Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.bonus From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: bonus Fri, Jun 12 1992 Date: Fri, 12 Jun 92 05:19:42 EDT Message-ID: 06-12 0000 BONUS: Larami's Super Soaker is hot USA TODAY Update June 12-14, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network What do you get when you arm millions of children with super air-powered water guns capable of drenching a target at 50 feet? The superhot toy phenomenon, the Super Soaker, is enjoying its second summer of fame, fortune and fracas. Like many other toymakers before it, Philadelphia-based Larami is discovering there are plenty of woes that go with the joys of having a hit toy. The Super Soaker, made by Larami, is as controversial as it is hot. Several violent incidents have been linked to the use of the highly accurate water guns. WHAT DO LARAMI EXECS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT THE TOY'S CONTROVERSY? Larami Vice President Al Davis says he is dismayed by the misuse of his toy. "We used to worry about labeling our toys - saying something like children under a certain age should not use this toy," he says. "Now I'm thinking a label saying older people should avoid this toy is in order. If only 10-year-olds were playing with this, we'd have no problems." HOW WAS THE SUPER SOAKER BORN? The Super Soaker was born in 1990 and originally christened the Drencher. It took off last year - bringing in an estimated $47 million in revenue. Analysts say it may do twice as well this year. A second year of popularity is reason enough to party in the toy industry. Hot toys often fade faster than you can say Pet Rock. Remember Bart Simpson dolls? They flashed and then faded into toy history within a year of introduction. The short attention span of toy consumers is enough to make retailers have a cow. HOW DID LARAMI KNOW IT HAD A HIT? Toy retailers were way-interested when the Super Soaker continued to be popular after last summer. Even into the Christmas season, shoppers were asking for the Super Soaker. "When we saw fall and winter demand, that gave us the indication that the Super Soaker would continue to be hot," says Ron Staffieri, CEO of Kay-Bee Toy Stores. "Business has doubled from last year." WAS THE CROSSOVER INTO THE ADULT MARKET INTENDED? The crossover into the adult market was another good sign. Grown-ups are the Super Soaker's accidental market. Nearly every adult male interviewed for this story confessed to owning one. "When I saw adults heading to the beach carrying an umbrella, a beer cooler and a Super Soaker, I knew we had a surprise market," says Davis. HOW HAVE OTHER ADULT TOY COMPANIES JOINED IN THE CRAZE? The Sharper Image, which makes its living selling adult toys, says the Super Soaker is a hit. "It is the ultimate fun toy for adults and children," says Richard Thalheimer, president of The Sharper Image. The Super Soaker is a popular corporate gift this year, he says. The Sharper Image has so much interest from adults, it has commissioned an exclusive accessory: a mesh vest that can carry two refill liters of water. The vest comes only in adult sizes. "On a hot summer day in a recessionary environment, there are lots of adults who want to pretend they are commandos from Star Wars," says Thalheimer. WHY DID THE SUPER SOAKER CATCH ON? Kids say it's the firing range that sets it apart from other water toys. "(I got it) because I thought they'd be really neat and to torment my brother," says Ryan Burroughs, 10, of Casselberry, Fla. "They squirt really far, and they're really neat." Word of mouth has made the toy the neighborhood rage. "My friend had one, and I said, `I've got to have one.' I went out and bought it the next week," says Wanda Hill, 16, of Forest Park, Ohio. DESPITE ALL THE SUCCESS, HAS THE TOY CREATED MANY HASSLES? With all that success comes plenty of hassles: Controversy. In recent weeks, law-enforcement officials have linked the Super Soaker to incidents involving real guns. In Boston, a boy was shot and killed May 29 when a squirt-gun fight escalated into a brawl. In New York this week, a man splashed by a squirt gun responded by fetching his real gun and shooting the water-gun wielder. WHAT HAVE LAWMAKERS BEEN TRYING TO DO? Some lawmakers have called for its ban. Crisis-management experts offer this advice to Larami: Move the debate away from water guns to the issue of real violence. "It's a lot easier for politicians to talk about water-gun control than real-gun control," says Lisa LeMasters of Fairchild:LeMaster, a Dallas-based crisis-management firm. IS ALL THIS CONTROVERSY SOMETHING NEW TO THE TOY INDUSTRY? Contoversy isn't new to toyland. When the Hula Hoop first burst onto the scene in 1958, newspapers ran stories on how to prevent and treat resulting back injuries. The early-'80s phenomenon Cabbage Patch Kids drew the ire of child psychologists. The doll came with adoption papers, and critics warned that adopted children would wonder if they, too, had come from a cabbage patch. Slap Bracelets were slapped down by school principals last fall. Nintendo has been cited as a cause of tendinitis in young wrists. WHAT OTHER HASSLES HAS THE SUPER SOAKER CREATED? Keeping up with demand. When Larami launched the Super Soaker in 1990, it had one factory. Today, it has seven. Getting up to speed was tough, says Davis. "We were unprepared for the onslaught of orders. We had to get distribution up as best we could," he says. Also competition. Although the Super Soaker's specific pump action is patented, similar products are already on the street. Tyco Toys, the third-largest toymaker in the USA, has a Super Saturator on the market. HOW ABOUT MANAGEMENT OF THE TOY? Managing a hit toy is tough behind the scenes as well, says David Miller, president of Toy Manufacturers of America. Coleco, which launched Cabbage Patch Kids, is out of business. Experts say Coleco, flushed by success, overextended itself. But there are winners to learn from, says Miller. Playmates has successfully handled its hit, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. "Playmates didn't get into an ego trip when its product took off," says Miller. "They didn't enlarge their warehouse space. So when sales began to taper off, they hadn't taken on too much overhead cost." WHAT OTHER TOY COMPANY HAS EXPERIENCE IN MANAGING HITS? Hasbro has experience managing hits. The trick, says Hasbro Chief Operating Officer George Ditomassi, is to turn the hit into a staple. "Take Twister," he says. "That was a runaway hit in 1965. Zsa Zsa Gabor played Twister in a low-cut gown with Johnny Carson on "The Tonight Show." It sold 3 million units a year in its prime." Today, the game consistently sells a half-million a year. Hasbro has organized college Twister championships and sold Twister matches as a money-raising technique. IS DAVIS THINKING ABOUT A MATURE SUPER SOAKER? Davis isn't thinking about a mature Super Soaker. He's still enjoying hit status. He was a Larami employee when the company was founded 30 years ago and has seen it survive on the likes of Sea Monkeys and COKO Blocks. He's enjoying its big moment. "We've never had such a megahit. It's gratifying. It's invigorating. I guess we've arrived." Bonus Editor: Annette Semprit. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. 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