POWER RANGERS A DRAG ON IRWIN
By Adnews Staff
The Power Rangers aren't as popular as Irwin Toy Limited hoped they'd be. While the Toronto toy maker expected a decline in Power Rangers sales this year, the drop was a lot sharper than anticipated. Even the release of a Power Rangers movie did not revive sales. Irwin is blaming an overall drop in sales this year to the fall of the Power Rangers. The company says its new toy lines, such as ReBoot and Sailor Moon, have a lot of potential which could improve the bottom line next year. Sales for Irwin's sporting goods, which includes Winnwell ice hockey equipment, Redline in-line hockey gear and Cooper baseball equipment, should remain even with last year. Net earnings for the nine months ended Oct. 31 were $47,000, compared with $4.3 million for the same period last year. Consolidated net sales for the nine months were $71,834,000, down from $84,071,000 in 1994. For the three months ending Oct. 31, Irwin had a net loss of $458,000, compared with net earning of $2.4 million during the same period last year.