1987 Newspaper Article on Tonka Buying Kenner
I’ve shared old news about this before, and my two action figure marketing books — Each Sold Separately* and Action Figures Not Included* — touch on this a bit, but today I want to direct your attention to this 1987 newspaper article that gives us a great look at Tonka moving in to buy Kenner.
I find all of these old articles fascinating reads and constantly discover information that’s new to me when I read these. This particular article has some real fun in it, including a Nostradamus-like quote by Tonka president Stephen Shank who said:
” . . . he explained in an interview why he thought the merger would achieve several of Tonka’s goals. Almost at once it would provide an annual sales base of more than $500 million, which Shank called a necessary threshold in an industry that he expects to continue consolidating.”
As all of you know, Shank’s mention of consolidation in the industry was near-prophetic considering Hasbro stepped in and purchased Tonka — along with the Kenner division — in 1991. And consolidation continues in the industry even today; just last month Spin Master announced it is acquiring Cardinal. Just the latest in a string of toy industry mergers and acquisitions.
Related articles
- February, 1991 and the Toy Industry (battlegrip.com)
- Death Of A Deal: Hasbro Breaks Off Talks With Dreamworks (TFormers.com)
- “Playing By Different Rules” Looks to Be Fun (battlegrip.com)