My money is on ES using this to scapegoat EA FP, downsizing the workforce if not shutting down our campus completely and selling off the property. It’s a pure cash grab for them and we get left dangling.
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can we just disavow that SL was ever a part of the company. Her accomplishments were over inflated and that dopey buttertooth brit DA bought into it hook line and sinker.
word has it she's already worn out her welcome and her indecisive cronies aren't fairing too well either.
SL is now stinking up spinmaster.
I’m going to strong disagree on the NYC aspect. They watered brands down and reached well beyond the brands marketability. Their design staff was at the point of being devoid of creativity and beaten down by cost reduction measures and the god awful PLM. Their leadership was beyond awful from SL on and all of the ratchet marketing hags that followed. The business could have bounced back but there were no decent property acquisitions. Nothing to sustain or validate their existence. Sadly soon EA will follow suit. give it 2 years at max.
Fisher-Price has an anchor on them right now between the NYC business and recall incoming. The NYC teams knew those brands inside out. Was not them. Those brands are just running their course. The recall is impacting brand trust. Something the brand hangs their hat on.
puh-lease $12.14 stock price does not a success make. Barbie is still in the proverbial c-apper. this is not a turnaround but a financial shifting of funds to prop up a brand that is supposed to be our franchise. We are so out of touch it’s parhetic.
Sure, blame FP's failures on Barbies success. rolls eyes
Of course they had another dismal quarter. The company took marketing dollars and cut monthly budgets to prop up barbie and hot wheels. it’s not like their profitability moved the dial on stock prices. hover at $12 is nothing to boast about. They also dumped all of the licenses from FP NYC onto EA that we’re floundering WHICH ALSO LOWERED THEIR PORTFOLIO. Can you say “setting up a division for failure?” They’re going to have to fix the horrible mess NYC/ES made of thomas and better align whatever’s left of their licensed properties.
another dismal quarter for FP with sales down 8% while Barbie and Hot Wheels were both up. I can't even remember the last time FP had a decent quarter. Thankfully tomorrow is Friday and everyone gets to reward themselves and leave early at 2:00.
Feckless, very feckless. I want to see how many times I can use the word feckless and sound as stupid as the people that are dumb enough to still be FP. Because, let's face it, if you had skill, you would have moved on by now and be happy with your life. But the reality is you are either too lazy or worthless to accomplish anything other than to b--ch and complain about how bad the company is. Enjoy throwing your life away.
Lets be perfectly clear on something. Mattel’s purchase wasn’t a bad thing for FP. Anyone who says that is a mo--n and a fool. I started in EA as a Mattel employee in the FP division and have always been proud to have both companies on my CV. The downturn was when NF faux “retired”, gave his “don’t cost reduce the magic” farewell address and the era of BS began. He was the absolute worst in a string of bad leaders steering us towards our downfall. The importing of clueless west coast yes men and women who didn’t understand nor appreciate our culture helped solidify a morale that in my 20 years with the company i have never seen drop to the depths it is currently at. In closing it’s not mattel’s ownership, it’s the west coast mentality and their bitter mindset for being shuffled off to buffalo that is our true cancer.
If things were so great for FP, why did it only last 2 years as a publicly traded company before they became a wholly owned subsidiary of Mattel.
"The beginning of the end of FP was when Mattel bought them"
Just so we have everything in perspective - 26 years ago was the last time things were great at FP?
Got it. Thank you for your valuable contribution.
The beginning of the end of FP was when Mattel bought them
unfortunately neither type A nor B is a successful leader.
There are two types of leaders left at FP
Leader A: I will tell you exactly what to do and you better do it the exact way I tell you or I'll make you redo it.
Leader B: I know what I want you to do but I'm not going to tell you. I'm going to see if you can guess what it is. That way when you finally do, I can pretend you helped come up with the idea, because I don't want you to think I'm the same as Leader A.
Nailed it.
Yep, FP used to be one of the best places to work. The turnover rate was astoundingly low. Over the last 5 years or so it's evolved to your basic run of the mill corporate job with a culture that leans on the toxic side. If you come from any other typical c-appy corporation you'd probably wonder why people complain so much on how bad things are. If you knew how it used to be, you're shocked at how far it has fallen.
There's a reason why people are feckless, it's because that's what Mattel breeds and FP is no different now. Anyone who is willing to be disruptive or go out on a limb is shown the door. CS may be an upgrade compared to last few but he is no different. Leadership rewards those who fall in line and become yes men/women. This is the behavior that is rewarded and that mentality is beaten into you. They may say the opposite from time to time but actions speak louder than words.
Feckless is an understatement. EA used to be a community based workplace. Departments would have monthly birthday celebrations, competitive sports teams in our off hours, gym programs that brought people together, etc. It was different than our counterparts in NYC and ES. I'm sure they have had the same but considering the vastness of those other two campus/offices and the commutes that their employees might have faced ours was more of a tighter family based feel. Now just to be clear, I started in EA, worked in NYC for 2 years, went to ES for 5 years and was promoted and transferred back to EA (which is great for me as my family in in the upper NY region). I can truly say that the environment has truly changed since I first started with Mattel. The zeitgeist that was EA has changed. I'm not saying it's better or worse but different. The overall feel is more reclusive, people don't share as much as they did before, aren't running up to each other with an idea or spark in their eye for a solution. It's become more self serving and CYA mentality and I find that the people running the show above me tend to be phoning it in more than trying to fix the problem. They are more like automatons following the path led out by leadership instead of being disruptive and trying to break out with something new. This will be our downfall if we continue to act as sheep and not challenge the mindset to show the true spark of creativity that is Mattel. We need to step up and stomp out the feckless. The leaders that show up to ride the train to retirement need to be shown for the do nothings that they are and pushed out. Kick them off the train. The free ride is over.
There are many feckless people working at FP these days.
@YzZv17u-3rik actually FP was the leader in pre-school toys for more years than you've most likely been alive. Some of their innovations were legendary pre and while being in the Mattel portfolio.
Their downfall like anything else has been having "too many cooks stirring the pot," or having the wrong chef in charge of the kitchen. When MZ was put in charge of design the man was already burnt out and biding his time. He knew full well at that point that we were churning out cost reduced junk and spent money on silly wasteful videos to validate his existence within the ranks.
Bringing back CS was a good move from a business perspective as he has the respect from those around him as being a solid stand up leader amidst all of the revolving door imports and directionless leaders/upper management we've experienced in the past few years but to make an omelet we have to break a few eggs, not k--l children. We need to be able to spend to make dynamic products and re-capture the hearts and imaginations of the disaffected youth, turn their attention away from screens and back to their imagination. Without being able to break those eggs we will just be a stagnant lackluster company putting out cost reduced garbage.
Mattel is a toy company and FP is one of its biggest toy brands. The brand is core to the industry/business it operates in. No chance Mattel sells off that brand. Only way that would happen would be in a bankruptcy liquidation sale. Mattel and FP are the perfect marriage made in h*ll and will bleed each other out until there's nothing left.
FP has NEVER been the best toy company. Well maybe in your simple NY mind.
They should sell FP and let it go free. The Mattel stench would linger for a while but eventually they would return to the best toy company they once were
it makes sense. an affordable way to distance themselves and save $$$