ByXiaYuanyuan
Fewmenhavecomeacrosstheireurekamomentwhilechangingnappiesandpreparinginfantformula,butthat’swhatmakesXuShuasuperman,or,tobemoreprecise,thefounderofToySuperman.
Whenhehadababytwoyearsago,thethen31-year-oldwentthroughalltheordealsparentsundergo,especiallytryingtokeepheramusedwiththetoysshewantedwithoutgoingbankrupt.
XufoundthatChineseparentsweregenerallyspendingabout2,000-3,000yuan($305-$458)everyyearonbuyingtoysfortheirchildren.Itwasano-winsituationbecausedespitespendingallthatmoney,thetoyswereoftendiscardedwithinmonthsorevenweekswiththechildlosinginterestandmovingontoanothernewtoy.
Whilemostparentsacceptedthisstoically,itgaveXuShuabrainwave.Whynotrentouttoys,hethought,andthat’showhisonline-to-offlinetoyrentalbusinesswasbornlastyear.
ToySupermanisasitethatallowsparentstorenttoysfortheirchildrenatafractionofthepricetheywouldhavetopaytobuythembyusingitseponymousphoneapp.“Thisway,parentscanreducetheamountofmoneytheywastebuyingtoysthatbecomeoutdated.Rentingtoyswouldalsomeanahouseunclutteredbypilesofunusedtoysandtherefore,morespace,”Xuoutlinedtheadvantages.
Hugemarketpotential
LivinginBeijingasastay-at-homemother,32-yearoldXiaoYuanishappywiththenewlyemergedtoyrentalbusiness.Forher,buyingaplaythingforachildisnotasimplething.Ifit’saboy,thepopulartoysarecarswithremotecontrol,robotsandmodelplanes.Ifit’sagirl,thenBarbiedollsaremandatory.Plustherearetheteachingaidtoysdifferentvarietiesfordifferentagegroups.“Sometimesitmakesmegocrazytryingtochooseatoyformyson,”Xiaosaid.“It’seasiertojustrentthetoyshelikes.”
Today’skidshavea“lovingthenew,loathingtheold”kindofmindsetandtheirinterestinanewtoywanesjustaftersevento10days.Thenthosediscardedtoyspileupinacorner,justtakingupspace.
That’snotall.“Thepriceoftoystodayisnojoke,”XiaotoldChinAfrica.“Somehigh-qualitytoyscancostanythingfromhundredstothousandsofyuan.ThepricesofsomeimportedbrandssuchasAmericanFisher-Pricearetotallyscary!”
TheChinesetoymarkethashugepotential.AccordingtoasurveybyEuromonitorInternational,theLondon-basedstrategicmarketresearcher,retailsalesintheChinesetoymarketreached74.4billionyuan($11.3billion)in2014.Theagencyestimatesthefigurewilltouch100billionyuan($15.2billion)in2017.
Thenumberoftoyconsumersislargeandgrowing.Euromonitorsaidby2013,thenumberofmajortoycustomerswhowerelessthan14yearsoldwas220millionontheChinesemainlandalone.Besides,withtheChineseGovernmentchangingitsfamilyplanningpolicy,afamilycanhaveasecondchildnow.Itmeanseveryyear,therewillbeanextra5millionnewborns,whowouldbepotentialconsumers.
Seeingthevastpotentialforfuturedevelopment,inMarch2016,dozensofinvestorsofferednearly10millionyuan($1.52million)toToySupermantosupportitsdevelopment.
Howthebusinessworks
ToySupermancurrentlyhasasmallofficeinBeijing.Thestaffacceptonlineordersanddirectthetransportstafftodeliverthetoysfromthewarehousetoconsumers.
ToySupermannowhasacollectionofover2,000piecesoftoysinmorethan500categories.Fromsmallitemssuchaspuzzlesandbuildingblockstolargerpiecessuchasrockinghorsesandtrampolines,ithasmost,ifnotall,thetoysparentslookforchildrentilltheageofsixyears.EightypercentoftheseareimportedbecauseXuthinksimportedtoyshavebetterqualityandhigherwear-and-tearresistance.
ThemostattractivethingaboutToySupermanistheaffordablerental,which,onaverage,isbelow10yuan($1.5)perday.
“Ioncewantedtobuyamulti-functiontableby[American]HapeToysforchildrentolearnnumbersandcharacters,butthepricewasmorethan4,000yuan($610),andIgaveuptheideaassoonasIsawtheprice,”saidLiMengmeng,a35-year-oldmother,whoisworkingasanurseinahospitalinBeijing.
“However,atToySuperman,youcanrentitforonly28.5yuan($4.35)perday.”
Xusaysparentsenjoythebenefitoflowercostsbyco-sharing.“ToySupermanprovidesparentsaplatformtomaximizetheiraccesstotoys,easesfinancialstressandreleasesspaceforafamily,”hesaid.
AccordingtoasurveybySpain’sUniversityofCadiz,plasticwasteaccountsfor88percentoftherubbishfoundfloatingonseasworldwide.Apartofitcomesfromtoys.“Therecyclingoftoysgoeswiththegreen,lowcarbonconsumptionconcept,”Xusaid.“What’smore,whenkidsplaywithrentedtoys,theyaretoldtohandlethemcarefullyastheywouldhavetosharethemwithotherkids.Inthisway,childrencanbeimbibedwithasenseofsharingfromanearlyage.”
Oneparentalconcernaboutsharedtoysisthesafetyaspect.XusaidToySupermantakesaverystrictapproachtodisinfectingthetoysoncetheyarereturnedbyausertoguaranteetheyarecleanandsafetouse.Afterbeingcleanedrigorously,thetoysarestoredinthewarehousethatXusaysisdisinfectedaswell.“Thecleanlinessandsafetyofourtoysisguaranteed,”hesaid.
Forthetoyrentalindustry,Xuthinksthemarketinghastobealittledifferent.“Westressemotionmarketingsincetoysarenotjustcoldplasticsbutthemeanstobringhappinesstoyoungsters,”hesaid.CA
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Rentingtoysonlineisconvenientandcheaper