As a result, during the winter months when the seasonal amusement industry was quietest, Play by Play Toys ’ sales volume fell as fixed overhead costs and a percentage of sales rose. Since the purchase of Ace Novelty, Play by Play Toys increased its activity in the amusement market by 15 percent, reducing its retail business to approximately 25 percent. Formerly, the company directed about 60 percent of its business to the amusement industry and the remaining 40 percent to the retail market. The acquisition of Ace Novelty reorganized Play by Play Toys ’ activities in the amusement and retail markets. Play by Play Toys ’ net sales rose significantly in fiscal 1997 ’s fourth quarter -94.2 percent -owing to the acquisition, among other factors. (Ace Novelty licensed entertainment characters for the amusement and retail markets, including the Warner Brothers ’ Looney Tunes and Space Jam characters.) In the deal Play by Play Toys also obtained Ace ’s operating assets, business operations, facilities, warehouses, and distribution centers in Bellevue, Washington Los Angeles, California Chicago, Illinois and Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada.Ĭompleted in June 1996, the acquisition of Ace Novelty -and its many character licenses -added greatly to Play by Play Toys ’ international sales strength, as well as to the company ’s activity in the retail market. Nevertheless, the acquisition made Play by Play the largest supplier of stuffed toys and novelties in the United States and expanded the properties licensed by Play by Play Toys. “We believe there is quite a bit of value in the Ace name and reputation, and we want to maintain that identity in the market. “We ’re forming an Ace Novelty subsidiary, which will keep a separate identity within our company, ” Play by Play Toys chief financial officer Joe Guerra revealed in Amusement Business. Ace Novelty effectively became a subsidiary of Play by Play Toys, retaining its own management team and identity in the marketplace. Chemical Bank acted as the agent of the credit facility, and Heller Financial and Texas Commerce Bank also participated in the loan. Play by Play Toys financed its purchase of Ace Novelty and obtained working capital using a $65 million credit facility. In May 1996, Play by Play Toys purchased Bellevue, Washington-based Ace Novelty Company for $44 million in cash, debt, and some liability assumption. Without the restaurants, Play by Play Toys expected greater focus and concentration on its core business of toys. Though the toy manufacturer ’s two owned-and-operated restaurant units generated about five percent of consolidated sales, Play by Play Toys lost $259,000 in fiscal 1995 because of the restaurants ’ performances, which continued losing money -$111,000 -in the first half of fiscal 1996. In 1996, Play by Play Toys sold its restaurant subsidiary, Restaurants Universal Espa ña S.A., for $1.6 million to Croitex S.A., a firm based in Spain.
Within six years, he sold his restaurant franchises for $125 million, and by 1995 he made Play by Play Toys a public company, with subsidiaries and expansion plans. Ever the entrepreneur, Torres founded Play by Play Toys in 1986 as a vending-machine prize supplier. By the 1980s, this Cuban refugee operated 240 Pizza Huts and Taco Bells.
Before long, though, his drive and determination took him from the kitchen to the board room. Instead he found a job washing dishes at a Pizza Hut in Texas. Arturo Torres, Entrepreneur: The First Ten YearsĪrturo Torres left his native Cuba for America in 1961 with aspirations of becoming a cowboy. Play by Play Toys also designs, develops, and distributes electronic and nonlicensed stuffed toys, as well as sells and distributes a variety of nonlicensed novelty items. The company ’s Play-Faces line of sculpted toy pillows also features licensed characters. The company licenses many prominent characters, including Mickey Mouse, Winnie the Pooh, Bugs Bunny, Tweety, Sylvester, Tasmanian Devil, Animaniacs, Spiderman, Batman, Wolverine, and other properties from Disney Enterprises Inc., Warner Brothers, and Marvel Entertainment Group Inc. Play by Play Toys holds licensing agreements with most of the major players in children ’s entertainment.
#Play by play professional
The company licenses widely recognized characters from children ’s entertainment, professional sports team logos, and corporate trademarks to create its product lines. designs, develops, markets, and distributes stuffed toys and novelties for the amusement and retail industries throughout the world. SICs: 3942 Dolls & Stuffed Toys 3069 Fabricated Rubber Products, Not Elsewhere ClassifiedĪ noted toy manufacturer, Play by Play Toys & Novelties, Inc.
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