Article
Bandai's Bounce
by Darren Pierce : Radar, Radar! : 10.15.04 8:57pm EST
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Bandai beat expectations this quarter, both in earnings and profit. Nonetheless, their stock has seen a six day slide, almost as bad as Takara's.
Bandai Visual was down slightly, but profitable. Bandai Visual's sales of Gundam & Ultraman especially dragged behind expectation, but were still "good". Revenues from overseas TV series licensing was down. Bandai Visual plans to put Votoms on the market.
In the realm of the obscure, Bandai has partnered with personal products maker Kao to create the Bandai branded HAROmatherapy. No, it's not a joke. As the Japanese perfume market tightens, Kao is looking to continue its licensing partnerships to expand its share. The Japanese economy still strongly favors boutique and luxury items, and the motorized fragrance dispenser is expected to sell 10,000 units of its first production, with hopes of sales of 30,000 total in the first quarter of sale.
The move is seen as a market risk for Bandai. The fragrance market is such that poorly performing product sees drastic price drops, followed by a weakening of the brand. While Bandai owns 50% of the Japanese toy pie, they are trying to build better inroads in the world of sundries, and see the move as an experiment in studying the scent market. The strategy to keep demand strong is time tested: First tier product positioning and constrained supply.
Bandai Visual was down slightly, but profitable. Bandai Visual's sales of Gundam & Ultraman especially dragged behind expectation, but were still "good". Revenues from overseas TV series licensing was down. Bandai Visual plans to put Votoms on the market.
In the realm of the obscure, Bandai has partnered with personal products maker Kao to create the Bandai branded HAROmatherapy. No, it's not a joke. As the Japanese perfume market tightens, Kao is looking to continue its licensing partnerships to expand its share. The Japanese economy still strongly favors boutique and luxury items, and the motorized fragrance dispenser is expected to sell 10,000 units of its first production, with hopes of sales of 30,000 total in the first quarter of sale.
The move is seen as a market risk for Bandai. The fragrance market is such that poorly performing product sees drastic price drops, followed by a weakening of the brand. While Bandai owns 50% of the Japanese toy pie, they are trying to build better inroads in the world of sundries, and see the move as an experiment in studying the scent market. The strategy to keep demand strong is time tested: First tier product positioning and constrained supply.