IN THE BARBIE WORLD
Ynon Kreiz using his entertainment-industry roots in bid to reverse toy maker’s slump
Mattel’s CEO explains how he plans to revive toymaker by expanding into Hollywood,
When Ynon Kreiz became Mattel Inc.’s fourth chief executive in as many years last April, he faced a daunting mandate: Revive the toy maker while cutting thousands of jobs.
The company behind Barbie, Hot Wheels and Fisher-Price had been in tumult for years, as declining toy sales and the loss of key licenses devastated its share price and demoralized its workforce. And Mr. Kreiz, an Israeli-born television executive who’d recently joined Mattel’s board, had never worked a day at a toy company.
Mr. Kreiz has responded to the challenge by flexing his entertainment-industry muscles: He’s launched a Mattel film studio and struck new deals to develop movies based on Barbie, Hot Wheels and other cherished toy brands. The 54-yearold Mr. Kreiz also has added new leaders to develop episodic television shows and to license Mattel brands more broadly into things like digital gaming and live-action events.
Early results are mixed. While the Hot Wheels and Barbie brands finished 2018 with higher sales, Fisher-Price toys continue to slump, as does Mattel’s American Girl. Barbie also faces more competition this year when Disney’s “Frozen” sequel premieres. Mattel lost rights to produce Disney Princess and “Frozen” dolls to Hasbro Inc. in 2014.
Mr. Kreiz recently sat down with The Wall Street Journal. Here are edited excerpts:
WSJ: What’s been your strategy to calm employee nerves since you became CEO?
Mr. Kreiz: It’s town halls. It’s small group meetings. It’s oneon-one meetings. It’s traveling to all of our offices around the world and meeting people on the ground at all levels across the company.
At the same time, part of my philosophy is less talk and more action. What we try to bring to the organization now is clarity and focus. If you do that, and you’re transparent and forthcoming, the message travels. People eventually understand where you’re heading and become part of the journey.
WSJ: What’s the transition from boardroom to CEO been like?
Mr. Kreiz: It was actually a pretty smooth change. When I was on the board, I was pretty active. I was already passionate, and I had a pretty clear view on where the company should head. The board embraced that view, and when I stepped in, I had pretty broad support by my fellow board members in terms of the direction we are looking to build the company. WSJ: What does someone who has never worked in a toy company know about running the world’s largest toy company?
Mr. Kreiz: I actually do have a background in children’s entertainment in general, and toys and merchandise from my days at Fox Kids.
I am not a toy designer, and don’t have the experience in the actual operations of toys. But that’s not my job. The people who run our toy business are the best in the industry. My role is to orchestrate and lead the team, and get the maximum result for the stakeholders.
WSJ: What did you play with as a kid?
Mr. Kreiz: I used to be a very outdoorsy kid, but I also played with Hot Wheels. And I have to say, I’m reliving that experience nowadays through Mattel.
WSJ: How important is it for Mattel to create the next hit toy?
Mr. Kreiz: We have been very successful in creating new toys and innovative products, except it’s been under our own brands. Part of our drive is to move faster and create and invent other toys. There’s no formula for discovery, but you have to be focused and oriented towards discovering the next big thing. This is a big change we’re driving at Mattel—to accelerate our own creativity.
WSJ: What is the biggest challenge facing the toy industry?
Mr. Kreiz: One is the changing retail channels. The second is how children spend their time, given the advent of screens and digital social media and digital online experiences.
WSJ: So how do you get kids to put down their iPads or videogames and play with toys?
Mr. Kreiz: We’re not trying to get them to put their iPads down. Kids still consume and play with Barbie or Hot Wheels, or young kids with Fisher-Price products. The opportunity for us is to evolve those experiences. Let’s be available for the kids to play wherever they are, including games, content or digital experiences that are a natural extension of the physical play system.
Historically, we used to play in those areas to sell more toys. So we created content so we can sell more toys. Now we’re looking to do all these things— content creation, games, and so forth—with a goal to be successful in those areas in and of themselves.
WSJ: What are the challenges for Mattel as more toys are sold online?
Mr. Kreiz: You have almost unlimited virtual shelf space and in that environment, the biggest challenge is to rise above the noise and stand out. This is exactly where big brands come into play.
WSJ: You sold two companies to Disney in the past and some people speculate you are at Mattel to sell it, too. What would it take for something like that to happen?
Mr. Kreiz: I don’t believe in trying to run a business in order to sell it. You have to build a business and make it successful.
We’re not dressing the company up or doing cosmetic changes. We’re changing fundamentals and improving performance at the ground level. Mattel is not a short-term fix.