Feature
Action vehicles
Track and race Though innovation is key within the Action Vehicle category, with manufacturers always looking to move up a gear to keep the consumer interested, it’s often a balancing act in weighing up demand for the new with more tried and trusted elements, as Toy World’s Sam Giltrow discovers.
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he Action Vehicle category is a diverse and consistent sector of the toy market; comprising diecast, radio control and slot racing items, it remains a staple of every toy retail channel, covering every price point from pocket money pick-up to top-end festive purchase. While some retailers opt to pursue an own brand strategy in certain areas, strong brands remain a cornerstone of the category. Whether it is Hot Wheels or HTI’s Teamsterz brand in diecast, Nikko, Maisto or Burago in radio control or Scalextric in slot racing, the category includes some of the toy market’s most enduring brands. The Action Vehicle market also benefits from innovation and the introduction of cutting edge technology into product line-ups; ThreeSixty Group has introduced what it describes as the world’s first ceiling climbing RC to the Sharper Image range this year, which received a strong reception at Toy Fair, while Hexbug has reinvented the RC tuner car with the fully customisable Hexmods kits. One area of Action Vehicles which enjoyed huge success and a resurgence among families during the pandemic lockdowns was slot-racing, but how are suppliers managing to keep this momentum going and keep consumers interested in adding to their collections? It’s a challenge, says Sarah Frame, marketing manager, Scalextric but one which the company has managed to meet head on, even widening the appeal
of the historic brand. Traditionally a product which comes into its own in the run-up to the festive season, in recent years Scalextric has become an increasingly popular choice outside of the Christmas period due to the brand’s growing offering of film and TV themed products, including the Bluesmobile, Mr Bean’s Do-ItYourself Mini and Knight Rider’s KITT. “To continue to grow appeal, an element of the product needs to technically innovate. Consumers expect to see this, but it has to be optional when it comes to traditional and nostalgic gameplay in brands such as Scalextric. Scalextric has a huge history which is naturally seen as a positive, but legacy can complicate evolvement and innovation,” Sarah explains. “The key to maximising on this innovation is to recognise the different consumer wants and needs, then produce different products for these different segments.” She adds that recently there has been “huge opportunity” in the kidult market, which is why one of the leading Scalextric sets for 2022 is the Back to the Future vs Knight Rider set, which comes in traditional 80s style Scalextric packaging. “It will resonate with and spark nostalgia in children of the ‘80s for them to share with their children,” adds Sarah. Also benefiting from the hankering for nostalgic toys is Scalextric’s Hornby stablemate, Corgi, which has a long-standing association with the James Bond licence. This, according to Corgi brand executive David Mather has yielded one of the most famous die-cast toys ever created: the 261 Aston Martin DB5 from Goldfinger.
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The importance of licences to the brand, he says, is huge and 2021 saw strong sales for Corgi thanks to the release of the latest Bond film, No Time to Die, which was accompanied by the release of multiple vehicles in the range. Another No Time to Die product will also be launched later this year, that will place Corgi into a new sector of the die-cast market for the first time: a 1:12 scale recreation of the Triumph 1200 ridden by Bond in the film’s opening sequence. “We have never produced a motorcycle at this size before, and as such we are packing it with detail and additional features such as sprung suspension and etched parts,” David told us. “We hope it will be the first in a line of model motorcycles that link intrinsically to the sense of British heritage which is so important to the Corgi brand.” Corgi is currently in the final stages of securing another famous ‘household name’ entertainment licence for announcement later in the year, which in turn will feature a partnership marketing approach, adds David. In addition, Corgi is also working to secure multiple new licences for 2023. Another company which has brands with long heritage is Nikko Toys, which celebrates its 65th anniversary in 2023. The company creates, designs and markets innovative radio controlled, light & sound and construction vehicles. “For us, having brands with long heritage allows us to pull inspiration from deep archives of products and ideas,” says the company’s president of sales and marketing, Laibond Cheng.
