[ad_1]
Barbie superfans have been known to shell out thousands of dollars for rare or limited editions of the iconic doll.
Parent company Mattel now hopes fans will be willing to pay top dollar for digital collectibles too. The US toymaker is the latest to explore opportunities in blockchain-based images, including turning its best known brand into non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
NFTs have exploded in popularity among collectors of sports memorabilia this year. Starting with a clip of basketball star LeBron James that sold for $100,000 in January, the craze reached fever pitch in March when Christie’s auction house sold a digital collage for $69m.Â
Mattel’s interest makes sense. The company has a built-in fan-base and one-off digital content sales could provide a useful additional revenue stream. It could certainly do with the boost.
True, Mattel, which also owns Hot Wheels and Fisher-Price, has had a good pandemic. The company pulled in $4.5bn in sales last year, a 2 per cent increase from 2019. But it is still some way off from 2013, when sales peaked at $6.5bn.Â
The rise of online gaming and video streaming and their effects on traditional toy sales are reflected in Mattel’s share price since then. Although the stock has more than doubled over the past 12 months, it is trading at just half its 2013 level.
The hype over NFTs could prove fleeting. At collectibles platform NBA Top Shot, sales dropped off significantly in April. At $63m, they are running at less than a third of their levels in March or February.
But Mattel also cannot count on the pandemic sales bump to last indefinitely. Selling digital collectibles should not distract Mattel from its core toy business. But it does need to update its playbook. NFTs present an opportunity for the company to test the waters, appeal to a different audience and see if this might be a viable way to wring more money out of its existing brands.
Our popular newsletter for premium subscribers Best of Lex is published twice weekly. Please sign up here
[ad_2]
Source link
