How couple made sure toys are not just for Christmas

MANILA, Philippines—Every child deserves a happy childhood.”

These words motivated Myrna Yao to veer away from the family business of dealership of Goodyear tires and concentrate on what she loves doing best: giving joy to kids.

Myrna and her husband, Alberto, established Richwell Trading in 1980 to distribute Goodwill tires, and within two years, have become the top distributor in the Philippines.

Amid the success, Myrna, however, was overwhelmed and felt everything was going too fast. She decided to take a breather from tires and put up a business the whirlwind of which she would not mind being caught in.

She need not look far as her innate affection for kids brought her to the idea of franchising quality toy brands, starting with the very popular Barbie brand.

“[Some] toys during that time were banned (because of the martial law years when imports were limited), and the toy section in every store is so small, and they only have that during Christmas. Toys were considered a luxury item like perfumes, so it was really a big challenge,” says Myrna.

Aside from expensive toys during the time, there were also limited brands that come into the local market. Most of the stores that carry these brands, in fact, stock their supplies via imports. There was no distributor that supplied the toys to the stores.

Myrna approached the makers of Barbie, Mattel Toys, which manufactured the dolls here, and offered a business proposal. At that time, two other major stores were vying to get the dealership.

Undaunted by the big-named competitions, Richwell presented a proposal offering to distribute the brand in different stores in the country, unlike the two other vying competitors which would limit the distribution only to places where they have outlets.

After several interviews, planning, and discussions, Richwell Trading was awarded the exclusive distributorship of Mattel Toys in the Philippines in 1982.

Birthing pains

When the Yaos acquired the franchise for Barbie, they knew that it would be difficult to quash the notion that toys are bought only during Christmas. They decided to make the Barbie brand more mainstream by pushing the brand all year long, especially during the opening of classes.

“We have to change the mindset of the market. During school openings, they (the stores) would take out the toys again, so I introduced special discounts for Barbie during school openings,” she says.

They also introduced trade shows to showcase the toys and put up mobiles to attract customers. After dealing with retailers who ordered only a few pieces every day, extra discounts were offered to retailers who would come up with longer game plans.

Myrna also talked to the SM management and convinced them to have a Barbie Corner in their stores. Aside from the dolls, this corner will have Barbie shoes, bags, shirts, and other merchandise that would definitely be attractive to little girls.

The mall chain liked this idea and set up the first Barbie Corner in SM Makati in 1989, making the Philippines the first country to have this kind of marketing for the famous brand.

“I started designing the shoes … all the designs and the concepts are sent to Mattel for approval, but we manufacture the products. That’s why our shoes are unique compared to other countries. Other countries, like the US, only have the athletic kind, but here we have all, from boots to sandals. I want kids to be fashionable … I love dressing them up,” Myrna shares.

Toy trends

Aside from Mattel products, Richwell Trading has also acquired distribution rights for other popular toy brands like Matchbox, Sesame Street, Disney, Polly Pocket, Chicco, Vtech, Dora the Explorer, Hotwheels, UNO, and Fischer Price, among others.

Considering the changing fads and preferences of kids with their toys, Richwell has dropped several brands after their popularity ran out.

“It happens. The toy business comes around. There are always new players. Trendy toys normally last for three to five years, like what happened to Bratz. Now it’s the Angry Birds,” says Myrna.

This is a clear indication of how fast the toy industry changes over time. Some toys, like Barbie and Sesame Street, have reached iconic status, while others fade away when their time is up.

But Myrna continues to sell toys that kids would enjoy whether they are popular or not, as she believes toys are outlets for kids to be creative.

Even with the advent of electronic gadgets and social networking sites, she knows that kids would still come back to their toys.

“Toys are things you appreciate, and be more creative [with]. In fact, for me, one advantage of toys is that it’s a way for children to develop themselves, that their minds are developed to be more artistic,” she says.

One thing Myrna noticed over the years is that with so many toy brands nowadays, children are more picky in choosing their toys. Before there were only a few brands to choose from and kids were easy to please, now they have become very particular with their toys. Because of this, Myrna always makes sure that their products are unique from their competitions.

Copyright infringement

Carrying popular toy brands also creates problems for the company as they have to deal with imitators selling cheaper versions of their products.

Myrna admits that it causes them headaches, not to mention loss in profits, but she believes that the consumers are intelligent enough to know the disadvantages of giving unsafe toys to their children.

Health issues stemming from toys that have lead are just some of the harm that could result in scrimping on cheap toys.

With the original brand, Myrna assures the consumers that the makers would always protect the safety of the kids, for their names are not the only ones at stake.

“Kids are really protected with branded toys, because with unbranded toys, you really don’t know what’s in it, what it’s made of. If something happens to the child…,” Myrna says.

She hopes that the government would have more teeth in implementing the law on copyright infringement to protect both the consumers and the industry.

With over 40 toy brands, Richwell Trading has branched out to other kids’ stuff like clothes, bags, and even baby products. From infants and toddlers, they even carry products for pre-teens who are still fond of these toy brands.

Every year they get new lines, introduce new products, and as the kids’ preference in toys changes over the years, Richwell Trading is prepared to deliver and provide them that happy childhood.