In 2015, Disney’s ‘Force Friday’ retail event landed Star Wars the achievement of the best-selling toy franchise in Australia for eighteen straight months.
With the sequel, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, out in cinemas this December, ‘Force Friday II’ rolls out first in Australia and then globally, on Friday, September 1st.
The range of ‘toys’ will include app-controlled droids and programmable robots.
Whilst the usual names of retailers who will be involved in this event doesn’t seem to surprise – including Big W, Target and Myer – the inclusion of Harvey Norman and JB Hi-Fi may.
Speaking of JB & Norman’s inclusion, Disney’s General Manager for Consumer Products and Retail for Australia & NZ, Meagan Sanders states:
“These guys don’t traditionally carry toys. One of the good things about challenging retail is people are starting to look for opportunity and they’re saying ‘if I’m not getting the volume of sales or the velocity there, what else could I be doing that makes sense to the shopper that’s walking in to my premises?”
See high-tech droid toy, R2-D2, in action below:
(Star Wars Droid BB8)
(New Star Wars Droid BB-9E)
Disney, too, states it hasn’t been immune to the changing retail environment, noting that the shift has caused it to be more innovative about meeting consumer needs, and choosing where to place its product.
