Meijer Wins the Battle of the Toy Books

* Reuters is not responsible for the content in this press release.

Thu Nov 12, 2009 11:17am EST

Grand Rapids-Based Retailer Beats National Player Prices On Many Popular Toys



GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Nov. 12 /PRNewswire/ -- It's a surefire sign of the
holiday season as retailers begin mailing their holiday toy books to shoppers
in early November each year. This holiday season, Meijer is setting the pace
by offering lower prices than national retailers on the key toy items featured
in this year's retailer toy books.

"The annual toy books are the first salvo in what promises to be a very
competitive season in retailing," said Jeff Handler, senior vice president of
marketing for Meijer. "We're sending a strong message with our toy book that
we will be competitive with any national retailer on toy prices this holiday
season. In fact, our toy book shows us meeting or beating national players on
90% of identical toys."

Retailers generally mail out their toy books in early November to kick off the
first major toy sale of the season. Meijer's toy book prices went into effect
on November 1 and will stay in effect through this Saturday. Some examples of
Meijer leading the pack in toy pricing with this year's book include:

                                     Meijer    Walmart    Target    Toys R Us
    Playskool Monty Rex              $54.99     $64.00    $58.99       $59.99
    Leap Frog Tag JR Reading System  $27.99     $29.00    $28.99       $29.99
    LIV Fashion Doll                 $14.99     $17.00    $17.99       $14.99


A full toy book price comparison can be found at:
http://meijer.shoplocal.com/meijer

In a comparison of the top 95 toys among such leading retailers as Meijer,
Walmart, Target and Toys 'r Us, Meijer outdid its rivals in terms of low
prices by a substantial margin.  The 95-toy sample showed that Meijer's
cumulative prices were $68.19 less expensive than Walmart's; $181.21 less than
Target's, and $187.32 less than Toys 'r Us. The sale prices listed in Meijer's
toy book are in addition to Meijer's recent announcement that it has dropped
prices on more than 400 popular toys in its toy department, while offering a
number of toys for less than $5.  

According to industry estimates, more than 45% of toy sales occur between
Thanksgiving and Christmas. While industry experts are predicting that the $23
billion annual toy market will be "flat" this holiday season, Meijer is
gearing up for a busy holiday season in its toy department.

About Meijer
Meijer is a Grand Rapids, Michigan based retailer that operates 190
supercenters throughout Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky. As
the inventor of the "one-stop shopping" concept, Meijer stores have evolved
through the years to include expanded fresh produce and meat departments, as
well as pharmacies, comprehensive electronics departments, garden centers and
apparel offerings. Additional information on Meijer and the ability to shop
for more can be found at www.meijer.com.


SOURCE  Meijer

Frank Guglielmi, +1-734-844-2781, frank.guglielmi@meijer.com
Comments (0)
This discussion is now closed. We welcome comments on our articles for a limited period after their publication.