No Happy Holidays for Hasbro After Toys 'R' Us Collapse
*By Bridgette Webb*
These are troubling times for Hasbro.
The toy maker announced Monday that it will lay off up to 10 percent of its employees as it ー and the industry at large ー adjusts to a tougher marketplace without Toys "R" Us.
"The moment of truth has arrived to see if their business can survive this type of shock," Nathan Bomey, business reporter for USA Today, said Monday in an interview on Cheddar.
"I don't think that anyone expects them to face a serious crisis, but this is a test as powers shift to companies like Amazon ($AMZN) and Walmart ($WMT) and Target ($TGT) in the toy industry."
Hasbro ($HAS) has not yet disclosed how many of its 5,400 global employees will be out of the job. But the company said that it expects the cuts to save between $30 million to $40 million a year by 2020.
The company also reported revenue of $1.57 billion for its latest quarter, way below analysts' expectations of $1.71 billion and down 12 percent from a year ago. Sales internationally were down 24 percent.
With the troubles at Toys "R" Us, many have suggested that toy makers re-direct their efforts to bigger sellers like Amazon and Walmart. But Bomey said the real issue is not where companies sell their products, but rather if those products still hold the same demand.
"\[What matters\] is ultimately if kids want to play with toys at all," he said.
"\[It's\] an existential crisis, if you will, because with iPads and iPhones taking over kids' playtime, ultimately they will have to figure out if they can create the digital products that will connect with kids."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/hasbro-is-still-hurting-from-toys-r-us-closure).
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