00:00it was one of the biggest pop culture trends of all time a cute toy along with a brilliant
00:13business strategy would spark an unusual craze that took over the world in a dramatic fashion
00:19let's take a look back at the pop culture phenomenon that was the beanie babies
00:22and find out how it became such a widespread sensation
00:25most parents would agree nothing brings a child a high level of excitement quite like a brand new toy
00:43the toy industry brings in billions of dollars of revenue annually thanks to their commercials
00:47that pique interest among the youth while the sector is usually dominated by the few giants in
00:53the toy world every so often a small company comes along with a product that sets the market on fire
01:01and that would be the case for harold ty warner after working as a toy salesman for years just
01:07like his father harold decided to use his entire life savings to start his own toy company called
01:14ty incorporated his plan was to create fun and unique toys for children using the expertise he
01:21gained from his time as an employee in the field instead of targeting major department stores for
01:27his products warner chose to supply to specialized toy shops and small businesses just like the one he
01:33worked for prior one of his first designs would be a plush doll filled with tiny beans based on an
01:39assortment of recognizable animals they would be accompanied by a unique name and style which set
01:46them apart from one another the adorable dolls were very affordable with an average price tag of five
01:52to ten dollars however the thai company would struggle to find success with the dolls for the
01:58first few years after they hit the market but that soon would change
02:04to help better push the product going forward warner was advised to create a website that would focus on
02:10direct to consumer purchases it was the first of its kind as the internet was still in its infancy stage
02:16and most companies hadn't realized its potential yet the upcoming new line of dolls would feature a tag
02:23prompting consumers to visit their official online web page with very few homes having the internet and
02:30not many websites being available to surf the thai company would get a good amount of traffic and it
02:36helped boost sales as a result in a short amount of time more animals would be introduced and new
02:42features like poems were added to their tags the market soon began to develop more interest in the
02:49dolls especially when it came to adults but problems began to arise with production of one of their more
02:55popular designs the lovable lamb ty warner employed a very smart marketing tactic that created scarcity
03:04once the manufacturing seized on the variation going forward beanie babies would become discontinued
03:11after the remainder of the small inventory supply was depleted having high demand and low supply would
03:17be a recipe to drive consumers into chaos thousands of adults rushed to the stores seeking out the now
03:24rarity items some buying them for their children others stocking up the collectibles for themselves
03:30even the scalpers saw an opportunity to make some quick cash with the now hot commodities
03:37baby craze was in full swing with long lines there we found them waiting at a store for them to open
03:44up so they could buy the newest ones i think we're stupid to stand in line to get a bag of beans you'll
03:50admit that i admit it but what you won't do for your grandchildren once the store opened people were
03:57pretty civil and they got inside for the beanie babies of their choice
04:09new websites like ebay saw an uptick in traffic with the toys being resold to the highest bidder
04:15the company would introduce even more variations and store exclusives making them even more desirable to
04:21obtain and the dolls with manufacturing errors such as misspelling of words being the crown jewel of
04:28them all because because of the retirements and introductions of beanie babies the price of a
04:34current beanie baby as valley can go up the potential investment value could be very good
04:38can you give us examples of that for the october 1st 1997 retired seymour was one of them he's up to
04:46about 150 to 200 right now and he was a five dollar beanie the new face brown teddy is up to
04:52about 100 right now new face brown today's already up to 100 close to 100 the line had become a pop
04:59culture phenomenon and taken over the world of retail by the time the new millennium had arrived
05:05the company made nearly 3 billion in sales the owner ty warner would reach billionaire status quickly
05:12and in return paid his employees handsomely as the beanie babies were quite the money printing machine
05:19over time the craze began to simmer down newer toys and video games hit the store shelves that now
05:25piqued interest for consumers the beanie baby craze still remains one of the biggest phenomenons ever
05:32in pop culture history what are your thoughts on this story leave a comment below and let me know
05:42do
05:49you
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