. LeapFrog has made the strategic decision to expand beyond the toy industry and enter the educational technology and services industry.... View Details
- December 2004 (Revised October 2005)
- Case
Hasbro Games -- POX (A)
By: David B. Godes and Elie Ofek
Hasbro's newest toy is so unique it requires a unique launch strategy. Comparing traditional media (TV, print) with a non-traditional viral campaign, Matt Collins must weigh the risks and benefits of doing things the way they've always been done or blazing a new path... View Details
- November 2004
- Teaching Note
G.G. Toys (TN)
By: Dennis Campbell and Susan L. Kulp
Teaching Note to (9-105-005). View Details
Keywords: Accounting Industry
- September 2003 (Revised June 2005)
- Case
Learning from LeapFrog: Creating Educational and Business Value
By: Lynda M. Applegate, Christopher Dede and Susan Saltrick
Explores the success factors leading to one's company's rise to the number three ranking in the aggressively competitive toy industry. LeapFrog has made the strategic decision to exploit its educational model in two industry sectors: consumer toys and educational... View Details
- August 2003
- Teaching Note
Toys "R" Us (A) and (B) (TN)
By: Dennis A. Yao and Michael G. Rukstad
Teaching Note for (9-703-445) and (9-703-446). View Details
Keywords: Retail Industry
- February 2003 (Revised December 2006)
- Case
Toys "R" Us (A)
By: Michael G. Rukstad, Dennis A. Yao and Cate Reavis
In 1992, Toys "R" Us, the pioneer of the "category killer" retail format, faced significant competitive threats from mass discounters and warehouse clubs and was losing market share. This case explores the dynamic sustainability of Toys "R" Us's retailing model, its... View Details
- February 2003 (Revised September 2003)
- Supplement
Toys "R" Us (B)
By: Michael G. Rukstad, Dennis A. Yao and Cate Reavis
Supplements the (A) case. View Details
Keywords: Retail Industry
- June 2002 (Revised September 2002)
- Case
Pokemon: Gotta Catch 'Em All (Abridged)
By: Youngme E. Moon
Pokemon, the colloquial name given to a collection of 150 fantastic, animal-inspired creatures with organic powers and the capacity to evolve, are the stars of video games, trading card games, and TV cartoons. Conceived in Japan in 1996, Pokemon quickly became that... View Details
- May 1997
- Teaching Note
Toy World, Inc., Teaching Note
By: W. Carl Kester
Teaching Note for (9-295-073). View Details
Keywords: Entertainment and Recreation Industry
- December 1995 (Revised February 1999)
- Case
Toys "R" Us Japan
By: Debora L. Spar
Documents the American retailer's process of entry into the Japanese toy market. Discusses the history of Toys "R" Us in the United States as well as the history of the Japanese toy market, distribution, wholesaling, and retailing systems. Eager to enter the world's... View Details
- January 1992
- Teaching Note
Play Time Toy Company TN
By: Thomas R. Piper
Teaching Note for (9-292-003). View Details
Keywords: Entertainment and Recreation Industry