Christmas Toy Warning from Woolworths

Thu, 18 Oct 2007

There may be a shortage of toys this Christmas warns Woolworths .

The reason for the shortages is due to stringent checks on shipments being imported from China following the chaos caused by the Mattel recalls in the summer.

The affected toy ranges in the summer recall included Barbie play-sets and Dora the Explorer toys. The mass recall was triggered after excessive amounts of lead was found in paint or the items contained small magnets that could be a choking hazard.

The toys likely to be affected by the shortages are those based on the Transformers film, Dr Who Dalek helmets, Barbie products and Roary the remote control car .

Nick Hill, Head of Toys at Woolworths said, "There will be plenty of stock at Woolworths of the most popular toys for the start of the Christmas rush.

"But the situation is changing on a daily basis and it is too early to tell whether there will be shortages of the most popular lines as it gets closer to Christmas Eve."

Last month Woolworths had hoped that fears of a high street slowdown before Christmas would be averted by sales of Transformers toys and accessories.

A slump in sales in the key Christmas trading period brought on by stock shortages could hinder a recovery after falling sales and profits in the last few years.

However Trevor Bish-Jones, Woolworths chief executive said that even though consumer confidence may be low, sales of children’s products usually hold up well as parents do not want to disappoint children. So they are not unduly worried.

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